THE CENTRAL THEME OF BHAGAVAD GITA

MAN'S DUTY
Bhagavad Gita starts with the word ''Dharma'', meaning 'duty' in the first stanza beginning "Dharma Kshetre KuruKshetre........" and ends with the word ''Mama'' meaning 'my' in the last stanza ending"Dhruvaa neethir mathir mama " Putting these two together we get "mama dharma" or 'my duty'. From this we can understand that Gita mainly deals with Man's duty in this world. The question then arises, duty to whom? A probe into the answer to this question will lead us to the
central theme of Bhagavad Gita.
MAN NEEDS MENTAL PEACE;WHERE AND HOW TO FIND IT?
What man needs most , whether in India, Europe, America or any other part of the world , whether a follower of Hinduism, Islamism , Christianity or any other religion , or has no religion and has no faith in God, is just one thing and that is peace of mind.But today his peace of mind is badly disturbed , and man runs every-where ,helter-skelter in search of peace.If he cannot find it anywhere, he himself is to be blamed and none else. Having built up an environment conducive to constant restlessness and panic, and having been fully immersed in it, to expect peace is nothing but putting your hand into burning fire and expecting not to be burnt.
Our peace of mind can be disturbed by various external reasons.Death of dear and near ones,diseases to ourselves or near relatives, problems arising from loss of wealth or fame,strained human relationships,disturbances at work-place and innumerable other causes can destroy our mental peace and equanimity. That , one cannot find peace at a place where there is no peace, needs no emphasis. It, therefore, follows that to find peace ,one has to look where peace actually exists.This is what Bhagavad Gita asks us to do and also shows us how to do it.Thus Bhagavad Gita speaks of Man's duty to his own Self.
Having born as a human being on this earth ,what is man's duty? Lord Krishna gives a clear definition of man's duty which can be seen in verse 33,Chapter9 of the Gita :
"Anityam Asukham lokam imam prapya bhajaswa maam" (having come to this world which is transient and full of miseries , your duty is to worship Me.)
How is this worship to be done? The answer is in the next verse 34 in the same chapter:
Manmanaa bhava madbhakto mad yaajee maam namaskuru,
Maamevaishyasi yuktvaivam aatmaanam matparaayanah:''
(Fix your mind on Me;be devoted to Me; perform sacrifices for Me; prostrate before Me; thus having Me as your Supreme Goal and harmonised in Me as your own
Self , you shall come to Me without doubt.)

KRISHNA BHAKTI -THE CENTRAL THEME OF GITA.
It is ,therefore, evident that the central theme of Gita is the liberation of mankind from the miseries of this mundane world through undivided devotion to Lord Krishna.Sree Yamunacharya, the guru of Sree Ramanuja Acharya, the founder of Visishtadwaita cult,has in his Gitartha Sanmgraha,stated that the central theme of Gita is the attainment of Sree Narayana Para Brahman ,which is possible  only through Bhakti attained through right performance of one's duties, supreme spiritual knowledge and non-attachment.
WHAT IS RIGHT PERFORMANCE OF DUTY?
Every man is born with a package of Vasanas(tendencies) acquired through the several lives he had lived in previous births.These Vasanas prompt man to variuos actions in accordance with his inherent nature which in turn are tuned by the Vasanas themselves. Normally every man performs an action expecting to achieve some results out of it.It is the rule of nature that every action has its reaction. Likewise it is the rule of Karma that every action has its fruit and the doer of Karma is entitled to receive it, unless he has surrendered it to the Lord.Thus Good actions bring good results and bad actions bring bad results. The fruits of action whether good or bad, are the knots that bind man to this world  to enjoy or suffer those fruits. It  therefore, follows that any person who wants to escape from this bondage of his Kama must forsake the fruits of his action by surrender to the Lord. That is called Nishkama Karma(desireless action). Gita enjoins on us to perform all prescribed duties without attachment to their fruits. So Sree Bhagavan says:
''Karmanyevaadhikaarasthe maa phaleshu kadaachana' meaning, your domain is only to do your duty and not to aspire for its fruits.
         IF WE HAVE NO CLAIM FOR THE FRUITS OF OUR ACTION,WHAT IS THE INCENTIVE TO DO OUR DUTY?      
Of course it is the natural tendency of any ordinary man in such a situation, either to ignore or to discard his duty. As if to forestall such a tendency, Sree Bhagavan  warns us: maa karmaphala hethurbhoo maa the sangosthu akarmani''  meaning ,don't  be a slave to the results of your action and also do not entertain the tendency to neglect your duty. Why should it be like that? Because, the performance of our duty after surrendering its fruits to the Lord becomes a worship of the Lord , which cannot be ignored or neglected by a true devotee of the Lord. That is what Sree Bhagavan asks from us.
The results of action come in the natural course. A true devotee accepts them as Bhagavan's Prasadam. As he is totally unattached to them, the good or bad about them is not a concern for him. The performance of all actions by a devotee is an offering to the Lord and its object is self-purification. Only such a purified self can achieve Supreme Spiritual Knowledge through which one can reach the Supreme Reality.
Thus the central theme of Bhagavad Gita can be summarised as follows:
       First concentrate your mind on Lord Sree Krishna and become a devotee. Having become a devotee of Sree Bhagavan,  praise His glories and  chant his Names  incessantly.Perform all your duties as a worship to the Lord with total detachment on their fruits. Thus uniting all your thoughts and actions with the Lord,  you gradually attain the Supreme Knowledge of the Self and become one with the Lord, which enables you to enjoy the eternal Peace, Happiness and Tranquillity.

(To be continued)
I invite comments, queries and opinions from the readers, so we can have an open discussion on this topic.