[Blog](https://vittalkamath.com/blog) # The Bhagavad Gita, chapter by chapter 20 May 2026 I learnt the Bhagavad Gita sixty years ago. Here it is, summarised chapter by chapter. 1. **Arjuna Vishada Yoga:** on the Kurukshetra battlefield, Arjuna is overcome with grief at the prospect of fighting his own kin, and lays down his weapons in despair. 2. **Sankhya Yoga:** Krishna teaches the immortality of the soul and *nishkama karma* — performing one’s duty with steady detachment, without craving its fruits. 3. **Karma Yoga:** the path of selfless action. True freedom comes from doing one’s *dharma* diligently, without attachment. 4. **Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga:** every action becomes sacred when it is offered selflessly, guided by transcendental wisdom. 5. **Karma Sanyasa Yoga:** true renunciation is not abandoning duty, but performing every action selflessly, without ego. 6. **Dhyana Yoga:** through disciplined meditation and mastery of the mind, one transcends worldly sorrow and realises the Self. 7. **Jnana Vijnana Yoga:** Krishna reveals Himself as the ultimate truth behind all existence, both material and spiritual. 8. **Akshara Brahma Yoga:** the thought that occupies one’s mind at death determines the soul’s next path. Remembering the Divine leads to Him. 9. **Raja Vidya Yoga:** the entire universe rests within God. Through loving devotion, anyone can attain liberation and grace. 10. **Vibhuti Yoga:** Krishna is the supreme source of all existence, the splendour manifest in everything glorious. 11. **Vishwaroopa Darshana Yoga:** Krishna reveals His cosmic form, showing that He is the source, maintainer and destroyer of all worlds. 12. **Bhakti Yoga:** the path of loving devotion is the most direct and accessible way to reach the Divine. 13. **Kshetra Kshetrajna Yoga:** Krishna explains the difference between the perishable material field and the eternal, conscious knower within it. 14. **Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga:** the three *gunas* — *sattva* (goodness), *rajas* (passion) and *tamas* (ignorance) — bind the soul. Liberation comes from transcending them. 15. **Purushottama Yoga:** the material world is like an inverted tree of illusion. Cut it with detachment to realise your divine origin, and surrender to Krishna. 16. **Daivasura Sampad Yoga:** divine qualities like selflessness and charity lead upward, while pride, anger and greed bind the soul to suffering. 17. **Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga:** a person’s faith, food, worship and actions reflect their inner nature, as shaped by the three *gunas*. 18. **Moksha Sanyasa Yoga:** ultimate liberation comes from performing one’s duty selflessly and surrendering all results to the Divine. [All articles](https://vittalkamath.com/blog)