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Bhagwad Gita
The first time I had the
good luck to read Bhagwad Gita (in Hindi and English translation)
was when I was about 16 years old.
I belong to a culture,
where almost every other house, including my own, had the following 'Gita Saar' (essence of
the Gita) chart hung on the living room wall.
For those who
cannot read Hindi, following is a translation in English:
- whatever happened was good
- whatever is happening is good
- whatever will happen will also be
good
- what have you parted with that
makes you cry ?
- what did you bring with you that
you have lost ?
- what did you create which is now
destroyed ?
- what you have taken, you have
taken only from here.
- what was given was given only
from here.
- what is yours today, was someone
else's yesterday, will be someone else's tomorrow.
- change is the law of the universe
English Translation
Source: cs.stanford.edu/~sbansal/geeta_saar
As a child, when I used to
meditate on its meaning it used to sound like a strange philosophy which
attracted me immensely, even though I used to find it difficult. But it
continued to hold a huge impact on me and I liked to read it over and over
again.
I used to wonder, how is
it possible not to worry over the things which bother us! I was excessively
emotional and sensitive to the happenings around me. Like most children, both
loving words and cruel scolding by either parents or teachers had intense
effect on me. I could be joyful enough to shout out aloud, or weep for hours
together!
As I grew older, became an
adolescent, the philosophy of Bhagwad Gita began to attract
me even more, and I asked my father if I could read his copy of
Bhagwad Gita.
It was a very simple,
basic translation in English and Hindi. I was a voracious reader and immersed
myself in it for days; making notes on the margins of pages wherever I had
queries. I was immensely impressed by most of it, as much as I could understand
it that time. By the time I finished reading it, I had a ton of questions.
My father satisfactorily
answered a lot of them, but there were still 40% of my doubts which were
outside the sphere of his understanding too. One of my Bengali friends’
maternal aunt was a Sanskrit professor. I went to her, with
Bhagwad Gita and a notebook and a pencil, seeking answers. But
even she couldn’t clear all my doubts.
But within few months I
gave up, and my mind full of queries and uncertainties about the philosophy of Gita. Soon
I got distracted, and started reading Swami Vivekananda, whose simpler language
and charged up words excited my temperament much more and I devoted my time in
reading his works.
The second time I read
Bhagwad Gita was when I had crossed the age of 30. Since then, it has
helped me cope with Depression, and overcome my insecurities and has had a
positive impact on my self-image. In short, it has had profound effect on
me.
Now I can clearly see that
it aims at a complete cognitive restructuring (CR) of the reader's mind. CR is a
technique where we learn to recognize the faulty or wrong notions created in
the deep recesses of our minds, and try to alter them with the right thought
patterns.
Quite understandably, the
wrongs patterns of thinking are those which hurt us emotionally or make us
unhappy, and the right thinking patterns are the ones which pull us out of
unhappiness and lead us towards a happier, more productive life.
In contemporary times,
when materialism and individualism are taking over human lives, stress is
everywhere. It is the constant companion of even those who have no shortage of
money, fame, beauty and power.
The way Bhagwad Gita works
on human psyche, in my personal experience (especially if read under the
guidance of a good Guru/scholar), it can be beneficial in multiple ways.
Some of circumstances when
psychologists or community leaders can make use of Gita as a tool to alleviate
unhappiness in people are:
Ø Loss of a family member or
loved one.
Ø Lack of motivation, in
work place, school/college, or generally in carrying out duties of daily life.
Ø Finding a meaning or purpose in life.
Ø Exploring philosophical
approaches to life.
Ø Helping children in
teaching positive cognitive mindset which can help curb the suicide rates and
adolescent Depression.
Ø Leading a more fulfilled
and contented life.
Ø Cognitive restructuring to
face life-crisis with healthy attitude.
Ø Enhancing skills to give
one’s best at one’s talents.
Ø Helping soldiers coping
with PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder).
Ø Rehabilitation work (drug
addicts, adolescent delinquents)
Let me quote some famous
quotes on Geeta, from the prominent world figures:
Wilhelm
von Humboldt, the Prussian philosopher &
founder of the Humboldt University of Berlin, pronounced the Bhagwad Gita as: "The most beautiful,
perhaps the only true philosophical song existing in any known tongue ...
perhaps the deepest and loftiest thing the world has to show."
Source:
The Episode of the Mahabharata Known by the Name Bhagavad-Gita (On Hegel's
review of Wilhelm von Humboldt's lectures on the Bhagavad-Gita). By G. W. F. Hegel, 1827
Henry
David Thoreau, the American author, poet, philosopher and historian wrote, “In the morning I bathe
my intellect in the stupendous and cosmogonal philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita in comparison with which our modern
world and its literature seem puny and trivial."
Source:
The Bhagavad-Gita by Barbara Miller
Ralph
Waldo Emerson, the American thinker and poet who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century was strongly influenced by the philosophy of Bhagavad Gita and
Vedanta in general, "I owed a magnificent day to the Bhagavad-Gita. It was as if an empire
spoke to us, nothing small or unworthy, but large, serene, consistent, the
voice of an old intelligence which in another age and climate had pondered and
thus disposed of the same questions which exercise us."
Source:
The Bhagavad-Gita by Barbara Miller
“It
(Bhagavad-Gita) is one of the great classics of world
literature, it has inspired such diverse thinkers as Henry David Thoreau,
Mahatma Gandhi, and T.S. Eliot.”
Source:
The Bhagavad-Gita by Barbara Miller
The
first governor general of British India Warren Hastings wrote: "I hesitate not to pronounce the
Gita a performance of great originality, of sublimity of conception, reasoning
and diction almost unequalled; and a single exception, amongst all the known
religions of mankind."
“It was Warren Hastings
who encouraged Charles Wilkins to translate the Bhagwad Gita in 1785.”
Source:
Brahma in the West: William Blake and the Oriental Renaissance by David Weir
It was
Charles Wilkins’ translation of the Gita which was soon translated into French
(1787) and German (1802). It proved to be a major influence on Romantic literature and on European perception
of Hindu philosophy. William Blake later celebrated
the publication in his picture The Bramins, exhibited in 1809, which
depicted Wilkins and Brahmin scholars working on the translation.
Source:
wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Wilkins
Thus, we can see that
Bhagwad Gita has influenced major philosophers and thinkers of the
world, and they have been in awe of the philosophy ever since. It is a
matter of great pity if the country where it originated, should not respect and
understand its significance.
In Bharat, not just for
spiritual purposes, but also for practical purposes, it can be and must be used
as an efficient tool in order to improve the quality of life in several ways.
It can be especially
beneficial in the field of education and psychology, where it is
imperative to give education on how to deal with stress and various
life-situations.
The study of Gita is crucial if we want the
children – who are the future of our nation and world – to be mentally prepared
for life and want them to imbibe positive and healthy attitudes.
It is sincerely hoped that the professionals
in various fields recognize the potential which this ancient classical text holds
for us, and work towards applying its principles in modern Bhartiya (Indian)
life.
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