Gita Jayanti : Advent of Srimad Bhagavad Gita

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HOUSTON: About 5,000 years ago, in the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Lord Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-Gita, to his dear friend and disciple Arjuna. Bhagavad-Gita, whose literal translation is ‘Song of God’, comprises of 18 chapters and 700 verses in ancient Sanskrit language.

Bhagavad-Gita discusses the system of yoga (connection with the Supreme Lord) which is the essence of moksa (spiritual emancipation). Bhagavad-Gita sheds light on the three main yoga systems: karma-yoga (yoga of selfless action), jnana-yoga (yoga of spiritual knowledge) and bhakti-yoga (yoga of devotional service). In the course of giving Arjuna all manner of spiritual and material advice, Krishna explains the Self, the Supreme Self, difference between our self and our material body, karma, purpose of yoga, how our environment affects our consciousness and how to attain the perfection of life.

This year marks the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Founder-acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) and celebrated author of “Bhagavad-Gita As It Is”, Srila Prabhupada’s arrival in the US, where he started a worldwide movement to disseminate this universal and non-sectarian knowledge.

ISKCON of Houston located @ 1320 W. 34th Street, Houston TX 77018 (www.iskconhouston.org) is celebrating the advent of Bhagavad-Gita with a two day festival later this week. Festivities starting @ 2.00 PM on Sunday, December 20, include congregational chanting of Bhagavad-Gita verses and translations in Sanskrit and English, chapter summaries & classes by senior devotees, culminating in yajña (fire sacrifice) and prasadam dinner. Day 2 activities starting @ 4.00 PM on Monday, December 21, will include chanting of Bhagavad-Gita verses followed by lecture by HH Giriraj Swami, a direct disciple of Srila Prabhupada, ending with prasadam dinner.

Please join in this joyous festival, which is free of charge and open to all, to reconnect with the Lord and His Message!