A faithful and readable translation of one of the world's most treasured books. The Bhagavadgita is one of the most widely read spiritual masterpieces of India. It has influenced such diverse figures as Mahatma Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau, Aldous Huxley, and C. G. Jung. It raises universal questions that are as important today as they were thousands of years ago. What is the right way to act in this world, balancing social duty with personal responsibility? Is there an eternal reality behind the ordinary reality of daily life? What is our relationship with the divine? The teaching takes place in a war zone. Arjuna, a great warrior, is troubled by the terrible battle he is about to fight. Krishna, his friend and spiritual guide, consoles him with insights into the nature of duty. This accurate new translation is both clear and direct. Those new to the Bhagavadgita will appreciate its straightforward style. It is also an excellent resource for Sanskrit students, including a word-for-word Sanskrit vocabulary. This translation is the result of over a decade of work blending the skills of world-renowned Sanskritist Ram Karan Sharma with the sensitive insights of Carol Pitts and the Sanskrit editorial skills of Les Morgan. Their collaboration produced a compelling contemporary version without losing the traditional Indian perspective. Dr. Ram Karan Sharma is an esteemed Sanskrit scholar and poet. He is the former President of the International Association of Sanskrit Studies. Carol Pitts has taught the Bhagavadgita for over thirty years. She is the author of Spiritual Freedom in the Brahma Sutras. Editor Les Morgan is the author of Croaking Frogs: A Guide to Sanskrit Metrics and Figures of Speech. This edition includes the Sanskrit text of the Critical Edition both in the original Devanagari and in a romanized transliteration. Issued as Volume One of a two-volume companion set. Volume Two, which is sold separately, is titled A Study Guide to the Bhagavadgita: With a Practical Concordance, planned for publication in 2016.
About the Author: Dr. Ram Karan Sharma is an esteemed Sanskrit scholar and poet. As a Fulbright scholar he received his Ph.D. in Sanskrit from the University of California. He has served as President of the International Association of Sanskrit Studies. He has published more than one hundred papers and numerous books, including Elements of Poetry in the Mahabharata, a systematic analysis of similes, metaphors, and figures of speech in the context of oral poetry. He was the translator for the seven-volume edition of the Caraka Samhita. His Shivasahasranamastakam is a study of eight versions of the Shiva Sahasranama as found in the Mahabharata and Puranas. His own work as a poet is the subject of a book by Dr. S. Ranganath entitled Poetry of Dr. Ram Karan Sharma. He has held numerous positions as an educator in India. In the United States he has held visiting professorships at Columbia University, the University of Chicago, the University of California, and the University of Pennsylvania. For his contributions to Sanskrit literature he has received many awards including the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1989, the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad Award in 1989, the Delhi Sanskrit Academy Award, and one of India's most prestigious awards, the Presidential Award. He received the 2005 Krishna Kanta Handique Memorial Award, presented in 2006 by the Honorable Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh. Carol Pitts is the author of Spiritual Freedom in the Brahma Sutras. She is a graduate of Stanford University, and has a Master of Arts degree from the Institute of Asian Studies, studying Sanskrit and Indian philosophy. She has been teaching classes on the Bhagavadgita, the Upanishads, and meditation since the 1980s. She served for over a decade as a mediator for the Alameda County Superior Court, Pleasanton, California. She currently participates in the effort to promote evidence-based restorative justice practices in Alameda County's juvenile justice and dependency systems, schools, and community-based youth-serving organizations. Les Morgan is the author of Croaking Frogs: A Guide to Sanskrit Metrics and Figures of Speech (2011). His Study Guide to the Bhagavadgita: With a Practical Concordance (2016), is a companion volume for the Bhagavadgita. He has participated in translation projects for both Hindu and Buddhist texts. He is working on translations of the Ganesha Sahasranama and the Samkhyakarika of Ishvarakrsna.