The Bhagavad Gita: The Song of God Retold in Simplified English (The Essential Wisdom Library)

Dr. Viljoen's treatment of one of the world's most sacred and complex text is bright and tantalizing. His work stands alone as an important piece offering deep insight while highlighting the importance and benefits of having a strong spiritual practice. However, what makes it even more special is that it is a stepping stone to the larger work. In it, he describes the most common pitfalls one encounters when attempting to read the BG. As an amateur I ran into every problem he outlined. Just knowing the characters (and their changing names) of the BG and how they relate to one another is huge in being successful. Moreover, he explains the basic plot which really helps to then allow the deeper aspects of the BG to sink in. His book has inspired to my to try the BG again and I feel confident that I am better prepared. Thanks Dr. Viljoen!!!

I first read the Bhagavd Gita about 7 years ago and I have read it several times since so I was familiar with the Gita before reading Dr. Edward’s book.I began reading it again after reading Dr. Edward’s book. It was like I was reading it for the first time!His book takes each chapter of the Gita and explains the more arcane references in easy to understand language.It is also available as an audio book, which my wife enjoyed. She bought the book and read it while listening to the audio book. If you are new to the Gita or have read it, Dr Edwards’s book is a great study aid and a great read.

Started to explore Vedanta teachings in the last few years. Current lecture series refers heavily to the Bhagavad Gita so finally bought the book to re-read each chapter to be reviewed in the lecture. Very helpful and easy to understand by this author. Happy it is finally in my collection.

This book wasn’t what I expected, but it was what I needed without realizing it; a wonderful and loving introduction to what can at first be overwhelming to Westerners. Now I’ll find a full text of The Bhagavad Gita to continue my studying.

I have a found myself with a ferocious appetite for the Bhagavad Gita but as a complete beginner with no prior knowledge the prospect was overwhelming. I bought some other books for beginners but they too were a bit overwhelming. This one was perfect. A true stepping stone. A reference guide I will return to again and again.

I enjoyed reading this book. Gave me a lot to think about as well as self-reflect on.

Great easy reading for any person interested in exploring this difficult ancient work. The Bhagavad Gita holds many timeless lessons but can be hard to follow. The author does an amazing job on not only explaining but guiding you through the profound text. A must read for students of spiritual studies or anyone who is on a spiritual pathway. 5 stars plus.

I read the first 15 Chapters of Dr. Edward's beautifully written book on a flight from Washington DC to San Francisco, and throughout this text, I experienced it's lovely prose at a very deep level in me. It felt as if I was having a conversation with Krishna right along with Arjuna, and it opened my heart to an inspiring experience of intimacy with God.

Truly an amazing beginners guide to the Mahabharata and above all the Bhagavad Gita.

How disappointing. A book based on bhavadgita came ripped in my mail

Years ago I had read through several translations of the Bhagavad Gita in English by authors Indian and Foreign, old and new. I had found most of them tough reading or biased one way or the other. That was until I came across the translation by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood. That was a book I liked and understood. Whenever I wanted to go through the the Gita this was my "go to" option. But over the years, I had moved from place to place and in all these movements my copy of the book was lost. Now that I had retired and had time, I came across the book again on Amazon at a price of Rs.130(Rs. 50 for the book, Rs. 80 for delivery) and I thought that was a steal, since the edition I had earlier was a Penguin edition which was not so low priced. I ordered it, got the wrong book and had to wait for the replacement to come, all of which took some time. This is a pocket edition, small and easy to carry. The binding, printing and paper is very good. There are only a few printing errors.I started reading the book and finished it in two days! And then realized why I liked the book so much! It is a clear exposition of the Bhagavad Gita in modern English translated for a modern audience. It is easy to read and understand. There are introductory articles which explain some of the concepts and an Appendix which explains the Cosmology of the Gita very clearly. The introductory articles an the appendix are worth reading. There is no original Sankrit text nor are the verses numbered so if someone is looking for that, then this is not the book. The translation is partly prose and partly poetry, but the poetry reads very much like prose. If you have had difficulty in understanding the Gita before than try this translation. The unnecessary clutter such as multiple names for the same persons or the descriptions not material to the message of the Gita have been neatly removed. Swami Prabhvananda is a monk of the Ramakrishna Mission and had done an admirable job of ensuring the message of the Gita is properly conveyed and Christopher Isherwood had worked on the language to make it absolutely right for a modern reader from the Western world as well. The authors have done a great job of keeping the essence and throwing out all the fluff and distractions!I remember reading about this book being written primarily for an american audience. Swami Prabhavananda was told to imagine that Shri Krishna is telling the Gita to an American today in English. What would he say? The answer is very much the book that you have here. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the Gita once again, and recommend this small book to anyone as the easiest to understand translation of the Bhagavad Gita for both an Indian as well as a Western reader.My thanks also to the seller, who first sent a a wrong book and then sent the correct one along with a small booklet added as a way of saying "Sorry!" Mistakes can happen, but this seller really knows how to keep his customers happy! Thanks, UNG E-Commerce Business! The description mentions that this book is 284 pages, but it is actually 344+16 pages. Each page is really small at 4.5 inches by 3.5 inches.

No long commentaries with somebody else’s ideas and opinions to sift through.Just perfect prose of Krishna speaking to Arjuna.

This particular translation of Bhagavad Gita is one of the best. It is Bhagavad Gita as easy as it can get. This particular pocket size version adds great value as it makes it easy to carry and read wherever you want.