Explain The Concept Of Duty As Articulated In The Bhagavad Gita

Of Gods and Men
Name
Institution of Affiliation
Date
Of Gods & Men
In the Bhagavad Gita conversation Krishna convinces Arjuna to fight and retain his kingdom by balancing between evil and good. Arjuna sees no need to fight and believes that fighting is evil. However, Krishna explains to him the concept of the samsaric cycle. He tells him that there is no true death of the soul but rather a sloughing of the body at the end of each round of birth and death. Krishna says that the purpose of this cycle is to help one to work off their karma that they have accumulated throughout their lifetime. Those who work selflessly and in devotion to service of God work off their karma which leads to the dissolution of soul while those who work selfishly keep accumulating the debt of karma. Krishna tells Arjuna that true humanity does not entail giving up all the possessions or failing to act, but rather acting to full potential in the service of God and finding peace at the end. He emphasizes on the meditation as a uniting factor with God and on love and peace being brought through a divine devotion in the endless service to God. Men must give up all their earthly cravings and be aware of the fact that their bodies are subject to endless rebirth. Through this conversation, Arjuna is convinced that it is his duty to fight for his kingdom and eventually gets back to fight (Chainani, 2007).
Of Gods and Men is a movie with a series of religious themes and the concept of duty is clearly evident in the movie. The movie introduces French monks in an Algerian Monastery whose work is to pray and work in the gardens; they also interact with the townsfolk who are Muslims. They coexist peacefully until civil war breaks out. The French and Algerian government advice the monks to leave while the residents plead to them to stay and help them in the war. This brings out the concept of duty as the monks are confronted with several questions. Should they accept help from the corrupt government and leave Algeria? When is it acceptable for the Sheppard to leave his flock? What good does martyrdom do? (Katelyn, 2011) With these questions confronting them the monks are divided bas...