The Bhagavad Gita's Message - Surrender But Don't Give Up!

The Gita’s Battlefield

This last week, thousands of people celebrated Gita Jayanti, the birthday of the Bhagavad Gita - the divine conversation between Lord Krishna and his disciple, Arjuna.

The Bhagavad Gita takes place in the context of utmost chaos. The royal families of the time are going to war due to irreconcilable differences. Soldiers are about to be slaughtered creating thousands of widows and children without fathers. The respected elderly, saints, and teachers are forced to choose a side – should they do what they think is right or obey the throne to which they owe their allegiance?

At this time, Arjuna, the most esteemed and valiant warrior of his time, pauses to reflect on the current predicament. He contemplates the immense consequences of engaging in such a war and thinks… for what? Power? Wealth? Fame? Prestige?

And so, the divine conversation ensues between Arjuna and his charioteer Shri Krishna. Arjuna was at that time convinced that he was engaging in the wrong course of action by fighting. He believed the war should not be fought and that they should give up and surrender. 

However, as the conversation between Arjuna and Krishna comes to a close in the final chapter of the Gita,  Krishna gives the following advice to Arjuna - “Surrender exclusively to him (the Supreme Lord) with your whole being, O Bharat. By his grace, you will attain perfect peace and the eternal abode” and “Abandon all varieties of dharmas and simply surrender unto me alone.” 

Typically, surrendering means to give up. But Krishna explains that surrendering is a sign of self-realization and it doesn’t require one to give up the war. As we know, Arjuna ultimately fought and won the war. Then what does Krishna mean by surrendering? If it's not a sign of weakness and inability to fight against unfortunate circumstances, then what is surrender?

What Does ‘Surrendering’ Mean?

There is a Zen Buddhist proverb, “let go or be dragged,” which aptly illustrates the concept. The process of surrendering is not in giving up efforts but it is in letting go of expectations, desires, and preferences. 

Practically, what does this mean? Acceptance. Acceptance of what is. Most people are happy and fulfilled when their desires are fulfilled. If we are achieving the things we want in life and people are treating us the way we want and expect them too, then we are happy. As soon as an expectation or desire is not met, we feel an absence of happiness. 

Therefore, in life we try to control ourselves, loved ones and environments to align with our expectations of how things should be. In this mind state, we lose sight of the way things are. Our expectation of the way things should be versus the way things are is directly correlated to the levels of sadness, anger, frustration and lack of fulfillment we feel throughout the course of life.

This teaching of the Bhagavad Gita requires us to realize that we must be with what is. This does not mean that we do not try to improve our circumstances or fight during difficult times. It simply means, “be here now,” as aptly said by the late saint Ram Dass. Hence, surrendering is a sign of spiritual maturity rather than weakness. It is a sign of utmost bravery and fearlessness, not cowardice.

Surrender is the conclusion of the Bhagavad Gita and it is what allowed Arjuna to accept his present circumstance and ultimately engage in the appropriate course of action – to defeat the unjust, even though they were his own kith and kin. 

What Does It Mean For Us?

In our own lives, we can draw many parallels to this situation in our family life and careers. We often try to control our spouses or children to align with our expectations and desires of what they should be. We become frustrated at who they are because it's not what we want out of them.

This leads to others feeling suffocated and us always feeling like the other is not good enough. If we surrender and accept our loved ones as they are, we open up an unlimited amount of opportunities for them to grow instead of caging them up within what we think they are not. 

We also succumb to our fears and self-doubt and tend not to bet on ourselves in times of uncertainty. This can lead to missed opportunities as we pivot away from circumstances in which we need to grow into to be successful. If we surrender, instead of avoiding an uncomfortable circumstance, we can embrace what the moment gives without projecting our fears onto it.

When we openly accept what the Universe or Higher Will has given us in the form of “reality” or circumstances, we learn to surrender to it and focus on what we are responsible for - our duty, intentions and actions. 

Author Marianne Williamson writes, “choosing joy involves spiritual surrender, and sometimes we would rather hold on to pain than surrender our egos.” 

Krishna perfectly imparts this knowledge to Arjuna in the midst of him being at a very difficult crossroads in his life. And even in our lives, there could be no better time to contemplate on our predicaments than when we are in the midst of pain and turmoil. 

In the words of the great mystic poet Rumi, “The wound is the place where the Light enters you.”