It is difficult to deny that we need strength to meet life’s challenges. “Strength is life, weakness is death” (CW 2. 3), as Swami Vivekananda forcefully put it. In fact, he went to the extent of saying that the following verse contains “the whole message of the Gita” (CW, 4. 110):

क्लैब्यं मास्म गम: पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपद्यते । क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परन्तप ॥२.३॥

Klaibyaṁ māsma gamaḥ pārtha na-etat tvayi upapadyate,

kṣudraṁ hṛdaya-daurbalyaṁ tyaktvā-utiṣṭha parantapa. (2.3)

Vivekananda said that grasping the meaning of this verse and trying to live accordingly gives us “the merits of reading the entire Gītā.” Clearly, Sri Krishna was giving an important teaching on strength in these words addressed to Arjuna.

Strength is of various kinds. What comes to mind right away is physical strength, which can be acquired through nutritious food and regular exercise. Intellectual strength comes through diligent study. While both of these are useful in life, there are other kinds of strength that are vital in the pursuit of spiritual life. Two among these—moral strength and spiritual strength—are absolutely necessary for success.

Morality and spirituality can be distinguished but not separated. It is possible to be moral without being spiritual, but the reverse is not true. The edifice of spirituality can be built only on the strong foundation of morality. The teaching of Sri Krishna in the Gītā focuses on these two strengths, moral and spiritual.

Moral strength comes through purity of mind, which includes purity of reason (taught in jñāna yoga), purity of emotions (taught in bhakti yoga), and purity of purpose (taught in karma yoga).

Spiritual strength comes through affirming our true nature as the ātman. This must be done in thought, word, and actions—day after day, month after month, year after year—throughout our lives.

In the second chapter of the Gītā, we have a good description of the nature of the ātman. The ātman—the “real me” hidden under the layers of the body and the mind—is who every one of us truly is. In order to develop spiritual strength, we have to make an effort to (1) remember our ātman-nature always, and (2) make sure that what we think, what we say, and what we do are in perfect harmony.

It is through moral strength and spiritual strength that all obstacles are easily brushed aside. The obstacles in Arjuna’s path were weakness and confusion. His weakness was his attachment to those he perceived as “his own.” His confusion was regarding where his loyalties and duties lay. That is why Sri Krishna urged him to summon his inherent strength to battle the inner foes of weakness and confusion.

The vanquishing of the outer foes on the battlefield was secondary. It depended entirely on Arjuna’s success in his inner battle with his weakness and his confusion. For that reason, although the Gītā was taught on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra many, many centuries ago, its relevance is not limited by time and place.

The battlefield still exists. Our Kurukṣetra is in our own minds. The war is still going on. We still struggle with our weaknesses, our ambiguities, and our insecurities. Arjuna still exists. To see him we just have to stand before a mirror. Sri Krishna also exists. He always has and always will be. To see him we need to close our eyes and open our hearts.

May Sri Krishna’s message of strength in the Gītā awaken our sleeping spirit.