Which version of the Bhagavad Gita to choose?
Swamis, throughout history, have made their own interpretations of the Bhagavad Gita
Reflection by Pedro Nonell about the versions of the Bhagavad Gita.
The last part of the Vedas makes up the Vedanta (“End of the Vedas”), and is considered the highest Vedic teachings. In Chapter 15 verse 15 of the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna (the incarnation of knowledge) tells Arjuna that “He is the author of Vedanta.”
The Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras (very difficult to interpret) make up the triple canon of Vedanta philosophy. The Bhagavad Gita is the most accessible and practical of the three and represents the essence of the Vedas, Vedanta and Hinduism.
NOTE - error in the video. In the audio I said Yoga Sutras and I should have said Brahma Sutras.
In Hinduism there is no central authority, there is no equivalent of a Pope or a Vatican. Swami Vivekananda defined Hinduism, or rather Sanatana Dharma (the eternal religion)
These Swamis, throughout history, have made their own interpretations of the Bhagavad Gita, which is why there is no single Gita, nor any version considered canonized, nor any Gita “As It Is”, there are as many Gitas as there have been commentators.
¿Qué versión del Bhagavad Gita escoger? 
Qual versão do Bagavadeguitá escolher?.
For Swami Sarvapriyananda (monk of the Ramakrishna Order):
«Surely the oldest, most extensive and profound commentary
available of all is that of Adi Shankara (788-820), although it included
comments from previous commentators, it was written within the framework of the
Advaita Vedanta (non-dualistic) philosophy. 300 years later Ramanuja wrote his beautiful commentary on the Bhagavad Gita explaining it in the philosophical
framework of Vashishtha Advaita Vedanta (qualified monism). 200 years later
Madhva wrote his own commentary on the framework of dualistic Vedanta.
Some scholars criticize that Shankara's version tries to explain the Bhagavad
Gita within the framework of Advaita Vedanta, stating that the principles of the
Bhagavad Gita do not fully fit a dualistic view.
But the Bhagavad Gita cannot particularly fit into any of these frameworks since
it is the origin of all these systems, the commentaries came after the Bhagavad
Gita. That is, the harmonizing essence of the Bhagavad Gita allows all these
philosophical frameworks to be included. Great Swamis have created their own
philosophical systems within the framework of the Bhagavad Gita, and all of them
are valid, we cannot say one is false and the other true.
And so until today. Swami Abedananda, who founded the New York Vedanta Society
at the behest of Swami Vivekananda, also made an extensive and insightful
commentary, although it is difficult to find in English. Swami Ranganath Ananda
ji who was the 13th president of the Ramakrishna order, wrote an extensive
three-volume commentary on the Bhagavad Gita.
There are comments in many Indian languages, and of course in English, Spanish
or French. Yale University held a month-long camp in 2018 to collect all English
translations of the Bhagavad Gita. And more commentators will come
Summarizing:
- There are commentaries on the Bhagavad Gita that are more accessible than others, some are introductory, and others go much deeper into its teachings
- The commentator can follow any of the Vedantic philosophies (dual, non-dual, qualified monism) defining the focus of the commentary
I would dare to add another factor. In the Bhagavad Gita, four paths or Yogas are mainly exposed: Path of action (Karma Yoga), Path of Devotion (Bhakti) or the Path of Knowledge (Jnana), all of them valid. Thus a commentator may primarily follow one of these paths and therefore reflect it in the approach of his comments.
We work with two different versions of the Bhagavad Gita, one that is more accessible and has a Karma Yoga focus, and another that is deeper and has an eminently Jnana (path of knowledge) focus. I have translated both versions into Spanish. These versions are:
1- Bhagavad Gita according to Gandhi, with comments by Mahadev Desai and Swami Sivananda.
- It is one of the most accessible and understandable versions of the Bhagavad Gita, it is ideal for entering into its profound wisdom
- The focus of this version is based mainly on Karma Yoga, the most accessible path for all humanity, the path of selfless action, of work for the good of humanity
- Gandhi recognized that the strategy of his non-violent struggle to achieve independence from the British Empire, the largest Ahimsa movement in human history, was based mainly on this version of the Bhagavad Gita. Later, this model of Gandhi, based on the Bhagavad Gita, influenced the peaceful independence of many of the English colonies in Africa and Asia. In some way this version of the Bhagavad Gita has outlined, to a greater or lesser extent, our current world
Example of Chapter 18 of the Bhagavad Gita
2- Gita Makaranadam by Swami Vidya Prakashananda
- It is a version unknown to the West, but recognized as having high educational value in India
- All verses are in Hindi, English and Spanish
- Each of the verses has extensive comments (some up to 4 pages) from the author
- In addition, comments by Swami Vivekananda are included in certain verses
- It also contains profound reflections by Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda or Swami Sarvapriyananda, in several of the verses of this version
- The focus of this version is mainly Jnana (based on knowledge and Vedanta), therefore it is one of the most profound versions of the Bhagavad Gita
Namaste!!!
Course: Bhagavad Gita (according to Gandhi and comments by Sivananda).
Advanced courses:
Book The Yoga of Wisdom (Pedro Nonell):
- I: Bhagavad Gita (Gandhi, in Spanish)
- II: Hinduism, Gita and influence on humanity
- III: Free adaptation in verse of the Bhagavad Gita
Reflections:
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