The Bhagavad Gita

My hands tremble at the prospect of writing on something as monumental as the Bhagavad Gita! I'm in deep love with the book, and at the same time in total awe of it. I came across a copy, published by Gita Press, Gorakhpur, lying on the table when I was at my home, about a year back. It was a small book, with the verses in Sanskrit accompanied by translations in English. Flipping through it, I began reading, and in short while was completely hooked. It was totally unlike anything else I had ever read in my life. (Well I had not read a lot of spiritual stuff anyway, to begin with.) I carried the book back to Kanpur with me, and in about three days time read the whole of it. I didn't read the Sanskrit verses the first time of course...just the english translation: and the translation was simple and concise and beautiful! The language was precise and to the point, leaving the reader free to focus on the essence of the verses without unnecessary diversions. In fact, I learnt recently that this version is what Guruji also recommends! (saw it somewhere on Bawa and Dinesh bhaiyya's blog.) By the way, this version is also available online for free download at the Gita Press site. Just click here.

But of course, it is not an easy book to be read over the coffee table! Which was why, after a few days, I was on the look out for an edition with some detailed explanations. Enter my friend Saurabh from Delhi, and he recommended 'Sadhak-Sanjivani', by Swami Ram Sukhdas, also published by Gita Press. I was laid up in my room at the time with my ankle covered up in plaster, on account of an accident on the play field! But fortunately another friend (Manish) couriered it to me from Deoria (which happens to be close to Gorakhpur.)

Now I have rarely read Hindi, and this gigantic volume (more than a thousand pages!) is entirely in Hindi, except of course for the verses themselves. So it was a bit of a struggle initially even to carry on. But by the end of the second chapter and the begining of the third, I knew something was changing inside me fundamentally. I think I was helped by my unfamiliarity with reading Hindi because I had to read each word slowly and carefully, and so was better able to absorb it. With a familiar tongue, one usually tends to gloss over things very fast, missing out the subtle aspects. Incidentally, this was also the time (the May-June period) when I had to meet some urgent deadlines, and was immensely helped just by applying what I had learnt from the Gita to real life! So the Gita offers loads of practical benefits as well! Click here to see the book I am talking about.

In the meantime I also acquired an english translation of Swami Ram Sukhdas's commentary on the Gita. Unfortunately it was a bit of a disappoinment because of the language: clearly the translator was not very familiar with English! Reading it was like entering a maze of words and unnecessary punctuation marks wherein you don't know from where you began and where you will end! So I continued with the Hindi version, because rather than spoil my English I thought I'd rather improve my Hindi! All the same, it would be very helpful if someone were to come up with a better English translation, because in my opinion it is a very important commentary.

One excellent feature with the Hindi commentary by Swami Ram Sukhdas is that each verse is dissected into individual words rearranged in the 'right' order (because in Sanskrit the order of words is immaterial), and is accompanied by the literal translation. This is then followed by a detailed commentary. However, this step-by-step explanation and translation of the verse is absent in the English edition.

A shortened form of Swami Ram Sukhdas's commentary in Hindi (containing the step-by-step explanation of the verses) is also available online for free download from the Gita Press site. Just click here to follow the link.

Wish you happy reading :)