700 verses. One conversation that answers the questions of your life.
Read the Bhagavad Gītā chapter by chapter: every Sanskrit śloka, its transliteration and a simple meaning in English or Hindi. Five minutes a day is enough to begin.
What are you going through today?
Arjuna's question was personal, and Kṛṣṇa answered him personally. Pick what is closest to your heart and the Gītā will meet you there.
Three movements, one destination
The eighteen chapters are traditionally read as three groups of six. Devotion sits in the middle like a jewel set between two supports.
Karma-yoga
Who you are (the eternal soul) and how to act in the world without being bound by what you do. Work becomes an offering.
Bhakti-yoga
Who Kṛṣṇa is: the source of everything, the friend of every being. Loving devotion to Him is called the king of knowledge and the easiest path.
Jñāna-yoga
Body and soul, the three modes of nature, divine and demoniac qualities, and the final call: surrender to Kṛṣṇa and be free of fear.
How many ślokas in each chapter
Chapter 18 is the longest with 78 verses; Chapters 12 and 15 are the shortest with 20 each, so they are a good place to start if you have only ten minutes. Tap any chapter to open it.
Five truths in one book
Teachers of the Gītā name five subjects it explains. Every chapter returns to them.
The Supreme Controller
Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Person, source and maintainer of all that exists.
The living being
You: an eternal soul, part of Kṛṣṇa, temporarily living in a body.
Material nature
The world of matter, run by three modes: goodness, passion and ignorance.
Eternal time
The force that creates, keeps and dissolves everything material.
Activity
Every action brings a reaction. The Gītā shows how to act and be free.
And the conclusion: surrender →
See how the whole Gītā moves step by step toward 18.66.
The whole Gītā in pictures
Who speaks, the setting, the six conches, the chariot of the body, the three modes and more, explained visually.
Chant on the japa mala
Count your rounds of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra on a 108-bead mala. Your rounds are kept on this device.
18-day journeyOne chapter a day
Read one chapter each day and finish the whole Gītā in 18 days. Your progress is saved as you read.
Test yourselfDaily Gītā quiz
Five quick questions. How well do you know the Gītā?
A message for youDraw a verse
Hold a question in your heart and open a verse for reflection.
The 18 Chapters
Each chapter carries its traditional Sanskrit name. Each card shows how many verses the chapter has and the heart of its message.
The Gita for your situation
Kṛṣṇa spoke to a man in crisis. Whatever you are carrying, someone in the Gītā has carried it before you. Choose the one closest to you today.
The Gita is a journey toward surrender
The Gītā opens with Arjuna saying "I will not fight" and closes with him saying "I will do as You say." Between those two moments Kṛṣṇa leads him, step by step, to take shelter of Him. Follow the thread below; tap any verse to read it with its meaning.
The six parts of śaraṇāgati
The Vaiṣṇava tradition describes surrender in six practical parts. None of them asks you to leave your family or your work.
Kṛṣṇa consciousness at every stage of life
The Gītā was spoken to a householder, a warrior and a family man, in the middle of his duty. It does not ask you to wait for old age. Here is what practice can look like at each stage.
Five practices for any age
Chant the holy names
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare / Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare. Begin with one round of 108 and grow from there.
Open the japa malaHear the Gītā daily
Even one verse a day with its meaning. Steady small reading is better than a rare long one.
Today's verseOffer your food
Cook with love, offer it to Kṛṣṇa first, then honour it as prasādam (9.26). The kitchen becomes a temple.
Work as worship
Whatever you do, eat, give or endure, do it as an offering (9.27). Your job becomes your service.
Keep good company
Spend time with people who love Kṛṣṇa. Devotion spreads by association, like fire from one lamp to another.
Want a personal plan? →
We can help you build a simple daily routine that fits your work, family and age.
The Gita at a glance
The setting, the speakers and the main teachings of the Bhagavad-gītā, drawn as simple pictures. Tap any verse reference to read it.
Eighteen, again and again
The Gītā is part of the Mahābhārata, spoken on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra about five thousand years ago, just before the war began. The number eighteen runs through the whole story.
700 verses, four voices
Counted from the speaker headings of the Gītā. The Gītā is a conversation inside a conversation: Sañjaya, given divine vision, reports to the blind king Dhṛtarāṣṭra what Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna say.
The six conches of the Pāṇḍavas
Before the war, grandfather Bhīṣma blows his conch first (1.12). Then Kṛṣṇa and the Pāṇḍavas answer with their own divine conches (1.15–18).
The chariot of the body
The Vedic teachers compare the body to a chariot, an image the Kaṭha Upaniṣad gives and one that helps with the restless mind of 6.34. On Kurukṣetra the picture comes alive: Kṛṣṇa Himself holds the reins of Arjuna's chariot.
When intelligence is guided by Kṛṣṇa, the mind holds the senses steady and the soul travels safely. Read 6.34, 2.67 and 3.42.
The three modes of nature at a glance
Everything in this world is coloured by goodness, passion and ignorance. Use this table as a mirror: which mode is shaping your food, your work and your happiness today?
| Goodness · sattva | Passion · rajas | Ignorance · tamas | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Its nature (14.6–8) | Clarity, light, freedom from sinful reaction | Desire, craving and attachment to work | Delusion, laziness and sleep |
| What it produces (14.17) | Knowledge | Greed | Foolishness and illusion |
| Food (17.8–10) | Fresh, wholesome, nourishing, pleasing | Too bitter, sour, salty, hot or dry | Stale, tasteless, spoilt, impure |
| Charity (17.20–22) | Given as duty to a worthy person, expecting nothing | Given for return or reluctantly | Given wrongly, with disrespect |
| Happiness (18.37–39) | Bitter at first, nectar in the end | Nectar at first, poison in the end | Delusion from start to finish |
| Where it leads (14.18) | Upward | Stays in the middle | Downward |
And the way beyond all three: unfailing devotional service to Kṛṣṇa (14.26).
Who turns to Kṛṣṇa, and who does not
Four who do not surrender (7.15)
- The grossly foolish
- The lowest among people
- Those whose knowledge is stolen by illusion
- Those who openly reject God
Four who come to Him (7.16)
- The distressed
- Those who want wealth
- The curious
- The seekers of truth
All four are welcome. Whatever your reason for coming, it is a good reason.
The ladder of devotion
Kṛṣṇa gives a ladder with a step for everyone. Start on whichever step you can stand on today.
Chant on the japa mala
Tap the mala, or the button below it, once for each complete mahā-mantra. The beads light up as you go. After 108 beads a round is counted.
कृष्ण कृष्ण हरे हरे
हरे राम हरे राम
राम राम हरे हरे Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Choose how many rounds you want to chant each day.
How to chant on a mala
Hold it in your right hand, draped over the middle finger. Traditionally the index finger does not touch the beads.
The large bead is the Kṛṣṇa bead. Begin on the bead next to it.
Chant the full mahā-mantra clearly, hearing each word, then move to the next bead.
After 108 beads, turn the mala around and go back the other way for the next round.
The real practice is hearing the names. When the mind wanders, bring it back to the sound.
One round a day, every day, is better than many rounds now and then. Many devotees keep a fixed daily count, such as sixteen rounds; start with what you can keep every day.
My Gita
Your personal space for reading, practice and reflection. Everything here is kept privately on this device.
My progress
Your last 12 weeks. Each square is a day; gold means you read or chanted.
How is your mind today?
Pick one and the Gītā will answer.
Draw a verse
Hold a question in your heart, then tap the card.
Gītā quiz
Memorize a verse
Choose a verse and a level. Hidden words appear when you tap them. Read aloud, then try a harder level.
Divine qualities tracker
Kṛṣṇa lists the divine qualities in 16.1–3. Tap each quality you practised today. The squares show your last 7 days.
One chapter a day
Tap a day to read that chapter. A day turns gold when you finish its chapter.
My saved verses
Today's note to myself
Saved on this device as you type.
Talk to us in real life
Reading is the beginning. When you want to talk about how the Gītā applies to your career, your family, your relationships or your inner life, we are a call away.
One-to-one consultation
Career and finance, relationships, family and life direction, discussed with the wisdom of the Gītā.
Scripture study
Guided study of the Gītā and the Vedic scriptures, and how to bring their wisdom into daily life.
Vedic numerology
Your birth grid and name numerology at truespark.net/numerology.