Description

For courses in Indian or Asian Philosophy or Religions, Asian Studies, Non-Western Civilizations, Survey of World Religions, Great Texts of Humankind, and Philosophical Ideas in Literature. Unlike all other English translations of the Bhagavad Gita - which are either too literal and abstract, or written in very formal, incomprehensible English, or are philosophically one-sided - this student-friendly “transcreation” offers an unbiased philosophical perspective and presents the main religious and philosophical themes of the Bhagavad Gita in simple/ordinary language easily accessible to today's students. It enables them to read this great work as if it were originally written in their own language - and to capture the excitement of discovering its relevance to their own lives.

Features

• Offers a student-friendly transcreation - rather than a pure translation - that enables the translation to be briefer and more effective in bringing out clearly the main teaching and spirit of each chapter of this great text. Pg.___

  • Uses a simple, clear, and non-pedantic style and language that is accessible to all levels of students - yet captures the religious and philosophical concepts in all their complexity. Pg.___

  • Omits words and phrases which are not essential to the understanding of the major themes or spirit of the book. Pg.___

  • Eliminates all diacritical marks for Sanskrit words (uses “sh” for the sibilant “s” and “ri” for “r”) and translates all Sanskrit words into simple English words - to provide a smoother reading of the text. Pg.___

• Describes difficult words and major names in simple language in footnotes at the bottom of each page and in a glossary at the back of the text. Pg.___

• Begins with a brief introduction and a short story outline of the Bhagavad Gita to stimulate students' interest for reading the actual text. Pg.___

• Presents the actual transcreation of the text of the Bhagavad Gita in eighteen chapters.

  • Begins each chapter with a succinct summary of the main issues covered in the chapter - and thus provides a continuing thematic map to the philosophical/religious territory of the Bhagavad Gita. Pg.___

• Concludes with an Afterword that presents a succinct analysis of classical, modern, contemporary, and recent interpretations of the Bhagavad Gita - and reveals the importance of this great text for Hindus as well as for the world. Pg.___

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION.

STORY OUTLINE OF THE BHAGAVAD GITA.

PRINCPAL CHARACTERS.

TRANSCREATED TEXT OF THE BHAGAVAD GITA.

Arjuna's Moral Dilemma.
Path of Knowledge.
Path of Action.
Paths of Action and Knowledge.
Path of Renunciation.
The Nature of a True Yogi.
The Divine's Higher and Lower Natures.
Path to the Supreme Self.
Wisdom and Worship.
Glorious Manifestations of the Divine.
Intuitive Vision of the Cosmic Form.
Path of Devotion.
The Body and Its Controller.
The Three Components of the Material Reality.
The Cosmic Fig Tree.
Sage-like and Unsage-like Endowments.
Nature of Faith.
Paths of Renunciation and Relinquishment.

AFTERWORD.

Interpretations of the Bhagavad Gita.
Classical Interpretations - with comments by Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhava.Modern Interpretations - with comments by Weber, Garbe and Farquhar.Contemporary Interpretations - with comments by Tilak, Gandhi, and Radhakrishnan.Recent Interpretations - with comments by Hauer, Eliot, and Bhaktivedanta.Ethical, Philosophical, and Religious Content.
Glossary.