The Bhagavad Gita is rightly considered to be the most popular scriptural text of India. It has been translated into all the major languages of the world. It is perhaps the most commented upon epic poem by scholars, laymen and mystics. Each commentator approaches the Gita from his own angle, and extracts from it what supports his position. It is thus that the various schools of Vedanta have interpreted the Gita. And indeed, each approach has its own justification.
The present exposition by Shri O.P.Ghai proceeds from no preconceived positions. The Gita grew in him during his study of over forty-five years, and naturally formed his guiding principles in life.
Self-made man that he is, the writer has sought from the Gita what help it offers to the modern man in a crashing world where values are discarded without compunction and success is lauded as right. In what way is the Gita a guide to happy living? As he states in his Introduction, "The Bhagavad Gita presents the Science of Being and the Art of Living. It is a complete guide to mastering the problems of day-to-day life-indispensable to any man in any age. The teachings of the Gita inspire all to realise the reality within them. True fulfilment lies in the simultaneous development of the heart and the mind."
What is most appealing about this work is the easy manner in which the high thought of the Gita is told: the narrative combines the story with the instruction in a charming way. Free from pedantry, it is a summarised version rendered in simple English with taste and aesthetic grace. All the main topics are touched upon in such a way that the reader is irresistibly drawn to the original text.
Shri Ghai is well known for his constructive spirit in all his undertakings, which are considerable. It is but natural that the one feature that appeals to him most in the Gita is its spirit of reconciliation. The Gita, he would say, is no battlefield for the philosophies of Jnana Marga, Bhakti Marga, Karma Marga and other paths. Lord Krishna shows the way to integrate them in oneself and arrive at a total fulfilment. He justifies action done in consecration, bhakti. He values knowledge, jnana, as it leads to selfless love for God and for God's creation. Having practised the Gita's gospel of action in his own life, Shri Ghai carries conviction. May the readers of this slender volume share in the Light and Love that he has gained by his dedication to the Lord and his utterance.
I bought my first copy of the Bhagavad Gita forty-five years ago. It was a publication of Gita Press, Gorakhpur, priced at 4 annas (25 paise). I was twenty-five then. I read and re-read it for a number of years but without fully understanding the message of this great epic poem.
Since then I have read several other translations and interpretations of the Gita, thirty-eight to be precise, in my efforts to grasp its lofty philosophy. Every time I read it I felt there should have been a simpler version of this celebrated epic. The idea of a simpler Gita had been at the back of my mind all those years, and I had hoped someone would write a commentary easy enough for a person of average ability to appreciate it. It never occurred to me that I could also attempt a summarised rendering in simple English for laymen, young people, and foreigners not conversant with the cultural heritage of India.
It was on the first of January 1989 that I made up my mind to undertake such a task, translating the Gita's eighteen chapters in eighteen consecutive days. I started writing its first chapter on January 4 at 3.30 a.m. I made up my mind to do a chapter a day. I awoke any time between 3 and 4 a.m. and continued writing till I had finished the chapter. It strengthened my belief in the saying that 'You can accomplish anything if you think you can.' The book was completed as scheduled.
I have read only English versions of the Gita by Indian and foreign scholars as I do not know the Sanskrit language. While writing the book I was fully aware that any translation, however competent, cannot convey the beauty and force of the original. I was also aware of my own limitations, being neither a scholar nor a philosopher. Therefore, I may be forgiven for any lapses that may have crept into the book.
I hope that more and more Indians and people from all over the world who do not have the time, the inclination or the facility to read the bigger volumes written on the Gita, will be able to understand its teachings which have been presented in this book in an easily understandable form for the average reader. I also hope that it will help those who go through its pages carefully to lead a better life and make the world a better place to live in. Its practical philosophy of life will teach them how to live in this world full of stress, strain, sorrow and suffering, and yet remain calm.
The Gita's philosophy of doing one's duty has universal appeal. Its ethical aspect is a source of inspiration to one and all, irrespective of religion and country. It has become an ambassador of goodwill and understanding between the East and the West, the old world of thought and the new world of action.
The Bhagavad Gita (lit., 'the Lord's Song') forms part of the Mahabharata, the greatest epic poem of India, which is probably the longest in the world, containing well over one hundred thousand couplets. The Gita, composed about 2,500 years ago, comprises a dialogue between Krishna the "charioteer" and Arjuna, his chela (disciple), on the highest spiritual teaching.
It would take the reader only a couple of hours to go through the text of the Gita-and about the same time to read this book.
The subjects discussed in the discourse are knowledge, action and devotion. Krishna teaches the synthesis of all the three courses that are open to human beings. Action being the easiest of the spiritual paths, he lays more stress on it.
The quintessence of Krishna's teaching is the practice of self-control, selfless work and surrender to God. These form the foundations of happiness and peace of mind. In short, the Bhagavad Gita presents the Science of Being and the Art of Living. It is a complete guide to mastering the problems of day-to-day life-indispensable to all human beings in all ages. The teachings of the Gita inspire all to realise the reality within them. True fulfilment lies in the simultaneous development of the heart and the mind. The Gita presents the timeless wisdom and a way of life by following which any person, irrespective of his/her faith, culture or nationality, can enjoy the blessings of the paths of knowledge, action and devotion.
The Bhagavad Gita is a book of light, love and life: Jnana, Bhakti and Karma. Karma is work and work is life. The Bhagavad Gita teaches us how to be, how to think and how to act.
Vedas (1182)
Upanishads (493)
Puranas (624)
Ramayana (741)
Mahabharata (354)
Dharmasastras (165)
Goddess (496)
Bhakti (242)
Saints (1503)
Gods (1290)
Shiva (370)
Journal (187)
Fiction (60)
Vedanta (362)
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Manage Wishlist