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The Bhagavad Gita: The Original Sanskrit and An English Translation Paperback – 1 Jan. 2007

by Lars Martin Fosse (Author)
4.6 out of 5 stars 33 ratings
At last, an edition of the Bhagavad Gita that speaks with unprecedented fidelity and clarity. It contains an unusually informative introduction, the Sanskrit text of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute's critical edition, an accurate and accessible English translation, a comprehensive glossary of names and epithets, and a thorough index.
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  1. Print length
    224 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    1 Jan. 2007
  4. Dimensions
    15.24 x 1.02 x 22.86 cm
  5. ISBN-10
    0971646678
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0971646674
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Product description

Review

"This is a luminous translation that performs the exceptional feat of bringing the Gita fully alive in a Western language, combining accuracy with accessibility. In our troubled times, humanity needs the message of this sacred scripture as never before."
--Karen Armstrong, Author of The Great Transformation and A History of God

"I like Lars Martin Fosse's Gita because it is clear and straightforward."
--Margo von Romberg, Yoga Scotland

From the Publisher

From the Introduction

You are about to have the profound pleasure of reading one of the truly great books in the history of the world. Not only is it a spiritual monument--an essential scripture of Hinduism, recited daily for two millennia and to this very day, whose teachings have spread throughout Asia and around the globe--it is also a literary masterpiece, the linchpin of a great epic of war and peace, honor and disgrace, loyalty and betrayal. It is a book people everywhere in the world return to again and again throughout their lives for insight into the nature of reality.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Arjuna's Despair
Theory
Action
Knowledge, Action and Renunciation
Renunciation
Meditation
Knowledge and Discernment
The Liberating Brahman
The Royal Science
Power
His Cosmic Form
Devotion
The Field and Its Knower
The Three Properties
The Supreme Spirit
The Divine and the Demonic
The Three Kinds of Faith
Liberation and Renunciation
Names and Nicknames
Contributors
Index

About the Author

Residing in Oslo, Norway, Lars Martin Fosse holds a master's and doctorate from the University of Oslo, and also studied at the Universities of Heidelberg, Bonn, and Cologne. He has lectured at Oslo University on Sanskrit, Pali, Hinduism, text analysis, and statistics, and was a visiting fellow at Oxford University. He is one of Europe's most experienced translators.

Review

"This is a luminous translation that performs the exceptional feat of bringing the Gita fully alive in a Western language, combining accuracy with accessibility. In our troubled times, humanity needs the message of this sacred scripture as never before."

--Karen Armstrong, Author of The Great Transformation and A History of God

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ YogaVidya.com
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 1 Jan. 2007
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ Bilingual
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 224 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0971646678
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0971646674
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 340 g
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.24 x 1.02 x 22.86 cm
  • Customer reviews:
    4.6 out of 5 stars 33 ratings

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4.6 out of 5 stars
33 global ratings

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • RKaur
    4.0 out of 5 stars Clear and concise
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 January 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This is a good version to have because of the Devanagari script. The translation is somewhat loose, but students of Sanskrit can use it to produce their own translations with a good dictionary (there isn't a glossary for vocab).
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Dennis Littrell
    4.0 out of 5 stars Contemporary translation of a great work of spirituality
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 May 2007
    The Bhagavad Gita has been translated into English numerous times. I have read and reviewed for Amazon the following six versions in English:

    Bolle, Kees W. Bhagavadgita, The: A New Translation (1979)

    Easwaran, Eknath. Bhagavad Gita, The (1985; 2000)

    Edgerton, Franklin. The Bhagavad Gita (1944)

    Miller, Barbara Stoler. Bhagavad Gita, The: Krishna's Counsel in Time of War (1986; 1991)

    Mitchell, Stephen. Bhagavad Gita: A New Translation (2000)

    Nikhilananda, Swami. Bhagavad Gita, The: Translated from the Sanskrit, with Notes, Comments, and Introduction by Swami Nikhilananda (1944; 6th printing 1979)

    (I have yet to read the famous translation by Sir Edwin Arnold.)

    The question might be, why bring out another? In the case of the people at YogaVidya, who published this translation by Lars Martin Fosse, the answer is apparent: they want to bring to the English speaking world great works of the yogic tradition. To this end they have previously published Brian Dana Akers' translation of Svatmarama's Hatha Yoga Pradipika (2002), James Mallinson's translation of The Gheranda Samhita (2004), and his translation of The Shiva Samhita (2007). (See my reviews at Amazon.)

    The question for the reader might be which book should I buy? The answer depends on several factors. For the devout Hindu and yogi, a translation that stays as close to the original Sanskrit is no doubt to be preferred. Yet even between Hindu and yogi there can be a difference of opinion. The Hindu, especially if he or she is of a conservative bent, may prefer a translation that chooses English words that support a literal interpretation of this great spiritual work, while a yogi, especially if he or she is follower of Patanjali, might prefer a translation that emphasizes practice and study. A general reader might prefer a translation that makes the text readily accessible without having to delve too deeply into Vedic philosophy. A student of literature might prefer the most elegant and poetic translation. And so it goes. A poetic translation must of necessity sacrifice some literal meaning, while a strictly literal translation may make for difficult reading. There is a dictum to which I subscribe to the effect that when translating literature and in particular poetry, something is always lost in translation. Consequently, by this rule, if by no other, no single translation of the Gita will serve. Therefore we have many translations, and as English grows and our attitudes toward the world change, ever so subtly, there will arise a need for new translations.

    I think that Fosse's book is distinguished by his clear and informative introduction to the Gita for the general reader. He does a good job of placing the work in the Hindu tradition and gives some idea of its history in English. There is a glossary of names (since Fosse uses the many epithets from the original in his translation) and an index. As with the other books from YogaVidya, the original Sanskrit is given along with the English translation, verse by verse.

    What I don't think that Fosse does well is introduce the Gita in a spiritual and symbolic sense. The most important thing that the first time reader of the Gita should realize in my opinion is that it is a work to be taken symbolically. If you take it literally as the story of the personal god Krishna urging the reluctant warrior Arjuna to fight his enemies, you lose the essence of this great work. Better is to understand that the battle that Arjuna faces is not one of swords and arrows, but one of time, chance and circumstance. The central question that Arjuna asks is how to live and why. Krishna essentially tells him you have no choice; that it is a signal of failure and humiliation to give up. And then Krishna gives Arjuna four approaches to life and deliverance (i.e., samadhi): bhakti yoga, the path of love and devotion; karma yoga, the path of selfless work (mainly this); jnana yoga, the path of knowledge; and raja/hatha yoga, the path of discipline or force. It is said in the yogic tradition that when all else fails, the path of force will work if it is practiced with sincerity and regularity. For those of great faith, bhakti yoga leads easily to moksha.

    Any translation that is not a work of art by a great poet at the height of his powers (we have no such translation as yet) will, to some extent, be untrue to this great work of spirituality. Just as Shakespeare can never be fully appreciated in translation, so it is with any poetic work. Fosse shows he understands this very well when he writes (p. xxiv) "...a translation is always an interpretation, but an interpretation is not always a translation. The only way to get a truly intimate understanding of a Sanskrit text is to learn Sanskrit." I think his sentiment also hints at why he chose not to write an interpretative introduction.

    I have addressed specific problems and choices in translating the Gita in my other reviews, so I will skip them here. Bottom line: this is a fine addition to the list of excellent English translations of the Gita, handsomely presented as usual by YogaVidya, and a good choice for first time readers and for those who know Sanskrit.
    27 people found this helpful
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  • Rolf B.
    5.0 out of 5 stars eine gute Ausgabe, besonders wegen des Sanskrit-Textes
    Reviewed in Germany on 9 June 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Der Druck des Sanskrit ist wirklich sehr gut lesbar. Die englische Übersetzung scheint auch gut zu sein, wobei es da ja noch viele andere gibt, die sicher nicht alle schlechter sind. Positiv fiel mir auch auf, dass diese Ausgabe sich auf die Übersetzung beschränkt und sehr wenig interpretiert. Viele Ausgaben haben ja Einleitungen und Anmerkungen, die eine bestimmte Bedeutung in den Text hineininterpretieren und seinen vielfältigen Deutungsmöglichkeiten daher nicht gerecht werden. Ich denke hierbei besonders an die Ausgabe der Hare Krishna Bewegung, die leider sehr verbreitet ist. Diese hier ist zu bevorzugen, allerdings ist eine gewisse Kenntnis der indischen Philosophie/Geisteswelt schon hilfreich zum Verständnis. Einen guten Kommentar bietet "Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord's Secret Love Song" von Graham M. Schweig.
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  • Aditya Dev
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent translation - Easy to comprehend for the modern reader
    Reviewed in India on 6 May 2021
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    The book maintains clarity in meaning while making it easier for a modern English reader to connect and comprehend the depths of the Gita
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  • New Yogini
    5.0 out of 5 stars Commendable Edition
    Reviewed in India on 13 October 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Having the critical edition was invaluable. The glossary was also very helpful.
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  • Vivek Sannabhadti
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book,
    Reviewed in Germany on 18 August 2015
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    Very rarely do you find a book with such clear writing in Sanskrit. Plus the translations are perfet and clear.
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  • Richard Nali
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good English translation
    Reviewed in the United States on 24 December 2018
    Verified Purchase
    I read many versions, but they all seemed intent on rewriting the words to fit into sentence structure of the English language, thereby creating a inaccurate literal translation. 12 cup of flour in a cake and 1/2 cup, they look very similar, but they are far apart in truth. The Gita is about secrets and if you don't have the real, literal word translation you are not going to get what you should be reading the Gita for. So it's still not pure translation, for it adds many words that are in other English translations and when you compare actual sanskrit to it, you can see much is added to it to make it read like a story.

    So, while its a good translation, like most it still is full of additives ("Prince") and such to make it more familiar and read as a interesting story. Fosse explains in the preface his choice of translation of the words Sattvas, Rajah, Tamah, and as these are the building block words of Eastern thought, most already know them well, or else they should, so I would have preferred they were left in as much as the word "Karma" was left unchanged the majority of his text.

    Personally I prefer very precise literal translation but have yet to find one.

    the sanskrit of bg 1:10 reads as:

    अपर्याप्तं तदस्माकं बलं भीष्माभिरक्षितम्
    पर्याप्तं त्विदमेतेषां बलं भीमाभिरक्षितम्
    or
    aparyāptaṁ tadasmākaṁ balaṁ bhīṣhmābhirakṣhitam
    paryāptaṁ tvidameteṣhāṁ balaṁ bhīmābhirakṣhitam

    it looks like 8 words except you have compounds which must be broken apart, which equal 13 words, though four are repeated such example as Balam which is "Strength".

    aparyāptam—unlimited; 
    tad—that; or which asmākam—ours; 
    balam—strength; 
    bhīṣhma—Bheeshma; abhirakṣhitam/kingdom
    paryāptam—limited
    tv or (tu)—but; idam—this; eteṣhām—their
    balam—strength;
    bhīma—Bheem; abhirakṣhitam/kingdom

    unlimited is-our strength
    Bhismas-Kingdom
    but-theirs
    limited is-the strength
    Bheemas-kingdom

    Fosse translates it as:
    "That force, protected by Bhima, is not a match for us, but this force, protected by Bhishma, is a match for them."

    So, all in all it's a fairly tight rendering though it still commits the horrid transposing of the two subjects, speaking first of the negative, followed by the positive, which if it was a dire matter of electric or dare I say alchemical connectivity it would be erroneous.
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