A dialogue on how to live

Śrīmad
Bhagavad Gītā

Eighteen chapters.
One enduring conversation.

Sanskrit and English, side by side.
Begin anywhere, or follow the dialogue from the start.

The eighteen chapters

Sanskrit · English · Reading notes
  1. Arjuna lowers his bow between the two armies while Krishna waits beside him.01

    Chapter 1 47 verses

    Arjuna’s Despair

    On the field of battle, a warrior confronts the cost of victory.

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  2. Krishna teaches Arjuna beneath a vast luminous sky over the battlefield.02

    Chapter 2 72 verses

    The Yoga of Wisdom

    The enduring Self, a steady mind, and the beginning of wisdom.

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  3. Krishna guides Arjuna’s chariot as the world awakens to its work.03

    Chapter 3 43 verses

    The Yoga of Action

    Act wholeheartedly, without making the reward your master.

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  4. Ancient sages gather around a sacred fire in the light of Krishna’s teaching.04

    Chapter 4 42 verses

    Wisdom, Action & Renunciation

    Knowledge transforms action, as fire transforms an offering.

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  5. A serene sage beside a river and a lotus untouched by the water.05

    Chapter 5 29 verses

    The Yoga of Renunciation

    Freedom within action, untouched as a lotus leaf by water.

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  6. A yogi meditates in a quiet grove beside a lamp sheltered from the wind.06

    Chapter 6 47 verses

    The Yoga of Meditation

    Return the wandering mind, gently and steadily, to the Self.

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  7. Krishna amid the elements of nature, joined like jewels upon a golden thread.07

    Chapter 7 30 verses

    Knowledge & Realization

    Discover the divine thread running through the whole world.

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  8. A contemplative devotee faces a radiant cosmic dawn and a distant sun.08

    Chapter 8 28 verses

    The Imperishable Eternal

    Remembrance, the final passage, and what does not pass away.

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  9. A humble offering of leaf, flower, fruit, and water before Krishna.09

    Chapter 9 34 verses

    The Royal Knowledge

    The deepest mystery, found in a simple offering of love.

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  10. Sunlight, mountains, a great river, a tree, and a lion surround Krishna.10

    Chapter 10 42 verses

    The Divine Glories

    The extraordinary in nature becomes a doorway to the divine.

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  11. Krishna’s universal form shines through countless celestial worlds as Arjuna kneels.11

    Chapter 11 55 verses

    The Vision of the Universal Form

    Arjuna beholds all existence within Krishna’s boundless form.

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  12. A devotee offers flowers at Krishna’s feet in a luminous garden.12

    Chapter 12 20 verses

    The Yoga of Devotion

    Love becomes a way of living: steady, compassionate, without hatred.

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  13. A solitary witnessing figure stands before a vast field beneath the open sky.13

    Chapter 13 34 verses

    The Field & Its Knower

    Distinguish changing experience from the one who knows it.

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  14. One figure amid luminous clarity, crimson activity, and deep indigo shadow.14

    Chapter 14 27 verses

    The Three Qualities of Nature

    Clarity, activity, and inertia—and the freedom beyond them.

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  15. An immense inverted aśvattha tree has roots in heaven and branches reaching toward the worlds.15

    Chapter 15 20 verses

    The Supreme Person

    The world-tree reaches down from roots beyond the visible.

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  16. A luminous path of compassion contrasts with a storm-dark fortress of pride.16

    Chapter 16 24 verses

    Divine & Demonic Qualities

    The dispositions that lead toward freedom, and those that bind.

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  17. Offerings surround a sacred fire, from quiet sincerity to ostentatious display.17

    Chapter 17 28 verses

    The Threefold Faith

    Intention shapes our faith, our speech, our giving, and our practice.

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  18. Arjuna stands resolute beside Krishna on their chariot beneath a hopeful dawn.18

    Chapter 18 78 verses

    Liberation Through Renunciation

    The teaching gathers into clarity, surrender, and the courage to act.

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