2025, Vol. 11, Issue 2, Part C

author(s)
Uttam Poudel

abstract
This paper seeks to explore how, by practicing the wisdom of The Gita in the pandemic/post-pandemic world can help humanity grapple with stress, anxiety and depression caused by the persistent fear of pandemics. Pandemics, plagues and pestilences have been part of human civilization since time immemorial. The COVID-19 pandemic is the recent phenomenon. In times of such crises, this paper argues, medical science alone cannot bring solution to combat with the adversaries; rather, humanity needs the wisdom of other disciplines—psychology, humanities, ecology, spiritualism, yogic science, etc., which The Gita alone bears. The wisdom of The Gita, an inherent part of the epic, Mahabharata, gives sustained attention to non-violence, internal and external decontamination, interweaving the forces of nature, stress relieving through meditation, maintain stronghold relation with each and every organism, etc., which medical scientists, environmental scientists and social scientists are valorizing at present to mitigate the impacts of pandemic, and for the psychic therapy of the entire humanity during uncertainties. The relevance of The Gita, therefore, is even more pronounced today. This study executes hermeneutics, a close discursive analytical style to interpret the selected verses of The Gita. This paper makes a significant contribution by bringing the selected verses of The Gita to the purview of critical analysis. It also contributes by analyzing how The Gita is not merely a religious text but also a perfect document, which is capable of bringing therapeutic effect to humanity, and teaching them the secret keys to enjoy healthy, happy and wholesome life in the pandemic/post-pandemic world.