Bhagavad Gita, a philosophical poem comprising seven hundred Sanskrit verses, is one of the most important philosophical and literary works known to man. More commentaries have been written upon the Gita than upon any other philosophical or religious text in history. As a classic of timeless wisdom, it is the main literary support for the oldest surviving spiritual culture in the world-that of India's Vedic civilization. Not only has the Gita directed the religious life of many centuries of Hindus, but, owing to the pervasive influence of religious concepts in Vedic civilization, the Gita has shaped India's social, ethical, cultural and even political life as well. Attesting to India's nearly universal acceptance of the Gita, practically every sectarian cult and school of Hindu thought, representing a vast spectrum of religious and philosophical views, accepts Bhagavad-gita as the summum bonum guide to spiritual truth. The Gita, therefore, more than any other single historical source, provides penetrating insight into the metaphysical and psychological foundation of India's Vedic culture, both ancient and contemporary.