From Arjuna’s crisis to self-resilience: Psychological capital in the Bhagavad Gita and Vedanta
Relin Denayu Ekawati, Ni Kadek Surpi, Aditya Ansu
Life and Death: Journal of Eschatology July 28, 2026 DOI: 10.61511/lad.v4i1.2026.3879 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative textual-interpretive study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key findings | Argues that Arjuna's crisis represents the simultaneous collapse of hope, self-efficacy, optimism, and resilience, and that Krishna's teachings reconstruct these dimensions through Vedantic concepts, proposing 'ethical-spiritual psychological capital' and 'transformative resilience' as extensions of psychological capital. |
Abstract
Background: Psychological capital, comprising hope, self-efficacy, optimism, and resilience, provides a useful framework for understanding how individuals remain purposeful during crises. However, its performance-oriented formulation insufficiently addresses the ethical, metaphysical, and spiritual foundations of human strength. This study examines Arjuna’s transformation from psychological and moral crisis to inner resilience in the Bhagavad Gita and reconstructs psychological capital through Vedanta.
Methods: A qualitative textual-interpretive design combining directed content analysis and hermeneutic inquiry was employed. Selected passages from Chapters I, II, III, VI, XII, XIV, and XVIII were coded deductively according to the four dimensions of psychological capital and inductively through the Vedantic concepts of ātman, dharma, buddhi, karma-yoga, samatva, abhyāsa, and vairāgya. The interpretations were compared with contemporary literature on psychological capital, resilience, Hindu psychology, and psychotherapy.
Findings: Arjuna’s crisis reflects the simultaneous collapse of hope, self-efficacy, optimism, and resilience through moral disorientation, identity fragmentation, emotional dysregulation, and loss of meaningful agency. Kṛṣṇa’s teachings reconstruct hope as dharma-oriented purpose, self-efficacy as agency governed by buddhi, optimism as confidence in the intrinsic value of right action, and resilience as transformative equanimity grounded in non-attachment. Together, these dimensions form a circular process from value conflict and identity fragmentation to self-clarification, dharmic purpose, disciplined action, inner balance, and transformative resilience.
Conclusion: The Bhagavad Gita extends psychological capital beyond adaptation and performance by grounding psychological strength in ethical responsibility, spiritual awareness, and transformation of consciousness. Arjuna’s recovery represents not merely a return to previous functioning but the formation of more integrated, reflective, and morally responsible agency. Novelty/Originality of this article: This study proposes ethical-spiritual psychological capital and transformative resilience by systematically reconstructing all four dimensions through Vedantic categories rather than merely identifying parallels with modern psychotherapy.