The Bhagavad Gita: 0034 (Harvard Paperback) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0674069250 ISBN 13: 9780674069251

Publisher: Harvard University Press, 1972

Synopsis

To most good Vishnuites, and to most Hindus, the Bhagavad Gita is what the New Testament is to good Christians. It is their chief devotional book, and has been for centuries the principal source of religious inspiration for many millions of Indians. In this two-volume edition, Volume I contains on facing pages a transliteration of original Sanskrit and the Franklin Edgerton's close translation. Volume II is Mr. Edgerton's interpretation in which he makes clear the historical setting of the poem and analyzes its influence on later literature and its place in Indian philosophy. Sir Edwin Arnold's beautiful translation, "The Song Celestial," is also included in the second volume.

About this title

Review:

As a revelation of divine incarnation and an attempt to harmonize the rival spiritual paths of action, knowledge and devotion, the Sanskrit poem Bhagavad Gita, 'Song of the Lord, ' itself incarnates all that is typically Hindu. Probably the most revered scripture outside the sacred vedas themselves, and certainly more influential than the latter in popular Hindu piety, the Gita--a self-contained fraction of the vast epic Mahabharata--has been translated innumerable times into many languages east and west... Edgerton's translation remains a solid piece of scholarship which no serious student of the Gita can afford to ignore. The same can be said of his chapters analyzing the historical setting and doctrinal content of the poem, which still constitute one of the best overall studies of the Gita ever published.--Peter Moore "Times Higher Education Supplement "

Professor Edgerton's name guarantees the scholarship of his translation... [His] interpretive essays...have an interest even wider than that which belongs to so great a classic of Indian religion, for they include observations on the mysticism shown in them, and these deserve the consideration of students of mysticism in general.--Arthur Darby Nock "Harvard Divinity School Bulletin "

It is a real pleasure to read 'India's favorite Bible' in this beautiful and very convenient edition... Edgerton analyzes the doctrines of the Gita with clearness and acuteness, and his exposé is full of well-chosen quotations and suggestive remarks.--P.E. Dumont "Journal of the American Oriental Society "

The Gita is one of the most precious fruits of India... Professor Edgerton has a deep familiarity with that sacred text--he has read it word by word with many generations of students.--Isis

From the Back Cover:

Edgarton analyzes the doctrines of the Gita with clearness and acuteness, and his expose is full of well chosen quotations and suggestive remarks.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 1972
• ISBN 10: 0674069250
• ISBN 13: 9780674069251
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224