"There is no wisdom for a man without harmony, and without harmony there is no contemplation. Without contemplation there cannot be peace, and without peace can there be joy?"

Many readers will probably be content to remain with Mascaro, and it certainly seems to me that his translation reads beautifully and that a fair number of his verses have never been bettered by others. But the Gita is not quite so simple as it may sometimes appear. If we want to arrive at a fuller idea of just what the Gita means by "wisdom," "harmony," "contemplation," "peace," and so on, we will need to consult other and fuller editions.

There are many editions which, besides giving a translation of the Gita, also give a full commentary such as the excellent one by Sri Aurobindo in his 'Bhagavad Gita and Its Message' (1995). Others, besides giving a commentary and notes, also give the Sanskrit text along with a word-by-word translation. Some of these even include the commentary of the great Indian philosopher, Shankara (c. + 788 to 820), such as the very fine edition by Swami Gambhirananda (Calcutta: Advaita Ashrama, 1995, which may be available through the Vedanta Press, CA). Here is the latter's English rendering of Verse II.66:

"For the unsteady there is no wisdom, and there is no meditation for the unsteady man. And for an unmeditative man there is no peace. How can there be happiness for one without peace?"

This may not seem to have carried us much beyond Mascaro until we start looking at Shankara's commentary, of which the following provides a taste:

"Ayuktasya, for the unsteady, for one who does not have a concentrated mind; na asti, there is no, i.e. there does not arise; buddhih, wisdom, with regard to the nature of the Self; ca, and; there is no bhavana, meditation, earnest longing for the knowledge of the Self; ayuktasya, for an unsteady man. And similarly, abhavayatah, for an unmeditative man, who does not ardently desire the knowledge of the Self; there is no shantih, peace, restraint of the senses. Kutah, how can there be; sukham, happiness; ashantasya, for one without peace? That indeed is happiness which consists in the freedom of the senses from the thirst for enjoyment of objects; not the thirst for objects - that is misery to be sure. The implication is that, so long as thirst persists, there is no possibility of even an iota of happiness!" (page 112-3).

For anyone who would like to see a full treatment of the language of the Sanskrit text, there is Winthrop Sargeant's stupendous labor of love, 'The Bhagavad Gita' (SUNY, 1984) which offers a complete grammatical description of every single Sanskrit word in the text, along with much else.

Finally, for anyone who would like to look at a first-rate study of the Gita, there is Trevor Leggett's 'Realization of the Supreme Self - The Yoga-s of the Bhagavad Gita' (Kegan Paul International, 1995). This is a superb work with an intensely practical bent which sees the Gita, not so much as a metaphysical treatise but as a book of practical instruction. I used to think I knew the Gita before I discovered Leggett!

But despite the great wealth of available editions, of which I've mentioned only a few here, I still find myself returning to Mascaro from time to time. A perfect translation of the Gita into English is probably unattainable, but Mascaro seems to have come as close as anyone is ever likely to do. His version has a tendency to send down roots and grow in the mind.


Simple and effective   June 15, 2001
 45 out of 51 found this review helpful

Juan has done a fantastic job of translating the Gita into such concise writing. Every verse interpreted (though it biased towards Juan's opinion or philosophies) was succinct and did not require the reader to crack his/her head over the meaning. For me it was certainly an excellent introduction to the marvellous poem. Another version by Ramanand Prasad is more in depth and profound in it's translation. The free version by him could be found at www.gita-society.com Here's an example of the two contrasting profundity and distinctive styles of translations:

For verse 2:27 Juan's translation was :

Set thy heart upon thy work, but never on its reward. Work not or a reward; but never cease to do thy work.

as for the one by Ramanand Prasad, it came out as :

You have Adhikaara over your respective duty only, but no control or claim over the results. The fruits of work should not be your motive. You should never be inactive. (2.47) (The word Adhikaara means ability and privilege, prerogative, jurisdiction, discretion, right, preference, choice, rightful claim, authority, control.)

A reader wishing to venture into the depths of the Gita should consider reading this version by Juan as an overview of it.


Important work, but Mascaro's translation should be avoided   February 9, 2004
 22 out of 38 found this review helpful

The BHAGAVAD GITA is one of the most important of the scriptures of Hinduism, and one of the highest points of all literature in Sanskrit. It is actually a brief extract from the Mahabharata, India's huge epic, which describes a war between two halves of a family for the throne. The BHAGAVAD GITA tells of how, as the two armies are squared off on the battle field, the divine manifestation Krishna appears to the noble warrior Arjuna, to calm his doubts and show him a path of righteousness.

The work begins with an ironic turn for one expecting a passive and pacifist work. Arjuna does not wish to kill, and would rather withdraw from the slaughter about to ensue. Krishna, however, tells him that it is okay to kill, because the soul is in any event indestructible and his enemies will be reborn. Instead of abstaining from one's work for moral reasons, says Krishna, it would be better to do it and dedicate it, whatever it might be, to the divine. "Action is greater than inaction" is the moral of the first part of the book. From there, the work begins to emphasise Krishna as the way to salvation and recommends love to him.

I found Juan Mascaro's translation disappointing. While his language is generally quite clear and readable, he uses "thou" which I feel only makes the result feel archaic instead of like a living text. A great problem is that, Mascaro actually believes in the next, as is immediately apparently from his rather jumbled and confused introduction (which seems more concerned with the Vedas than the Bhagavad Gita). He speaks for pages about its "truth" which we must all follow, and how its insights are not only compatible with other religions such Christianity, but must be combined with them. I feel this sentiment could have greatly biased his translation; better to get a translation from a neutral, dispassionate scholar of Sanskrit. I would also have liked to know more about how Mascaro was qualified to translate the text, but Penguin's biography unhelpfully neglects to tell us much, except that he studied Sanskrit at some unknown level and lived for a brief time in Sri-Lanka.

The BHAGAVAD GITA is a classic of literature, whatever one might think about its religious truth. And it also helps to shed light on the many new religious movements of the last hundred years which have based their thought on the text. I'd wholeheartedly recommend reading it, though ideally in a translation done by a more neutral party.


Good Prose Rendering   September 13, 2000
 18 out of 18 found this review helpful

Mascaro's translation, while widely acknowledged as not the most accurate, is a very good introduction to the Gita. The style is prose throughout, which brings out none of the Gita's beauty, but as for as understanding goes, there few deficiencies here. This should probably not be one's sole resource in studying the book, but fortunately, ther is no commentary so that the reader is left to make up his or her own mind about the value of the book. Nearly all the Sanskrit words have been translated, so that the feeling or reading something "foreign", common to students of the Gita, is noticeably absent. The introductory essay is helpful, but not essential to the understanding of the Song. All in all, a good attempt, but for a better rendering, try Ramanand Prasad's translation, as it is a bit more modern and moves easier than this one.


The most readable truest English rendition of the Gita   March 11, 2006
 17 out of 19 found this review helpful

The Bhagavad Gita is the world's most translated scripture. The task for a Gita translator is to effectively take the poetic multilayer Sanskrit original and translate it into English preserving it's flavor allowing it to stand alone without commentary. Few have succeeded. I have read multiple editions of the Gita and,in my Sanskrit studies, read the original in Sanskrit.

While I haven't read all the English translations, Mascaro's translation is the best I have read. It takes the reader to the heart of the Gita, to their own heart and to that of Lord Krishna with practical real instructions on how we should live to be aligned with God. It is a practical nitty gritty instruction manual on how we are to construct and conduct ourselves in our own "life battle".

Gandhi read the Gita as his daily practice; it sustained him. I have found the same experience when I have picked up this volume during my own times of crisis.

If one wants to plumb the depths of the Gita, then I would suggest getting Winthrop Sargent's Bhagavad Gita with the Sanskrit and Sanskrit translation. It is excellent, but a few of the translations are off, and it is dry compared to Mascaro.

There are many commentaries and at present I don't have a favorite one to recommend.

If one wants to explore both the flavor and the depth of the Gita, I would recommend undertaking Sanskrit studies with Vyaas Houston www.americansanskrit.com . He gives weekend trainings to begin to learn Sanskrit as well as immersions into the Gita.
I can assure you, you won't be disappointed.

If you don't have the time or money, Mascaro's translation is a gold mine.