There are in this army heroes wielding mighty bows ans equal in military prowess to Bhima and Arjuna-Satyaki and Virata and the Maharathi (warrior chief ) Drupada; Dhrstaketu, Cekitana and valiant king of Kasi, and Purujit, Kuntibhoja, & Saibya, the best of men, and mighty. Yudhmanyu \, and valiant Uttamauja, Abhimanyu, the son of Subhadra, and five sons of Draupadi-all of them Maharathis (warrior chiefs).
asmakam tu visista ye tannibodha dvijottama
nayaka mama sainyasya sanjnartham tanbravimi te
O best of Brahmanas, know them also who are the principal warriors on our side-the generals of my army. For your information, I shall mention them.
bhavanbhisamasca karnasca krpasca samitinjayah
asvatthama vikranasca saumadattistathaiva ca
Yourself and Bhisma and Karna and Krpa, who is ever victorious in battle; andeven so Asvatthama, Vikarna and Bhurisrava (the son of Somadatta);
anye ca bahavah sura madarthe tyaktajivitah
nanasastrapraharanath sarve yuddhavisaradah
And there are many other heroes, equipped with various weapons and missiles, who had staked their lives for me, all skilled in warfare.
The Bhagavadgita contains divine words emanating from the lips of God Himself. Its glory is infinite, unlimited. None can describe it.Even Sesa, the thousand-headed serpent-God, whose back forms the couch of God Vishnu, and Shiva and Ganesha, cannot fully depict this glory. How can a puny mortal expect to do it?The Epics and Puranas etc., have sung the glory of the Gita at many places; but if all those words of praise are brought together, even then it cannot be declared that the praise of the Gita has been exhausted. The fact is that a full description of the glory of the Gita is never possible. For how can a thing which can be fully described remain unlimited? It at once becomes finite and limited. As a scripture, the Gita embodies the supreme spiritual mystery and secret. It contains the essence of all the four Vedas. Its style is so simple and elegant that after a little study man can easily follow the structure of its words; but the thought behind those words is so deep and abstruse that even a lifelong, constant study does not show one the end of it. Everyday the book exhibits a new facet to thought, hence the Gita remains eternally new.And deep reflection with reverence and faith will make it directly appear impregnated with deep meaning at every step.The virtues, glory, essential character, truth, mystery and worship of God as well as the topics of action and knowledge have been discussed in the Gita in such a way that its parallel can hardly be found in any other book.As a scripture, the Gita is so incomparable that there is no word in it which is free from some instructive thought. There is no single word in the Gita, which may be described as flattering. Whatever statements have been made in it are true in the words of God, the very embodiment of truth, is to show disrespect to divine words. The Gita is an epitome of all the scriptures. The essence of all the scriptures is to be found in it. And it would be no exaggeration, indeed, if it is called the very storehouse of all scriptural knowledge. For a mastery of the Gita may lead one automatically to a comprehension of the truths contained in the other scriptures, and no separate study is require to obtain this knowledge. "The Gita comprises all the scriptures" .But this statement too is inadequate.For all the scriptures have originated from the Vedas, the Vedas were revealed through Brahma's mouths, and Brahma himself took his decent from the Lord's navel . In this way, a great distance separates the scriptures from the Lord; hence there will be no exaggeration if it is declared as superior to all the scriptures. 'The Gita alone should be sung, heard, recited, studied taught , pondered and assimilated properlyand well.What is the use of collecting other scriptures? For the Gita has emerged directly from the ;lotus-like lips of God Vishnu himself." Through the word 'Padmanabha' in the above verse, the author of the Mahabharta has brought out the very idea expressed by us. That is to say, the Gita has emanated from the lips of the same Lord from whose navel Brahma took his birth;and the Vedas, which are the source of all the scriptures, were revealed through the mouths of Brahma. The Gita is superior even to Ganga. In the scriptures, liberation has been declared to be the reward of a bath in the Ganga. But he who bathes in the Ganga, though he can obtain liberation himself, does not acquire the power of liberating others. He, however, who takes a dive into the Gita not only gets liberated himself, but also gains the power of liberating others. The Ganga has sprung from the feet of the feet f the Lord, whereas the Gita has emanated directly from the divine lips. Again, while the Ganga liberates him alone who goes to it and takes a plunge in its waters, the Gita finds its way to every home, and shows the way of liberation to every individual. These are the reasons why the Gita is declared as superior to the Ganga.
The Gita is superior even to the Gayatri, Through the practice of Japa of the Gayatri man attains liberation, no doubt. But he who practices Japa of the Gayatri secures liberation only for himself;whereas the student of Gita liberates not only himself but others as well. When the Dispenser of liberation, God himself, becomes his own , Mukti becomes a trifling affair to him. It takes up its abode in the dust of his feet. He makes a gift of Mukti to anyone and everyone who asks for it.
If we declare the Gita as greater even than God, there will be no exaggeration. The God himself says:-
"I take My stand on the Gita, the Gita is My supreme abode. I maintain the three worlds on the strength of the wisdom contained in the Gita."
Apart from this, in the Gita itself the Lord openly declares that he who follows His instructions in the shape of the Gita will undoubtedly attain liberation. Not only this, /he further says that even he who studies this scripture will have worshiped Him through wisdom-sacrifice.When such is the value of a mere study of the Gita, what shall we say of the man who has moulded his life according to its teachings, initiates God's devotes into its secrets and disseminates and propagates its teachings among them.Referring to such a man, the Lord says that he is very dear to him. It will be no exaggeration to say that he is dearer to God than his very life.The lord subordinates himself to will of such devotees. Even in the case of noble souls, it is found that those who follow their teachings become dearer to them than their own life. The Gita constitutes the lord's principal mystic teachings. What wonder, then, that the follower of these teachings should be dearer to him than ever his life?
The Gita is the very life-breath, the heart, and the verbal image of the lord. He who has his heart, speech, body and all his senses and their functions imbued with the Gita is the very embodiment of the Gita. His very sight, touch, speech and thought lend supreme sanctity to others, to say nothing of those who follow his precept and example. Really speaking, no sacrifice, charity, austerity, pilgrimage, religious vow, self-restraint and fasting etc., stand comparison with the Gita. The Gita contains words directly emanating from the lips of Bhagwan Sri Krishna. Its compiler is Maharishi Vyasa. The Lord uttered parts of his discourse in verse, which the compiler Vyasa recorded exactly as they emanated from his lips. The part of it uttered in prose was versified by the compiler, and the words of Arjuna, Sanjaya and Dhrtarastrawere similarly versified by him in his own words, and dividing the book of seven hundred verses into eighteen chapters, he made it an organic part of the Mahabharata. This is how the book has come down to us.
