Slokas - 21 & 22

"Welcome,

"My dear Arjuna, welcome.

"I am happy you have chosen to listen to me. This itself is a turning point in your life. Hereafter you find everywhere and in everything a divine purpose. Nothing is unholy. Nothing is ugly. Nothing is fearful. Everybody is indeed divine. If you are weak, you feel miserable. If you are afraid, everything will frighten you. If you try to run away, you will have to be running away always from pillar to post, from post to pillar. Face; face everything and everybody with strength, with courage, with conviction. Be bold and be fearless."

"Arjuna, why do you try to run away from the battles of life, problems of life? They are unavoidable and the truth is they alone make life. It is pleasure to face them, it is pleasure to fight them, it is pleasure to solve them, it is pleasure to witness them. It is pleasure to play the game of life — its ups and downs."

This wise, Sri Krishna exhorted Arjuna to be a hero and fight.

Kauravas and Pandavas are cousins. Kauravas are one hundred and their armies are eleven Akshaunis. Pandavas are five and their armies are only seven Akshaunis. Pandavas are denied their kingdom by Duryodhana, the eldest of the Kauravas. Now there is a fight for the kingdom. It is a righteous war that the Pandavas have proposed to wage. Arjuna is a Pandava skilled in archery. He is all enthusiasm to kill the enemies, to remove the hurdles, to solve the problems. But unfortunately on the battlefield, in the examination hall, at the threshold of life, he suddenly became weak and feeble, feverish and despondent. He did not want to fight. He wanted to avoid the battle. He appeared to be an escapist in the name of kindness and concern for others. So, Sri Krishna asks him to be strong and bold and face the life.

Upanishads are the treasure house of wisdom. They are 108 in number. They are all like the cow of precious milk, nutritious, medicinal and delicious. Arjuna the devotee is like a calf desiring to drink that milk. Sri Krishna facilitates Arjuna to drink the wisdom from the cow of Upanishads. And the precious milk is the celestial nectar Gita. Whoever sips even a drop of this milk is sure to rise in spirituality, enjoying equanimity always.

And this great Gita is a part of the Mahabharata dictated by Vyasa Maharishi and taken down by Lord Vinayaka. Sage Vyasa is wise and Vinayaka is the wise promoter of peace and spirituality by causing hurdles and by removing the obstacles according to the needs of the individuals in progress.

May we all drink the nectar of the Gita for the solace of all - always.