Bhagavad Gita And The Analects

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Recommended: Analysis of the bhagavad gita

Hinduism focuses on liberation from the realm of samsara, the cycle of rebirth and death, while Confucianism focuses on the Dao, the correct way to act for society, and ren, or benevolence. Both religions have religious texts that reflect these ideals, the Bhagavad-Gita belonging to Hinduism, and the Analects belonging to Confucianism. While these two texts originate from two distinct religions, the two have some similarities and differences. Both the Bhagavad-Gita and the Analects address the proper way for one to act; however, they differ when it comes to heaven and the main concern of each text. The main concern of the Bhagavad-Gita is a personal journey, achieving moksa through devotion to Brahman, and the main concern of the Analects is a communal journey, maintaining social propriety through the five relationships.
The Bhagavad-Gita, a portion of the great epic the Mahabharata, is the “most typical expression of Hinduism.” It is eighteen chapters long and was composed around the first century BCE. The sage Samjaya recites the story to the blind king Dhrtarastra, the father of the Kaurava princes. While presenting ideas of wisdom, duty, and liberation in the midst of the rivalry between the Kauravas, the Bhagavad-Gita epitomizes the teachings of Krishna. Focusing specifically on the moral struggle of the Pandava prince Arjuna, the Bhagavad-Gita’s major themes include yoga, karma, dharma, and moksa. Yoga, being discipline or the strict and “attentive cultivation of mental character and meaningful action” , is crucial to the text because it is dharma yoga, acting properly according to one’s dharma, and bhakti yoga, a disciplined life of devotion that allows one to achieve moksa, or liberation, one of the four aims of li...

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...ely resembles the dharmic action of the Bhagavad-Gita. The fundamental concept of dharma, or proper conduct, is paralleled in the Analects when Confucius provides many examples of how one can remain morally sound. The reason for moral or proper conduct differs in the two texts; while the Bhagavad-Gita presents proper conduct as a step towards liberation from samsara, serving the individual’s needs, the Analects present moral conduct in order to maintain a properly functioning society, serving the society’s needs as a whole. In Western society the goal of Eastern religions are often compared to Heaven; however, Heaven in Hinduism and Confucianism is not a place one goes to at the end of his or her life. Instead, Heaven in Hinduism is a heavenly realm in which the gods reside, and Heaven in Confucianism is a ruling force that instills and enforces values and morals.

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