Gita means many things when you read it from a perspective

It helps you deal with life aka tells you that nothing is more important than Karma and that money/sex/costly things are bad

It also encourages familal war. It literally tells Arjuna to wage a war against his entire family "for righteousness".

That being said, Gita is great.

It's important, in my view, to not only study but to sincerely experiment and eventually embody the teachings. I also read the Upanishads and the Dhammapada often to get the full message of Vedanta and living in accordance with Dharma.

I also study Greek and Egyptian wisdom, it's amazing how much overlap there is when you put all of them side by side.

I've spent a good deal of my 20's exploring the American National Parks and Native American plant medicines, the end result brought me closer to Dharma too.

This will be a lifelong study and metanoia is an ongoing process as I transform lead (anger, lust, greed, pride, vanity, sloth, etc) into gold (peace, love, creativity, humility, earnestness, etc).

Working for the welfare of all by creating economic value for them that is rooted in empathy is, in my opinion, the wisest way forward for capitalism.

Apologies for hijacking, but it's interesting how lead and gold have changed in possible uses in the past couple hundred years. Gold was scarce, and used for decoration. Lead was common, but used for (unfortunately) things like pipes.

Now, gold is still highly prized as a store of value, while lead has continued to be found harmful (petrol, etc.) However, gold's electrical properties (and resistance to tarnish) make it a very valuable practical material.

No point here, just interesting to think about how our perception of those materials has changed over time. (Kinda like how when aluminum was prized as great utensil material, because aluminum smelting took too much energy for what they had available.)

No worries! I am very fascinated by gold as an element, diamonds too. Buddha's 'Diamond Sutra' is very powerful and literally cuts through illusion. Gold is revered around the world by cultures of all climes and times, scientists and engineers as well. It's really something to marvel at!

I find the history of alchemy fascinating too, how it evolved into chemistry as we know it today. Issac Newton was obsessed with it, I know people make fun of him for it but I will always admire his genius and his passion.

I understand. I have read Gita 2 times, in Sanskrit. The book was an excellent philosophy treatise, it opened my eyes which was rivaled only by Sapiens. But it still depends on the perspective.

From one reading it teaches you that you don't need to obsess on material things

Well said. Many philosophies are common in between religions. What amazes me how people focus on differences instead commonality. Indeed empathy is most important character.

Thanks for sharing your very poignant story!

My question is why as a Western dude who grew up with lots of exposure to Christian scripture and surrounding culture elements or churches I can visit am I gonna try and learn someone else’s religion (with none of those advantages) when even taking the “easy” route is extraordinary difficult?

Some of those traditions are previous to Christianism and most likely had a strong influence on it. So maybe for context.

So reading and learning a bit is cool. But I guess the part I wonder is how you’re gonna use it as a guidebook for life or something if you have none of the context and are kind of just guessing (maybe you’re not). For the record I actually have a similar issue with a lot of American Protestant Christians I’ve seen (have seemingly no connection to anyone but are convinced they can figure out how to successfully apply a 2000yr old middle eastern religious text to modern life on their own).

I don't know. I wouldn't use any book as a guidebook for life, either if it was written 2000 years ago or yesterday. Actually most religious people I know have a bond to a community, being The Book kind of an identity "totem" of such community.

I grew up in the Bible Belt in post 9/11 America. Being first generation, I was given the culture of India from my family while also playing baseball and having Windows '95 when I was 5. Also, I was introduced to the Gospel of Jesus when a youth pastor decided to give me his Bible as a gift because he sensed my hunger for wisdom, which I still have 12 years later. My grandma told me Christ and Krishna had the same gospel but for different people of different temperaments, all rivers lead to the Ocean. I have never explored Islam but can understand what a Muslim feels because I've been bullied for being brown and 'looking like a terrorist'. I've felt very lonely at times being an outcast amongst my culture and in America for being a dropout, for not getting married at 25, for choosing experiences over things, for not resenting or worshipping success. Having the Dharma and the Gospel as a guide has helped me stay aligned with what really matters in life: service to others and savoring life in the moment. Without them, I would be lost in the rat race chasing after desires that would never satisfy me fully.

tl;dr - All rivers lead to the Ocean, take whatever raft works for you but see it through to the end and know all the others who preach love and truth as the highest virtues as equally valid.