Non-Violence and the Bhagavad Gita | Gandhi Jayanti

Non-violence and the Bhagavad Gita

Mahatma Gandhi considered The Bhagavad Gita as his ‘Mother’ and the encyclopedia for spiritual enlightenment. Strangely, it seems conflicting to many people that a scripture based on a violent war is the basis of Gandhi’s principle of non-violence.

It is a common misconception.

Violence is ‘Not’ at the Core of the Gita

Know that to reach self-actualization, you must ‘kill’ what is most dear to you including your personal attachments. And you can accomplish it by killing your own ego. This is one of the key teachings of the Gita.

So, refrain from seeing the Song of God just as a book teaching violence and war. Take reference from God’s words, put your own inner struggles in perspective and endeavour to kill your negative emotions. They could be despondency, anger, hatred, insecurity, attachment and greed.

From this endeavour, nonviolence would emerge within you as an attribute.

Further, The Gita lists Ahimsa as a key virtue for a Yogi. It helps seekers understand another’s joys and sorrows as their own. It helps them in moving on the path of meditation which ultimately results in inner peace.

‘Dharma’ is at the Core of The Gita

Also, consider The Gita as a dialogue on the profound topic of Dharma, which is a non-translatable word and a word that had been described in many ways.

Dharma is a unique entity due to which the whole existence of something can be proved. The Gita teaches it to seekers in a detailed ways among other wonderful virtues.

Moreover, many people think Gita propagates non-violence as the ultimate Dharma of human beings and war is the only way to the welfare of all beings. This is yet another misconception.

The Bhagavad Gita & Non-Violence

In the Bhagavad Gita, God states ‘Ahimsa’ should be observed so long as it does not become an obstacle in observance of eternal Dharma. He has described 26 virtues of a saintly nature in Chapter 16, Verse 1-3. Non-violence is one of these virtues.

अहिंसा सत्यमक्रोधस्त्याग: शान्तिरपैशुनम् |

God wants human beings to never obstruct life of other living beings through thought, word, or deed and he calls this attribute as Non-violence.

Further, in Chapter 10, Verse 4-5, God says, among 20 emotions, non-violence is one of the emotions that is created by Him only.

अहिंसा समता तुष्टिस्तपो दानं यशोऽयश: |

God never wants anyone to be violent. He wants all to follow their Dharma and win over all the battles of life. Hence, this is your duty to gain advancement in your spiritual knowledge. You should never put other people into a situation of grief.

So, attain the real knowledge from the Bhagavad Gita and be enlightened like Mahatma Gandhi. He practiced the teachings of The Gita all his life and also motivated everyone to follow the path of non-violence and truth in order to achieve the higher goals of life.