"There are two
classes of men, namely the devotee and the demon." This is what Prabhupada writes about nonbelievers in the
book Bhagavad Gita As It Is. The book is a translation and commentary by
Prabhupada, who was the founder of the International Society of
Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON). This book is one of the many
translations of the Bhagavad Gita available in English and has been translated into
almost 60 or more languages. In complete editions of this book (almost 900
pages), each verse from the Gita includes the verse in the Devanagari script, a
Latin transliteration, word-for-word meanings (Sanskrit-English), and an English
translation of the verse. This is followed by extensive commentary by
Prabhupada for most of the verses (purport). This book is extensively
distributed by ISKON and is a central theme of their teachings and
beliefs. ISKON members also believe this book to be
authoritative and literally true. I started reading this book when I was
looking for a reliable translation of the Gita in English because my
Sanskrit knowledge is very limited. A lack of knowledge of the Sanskrit
language should not be a hindrance to studying and understanding most of the
Vedic knowledge today. There are many translations of these
works available in English and many other languages, and many of them are from very reliable
sources. One can read them and compare to get the essence of the Vedic teachings
(or any ancient philosophy).
This book was recently in the news; a group linked to the Christian Orthodox Church had demanded a ban on this book. They claimed that the text was "extremist" literature full of hatred and insults to nonbelievers, which promoted social discord. The case had drawn a flurry of criticism from Hindus across the world, and even the Indian parliament took note of this case and expressed its concern over the "ban on Gita." The Russian court finally dismissed that petition seeking a ban (a proper decision, according to me). But I was not surprised to see the news of requesting a ban on this book. I am personally against banning any book or article or movie, etc. Somehow, India (even though a democracy) has a history of banning books that carry some sensitive matters against some religion or iconic figures (like Gandhi, Ambedkar, Shivaji Maharaj, popular politicians, religious leaders, etc.). The list of banned books includes The Satanic Verses, The Polyester Prince, Shivaji-The Hindu King in Islamic India, and more. I decided to study this book to see what people found 'extremist' or 'full of hatred' in this book. My expectation was that the Bhagavad Gita should not be an extremist or full of hatred book; people can agree or disagree with things mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita, but this is true with any religious scripture. So I was wondering how come people got this impression (that it propagates hatred) from its translation, and that too translation by a person who founded the ISKON, which claims to teach Bhakti, love, and non-violence, and does some great philanthropic activities.
From the preface itself, I started to feel the aggressive tone
of the author and his total dismissal of other works in the same field. Prabhupad
writes, “Before my presentation
of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, almost all the English editions
of Bhagavad-gita were introduced to fulfill someone’s personal
ambition.” I have nothing against
aggressive tones or authors praising their own work, but dismissing others' work
totally without any substantial evidence is arrogance without any substance; even great scientists or Nobel laureates
don’t have such an attitude towards their competitors. He further writes, “Unfortunately, mundane wranglers have
taken advantage of Bhagavad-geeta to push forward their demonic
propensities and mislead people.”
This was just the beginning as I read more, I found many more
views like this expressed in this book. As I said, nothing wrong in praising
your own work, or highlighting good aspects of your philosophy/ideology, but I don’t think
it’s right to demean your fellow writers like this. Let’s see what views are expressed about women in the
book,
Prakriti is female, and she is controlled by the
Lord just as the activities of a wife are controlled by the husband. I am sure
many husbands wish that this were true :) Now let's look at his other comment
about women.
In purport of Text 1.40 (chapter 1, verse 40) he writes,
“As children are very prone to be misled, women
are similarly very prone to degradation. Therefore, both children and women
require protection by the elder members of the family. By being engaged in
various religious practices, women will not be misled into adultery. According
to Chanakya Pandiita, women are generally not very intelligent and therefore
not trustworthy. So the different family traditions of religious activities
should always engage them, and thus their chastity and devotion will give birth
to a good population eligible for participating in the varnäsrama system. On
the failure of such varnäsrama-dharma, naturally, the women become free
to act and mix with men, and thus adultery is indulged in at the risk of
unwanted population.”
Seriously? Are you kidding me? In what way are women more prone to
degradation than men? On what basis, he agree with the opinion that they are
not very intelligent and trustworthy? Prabhupad
might have had some bad experiences with women in his life, but that doesn’t
give him the right to pass a general comment like this about all women, that too in a
book where he claims to teach the Gita as it is. I am surprised that
feminists are not up in arms against these statements; maybe they think it's not worth their
attention.
Now let’s see what he writes about nonbelievers of his
philosophy,
Purpot of Text 3.3
There are two classes of men, namely the devotee and the
demon. There are a
number of editions of this great book of knowledge. Some of them have commentaries
by the devotees, and some of them have commentaries by the demons.
Commentation by the devotees is real, whereas that of the demons is useless.
(So the world is conveniently divided into two types of
people, one who believes in his teachings and philosophy, and others, DEMONS, a very kind way to address your fellow human beings)
Purport of Text 3.4
That Krishna is the supreme authority is accepted by the
whole world, not only at present but from time immemorial, and the
demons alone reject Him.
(text 3.5) A
nondevotee or a demon cannot understand this transcendental nature. Consequently, these
descriptions in the Gita cannot be understood by demonic brains.
If this is not Hatred
of nonbelievers, then I wonder what it is? World demon is used for nonbelievers (even for other translators of the Bhagavad Gita); it appears many times, describing nonbelievers in this purport and also at different places in the book.
I can go on like this; there
are many sentences in the book that will make one wonder whether the author wants
to teach love or hatred toward
other communities. How come the Indian Government, which is so sensitive towards religious feelings, didn't find this book offensive towards those who don’t
believe in Krishna and his superiority? The
objection (or demand for a ban) was not on the Bhagavad Gita as it was projected in the media, but was on this book, which is more than 90% purports by Prabhupad, but the book claims to tell us the real meaning of the Bhagavad Gita (very clever marketing trick).
It’s the purports, which constitute most of the book in its complete edition
(>90%). The translation part given in this book is good and mostly
comparable with all other translations of the Gita, but his interpretation of the Gita verses in Prabhupad’s purports is the real problem. He propagates
his own views and ideas in the name of the Gita very aggressively (and does the
same thing for which he blamed others). I request the readers of my blog to read
the book themselves and decide if I am right or wrong. It's definitely not Gita as it is, but what
Prabhupada wants it to be; his purports spoil
this book completely. This book is not only about the Gita, but it’s mostly a
promotion of the Hare Krishna movement’s cult beliefs. Hopefully, the real Bhagavad Gita doesn't teach
such a fundamentalist, sectarian, narrow view, but if I am wrong, please correct
me.
Thanks a lot for reading, and please share your
comments.
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