The Educational Function of a Hindu Core Text in a Liberal Arts Context: Character Education and Caring for the Soul in the Bhagavadgita

Liberal arts courses sometimes face the question of whether core texts can actually ‘educate character’ or ‘care for the soul’ in the Socratic sense. The Bhagavadgita addresses these issues from a Hindu perspective. But at the same time, the educational function of a religious core text changes decisively when transposed into a liberal arts context. The purpose of this paper is to explain how the use and content of the Gita can contribute to reflection on some liberal arts values and their application in courses on world literature and great books.