What Bhagavad Gita book, bashya or commentary do you have?

[s1va]

I know that there are many gitas in the puranas.  Evern Krishna has given at least one more gita.  The uttara gita, I think it was given to Uddhava.  I have even a book on the Bhikshu Gita.  That's right, a Gita given by a beggar or a mendicant, that imparts knowledge.  Doesn't matter who imparts knowledge essentially, that removes ignorance.

 

The word or even the dictionary definition for Gita, has become synonymous with the Bhagavad Gita, the one that was imparted to Arjuna during the war.  Definitely, there is charm in this Srimad Bhagavad Gita that shines among others.

 

When I first attempted to interpret on my own, just  with english translated words, that did not go really well.  The bhashya or commentary by teacher's certainly help.  There are numerous bhashyas, commentaries, interpretations and translations of  gita  or talks given on gita.  Sri Adi Sankara's commentary was later used by many to elaborate.    From Sri Vaishnava tradition, there is the Taathparya Chandrikai by Vedanta Desikan (something I have heard only very little on talks).  I believe all of these commentaries have their own merits.  Each one serves us in different way at different times.

 

I wanted to share some of the one's that I turn to when I want to read or refer on gita.  The following 3  are some. 

1) Talks given by Swami Chinmayananda on Gita, later compiled as books.

2) Commentaries by Swami Dayananda Saraswati later compiled as book

3) English translation (from Marati) of Jnaneshwar Maharaj's  gita 

 

Assuming you have Bhagavad Gita, in any format, in any language, I am just curious to know which one's you have?  Which one's touched your heart or made a transformation, that you would you like to share with others?  It can even be one or few verses from a certain book.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[smilingone]

Hari Om,

 

There is simply no substitute for learning Samskrit yourself and reading it from the source.

[s1va]

Hari Om,

 

There is simply no substitute for learning Samskrit yourself and reading it from the source.

 

I can understand that.  When I tried that method initially, it did not go so well.  After reading commentaries, now, I am able to read and appreciate directly.

 

Still, these commentaries are so helpful, when there is a conflict and I interpret some verses in certain way.  For instance, when there are questions on certain verses that I thought I understood pretty well, I check Jnaneshwar's Gita, I get a totally new perspective.  The words take a totally different meaning.

[Peramadi]

I recently have switched to Jnaneshwar's Gita.  Just finished reading 8:26-28.  Reference to clay pot and the space within it is fascinating.

 

"When the clay pot is broken, the space within it goes on its way and merges at once in all space... The space was in space even before the form of the pot appeared".

[steviesrojas]

Been a part of ISKCON in the past, so I've read Prabhupadas Gita. It's probably the best for a Vaishnava point of view. But since I'm shifting to Advaita Vedanta, I plan on reading Easwaran's translation.

 

Swami Sivananda's seems to be okay as well. The Divine Life Society has a free ebook of his version on their website.

 

http://www.dlshq.org/download/download.htm

[sagebrush]

Peramadi-

 

I do not have any books bhavagad gita...so I looked on internet search last evening.

 

wrote down a few things on what I read..

 

I saw no reference to any clap pot.

 

Would you mind adding the sentences out of your book as they are in the typed and not your interpretation.

 

thank you

 

 

automatically was putting music to the images of the book.

 

it started with the worn out leather edition

 

and then I am not going to spend my day doing that.

 

mostly I like simplified version-but I am asking for the actual words from the book.

Edited March 21, 2017 by sagebrush

[Peramadi]

Hello Sagebrush.

 

The version of Gita that I am reading is Jnaneshwar's Gita, which was written by a Nath Tradition exponent Sant Jnaneshwar around 1290 A.D. when he was just 16 or 17 year old.  This version is special in the sense that he was writing in a trance, as I understand.  So, he would take every Shloka and expand on it. 

 

The above reference that I mentioned comes from his "explanation" of Shloka 8:27.  Here is the complete writing:

 

246. Yogis know that they are truly the Eternal whether they are in the body or out of it, just as they know a rope is a rope and not a snake.

 

247. Does the water know whether it has waves or not? The water itself remains the same all the times.

 

248. The water is not born of the waves, nor does it disappear when they when they subside.  Those who become the Absolute while still in the body are like disembodied being.

 

249. For them, there remains no memory at all of the body.  So when do they die?

 

250. Why then should they seek the right path?  Is there ever anything to lose once a person has become one with time, place, and everything else?

 

251. When a clay pot is broken, the space within it goes away and merges at once in all space.  Otherwise it would get lost.

 

252. Consider this also: only the form is lost.  The space was in the space even before the form of the pot appeared.

 

253.  In this way, Yogis who have realized their oneness with God are not concerned with whether the path is right or wrong. (my interpretation:  Stop your approval-seeking from the outer world. There is no right or wrong path.  You don't need others to certify the path)

 

254. For this reason, O Arjuna, you should become absorbed in yoga so that you will have perpetual evenness of mind.

 

I found this version of Gita in a half-price bookstore while looking for a Castaneda's book.  This book was misplaced and I was fortunate to find it!.

 

 

Thanks.

Edited March 21, 2017 by Peramadi

[s1va]

I recently have switched to Jnaneshwar's Gita.  Just finished reading 8:26-28.  Reference to clay pot and the space within it is fascinating.

 

"When the clay pot is broken, the space within it goes on its way and merges at once in all space... The space was in space even before the form of the pot appeared".

 

Jnaneshwar's Gita is one of the best things I ever came across.

[s1va]

Been a part of ISKCON in the past, so I've read Prabhupadas Gita. It's probably the best for a Vaishnava point of view. But since I'm shifting to Advaita Vedanta, I plan on reading Easwaran's translation.

 

Swami Sivananda's seems to be okay as well. The Divine Life Society has a free ebook of his version on their website.

 

http://www.dlshq.org/download/download.htm

 

Yes, I forgot Swami Sivananda's commentary.  It is good.

 

I haven't read Easwaran's translation.  Can you please mention if it is released as a book or do you have a link for it?

[dwai]

Jnaneshwar's Gita is one of the best things I ever came across.

Nisargadatta Maharaj referenced it many times

[steviesrojas]

Yes, I forgot Swami Sivananda's commentary.  It is good.

 

I haven't read Easwaran's translation.  Can you please mention if it is released as a book or do you have a link for it?

 

I haven't read it either but if I remember correctly, it was recommended by some folks on reddit. I've only seen it as an ebook.

[Prasanna]

Hari Om.

Kaveri, I have studied Srimad Bhagavad Gita under a Guru by the name Swami. Parthasarathy. It is the book where I was able to clearly make out about the message of each and every verse in Bhagavad Gita. So try this book Srimad Bhagavad Gita if you want to easily relate the message of the Bhagavad Gita to our day to day practical life. For further information visit the following website: www.vedantaworld.org

 

Pranam.   

[Bodhicitta]

No doubt Sri Jnanadeva's commentary is very good, whichever of the 3 or 4 English translations you use.  

But I am now re-reading the classic esoteric Nath based commentary by Swami Yogananda.  Read it first 20 years ago and am able to appreciate it better now.  Also have read Lahiri Mahasay and Sri Yukteshwar's comments, but Yogananda's is deeper, fuller and more in tune with we benighted Occidentals.  He did live here for 30 years or so.

His treatment (like all the Kriya gurus before him) of the first, usually ignored chapter, is amazing.  He devotes 150 pages to the occult meanings of the warriors & their families etc.!

His title, God Talks to Arjuna, is a tribute to a verse in Arnold's Gita version.  Two vols. paper or hardback

Edited June 12, 2017 by Bodhicitta

[s1va]

11 hours ago, Bodhicitta said:

No doubt Sri Jnanadeva's commentary is very good, whichever of the 3 or 4 English translations you use.  

But I am now re-reading the classic esoteric Nath based commentary by Swami Yogananda.  Read it first 20 years ago and am able to appreciate it better now.  Also have read Lahiri Mahasay and Sri Yukteshwar's comments, but Yogananda's is deeper, fuller and more in tune with we benighted Occidentals.  He did live here for 30 years or so.

His treatment (like all the Kriya gurus before him) of the first, usually ignored chapter, is amazing.  He devotes 150 pages to the occult meanings of the warriors & their families etc.!

His title, God Talks to Arjuna, is a tribute to a verse in Arnold's Gita version.  Two vols. paper or hardback

 

How interesting!  I just got the 2 volumes of "God Talks to Arjuna" by Paramahansa Yogananda yesterday.  Looking forward to reading them.  Thank You.

[Bodhicitta]

There is an excellent site from AU on Yogananda & the Kriya tradition.  Here is part of the section on God Talks:

 

http://yogananda.com.au/gita00.html#top

[s1va]

In the recent times I read Abhinavagupta's commentary for few verses from his Gitartha Sangraha and found them fascinating.  I find his commentary more balanced because Gita deals with both the transcendent and immanent aspects of the divine.  For anyone interested, here is an English translated edition. 

 

https://archive.org/details/AbhinavaguptaGitarthaSangrahaArvindSharma

 

If someone just wants to check or read Abhinavagupta's commentary for a certain verse(s) like how I do at times, it may be best to visit the following site, and just lookup that verse.

 

https://www.bhagavad-gita.us/

 

Not just Abhinavagupta (From Kaula tradition with Monistic commentary of Gita) , the above site has the commentaries by various prominent masters from completely different types of schools or philosophies such as  Shankara (Advaita commentary of Gita), Ramanuja (Vishishtadvaita commentary), Madhvacharya (Dwaita commentary), Prabupada from the lineage of Chaitanya & Nityananda (Achintya bheda-abhedha) and few others.

 

It is interesting to read the commentary from various masters and traditions, side by side for some key verses.  There used to be an option to filter the commentary only by one philosophy or master, for any of the verses.  I don't see that option anymore in this new site.

 

Here is the link for one verse from chapter 18 as an example.  This verse talks about leaving all dharmas, processes and methods taught over all the previous chapters and verses and just surrender to the  divine and to attain moksha with divine help.  In the link below, we can read the commentary by various traditions on this same verse.

 

https://www.bhagavad-gita.us/bhagavad-gita-18-66/

[s1va]

Just wanted to also point out, the commentary for the verse 66 (link provided in the post above) from chapter 18 is very large.  That's because it is considered as a key verse in Gita by almost all traditions, for the Vaishnava traditions, it is the most important verse of Gita and part of their Rahasya Trayam ( the 3 great secrets).

 

Not all verses in Gita have such lengthy commentary running to pages in that site I pasted above.  Most have concise and easy to read commentary from masters of each tradition.

[Bodhicitta]

I used to visit that site often, but do not recall if they included Sri Jnanadeva's long yet profound commentary.  Here is one translation by Yardi that is online:

 

https://estudantedavedanta.net/Jnaneshwari.pdf

[s1va]

For instance, here is a verse that is more dualistic in my view.

 

 

"bhūmir āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ
khaḿ mano buddhir eva ca
ahańkāra itīyaḿ me
bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

 

Translation of Bhagavad Gita 7.4

 

Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—all together these eight constitute My separated material energies."

 

Here Krishna talks about 8 things constituting his seperate material energies.  It is a challenge to explain such verses from Advaita stand point.  In the Advaita commentaries, I read that these represent the lower nature of the Divine in manifest form.  In the higher nature, the divine is non-dual. Well, this verse is as valid as some other verses that appear to be totally non-dual.  I have provided the link below that has the commentary from all traditions for this verse and I have quoted Abhinavagupta's commentary which makes very good sense to me over others.  Though Abhinavagupta's original commentary says the one and the divided eight fold energy are both valid at the same time, and goes on to explain the self reflection, unfortunately the translator or the person who wrote the English commentary on Abhinavagupta's commentary has added a word 'superior'  (sadly!) to the other form vs. divided forms as consistent with other Advaita commentaries.

 

https://www.bhagavad-gita.us/bhagavad-gita-7-4/

 

Quote

Commentary by Sri Abhinavagupta of Kaula Tantra Sampradaya:

 

7.4-5 Bhumih etc. Apard etc. [The demonstrative] ‘this’ denotes what is being perceived [as objects] through sense-organs by all men at the stage of mundane life. This is only one and at the same time is divided eigth-fold. Therefore the universe is one and unitary, because it is made of one single material cause. By this statement, monism is demonstrated even while following the Prakrti theory. The selfsame Prakrti has become the living one i.e., the personal Soul. Hence it is superior [to what has become eight-fold]. It also belongs to Me alone and not to anybody else. This Prakrti is [thus] two-fold and varied in the form of the universe consisting of the knowables and the knower. That is why this Prakrti (the basic material nature), being the substratum of all beings reflected on the surface of the clean mirror, viz., the Self , is nothing but Self’s own nature and [hence] never leaves Him. This world : the Earth etc. [mentioned in the 4th verse].

 

 

[s1va]

7 minutes ago, Bodhicitta said:

I used to visit that site often, but do not recall if they included Sri Jnanadeva's long yet profound commentary.  Here is one translation by Yardi that is online:

 

https://estudantedavedanta.net/Jnaneshwari.pdf

 

Thanks, I still consider Jnaneswari's commentary on Gita to be one of the best ever.  However, I have come to  understand that the strict advaitin view and commentary of Gita has many limitations. There is a higher meaning and explanation given to some of the verses from the Kashmir Shaivism's monistic point of view.