It is commonly believed that the Bhagavad Gita contains the
essence of the Upanishads and it is true that in the Gita we get the best
exposition of spiritual life.
The Gita is understood differently by every reader of the
text, according to one’s own capacity and needs—adhikara. The spiritual benefit
of the study of the Gita also depends upon everyone understanding it in one’s
own light, for it is only then that she or he will be able to perform her or
his svadharma, duty, properly.
All the available commentaries of acharyas help to
understand the text from various angles of vision and they give us an
opportunity to choose for ourselves what we think best according to our own adhikara.
The Gita deals with spiritual life in all its aspects and
each person is invited to take up any of the prescriptions as would suit her or
his particular disease. The Gita is called yoga shastra indicating it to be the
science of spiritual life in all its aspects. The Gita represents a synthesis of
all spiritual practices helpful in perfecting the human personality in its
entirety as seen in a person of spiritual realization, wherein the intellect, emotion,
and will are the various ways in which one’s mind works and jnana, bhakti, and karma—dharma—represent
the perfect working of the mind in all its aspects. An aspirant is expected to
aspire to attain this synthetic perfection through whatever sadhana one might
predominantly follow according to adhikara.
Source – Excerpts from article titled ‘The Essence of the Bhagavad Gita and its Significance by Swami Tyagishananda.’ Prabuddha Bharata
March 2017 – Page 15 - 16