'Decoding' the Bhagavadgita

Book review of The Bhagavad Gita for Millennials

Bibek Debroy has by now secured for himself a premier position in any ranking of those who have translated India’s ancient Hindu texts from Sanskrit to English. In the last decade and a half, Mr Debroy has produced eminently readable and easily accessible translations of the Bhagavadgita, the Mahabharata (ten volumes), Harivamsha, the Ramayana (three volumes), the Bhagavata Purana (three volumes) and the Markandeya Purana. By any yardstick, this is a stupendous achievement.

But these translations had one limitation. They were not really for the uninitiated. In spite of their simplicity, they mostly appealed to those who already had a desire to know more about these ancient Hindu texts. Many of these readers even had a vague idea of what these epics and Puranas were about and were keen to understand their meaning and significance to vicariously experience the fascinating human frailties of god-like characters in an otherwise sublime universe. Mr Debroy’s translations considerably bridge this huge gap. In many cases, the translations also help readers come to terms with their own cultural and religious identities.

With his latest book on the Bhagavadgita, Mr Debroy has tried to broaden the readership appeal of this premier Hindu text, which is widely considered the epitome of all the major theological beliefs and philosophies espoused in Hinduism. The assumption is that millennials find the Bhagadvadgita forbidding because of its complex philosophical messages on life, living and work. Therefore, many millennials either give it a miss and those who choose to read it prefer the translated versions, which mostly fail to underline the context and deeper significance of those philosophical messages.

Having translated the Bhagavadgita in 2006, which was broadly a simple English rendering of its 18 chapters, Mr Debroy has returned to the same text and this time he has chosen a new structure for interpreting it for millennials. This, therefore, is not a translation. This is a book that provides the necessary tools for understanding the origin of the Bhagavadgita and its various aspects that need to be kept in mind before embarking on a reading of it.

To make it more accessible to millennials, he clarifies first that the Bhagavadgita is a Smriti text (based on recollections or human memory), and not a Shruti text (based on what is heard or through divine revelation) like the Vedas and Upanishads. This explains why the form and content of a Smriti text can vary from time to time, while the Shruti texts are “cast in stone”.

As many as five chapters of the book’s 10 chapters are devoted to explaining the many situations in the Bhagavadgita that dwell on complex concepts, such as the identity of the human being, questions on birth and death and ideas of pride and devotion. Millennials can pick any of these chapters and enlighten themselves on what the Bhagavadgita has to say about those specific existential and metaphysical questions. The remaining five chapters deal with the linguistic intricacies of Sanskrit, the personality of Krishna and the structure of the Bhagavadgita.

The Bhagavad Gita for Millennials 

Author: Bibek Debroy

Publisher: Rupa

Pages:  210+XII; Price: Rs 500

A highlight of the book is the manner in which Mr Debroy explains how Sanskrit texts can be approached for an easier understanding. The principles of separating words formed through their joining  (padachcheda)  and arriving at a more accessible syntax are the two specific tools that Mr Debroy recommends. Thus, all the references to the Sanskrit texts in this book are rendered in two distinct versions — once after padachcheda and then after converting the text into prose order by following a syntax of a simple sentence.

Mr Debroy addresses two of the most difficult problems that beginners face in making sense of Sanskrit prose or poetry. Sanskrit is a declension-based language, where all nouns, pronouns and adjectives change depending on the case, number or gender that is being used. Had it been a language based on prepositions or conjunctions like English (where nouns, pronouns and adjectives remain by and large unchanged irrespective of the case or the number), Sanskrit would have been far less complex and easier to follow.

Adding to its complexity is the practice of joining words or the tendency to form compound words. And because it is a declension-based language, Sanskrit poetry or prose can follow any order or syntax, without the risks of presenting a different meaning or being misunderstood. Mr Debroy has, therefore, demystified the language. Once this is done, young readers will face few problems making sense of even the difficult sections of the Bhagavadgita.

What millennials will learn from this book is not just what Krishna advised Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra. In explaining the context of Krishna’s advice, Mr Debroy dispels some of the misconceptions around many of the common Sanskrit sayings, such as Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, Atithidevo Bhava or Satyam Bruyaat Priyam Bruyaat, Maa Bruyaat Satyamapriyam. There is a lot of difference between what was intended by these sayings and how these have come to be understood. Mr Debroy rightly points out that it is important to follow the entire couplet to get a proper understanding of these sayings, without which misinterpretations can follow. This is a message not just for millennials, but also for many others who often propagate a mistaken message from these aphorisms.