The Bhagavad Gita begins with the story of a person in grief, who finds it difficult to decide what his dharma is. His difficulty and indecision have arisen due to attachments and desires. These have given birth to grief, dejection and depression.
Before him stands Sri Krishna, who sees this person forgetting his dharma, falling into a depressive and grief-stricken state of mind, and undergoing a nervous breakdown affecting his entire personality. Sri Krishna has no choice but to try and bring Arjuna out of this physical and psychological condition, so that he can follow his dharma and discover the appropriate understanding which will lead him towards success in life.
Sri Krishna continuously inspires Arjuna the warrior, to become active and involved in the performance of his duties. He repeatedly reminds Arjuna to perform his duty with detachment, perfection and creativity, and to express and give his best.
In the early days, when I came to the ashram, one of Sri Swamiji’s instructions was to give my best. He said, “Niranjan, believe that every day is a new day and that there is always something to learn in that new day. The day that has gone does not come back again. Always be alert to learn whatever you can every day.”
Sri Swamiji inspired me to become active mentally, to keep my eyes open and my awareness expanded to see the new lessons I could learn and imbibe every day. That process continues even today. It is one way of understanding involvement in karma. This is also a learning from the Gita.