The First Teaching: Happiness and Family Duty

This first teaching of the Baghavad Gita was very interesting. The war that was going on between the family members reminded me of the many events in history that have been determined by family decisions. I studied the Maasai tribe in Kenya and Tanzania last semester and there was a story that automatically came to mind.

When the Europeans began to settle in Maasailand during the 1800’s, one of their strategies in order to succeed was to divide the enemy. The ruler had two sons that both wanted to inherit the throne. The colonists saw this as an opportunity and decided to help one of the brothers with weapons to fight the other one in exchange for some land. The weapons gave that brother a huge advantage and eventually, he won. Ever since, the Maasai have lost their land and have been left with very little territory to raise their cattle.

In Baghavad Gita, one of the main focuses was about family values. I thought about how much damage one’s greed and egoism can affect others and even oneself. The Maasai story reminded me of how these things can bring destruction and pain in the long run and how both family duty and brotherhood are of so much value to a community.This was obviously one of the reasons why the Krishna did not want the war between kin to happen. One of the parts in this teaching that I thought gave a good example of the points I have stated above is the following:

"Krishna, we have heard that a place in hell is reserved for men who undermine family
duties.
I lament the great sin we commit when our greed for kingship and pleasures drives us
to kill our kinsmen" (29)

Another part that stood out was when the Krishna talks about honor.
"Honor forbids us to kill our cousins, Dhritarashtra's sons; how ca we know happiness
if we kill our own kinsmen?" (28)


I agree with this part because after thinking about it I realized how hard it must be to live knowing that someone in your family has died because of you. However, I thought that this is one of the most important values that still apply in society today. Many workaholics leave their family aside and take them for granted without realizing that their work is taking up much of their happiness. The issue of happiness is very vital for your mental sanity and knowing you killed somebody isn’t really on the path towards happiness.

"Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others."
-Buddha