The Bhagavad Gita, or the Song of the Lord, is a dialogue between Lord Krishna, an incarnation of Vishnu, and his friend and disciple, Arjuna. This dialogue takes place in the Bhisma Parva of the Mahabharata. The Bhagavad Gita is composed of 700 verses arranged in 18 chapters. It is one of the best-known philosophical texts of Hinduism, and is said to contain the essence of Upanishadic teachings. The Bhagavad Gita occurs just before the great battle of Mahabharata begins. The army marshaled by the five Pandava brothers was to fight the battle against the army of the Pandava's cousin, Duryodhana, who had robbed the Pandavas of their rightful kingdom and further, refused to participate in any plans for a compromise. After making all possible attempts to peacefully get back their kingdom or even the right to own a mere five villages in the kingdom, the Pandava brothers decided to fight a war to gain justice. Arjuna, the third of the five Pandava princes, was perhaps the greatest and most renowned warrior-hero in the Pandava army. Before the battle began, both Duryodhana and Arjuna went to Krishna to seek his aid. Krishna said that he would not personally lift weapons and fight in the battle, but the cousins could choose to have him, unarmed, on their side, or to have the use of his large army. Arjuna chose to have Krishna with him, and Duryodhana was delighted to add the vast, skilled army of Krishna to his forces. Krishna agreed to drive Arjuna's chariot and thus to be with <b>...</b>