The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living, Volume 1

No one in modern times is more qualified no make that 'as qualified' to translate the epochal Classics of Indian Spirituality than Eknath Easwaran. And the reason is clear. It is impossible to get to the heart of those classics unless you live them, and he did live them. My admiration of the man and his works is boundless. Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions.

Auteur
Eknath Easwaran (1910-1999) brings to this volume a rare combination of credentials: knowledge of Sanskrit, an intuitive understanding of his Hindu legacy, and a mastery of English. More than two million copies of his books are in print, including his best-selling translations of the Bhagavad Gita and the Upanishads. Born in India, Easwaran was a professor of English literature at a leading Indian university when he came to the United States in 1959 on the Fulbright exchange program. He founded the Blue Mountain Center of Meditation in 1961 and gave talks on the Indian classics, world mysticism, meditation, and spiritual living for 40 years. His meditation class at UC Berkeley in 1968 was the first accredited course on meditation at any major university. Easwaran lived what he taught, giving him lasting appeal as a spiritual author and teacher of deep insight and warmth.

Texte du rabat

It is impossible to get to the heart of those classics unless you live them, and [Easwaran] did live them. My admiration of the man and his works is boundless. Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions, reviewing Easwaran's translation, The Bhagavad Gita

In this verse-by-verse commentary on India's most famous scripture, Eknath Easwaran, author of the best-selling translation of the Bhagavad Gita, interprets the Gita's wisdom for modern readers. With everyday stories and touches of humor he shows how this ancient text sheds light on every aspect of our lives. In later chapters he explains how the Gita's insights can be applied to address the social, economic, and environmental problems threatening our world today.

The Bhagavad Gita is set on the battlefield of an apocalyptic war between good and evil. Faced with a dire moral dilemma, the warrior prince Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life.

Easwaran presents Arjuna's crisis as acutely modern. The Gita's battlefield is the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage. Arjuna represents each of us, and Sri Krishna is the Lord, showing us the path to peace and meaning.

The first volume in this three-part series covers chapters 16 of the Gita, which explore the concept of the innermost Self and source of wisdom in each of us. Easwaran explains how we can begin to transform ourselves, even as householders engaged in busy lives. The introduction includes instructions in his universal eight-point program of passage meditation.

Résumé
This warm, practical commentary by the author of the best-selling translation of the Bhagavad Gita helps us understand and apply the Gita's teachings, to find meaning, peace, and wisdom in our lives.

Échantillon de lecture
40. On this path effort never goes to waste, and there is no failure. Even a little effort toward spiritual awareness will yield protection from the greatest fear.

For me this is one of the most memorable verses in the Gita, and it will take a lifetime on the spiritual path to appreciate its applicability to every aspect of human life. When we meditate on the Lord within for even a short time every day, this effort is not wasted. Even if we meditate only thirty minutes every morning, and try to practice the allied spiritual disciplines to a small extent during the day, this can go a long way in guarding us against many fears, known and unknown, which lurk in our consciousness. Most of us have fears of losing what we believe gives us security. Those who go after money are doing so under the impression that this is the way to become secure. They are the victim, the toy, of the stock exchange. There are others who are afraid of losing their youth. Beauty has nothing to do with age. We can be beautiful in childhood, in youth, and in old age to the extent we are unselfish. To be secure, we must find the source of security within ourselves. The advice given by Sri Krishna in the Gita is simple and profound: if times are bad today, try to contribute the best you can to the welfare of those around you. If times are good today, also try to contribute the best you can to the welfare of those around you. You can serve others no matter if times are good or bad. This is the choice we make in order to find security within ourselves.

Contenu
Table of Contents

FOREWORD TO THE FIRST EDITION A Living Tree 7

INTRODUCTION The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living 11

CHAPTER ONE The War Within 23

CHAPTER TWO Self-Realization 48

CHAPTER THREE Selfless Service 147

CHAPTER FOUR Wisdom in Action 213

CHAPTER FIVE Renounce and Rejoice 294

CHAPTER SIX The Practice of Meditation 334

Passage for Meditation 393

Glossary and Guide to Sanskrit Pronunciation 395