Ian L. Montesclaros
Professor Andrew Reinsch
Religion 231
December 8 2016
The Bhagavad Gita and the Purpose of Life
Throughout my life, I’ve always wondered if my existence in this world had a purpose. Was I born with an obligation to fulfil? Does everyone have the same purpose? Because of my curiosity, I wanted my topic for my research to be on the purpose of life. In this paper, my goal is to reveal the purpose of life using the Bhagavad Gita from John D. Smith’s the Mahabharata as my primary source.
DUTY
Every human being is born with a duty or dharma. A person can never be free from duty. Duty embodies the highest form of being. It is connected to the cosmos (Krishnananda par. 1). Dharma is the moral code that one must follow to achieve liberation from samsara which is the cycle of death and reincarnation (Dharma (Hinduism)). Thus, the purpose of life is attained through dharma. To fulfil dharma, one …show more content…
If all his undertakings are empty of desire and will, the wise call him a man of learning, for his karma is burnt away by the fire of his knowledge. If he gives up all attachment to the fruits of his actions, and is ever satisfied and free from dependence, then even if he engages in action he in fact does nothing at all. If he rids himself of hope, controls his mind and gives up all possessions, performing actions only with the body, he incurs no sin. If he is content with whatever he happens to get, passing beyond the pairs of opposites, remaining free of jealousy and retaining equanimity in both success and failure, then even though he acts he is not enslaved. If he attains detachment and freedom, fixes his mind on knowledge and acts for the purpose of sacrifice, all his karma is dissolved. (Smith
Professor Andrew Reinsch
Religion 231
December 8 2016
The Bhagavad Gita and the Purpose of Life
Throughout my life, I’ve always wondered if my existence in this world had a purpose. Was I born with an obligation to fulfil? Does everyone have the same purpose? Because of my curiosity, I wanted my topic for my research to be on the purpose of life. In this paper, my goal is to reveal the purpose of life using the Bhagavad Gita from John D. Smith’s the Mahabharata as my primary source.
DUTY
Every human being is born with a duty or dharma. A person can never be free from duty. Duty embodies the highest form of being. It is connected to the cosmos (Krishnananda par. 1). Dharma is the moral code that one must follow to achieve liberation from samsara which is the cycle of death and reincarnation (Dharma (Hinduism)). Thus, the purpose of life is attained through dharma. To fulfil dharma, one …show more content…
If all his undertakings are empty of desire and will, the wise call him a man of learning, for his karma is burnt away by the fire of his knowledge. If he gives up all attachment to the fruits of his actions, and is ever satisfied and free from dependence, then even if he engages in action he in fact does nothing at all. If he rids himself of hope, controls his mind and gives up all possessions, performing actions only with the body, he incurs no sin. If he is content with whatever he happens to get, passing beyond the pairs of opposites, remaining free of jealousy and retaining equanimity in both success and failure, then even though he acts he is not enslaved. If he attains detachment and freedom, fixes his mind on knowledge and acts for the purpose of sacrifice, all his karma is dissolved. (Smith