Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation
On the list of the greatest spiritual books of all time, theBhagavad  Gitaresides permanently in the top echelon. This poem of patently Indian  genius sprouted an immense tree of devotional, artistic, and philosophical  elaboration in the subcontinent. The scene is a battlefield with the prince  Arjuna pitted against his own family, but no sooner does the poem begin than the  action reverts inward. Krishna, Arjuna's avatar and spiritual guide, points the  way to the supreme wisdom and perfect freedom that lie within everyone's reach.  Worship and be faithful, meditate and know reality--these make up the secret of  life and lead eventually to the realization that the self is the root of the  world. In this titular translation, Stephen Mitchell's rhythms are faultless,  making music of this ancient "Song of the Blessed One." Savor his rendition, but  nibble around the edges of his introduction. In a bizarre mixture of praise and  condescension, Mitchell disregards two millennia of Indian commentary, seeking  illumination on the text from Daoism and Zen, with theGitacoming up  just shy of full spiritual merit. Perhaps we should take it from Gandhi, who  used the Gita as a handbook for life, that it nourishes on many levels.--Brian Bruya