- Bhagavad Gita

I do not say that this is the best commentary on the Gita - there are many. But this is the one I would recommend to any beginner. For those who do not know the epic of the Mahabharata - this book has a long chapter where the author tries to give a brief background - a context to understand what is happening here. For a non-Indian trying to understand Gita for the first time - this is what I would recommend. I gave this 5 stars because it does not try to divert your thought process towards what any sect group believe. It only translates the shloka and allows you to think. When you need reference, you can read the commentary (or maybe even ignore the commentary, if you are already a little into the Gita from before). I loved this book so much that I hard-bound it and made a rexine cover to preserve it for long.

Have read ISKOn and other English translation of Bhagwath Gita . This one is the best as it only in English. I don’t know Sanskrit but interested to move further with understanding it in English. Swamiji has beautifully put it to understand . Also have summarised Adi Shankara’s journey , Mahabharat in brief as foundation to understand Bhagwadgita Gita better. Happy to order and read this copy and have in my library. 🙏

Over the years my thirst to explore and know about my own culture, drew me towards the gita…and therefore i bought the fattest and most advertised ones..incl the ISKON version. However, the pages after pages of translations, unnecessary explanations just wore me out, and all the scholarly Gita’s were left to adorn my bookshelf, or to be used for puja/ rituals. Recently, my interest piqued again, this time I decided to start small. As iam no Sanskrit scholar, i pickedup a copy of This..and the one by Gita press. Iam so very pleased with myself, for choosing these non-descript pocket version. Iam already through to the last few pages, and for the first time in 4 decades of existence, i have an idea of the wisdom that Arjun received that day on the battlefield of Kurukshetra eons ago. While reading through i underline the verses that i like or appeal to me, and check the Sanskrit version on the Internet. I must say iam going strong, I intend to move onto my “bookshelf decor versions”, for detailed explanations if required. This version truly deserves 5 stars.

The delivery and packaging was on time and still reading the book so can't review about the content properly but still one thing I can say that each verse meaning is well defined

The book of emancipation!

Such a revered author. Such good explanations and quotes drawn from a very wide source. Swamiji's thoughts are most valuable!

Served to the readers having made it more palatable by the writer in simple language even with limited knowledge in English anyone can read and understand the motivational talk. I am overwhelmed by its lucid language, I go through the book when I am in low mood 😔.

For the Seekers of Higher Knowledge this version of SBG Provides a Very Basic Primal Information. After Reading SBG from the Chinmay Mission, this version seems very "substandard". The purport and expansion of the Shlokas are not upto the mark

Nice and clear commentary. If you are not familiar with the Gita then getting a clean (no commentary) version as well as this is worth it so you can more easily read the overall narrative as well as the diner detail this book goes into. Very happy with this, im sure I will be using it for some time.

Bhagavad Gita is the most popular of the scriptures of Sanatana Dharma (Hinduism). However, the message is for the whole mankind and not just for the Hindus. It is one of the three canons of Vedanta (the other two are the Upanishads and the Brahma Sutras). The Gita discusses the various paths to Self-Realization, known as yogas, systematically. There are dozens of English translations of the Gita. How to choose? The best commentary to Gita is by Adi Sankara, the 7th century saint and non-dual philosopher of India. His commentary takes a non-dual approach, which is the widely accepted vedantic philosophy. There are a few literal translations of Gita with Adi Sankara's commentary. The more recent ones are by Swami Gambhirananda and by Swami Nikhilananda. Gambhirananda's is a literal translation and at times it is very difficult to comprehend. One feels like some explanation of Sankara's commentary is needed. On the other hand, Swami Nikhilananda's approach is to present notes to each verse based on Adi Sankara's commentary which makes it very easy to read and comprehend. He elaborates where an elaboration is needed and has omitted occasional portions of the commentary which are extremely technical and don't interest majority of the readers. This makes it an excellent read and hence I prefer Nikhilananda's version. Also his English is excellent. No wonder, Time Magazine gave a great review for this edition of Gita. A brief summary of the Mahabharata is included, which helps one understand the context in which the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna takes place. Highly recommend this book. After reading this book, those interested in the path of jnana or self-enquiry should read Sri Sadhu Om's 'The Path of Sri Ramana'.

Anyone wanting a self-help book, this is it.

Great read, really helped me understand it all really well, thanks so much

i bought this book for my kindle fire. it is a book you do not live without. i have a hardback of this book, but i find i am more apt to read it frequently now that it is on my fire. the way the book is written makes it super simple to understand and contemplate. this is a must have.