Staying Positive in Tough Times: Lessons from the Bhagavad Gita
Riya Kumari | Mar 15, 2025, 23:59 IST
So, let’s set the scene: Your life is basically a romcom—but instead of the swoon-worthy third-act redemption, you’re stuck in that disastrous middle part. The job? Meh. The love life? A certified mess. The existential dread? Oh, it’s thriving. And to top it all off, your UberEats driver just canceled your order. Enter the Bhagavad Gita, an ancient Indian text that’s basically the self-help book that all self-help books secretly want to be when they grow up.
There are moments in life when everything feels like it’s collapsing. You stand at the center of it all—helpless, uncertain, exhausted. You tell yourself to stay positive, to “trust the process,” but deep down, you don’t believe it. Because what if this isn’t a rough patch? What if this is your life now? If you’ve ever been there—if you’re there right now—you’re not alone. Arjuna, the warrior prince from the Bhagavad Gita, was in the same place. He stood on the battlefield, paralyzed, questioning everything.
1. The Nature of Life Is Change—Accept It, Don’t Fight It
The Bhagavad Gita doesn’t sugarcoat reality. It tells you, in no uncertain terms, that everything you know will change. Your success, your failures, your joys, your suffering—it all comes and goes. And yet, most of our pain comes from resisting this truth. Krishna tells Arjuna: "Just as seasons change, so too do pleasure and pain. They come and go—endure them patiently."
The world teaches us to cling. To hold on to what we love, to fear what we might lose. But the more we hold on, the more we suffer. Life is not meant to be controlled. It is meant to be lived. What if, instead of resisting change, we flowed with it? What if we stopped expecting things to stay the same and embraced the fact that they never will? Pain is not a punishment. Loss is not a failure. They are simply part of the rhythm of life. And when we stop fighting the rhythm, we find peace within it.
2. Focus on Action, Not the Outcome
There is a kind of suffering that is entirely self-inflicted. The suffering of obsession—of waiting for validation, of measuring life in wins and losses. Krishna gives Arjuna one of the most powerful teachings in the Gita:
"You have the right to act, but never to the fruits of your actions. Do not be attached to success or failure." This is where most of us get stuck. We work hard, we love deeply, we pour ourselves into something—and then we attach our entire being to the result. If it works out, we feel worthy. If it doesn’t, we crumble.
But the Gita reminds us: You are not what you achieve. You are not the promotion, the relationship, the applause. Your job is to show up fully, to give your best to this moment—and let go of what happens next. If you can do that, you will be free. Because the person who is free is not the one who gets everything they want. It is the one who no longer needs to.
3. The Mind Is Your Battlefield—Master It, or It Will Master You
Every battle we fight in the world is first fought in the mind. And most of the time, we lose before we’ve even begun—because we believe everything our mind tells us. Krishna warns Arjuna:
"The mind can be your best friend or your worst enemy." Think about that. The voice in your head that tells you you’re not good enough, that things will never change, that you are doomed—that voice is your greatest enemy. And yet, you listen to it as if it’s telling the truth.
But here’s the secret: It’s not. The mind is just a storyteller, and it loves drama. It will convince you of things that aren’t real. It will magnify small problems into crises. It will keep you trapped in a prison that doesn’t exist. But you can take back control. Through awareness. Through practice. Through the simple act of questioning every thought before you believe it. Because the mind is only as powerful as the attention you give it.
4. True Strength Is Walking Your Own Path, No Matter Who Understands It
One of the greatest struggles in life is the fear of disappointing others. The fear of being misunderstood, of not living up to expectations, of making choices that people won’t approve of. Arjuna faced the same fear. He hesitated because his duty meant facing opposition—even from people he loved. But Krishna reminded him: Your path is your own. No one else can walk it for you. How often do we silence ourselves to keep the peace? How many times do we betray what we know in order to fit into what is expected of us?
But here’s the truth: You are not here to be understood by everyone. You are not here to play a role that makes others comfortable. You are here to become who you were meant to be. Not everyone will get it. Some will doubt you. Some will judge you. That’s okay. Walk your path anyway. Because at the end of your life, the only approval that will matter is your own.
5. Detachment Is Not Indifference—It Is Ultimate Freedom
The world tells you to care deeply. The Gita tells you to detach. At first, this sounds cold—like a refusal to love or feel. But it’s the opposite. Krishna teaches that detachment is not about withdrawing from life. It is about engaging fully without clinging. Love, but don’t be destroyed by loss. Work, but don’t be broken by failure. Give, but don’t expect anything in return.
Detachment does not mean you don’t feel. It means you don’t break when things don’t go your way. It means you live with an open hand, allowing life to flow through you, rather than clinging to every moment in fear. And when you live this way, you don’t just survive suffering. You transcend it.
The Way Forward
If you’re going through something difficult right now, I won’t tell you to “just be positive.” I won’t tell you that everything happens for a reason. What I will tell you is this: The suffering will pass. The storm will end. But more importantly, you will come out of it stronger. Because every difficulty is an invitation. To see clearly. To let go of illusions. To trust yourself. That’s what the Bhagavad Gita offers—not empty optimism, but a way to stand tall in the middle of the storm. And when you do, you will find that you are not fragile. You are not lost. You were always stronger than you knew.
1. The Nature of Life Is Change—Accept It, Don’t Fight It
Change
( Image credit : Pexels )
The Bhagavad Gita doesn’t sugarcoat reality. It tells you, in no uncertain terms, that everything you know will change. Your success, your failures, your joys, your suffering—it all comes and goes. And yet, most of our pain comes from resisting this truth. Krishna tells Arjuna: "Just as seasons change, so too do pleasure and pain. They come and go—endure them patiently."
The world teaches us to cling. To hold on to what we love, to fear what we might lose. But the more we hold on, the more we suffer. Life is not meant to be controlled. It is meant to be lived. What if, instead of resisting change, we flowed with it? What if we stopped expecting things to stay the same and embraced the fact that they never will? Pain is not a punishment. Loss is not a failure. They are simply part of the rhythm of life. And when we stop fighting the rhythm, we find peace within it.
2. Focus on Action, Not the Outcome
Trophy
( Image credit : Pexels )
There is a kind of suffering that is entirely self-inflicted. The suffering of obsession—of waiting for validation, of measuring life in wins and losses. Krishna gives Arjuna one of the most powerful teachings in the Gita:
"You have the right to act, but never to the fruits of your actions. Do not be attached to success or failure." This is where most of us get stuck. We work hard, we love deeply, we pour ourselves into something—and then we attach our entire being to the result. If it works out, we feel worthy. If it doesn’t, we crumble.
But the Gita reminds us: You are not what you achieve. You are not the promotion, the relationship, the applause. Your job is to show up fully, to give your best to this moment—and let go of what happens next. If you can do that, you will be free. Because the person who is free is not the one who gets everything they want. It is the one who no longer needs to.
3. The Mind Is Your Battlefield—Master It, or It Will Master You
Thought
( Image credit : Pexels )
Every battle we fight in the world is first fought in the mind. And most of the time, we lose before we’ve even begun—because we believe everything our mind tells us. Krishna warns Arjuna:
"The mind can be your best friend or your worst enemy." Think about that. The voice in your head that tells you you’re not good enough, that things will never change, that you are doomed—that voice is your greatest enemy. And yet, you listen to it as if it’s telling the truth.
But here’s the secret: It’s not. The mind is just a storyteller, and it loves drama. It will convince you of things that aren’t real. It will magnify small problems into crises. It will keep you trapped in a prison that doesn’t exist. But you can take back control. Through awareness. Through practice. Through the simple act of questioning every thought before you believe it. Because the mind is only as powerful as the attention you give it.
4. True Strength Is Walking Your Own Path, No Matter Who Understands It
Path
( Image credit : Pexels )
One of the greatest struggles in life is the fear of disappointing others. The fear of being misunderstood, of not living up to expectations, of making choices that people won’t approve of. Arjuna faced the same fear. He hesitated because his duty meant facing opposition—even from people he loved. But Krishna reminded him: Your path is your own. No one else can walk it for you. How often do we silence ourselves to keep the peace? How many times do we betray what we know in order to fit into what is expected of us?
But here’s the truth: You are not here to be understood by everyone. You are not here to play a role that makes others comfortable. You are here to become who you were meant to be. Not everyone will get it. Some will doubt you. Some will judge you. That’s okay. Walk your path anyway. Because at the end of your life, the only approval that will matter is your own.
5. Detachment Is Not Indifference—It Is Ultimate Freedom
Meditate
( Image credit : Pexels )
The world tells you to care deeply. The Gita tells you to detach. At first, this sounds cold—like a refusal to love or feel. But it’s the opposite. Krishna teaches that detachment is not about withdrawing from life. It is about engaging fully without clinging. Love, but don’t be destroyed by loss. Work, but don’t be broken by failure. Give, but don’t expect anything in return.
Detachment does not mean you don’t feel. It means you don’t break when things don’t go your way. It means you live with an open hand, allowing life to flow through you, rather than clinging to every moment in fear. And when you live this way, you don’t just survive suffering. You transcend it.