Eknath Easwaran

In the Bhagavad Gita, Prince Arjuna asks direct, uncompromising questions of his spiritual guide on the eve of a great battle. In this expanded edition of the most famous —and popular — of Indian criptures, Eknath Easwaran contextualizes the book culturally and historically and explains the key concepts of Hindu religious thought and the technical vocabulary of yoga. Chapter introductions, notes, and a glossary help readers understand the book’s message. Most importantly, this translation uses simple, clear language to impart the poetry, universality, and timelessness of the Gita’s teachings.

(Classics of Indian Spirituality)

The Bhagavad Gita

Soham Dasgupta

Kama is not desire; it is selfish desire. The Buddha calls it tanha, “thirst”: the fierce, compulsive craving for personal satisfaction that demands to be slaked at any cost, whether to oneself or to others. Thus the concept also includes what Western mystics call self-will – the naked ego insisting on getting what it wants for its own gratification.

Dialogue between the warrior, Arjuna, and his charioteer, the god Krishna, covers the purpose of war, the importance of duty, and the spiritual nature of existence, in this ancient Hindu poem that forms one section of the epic Mahabharata. Reprint. 10,000 first printing.

Michael Springer

Hey, how pretentious am I? I just gave a four-star review to a fucking holy text. And now I'm going to review it. And I will swear in my review. I'm just asking for it, aren't I?

When comparing this one to the other holy books I've read and/or skimmed, I found this one quite insightful. As a professed athiest, this one probably speaks to me the most. The Bhagavad Gita is actually a section of the Mahabharata, which is, to simplify (because that's all I have researched enough to do), the story of a war. During this war, one of the characters* is visited by god. Hilarity ensues. Just kidding. Actually, he has a conversation with god, and god drops some deep shit on him. There's some delicious irony about this conversation taking place on a battlefield after much death and before some more of it. But, where would someone need to speak to god more?

Anyway, I consider myself a little tiny bit spiritual, and the wisdom in this book can be translated into athiestic terms. And, it didn't seem self-contradictory. When it comes to holy writ, these are things I like. But, as it is a brief text, you come out of it knowing only slightly more about Hinduism than you knew before. In comparison, I felt after reading Chuang Xi, or however we're spelling his name these days, that I had a pretty damn good understanding of Taoism. After reading this one, I have only the vaguest of understandings of Hinduism. But, it isn't really about the religious tradition as much as it's about gleaning little bits of insight into the human condition. In that context, it is a very good read.

*Yes, I'm calling them "characters." Sue me. I'm not a Hindu.

The Bhagavad Gita (Classics of Indian Spirituality)

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