Gita Bhashya (Shankara)

Gītā Bhāṣya

The oldest surviving complete commentary on the Bhagavad Gita, reading it as teaching liberation through knowledge of the Self.

Traditional commentarySource not yet ingested

Tradition: Advaita Vedanta · Vedanta
Difficulty: advanced
Attribution: Adi ShankaracharyaAdi Shankaracharya; generally accepted as authentic
Period · language: Traditionally 8th century CE; scholars generally place Shankara in the 7th–8th centuries · Sanskrit
Themes: Knowledge · Renunciation · Action · Self

Why read this?

Shankara's commentary shaped how the Gita was read for centuries, and later commentators often define their positions against it. It is especially useful for seeing how Advaita handles the Gita's teaching on action.

Questions it answers

?Does the Gita teach action or renunciation?
?Can knowledge and action be combined?
?Who is the Self that the Gita describes?

Key teachings

Editorial overview

The Gita's goal is knowledge

Shankara holds that the Gita's ultimate teaching is liberation through knowledge of the Self as Brahman, preceded by renunciation.

Against combining knowledge and action

He argues against the view that knowledge and ritual action must be combined for liberation (jnana-karma-samuccaya); action purifies the mind and prepares one for knowledge.

Karma yoga as preparation

Action without attachment is valued as a discipline for those not yet ready for knowledge, purifying the mind.

Structure

IntroductionFrames the Gita's teaching as twofold: action and withdrawal
Verse-by-verse commentary, with longer discussions at key verses such as 2.10–11

Important passages

Source not yet ingested

References only — the passages themselves are not reproduced until the source text is ingested.

Introduction to 2.10–11Shankara's extended argument on knowledge and actioncf. Gita2.10 2.11
On 18.66His reading of the call to take refugecf. Gita18.66

Source not yet ingested

The text of the Gita Bhashya (Shankara) is not part of this version. What you see here is an editorial overview with passage references. No verses have been reproduced or invented. The architecture is ready for the text to be added.

Concepts

Conceptज्ञानJnana — knowledgeLiberating knowledge — seeing reality and the Self as they are.Conceptसंन्यासSannyasa — renunciationRenunciation — as a formal stage of life, and as an inner attitude of letting go.Conceptकर्मKarmaAction — and the way actions shape future experience.Conceptनिष्काम कर्मNishkama karmaAction performed without selfish desire for its results.Conceptआत्मन्Atman — the SelfThe innermost Self — what you are beneath body, mind and personality.Conceptब्रह्मन्BrahmanThe ultimate reality, the ground from which everything arises.Conceptअविद्याAvidya — ignoranceFundamental misunderstanding of oneself and reality — the root of bondage.Conceptस्थितप्रज्ञSthitaprajna — steady wisdomThe person whose understanding has become steady — the Gita's portrait of the realised human being.

Textश्रीमद्भगवद्गीताBhagavad GitaThe root text Textगीताभाष्यGita Bhashya (Ramanuja)Ramanuja's devotional alternative, which responds to Advaita readings Textगीतातात्पर्यनिर्णयGita Tatparya Nirnaya (Madhva)Madhva's Dvaita reading Textसाधक-संजीवनीSadhak SanjivaniA modern practical commentary available in this app Textब्रह्मसूत्रभाष्यBrahma Sutra Bhashya (Shankara)Shankara's main systematic work

Thinkers

Thinkerआदि शङ्कराचार्यAdi ShankaracharyaTraditionally 788–820 CE; many scholars prefer an earlier 8th-century or late 7th-century date. Dates are debated.

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Traditions

अद्वैत वेदान्तAdvaita Vedanta वेदान्तVedanta

Source type: Traditional commentary. Overview text on this page is editorial.