Bhagavad Gita is the first scribed source of Karmayoga - first Smriti.
The general translation of the word Smriti is a "memory" - good or bad - cherished or otherwise. The word, though, has a special meaning when used in the context of Vedic Science.
In the beginning there was Om - the sacred syllable - smooth vibrations of the underlying divine field. It was said to be the field of knowledge. Spoken language originated from this source. Humans developed exceptional conversational skills, but everyone had to individually remember the temporal context. This was called the realm of information.
Then we discovered the written word!
Given the labor of writing, scribes chose the content with utmost care. Ink was hard to make. There was no paper - scriptures were written on palm leaves - with a quill! Intent to scribe, thus, had to yield full consensus or be worth its weight in gold. Only precious information made it to the written form - for careful preservation.
The outcome was significant - unlike the spoken word - text could take the information hundreds of miles. And through time! It was as if we tapped into underlying field of knowledge, albeit limitations of a physical form.
The word "scripture" points to such pristine information, worthy of writing down - a human expression of knowledge.
Scripture, or text, thus became the collective memory. In Vedic parlance, such a collective memory is deemed
Smriti. By virtue of being the collective memory, it is embedded into all of us, even if we are unaware. This deep-seated memory is the driver of our intelligence. Think of it as the DNA of thought - a bridge between knowledge and information.
Long before we learned writing (and reading), critical information was passed on through rigorous recital. Such information was called Shruti.
Now that it is easier to scribe, we have exabytes of written words. So much so that it is impossible to scrape through - at least for humans. The quality of content is, however, questionable because of a lack of consensus. Technology has enabled every individual to express themselves, but everyone talking over each other feels more like noise than a message.
Revisiting the first Smriti is thus finding signal within endless noise.
Arjuna, the protagonist, is blessed with the divine vicinity of Krishna as his friend and charioteer. Krishna - the knower of all - represents the knowledge embedded into all of us - an embodiment of our Smritis.
Arjuna, portrayed as the best archer the world had ever seen, represents focus and practice - and hence the skills attained in this birth (current iteration) - exquisite but worldly intelligence. Krishna represents evolutionary wisdom - knowledge beyond intelligence - the soul. That is one reason Bhagavad Gita is called a conversation between the mind and the soul - particularly at a point when the faculties of intellect give in.
Gita is structured as Arjuna's questions followed by Krishna's answers. Just as in the AI realm, the formulation of intelligent prompts is the key to knowing, Arjuna's questions represent the most intriguing human dilemmas. In doing that, he enabled the rest of us with an opportunity to tap into our own Smritis.
Arjun uvaach - the name of this publication - means Arjuna spoke - his heartfelt queries. His voice stands for the questions we mortals have when tested and confused. And also the magical discernment once Krishna unveiled knowledge unto him. At the end of this conversation, Arjuna said:
Nashto Moha , Smritir Labdha ![I am] devoid of illusions, [I have] attained the universal wisdom - the collective memory!
It is not uncommon to experience a momentary relief from illusions (Moha). Such instances - typically a deep loss - often lead to depression. They leave the disillusioned in a vacuum because the absence of Moha is a great void. It must be filled up with knowledge quickly, else it turns into a state of limbo where the mind stops seeking truth. Gita on the other hand, spotlights truth through wisdom embedded in our consciousness (Smriti). Gita gives us tools to access the very basis of our intelligence - our soul (Atma). It does so through selfless (but active) participation - Karmayoga. Instead of a run to exit (Sanyasa), Gita welcomes the precious gift we all are endowed with - human experience. It, thus, provides lasting peace and worldly success - a win-win.
Gita is for everyone - it is not religion-, race-, profession-, gender- or place-specific. It is not even a complex ideology. Krishna's message is simple - do your duty and leave the rest to me. It is this simplicity of message that has made it one of the most cherished epics of the human race. Krishna's arguments are there to help us overcome pre-existing complexities of our thought - not the other way around. In that, it takes our mind to a place of freedom, rather than the jail of a rabbit hole!