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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Bhagavad Gita

श्रीमद भगवतगीता

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Krishna reveals his Vishvarupa form to Arjuna during the discourse of the Bhagavad Gita.
Krishna reveals his Vishvarupa form to Arjuna during the discourse of the Bhagavad Gita.

The Bhagavad Gita (Sanskrit भगवद्गीता, Bhagavad Gītā, "Song of God") is a Sanskrit text from the chapter Bhishma Parva of the Mahabharata epic, comprising 700 verses.[1]

Krishna, as the speaker of the Bhagavad Gita, is referred to within as Bhagavan[2] (the divine one). The verses themselves, using the range and style of Sanskrit meter (chhandas) with similes and metaphors, are written in a poetic form that is traditionally chanted; hence the title, which translates to "the Song of the Divine One". The Bhagavad Gita is revered as sacred by Hindu traditions,[3] and especially so by Vaishnavas (followers of Vishnu). It is commonly referred to as The Gita.

The content of the text is a conversation between Krishna and Arjuna taking place on the battlefield of Kurukshetra just prior to the start of the Kurukshetra war. Responding to Arjuna's confusion and moral dilemma, Krishna explains to Arjuna his duties as a warrior and Prince and elaborates on different Yogic[4] and Vedantic philosophies, with examples and analogies. This has led to the Gita often being described as a concise guide to Hindu philosophy and also as a practical, self-contained guide to life. During the discourse, Krishna reveals his identity as the Supreme Being Himself (Svayam bhagavan), blessing Arjuna with an awe-inspiring glimpse of His divine universal form.

The Bhagavad Gita is also called Gitopanishad as well as Yogopanishad, implying its status as an Upanishad, or a Vedantic scripture.[5] Since the Gita is drawn from the Mahabharata, it is included in Smriti texts. However, being one of Upanishads, it has a status of śruti, or revealed knowledge.[6][7]

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SRI RAGHAVENDRA SWAMY

Sri Raghavendra was the greatest author and preacher in the line of Madhva in the last 500 years. He wrote countless books establishing Krishna as the Absolute Truth. He gave special stress to the chanting of the names of Krishna, and in particular he recommended the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. While he was present in the world, he performed many miracles, including bringing the dead back to life. After completing his preaching work, he chose to enter "jiva-samadhi", where a saint is buried in his samadhi while still living. Before entering the samadhi he told his disciples he would live physically for 100 years, in his books for 300 years, and in his samadhi for 700 years. He ordered his disciples to place 1,008 shalagrama shilas on top of his head, and then cover him with dirt. Till this day Sri Raghavendra is still living within the samadhi in mantralaya. He has manifested himself to many people, including a British government officer who came to confiscate the ashram's lands. This instance was recorded by the British officer in the government gazette at the time. The scriptures establish Sri Raghavendra as a partial incarnation of Bhakta Prahlada, the great devotee of Sri Narasimha Avatara. You will find in Raghavendra temples, the utsava murti (festival deity) is not of Raghavendra, but of Bhakta Prahlada. The main "deity" will be a replica of his samadhi (called a Brindavana) with dirt taken from the original samadhi in Mantralaya. In front of this will be a deity of Bhakta Prahlada. They treat the samadhi as the body of Sri Raghavendra and bathe, dress, and apply twelve tilaks to it just as we do to our body. Devotees of Sri Raghavendra pray to him with the following mantra: pujyaya raghavendraya satyadharmarataya ca bhajatam kalpavrikshaya namatam kamadhenave Sri Raghavendra is like a kalpa-vriksha (a desire fulfilling tree) for he always takes care of his devotees' spiritual needs.

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