All 18 Chapters

अर्जुनविषादयोग

Arjuna Vishada Yoga

The Yoga of Arjuna's Dilemma

On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Arjuna surveys the armies and is overcome with grief at the thought of fighting his own kinsmen, teachers, and friends. He lays down his bow and turns to Krishna in despair, setting the stage for the dialogue that follows.

सांख्ययोग

Sankhya Yoga

The Yoga of Knowledge

Krishna introduces the eternal nature of the soul, distinguishing it from the perishable body, and outlines the path of steady wisdom (sthitaprajna). This chapter is often called a summary of the entire Gita.

कर्मयोग

Karma Yoga

The Yoga of Action

Krishna explains why action performed without attachment to results is superior to inaction, and how selfless work (nishkama karma) sustains both the individual and the world.

ज्ञानकर्मसंन्यासयोग

Jnana Karma Sanyasa Yoga

The Yoga of Knowledge and Renunciation of Action

Krishna reveals the origin of this teaching passed through the ages, describes his own divine incarnations, and explains how knowledge transforms the meaning of action.

कर्मसंन्यासयोग

Karma Sanyasa Yoga

The Yoga of Renunciation of Action

Krishna reconciles renunciation and selfless action, showing that both lead to the same goal when performed with an equal, unattached mind.

आत्मसंयमयोग

Dhyana Yoga

The Yoga of Meditation

Krishna describes the discipline of meditation, the qualities of a self-controlled mind, and how the practicing yogi steadily progresses toward union with the Self.

ज्ञानविज्ञानयोग

Jnana Vijnana Yoga

The Yoga of Knowledge and Wisdom

Krishna explains his higher and lower natures, how he pervades all creation, and why few among many truly come to know him.

अक्षरब्रह्मयोग

Aksara Brahma Yoga

The Yoga of the Imperishable Absolute

Krishna answers Arjuna's questions on Brahman, karma, and the state of mind at the moment of death, describing the paths a soul takes after leaving the body.

राजविद्याराजगुह्ययोग

Raja Vidya Raja Guhya Yoga

The Yoga of Royal Knowledge and Royal Mystery

Krishna shares the most confidential knowledge of his nature, explaining how devotion, however simple, reaches him more surely than ritual alone.

विभूतियोग

Vibhuti Yoga

The Yoga of Divine Glories

Krishna describes his manifestations in the world — the finest of every category of being — as glimpses of his infinite glory available to the contemplative mind.

विश्वरूपदर्शनयोग

Vishvarupa Darshana Yoga

The Yoga of the Vision of the Universal Form

At Arjuna's request, Krishna grants him the divine eye to behold his cosmic, universal form — an overwhelming vision of time, creation, and destruction.

भक्तियोग

Bhakti Yoga

The Yoga of Devotion

Krishna compares the paths of devotion to a personal Lord and meditation on the unmanifest absolute, and describes the qualities of a devotee dear to him.

क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञविभागयोग

Kshetra Kshetrajna Vibhaga Yoga

The Yoga of the Field and its Knower

Krishna distinguishes the body ("the field") from the soul that knows it, and outlines the qualities of true knowledge that lead one to perceive this distinction.

गुणत्रयविभागयोग

Gunatraya Vibhaga Yoga

The Yoga of the Three Modes of Nature

Krishna explains the three gunas — sattva, rajas, and tamas — that bind the soul to the body, and describes how one transcends them.

पुरुषोत्तमयोग

Purushottama Yoga

The Yoga of the Supreme Person

Using the image of an inverted cosmic tree, Krishna describes the nature of the material world and reveals himself as Purushottama, the Supreme Person beyond the perishable and imperishable.

दैवासुरसंपद्विभागयोग

Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga

The Yoga of the Divine and Demoniac Natures

Krishna contrasts divine and demoniac qualities in human nature, and warns of the three gates to self-destructive ruin: lust, anger, and greed.

श्रद्धात्रयविभागयोग

Shraddhatraya Vibhaga Yoga

The Yoga of the Threefold Faith

Krishna explains how faith, food, sacrifice, austerity, and charity each take three forms according to the guna that predominates in a person.

मोक्षसंन्यासयोग

Moksha Sanyasa Yoga

The Yoga of Liberation through Renunciation

Krishna brings together the teachings of the Gita, distinguishes true renunciation from mere abandonment of action, and asks Arjuna to surrender fully before leaving him to choose freely.