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the issue in one’s life?” “How does one handle it?” “What to
expect?” and “How to present oneself before this journey called
life?” It is widely acknowledged that of the three, Gītā is lucid,
easy to comprehend and yet carries the spirit of the other two
works.

Gītā – A means to restore balance in our Lives

Gītā forms a part of the Bhishma-parva in the Mahābhārata. It is
a conversation between Arjuna and Krishna. This is not just
another religious talk, but something that can help one lead a
healthy life and develop a vyaktitva or character. In his
commentary on Gītā, Ādi Śankara began with a brief
introduction explaining what necessitated his writing the
commentary. He begins this section as follows:

The dharma propounded in the Vedas are laid out in two blocks
– “Dvividho hi vedoktho dharmaḥ”, these being “Pravṛtti lakṣana”
and “Nivrtti lakṣṇa”. Essentially, every one of us must have two
dimensions, one pertains to day-to-day activities and another
pertains to deep contemplation within. Nivṛtti is peace,
contemplation, or serene thinking. Pravṛtti is being industrious.
He says both are very important. Our life has both. One talks
about action and the other talks about having a certain peace of
mind.

Furthermore, the balance of these two is what constitutes the
central cause for sustainability (“jagathaḥ sthiti kāraṇaṃ”). This
is how you create a sustainable system, in other words, both
Pravṛtti and Nivṛtti must be in sync. Too much of either causes
systemic imbalance. Also, this is fundamental not just for
humans but for all living beings – “Prāṇināṃ sākṣāt”, the word
used being prāṇi, not manuṣya. So, all living beings have these
two dimensions. There is an industrious dimension and there is
a peaceful dimension, and you have to have both.

Further, “abhyudaya” is this materialistic progress “niśreyas” is
spiritual progress. You have to have both. This is similar to what

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