The Bhagavad Gita

As an atheist, I personally believe the Gita should not be understood as a literal description of events, and any passages that make too precise a claim (like the ones about the age of the universe) should be gently ignored. Instead, the Gita should be understood as a beautiful literary allegory that triggers all the right food for thought in every chapter. This book is an excellent piece of philosophy worth comparing with any work of Stoicism or Zen as well modern schools like virtue ethics and psychoanalysis. The writing style and story will feel similar in places while presenting a fresh perspective on some of life's deepest questions. The most significant detail of this book compared to those others is the choice to have the information shared in a dialogue between 2 people, Arjuna and Krishna. For much of the time I was reading, I imagined Arjuna and Krishna as the conscious and unconscious struggling with the challenges of life inside a single individual, as described by Neumann's psychoanalysis. Imagining their dialogue and claims in this way led me to reflect deeply about my own particular conscious and unconscious, and the lessons on integration fit relevantly. This book is also a core text in the Advaita Vedanta tradition, where it's argued that each individual has a long-lasting Atman as well as short-lived Avatars. I also recommend interpreting the words of Arjuna and Krishna through this lens. There are probably several frameworks that fit, so try to keep in any mind that are relevant to you as you read. This book is great for reading short passages at a time or for seeking out particular topics when relevant. If you're performing some tough activity, I recommend reading some of the passages from time to time as a boost to fortitude. I've been reading during rest periods from working out, and it's like an inspiring jolt of focus for bringing 100% of my strength to every set. I firmly believe I'll be bringing chapters from this book out for the rest of my life.

Ancient wisdom that should be seek out from a sincere heart. This book, in a perfect translation lays out the way to learn from a path of compassion, love, enlightenment. A path that is in the heart of every human being, not institutions, government, academia, nor outer world. This story is a gift to mankind passed down, and available at hand. Everything worthy requires efforts, until it becomes natural like breathing, then the dead comes back to life. Hope you enjoy this reading, and share will all those seeking for more, for truth.

I first heard about the Bhagavad Gita a few years ago on a podcast that the comedian Duncan Trussell was on. For those who may not know, Duncan, in addition to being hilarious, is incredibly smart, and has spent many years studying various religions and philosophy. I still remember the first verse he quoted- It is better to be an honest street sweeper than a dishonest king. This and many others, all spoke to me, and for the longest time, I couldn’t figure out which version of the Gita to get. Obviously, I went with this one, translated by Eknath Easwaran, mostly because of all the positive reviews. While I was slightly disappointed that several verses I’d become so familiar with through Duncan (the one I just mentioned, and the infamous “I am become death” one), I actually liked how they were translated here just as much as those I originally heard. I don’t know what it was, but I read through the Bhagavad Gita very quickly, which is rare for me because when I read a book, my eyes will eventually jumble the words together, causing me to take a long time just to get through one short chapter. Here, I felt driven to read through the book. Maybe it’s because so much of it clicked with me. Easwaran’s translation is very easy to understand. It tells the story of Arjuna, a prince stuck between two armies, not wanting to fight because he doesn’t understand what the good of killing others would be. This is a very honest question, and over the 18 chapters, he gets his answer from Krishna, (one form of Vishnu, one of the holy trinity), who happens to be serving as his charioteer in the war. Krishna is loving and gives Arjuna all the information he needs about life and death, and about his responsibilities as a warrior. To be completely honest, I don’t know how to write a review for The Bhagavad Gita. My best advice would be to simply do a search for ‘Bhagavad Gita quotes’ and see if you like what you read. For anyone wondering if this book is only for “religious people”, I don’t think so. It’s explained several times in the introduction that the Gita can be seen as a book to help people through life, a kind of guide book. It never tells you what you’re supposed to be doing, or how you’re supposed to act. It simply tells you, in the same way a good friend might give you advice while trying to be nice about it, how to improve. This version also has introductions before each chapter. At first, I would read a chapter, then the introduction, but after the fifth or sixth, I started with the introductions. Some have mentioned that the introductions are a little intrusive, or reiterate things you’re already going to be reading about. Personally, I found them to be very helpful. Some terms that just plain couldn’t be translated into English, are broken down in these introductions, making it a lot easier to read the chapter without going “wait, what does that mean?” and having to look it up or keep skipping to the glossary. There is also a lengthy introduction at the beginning of the book, further explaining certain Hindu ideas and terms, and even going over some very interesting history. Even some things I though I fully understood, like renunciation, are explained more here than they are in the individual chapter intros, and I appreciated it. Basically, this is as complete as you could probably get if you wanted a copy of the Bhagavad Gita with a little more than the Gita itself. Again, it was hard to sit here and type up anything for this book. If I could, I’d just type up a couple of my favorite verses…but that may be several pages of material that you can easily find elsewhere. You know what’s funny? I’ve memorized many Indian words while reading the Gita, and even after just reading it once, I’ve memorized what chapters some of my favorite verses come from. I’d sit there and ask myself, “what chapter was [x verse] in again?”, then I’d flip right to it, almost always on the exact page the verse was on. The Bhagavad Gita is one of those books that I can honestly say I got something out of while, and after, reading it. Look up some quotes, and if anything sticks, get the book. It’s very inexpensive and full of good advice.

This has become my favorite book, a most read for anyone who is on a spiritual journey.

Before purchasing, I'd read another reviewer's comments about how useful each chapter's preview/summary was for them, and that greatly contributed to my purchasing of this particular translation. Having now read through several different chapters myself, I'd like to thoroughly reiterate their statement. I've also found the chapter summaries to be particularly insightful as someone who's only been exposed to the eastern traditions for several years now. I really appreciate how both direct and indirect correlations to the other prominent traditions are demonstrated and elaborated upon (for example, preemptively explaining the Shavaite equivalents to Purusha/prakriti), as that helps me to more properly contextualize from a western approach. I do, however, read this along with two other translations, both of which include the Sanskrit, as I find having those terms alongside the English to be indispensable when trying to incorporate more deeply into the tradition and learn a new language. So that's just something that helps me and that others might want to invest in, as well.

Although not the oldest of Hindu texts nor even the most authoritative, the BHAGAVAD GITA does deserve special recognition for its ease of readability. I say this as someone who has read the unabridged RIGVEDA SAMHITA, both RIGVEDA BRAHMANAS and a selection of 12 of the most significant UPANISHADS. Where those earlier texts constantly beat one over the head with Soma, Sacrifice, Agni, Indra and cryptic passages that raised more questions than answers, the straight-forward dialogue of the BHAGAVAD GITA comes as a breath of refreshment. My red ink pen was constantly flowing as I was highlighting passages left and right. Most surprising to me was the volume of passages stating principles that could easily be applied to Christianity and possibly other religions. Some examples include: Chapter 2.62-63 on the topic of the dangers of lust. Chapter 7.24-26 on the nature of God, emphasizing that as Creator, He is not created--a concept that a lot of atheists fail to grasp. Chapter 9.13-14 on the worship of God. Chapter 16 on the topic of the demonic/sinners. Finally, the idea of Arjuna's internal spiritual battle is also something I think that is common to many religions and that people can easily relate to. Although this edition is translated by Eknath Easwaran, all the chapter introductions are done by Diana Morrison. My method was to read the chapters of the Gita first--to establish my personal first-impression--and then read the introductions and see if my understanding matched that of someone more versed in this text. Often I found that some of Morrison's observations and commentary were just as enlightening as the Gita itself. Easwaran's translation itself is very easy to read. Probably a Junior High or High School reading-level, if you overlook the occasional Sanskrit words that pop up. On that note, I was glad to see a GLOSSARY at the end that explains some of the more difficult terms like manas, buddhi, and ahamkara, to name a few. There is also a rather lengthy introduction by Easwaran, but I personally found it not as informative as it could have been. For one, I would have liked more commentary on HOW he translated the Gita. On what text was his translation based? What was his method for translating words with multiple meanings? Was his approach to the translation strictly theological, or was he trying to squeeze in the social and cultural context of the timeframe the Gita was written? Was content compromised for readability? For anyone who has ever showed even a casual interest in Hinduism, this book does a great job of explaining the concepts of Karma, Reincarnation, Self-Realization, and the identity of Krishna. There are many great passages and analogies. However, there are some chapters that--understandably--will be harder for most English-speakers to grasp, due to the Sanskrit terminology. The Gita by being translated has certainly passed many borders, but there still remains the language barrier that plagues all the Hindu texts I've read.

I like the book very much. The author wrote very well. Though this book may be a bit challenging for anyone who started to read The Bhagavad Gita, it is still comprehensible for beginner. The only comment I want to ask the author is why he must refer to western figures at allto make the points of the Gita? In my opinion, there is no need for that. The truth in the Gita remains the truth. There is no need to make reference, especially, referring to western figures, to convince anyone. Devotion will do its job. No need to try too hard. When their time comes, people will appreciate the Gita in their own. No referneces of any figures to convince them needed :)

Sri Eknath Easwaren's translation makes the original Sanskrit accessible to a Western audience. Excellent!