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tylerwis94's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
zebra13's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
book_enjoyer777's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
Pretty good translation. Some inspiring insights here. However, much of the book seems redundant. It’d be interesting to read a more concise adaptation.
Here’s one passage that is direct:
Chapter 5
Arjuna said:
Here’s one passage that is direct:
Chapter 5
Arjuna said:
Krishna, you approve the renunciation of actions, and then again the practice of yogic discipline.
Tell me unambiguously, which is the better of these two?
Tell me unambiguously, which is the better of these two?
The Lord said:
Both renunciation and the practice of yogic action lead to ultimate bliss, but, of the two, the practice of yogic action is superior to the renunciation of action.
buddhafish's review against another edition
124th book of 2021.
Another ancient text down as I persist in reading the older works from world literature and philosophy. This one was surprisingly readable and enjoyable, whether that's down to the translation or not, I don't know. The work isn't too long so I'll definitely be reading it again from other translators and getting a broader image of the original (as possible as that is with translations). The dialogue, not unlike some sort of Socratic dialogue, is between Krishna and Prince Arjuna. The latter is worried about going into battle and fighting his own kin, and turns to the former for advice. What's interesting is that it starts with the idea of war (what is it good for?) and then moves into life itself, tackling many philosophical questions. The Bhagavad Gita is an important Hindu text that was originally written in Sanskrit. It inspired many writers, as my blurb says, such as Isherwood, Huxley, T.S. Eliot, Gandhi, Oppenheimer, et al. It is riddled with underlinable pages, things like,
'Value knowledge over practice,
meditation over knowledge;
highest is renunciation,
whence comes, immediately, peace.'
A worldly source of knowledge, and within you can see so many other philosophies and religious teachings, that goodness and virtue will prevail and those who practice it will reap its rewards someday.
Another ancient text down as I persist in reading the older works from world literature and philosophy. This one was surprisingly readable and enjoyable, whether that's down to the translation or not, I don't know. The work isn't too long so I'll definitely be reading it again from other translators and getting a broader image of the original (as possible as that is with translations). The dialogue, not unlike some sort of Socratic dialogue, is between Krishna and Prince Arjuna. The latter is worried about going into battle and fighting his own kin, and turns to the former for advice. What's interesting is that it starts with the idea of war (what is it good for?) and then moves into life itself, tackling many philosophical questions. The Bhagavad Gita is an important Hindu text that was originally written in Sanskrit. It inspired many writers, as my blurb says, such as Isherwood, Huxley, T.S. Eliot, Gandhi, Oppenheimer, et al. It is riddled with underlinable pages, things like,
'Value knowledge over practice,
meditation over knowledge;
highest is renunciation,
whence comes, immediately, peace.'
A worldly source of knowledge, and within you can see so many other philosophies and religious teachings, that goodness and virtue will prevail and those who practice it will reap its rewards someday.
saareman's review against another edition
3.0
श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता*
Review of the Phoenix Books audiobook edition (2018 via Audible) narrated by the translator [a:Stephen Mitchell|6373|Stephen Mitchell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1359409188p2/6373.jpg] from the original Harmony hardcover (2000) translated from the original Sanskrit (circa 400 BCE)
[A 3.5 rating with reservations, as this is likely a 4 to 5, but an audiobook edition is not recommended if you have no prior familiarity with the text]
The Bhagavad Gita is now Book Six of the massive Indian national epic [b:The Mahabharata|14435387|The Mahabharata (Mahabharata, #1)|Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1337962373l/14435387._SY75_.jpg|43924083], but it is thought to have been initially composed separately. The overall epic tells of a war** between rival clans of a royal family in Northern India and...
Lord Krishna reciting the Bhagavad Gita to Prince Arjuna on the Kuru Field of Justice. Image sourced from Quora.
I have a regular interest in ancient texts and picked up this audiobook through an Audible Daily Deal, thinking of it as a 'starter pack.' I remember enjoying Stephen Mitchell's adaptation of [b:Gilgamesh: A New English Version|138371|Gilgamesh A New English Version|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1394420249l/138371._SY75_.jpg|3802528] (2006), but also remembered that many of Mitchell's translations are considered controversial in the sense that he doesn't fully read in all of the ancient languages such as Akkadian, Sumerian and in the present case Sanskrit, but rather that he crafts his adaptations based on reading several other translations of the work. This is something that he fully acknowledges in his note 'About the Translation' in the print copies of this work, but which is not included in the audiobook edition.
That is one of the issues about the audiobook. The 'About the Translation' explanation note is missing, the Introduction which provides needed context is unhelpfully placed at the very end (the audiobook is 3 hours, of which the first 2.5 hours is the Bhagavad Gita, followed by a 1/2 hour Introduction), Notes are not included at all (although this is the usual standard in audiobooks) and an informative Appendix, 'The Message of the Gita' by [a:Mahatma Gandhi|5810891|Mahatma Gandhi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1356810912p2/5810891.jpg] aka Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948). is also dropped. I know all of that because soon after starting the audiobook I realized that I'd need a text to follow and sourced the print version as well.
So all that being said, Stephen Mitchell does provide an excellent and calmly mannered reading of the text, perhaps too calm (I even got ASMR vibes at times) as I did find my mind wandering. If you are going to listen to audiobooks of the Bhagavad Gita, I would definitely recommend having a print edition close at hand to follow along.
Although this is my first time reading and listening to the Bhagavad Gita, I've had a partial knowledge of its verses ever since I heard Philip Glass's opera Satyagraha*** (1979) which uses selections from the Bhagavad Gita in the original Sanskrit as its text.
* Hindi Sanskrit, romanized as śrīmadbhagavadgītā, English translation 'The Song of the Blessed One.'
** It was a coincidence, but it somehow seems appropriate that I was reading/listening to the Gita while the current Ukrainian / Russian War (Feb 24, 2022 - ?) began, with its smaller Ukrainian forces defending against a massive Russian assault, somewhat in parallel with Prince Arjuna and his 4 brothers of the Pandavas clan vs. the hundreds of cousins in the 'evil' Kauravas clan.
*** Romanized from the Hindi Sanskrit सत्याग्रह, English translation 'Truth Force' or 'Insistence on Truth', the name for Mahatma Gandhi's pacifist resistance movement for Indian human rights and Indian independence.
Trivia and Links
There are 16 language translations of the Bhagavad Gita available at Bhagavad Gita.org where you can also listen to audioclip readings of each verse.
The English language libretto of the Philip Glass opera Satyagraha is available at Met Opera here (opens as a pdf file). It does not provide cross-references as to which verses of the Bhagavad Gita are used.
Soundtrack
I particularly enjoy the ascending voice patterns of the Act 3 Evening Song / Conclusion of the Philip Glass opera which you can listen to on YouTube here. The Conclusion has also been arranged for solo organ or solo piano, without the vocal text.
Review of the Phoenix Books audiobook edition (2018 via Audible) narrated by the translator [a:Stephen Mitchell|6373|Stephen Mitchell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1359409188p2/6373.jpg] from the original Harmony hardcover (2000) translated from the original Sanskrit (circa 400 BCE)
[A 3.5 rating with reservations, as this is likely a 4 to 5, but an audiobook edition is not recommended if you have no prior familiarity with the text]
The Bhagavad Gita is now Book Six of the massive Indian national epic [b:The Mahabharata|14435387|The Mahabharata (Mahabharata, #1)|Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1337962373l/14435387._SY75_.jpg|43924083], but it is thought to have been initially composed separately. The overall epic tells of a war** between rival clans of a royal family in Northern India and...
The Gita takes place on the battlefield of Kuru at the beginning of the war. Arjuna has his charioteer, Krishna (who turns out to be God incarnate), drive him into the open space between the two armies, where he surveys the combatants. Overwhelmed with dread and pity at the imminent death of so many brave warriors - brothers, cousins and kinsmen - he drops his weapons and refuses to fight. This is the cue for Krishna to begin his teaching about life and deathlessness, duty, nonattachment, the Self, love, spiritual practice, and the inconceivable depths of reality. - excerpt from the Introduction by translator Stephen Mitchell.
Lord Krishna reciting the Bhagavad Gita to Prince Arjuna on the Kuru Field of Justice. Image sourced from Quora.
I have a regular interest in ancient texts and picked up this audiobook through an Audible Daily Deal, thinking of it as a 'starter pack.' I remember enjoying Stephen Mitchell's adaptation of [b:Gilgamesh: A New English Version|138371|Gilgamesh A New English Version|Anonymous|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1394420249l/138371._SY75_.jpg|3802528] (2006), but also remembered that many of Mitchell's translations are considered controversial in the sense that he doesn't fully read in all of the ancient languages such as Akkadian, Sumerian and in the present case Sanskrit, but rather that he crafts his adaptations based on reading several other translations of the work. This is something that he fully acknowledges in his note 'About the Translation' in the print copies of this work, but which is not included in the audiobook edition.
That is one of the issues about the audiobook. The 'About the Translation' explanation note is missing, the Introduction which provides needed context is unhelpfully placed at the very end (the audiobook is 3 hours, of which the first 2.5 hours is the Bhagavad Gita, followed by a 1/2 hour Introduction), Notes are not included at all (although this is the usual standard in audiobooks) and an informative Appendix, 'The Message of the Gita' by [a:Mahatma Gandhi|5810891|Mahatma Gandhi|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1356810912p2/5810891.jpg] aka Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948). is also dropped. I know all of that because soon after starting the audiobook I realized that I'd need a text to follow and sourced the print version as well.
So all that being said, Stephen Mitchell does provide an excellent and calmly mannered reading of the text, perhaps too calm (I even got ASMR vibes at times) as I did find my mind wandering. If you are going to listen to audiobooks of the Bhagavad Gita, I would definitely recommend having a print edition close at hand to follow along.
Although this is my first time reading and listening to the Bhagavad Gita, I've had a partial knowledge of its verses ever since I heard Philip Glass's opera Satyagraha*** (1979) which uses selections from the Bhagavad Gita in the original Sanskrit as its text.
* Hindi Sanskrit, romanized as śrīmadbhagavadgītā, English translation 'The Song of the Blessed One.'
** It was a coincidence, but it somehow seems appropriate that I was reading/listening to the Gita while the current Ukrainian / Russian War (Feb 24, 2022 - ?) began, with its smaller Ukrainian forces defending against a massive Russian assault, somewhat in parallel with Prince Arjuna and his 4 brothers of the Pandavas clan vs. the hundreds of cousins in the 'evil' Kauravas clan.
*** Romanized from the Hindi Sanskrit सत्याग्रह, English translation 'Truth Force' or 'Insistence on Truth', the name for Mahatma Gandhi's pacifist resistance movement for Indian human rights and Indian independence.
Trivia and Links
There are 16 language translations of the Bhagavad Gita available at Bhagavad Gita.org where you can also listen to audioclip readings of each verse.
The English language libretto of the Philip Glass opera Satyagraha is available at Met Opera here (opens as a pdf file). It does not provide cross-references as to which verses of the Bhagavad Gita are used.
Soundtrack
I particularly enjoy the ascending voice patterns of the Act 3 Evening Song / Conclusion of the Philip Glass opera which you can listen to on YouTube here. The Conclusion has also been arranged for solo organ or solo piano, without the vocal text.
lilianaj's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
interesting but not for me
lindarobinett's review against another edition
5.0
This is a beautiful translation of this ancient spiritual work making it easy for the average person to understand. Each chapter begins with an explanation of the contents by the translator and there is a glossary of terms.