The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi

Many versions of The Gita According to Gandhi have been published. This review compares three that I have read (cf. thumbnail image at bottom of review).As far as the Gita verses themselves are concerned, they are the same or nearly so in all three books. In other respects, the books differ substantially. Here is a brief chronology followed by a comparison.1926-27: Gandhi translated the Gita from Sanskrit to Gujarati. In 1926 he gave a nine month series of teachings to members of his ashram. Mahadev Desai and another ashram member took notes on these teachings.1929: Gandhi wrote an introduction to his translation in Gujarati, and the whole was published in Gujarati.1931: Gandhi translated his introduction into English while serving a prison term. The introduction was published in English in Young India in 1931.1933-34: Mahadev Desai, while in prison, translated Gandhi’s Gujarati version of the Gita into English. Desai also wrote a long supplementary introduction (“My Submission”), and added extensive notes of his own to the brief notes that Gandhi had interleaved with the Gita verses, in order to make the Gita more accessible to the English-speaking public.1942: Desai died before his English translation was published.1946: Gandhi explains in a Foreword how a collaborator of Desai proof-read Desai’s manuscript after his death and readied it for publication. Gandhi vouches for the accuracy of the English translation. The first edition of Desai’s posthumously published book – complete with Gandhi’s introduction and brief notes; Desai’s supplementary introduction and lengthy notes; and Gandhi’s Foreword – appeared in August 1946. I bought the fifteenth reprint, published in 2012. This version (with orange cover) is still available on Amazon.The edition with the most reviews on Amazon is a stripped-down version from Wilder Publications. This is the first edition that I purchased and read. It contains Gandhi’s Foreword, Introduction, and brief notes, but it completely omits Desai’s supplementary introduction and all of Desai's notes. Most of what Gandhi praises in the Foreword has been left out. As other reviewers here have pointed out, the Wilder Publications edition suffers from the fact that the notes are not set off from the Gita verses by line spaces, indentation, or a smaller font. To make matters worse, nowhere is it explicitly stated that all of the notes are due to Gandhi. I believe they are (i.e., none of the notes are due to Desai), but this fact should have been made clear by the publisher. The Wilder edition does not have a Glossary or Index.The Desai edition is superior in both form and content. It gives each verse in Gandhi’s Gujarati; then Desai’s English translation of Gandhi’s Gujarati; followed by Gandhi’s notes (if any) in a smaller font; followed by Desai’s notes in square brackets and a yet smaller font. You can read all of it, or easily skip the parts that don’t interest you. Desai’s supplementary introduction alone is worth the price of the book. At 120 pp., “My Submission” is a book within a book. It contains a wealth of helpful information, presented in an accessible way. Desai’s writing style reminds me somewhat of Montaigne: - by liberal use of quotes, he connects the Gita, Ghandi, and his own thoughts with the whole universe of eastern and western thought. You will find quotes from the Bible and the Koran; Buddha and Lao Tze; philosophers from Plato to Plotinus to Hume to William James; mystics like Meister Eckhart and Shankara; poets from Shakespeare to Browning to Keats. Even a few scientists are mentioned. (How many other Gita commentaries quote Max Planck?!) All in all, Desai’s contributions make for challenging and delightful reading. This edition has a good Index.The last edition reviewed here makes a wonderful companion volume and complement to Desai. It was edited by John Strohmeier and published by North Atlantic Books in 2009. Strohmeier went back to the notes that Desai and another ashram member took in real time while Gandhi was giving his nine-month-long course in 1926. These transcripts first appeared in English in "The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi" (1969). Strohmeier’s edition is based on these transcripts. In his own words:“In an effort to bring forward and clarify the essence of Gandhi’s teaching, I have abridged the commentary considerably, and rearranged it in a few sections. The original presentation of the material was unrehearsed and relatively spontaneous, and includes many of the redundancies, contradictions, ellipses, false starts, and situational digressions of everyday conversation. Some of these I have deleted after pursuing the trail of Gandhi’s thought carefully and respectfully… Others I have let stand where they illuminated important ideas, or explained the context in which he made his remarks. For example, his references to an impending flood, the killing of a snake, and the tormenting of a dog by some boys, although quite specific to ashram events, carry lessons that apply to the world beyond the ashram walls.”The comments and illustrations in Strohmeier are more spontaneous, less polished than the comments in the other books. The reader gets to be the proverbial “fly on the wall” at the ashram in 1926. This book has a combined Glossary and Index.

Gandhi’s commentary is one of the great commentaries of the Gita from the last century. I purchased this volume thinking it was Gandhi’s commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. It is not. This is an edition published shortly after his assassination, presenting his ADAPTION of the Gita, with commentaries of selected slokas based on the notes Gandhi wrote while in prison in the 1930s. Essentially, it is the Bhagavad Gita, the Mahatma’s version of the Gita, with a little commentary. This book is not to be confused with his own comprehensive, more complete commentary of most of the slokas of the Gita. This book here is good as an abridged version, but that’s it.

It's important to remember that Gandhi took many different philosophies from many different traditions into his own. He didn't read the Gita until he was obtaining his college education in England and he read it in English; he didn't grow up with this text as a central point for his belief system as many Hindus do. That being said, I believe Gandhi is one of the greatest advocates of peace this world has ever seen, and that his philosophy of life has something that can positively affect each and everyone of our lives. As with everything though, take his interpretation of this amazing text with a grain of salt. Just because this is Gandhi's translation doesn't give it anymore value than other masterful works (I personally prefer Barbra Stoler Miller's).

I should start by saying that I'm not a very big fan of Gandhi. I respect him for leading a 250 mile salt march to protest the British monopoly on salt, but personally I think he was way too much of an ascetic i.e. what Nietzsche would have called a "life-denier". He forbade himself worldly pleasure, and his personal Hinduism is way too Jain influenced.He read several major commentaries on the Gita including Shankara's (9th century CE) which is the oldest extant commentary on the text. Despite this, he claimed that a man of limited understanding was better equipped for the Gita than learned scholars and Brahmins. One would not expect such boastful words for a man who promoted humility as a virtue.His interpretation is a natural outgrowth of Jain philosophy, and he injects his own meaning onto the text. For someone who considers themselves a Gandhian politically or philosophically, I suppose the text would be alright, but for someone wanting a better understanding of the Gita as a text and the historical background behind it I would recommend Winthrop Sargeant's edition, or perhaps Robert Minor's "The Gita: An Exegetical Commentary" though I am less familiar with the latter.Nowadays, with everybody and their mother coming out with their own translation of the Gita, I would suggest people think carefully about which edition they purchase, as I find only a few to be truly valuable. If my lofty ambitions as a scholar ever come to fruition, I hereby promise myself and the world that I shall not be translating the Gita. With Sanskrit being the second most prolific classical language in the world in terms of literary production (behind classical Chinese) there are more than enough untouched volumes of writings to occupy my time.

Beautifully simple exposition of the lessons of an ancient classic.

My favourite version of Bhagavad Gita remains the one recommended by Mahatma Gandhi as the best English translation: 'The Song Celestial' by Sir Edwin Arnold. So it is of great interest to discover that Gandhi has himself translated this sacred text, a cornerstone to the ancient and challenging Practice of Self Enquiry. It is a text fundamental to his teaching and philosophy throughout his life and Gandhi reminds us of its central message: to be free from sin all action must be desireless with no expectation of reward. Most of us are unable to read the original Sanskrit translation of this beautiful poem. We must therefore place our trust in those who present us with English translations, a trust that is not misplaced in Mahadev Desai's translation of Gandhi's version which when read alongside Arnold's 'Song Celestial' appears to ring true. Gandhi's interpretations placed within the text are also worthy of our attention: sincere,not too wordy or self-opinionated giving us further insight into this sacred and profound poem. Highly recommended as essential reading for those with a serious interest in Self Enquiry.

I am new to the spiritual path, having been absorbed in A Course In Miracles for two years, but the Gita holds the same message in concentrated form. Devotion to Him. Recognize the illusion of attachment to transitory objects - including our own ( or that which we take to be our own ) body. And walk the path to find the truth within us, only the eternal ' I am.' What an incredible, fascinating journey.

Excellent Read, Great Value For MoneyAs an avid reader its handy to have your book collection with you. Some books are lacking images but hay that’s why we have imaginations. Overall very pleased.

Gift for my father. He read it avidly!

The Best !