The Bhagavad Gita is the best known of all the Indian scriptures, and Eknath Easwaran's best-selling translation is reliable, readable, and profound.
Easwaran's 55-page introduction places the Bhagavad Gita in its historical setting, and brings out the universality and timelessness of its teachings. Chapter introductions clarify key concepts, and notes and a glossary explain Sanskrit terms.
Easwaran grew up in the Hindu tradition in India, and learned Sanskrit from a young age. He was a professor of English literature before coming to the West on a Fulbright scholarship. A gifted teacher, he is recognized as an authority on the Indian classics and world mysticism.
The Bhagavad Gita opens, dramatically, on a battlefield, as the warrior Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life. Yet, as Easwaran points out, the Gita is not what it seems - it's not a dialogue between two mythical figures at the dawn of Indian history. The battlefield is a perfect backdrop, but the Gita's subject is the war within, the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage if he or she is to emerge from life victorious.
Arjuna's struggle in the Bhagavad Gita is acutely modern. He has lost his way on the battlefield of life and turns to find the path again by asking direct, uncompromising questions of his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, the Lord himself. Krishna replies in 700 verses of sublime instruction on living and dying, loving and working, and the nature of the soul.
Easwaran shows the Gita's relevance to us today as we strive, like Arjuna, to do what is right.
No one in modern times is more qualified - no, make that 'as qualified' - to translate the epochal Classics of Indian Spirituality than Eknath Easwaran. And the reason is clear. It is impossible to get to the heart of those classics unless you live them, and he did live them. My admiration of the man and his works is boundless. - Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions
Easwaran's best-selling translation of the ancient wisdom texts called the Upanishads is reliable, readable, and profound.
In the Upanishads, illumined sages share flashes of insight, the results of their investigation into consciousness itself.
In extraordinary visions, they experience directly a transcendent Reality which is the essence, or Self, of each created being. They teach that each of us, each Self, is eternal, deathless, one with the power that created the universe.
Easwaran's best-selling translation of selections taken from the principal Upanishads and five others is reliable and accessible. It includes an overview of the cultural and historical setting, with chapter introductions, notes, and a Sanskrit glossary. But it is Easwaran's understanding of the wisdom of the Upanishads, and their relevance to the modern reader, that makes this edition truly outstanding.
Each sage, each Upanishad, appeals in different ways to the reader's head and heart. As Easwaran writes, The Upanishads belong not just to Hinduism. They are India's most precious legacy to humanity, and in that spirit they are offered here.
Easwaran's best-selling translation of this classic Buddhist text The Dhammapada is reliable, readable, and profound.
Dhammapada means the path of dharma, the path of harmony and righteousness that anyone can follow to reach the highest good. The Dhammapada is a collection of verses, gathered probably from direct disciples who wanted to preserve what they had heard from the Buddha himself.
Easwaran's comprehensive introduction to the Dhammapada gives an overview of the Buddha's teachings that is penetrating, and clear - accessible for readers new to Buddhism, but also with fresh insights and practical applications for readers familiar with this text. His translation is based on the original Pali. Chapter introductions, notes and a Sanskrit glossary place individual verses into the context of the broader Buddhist canon.
Easwaran is a master storyteller, and the introduction includes many stories that make moving, memorable reading, bringing young Siddhartha and his heroic spiritual quest vividly to life. This faithful interpretation brings us closer to the compassionate heart of the Buddha.
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The Bhagavad Gita is the best known of all the Indian scriptures, and Eknath Easwaran's best-selling translation is reliable, readable, and profound.
Easwaran's 55-page introduction places the Bhagavad Gita in its historical setting, and brings out the universality and timelessness of its teachings. Chapter introductions clarify key concepts, and notes and a glossary explain Sanskrit terms.
Easwaran grew up in the Hindu tradition in India, and learned Sanskrit from a young age. He was a professor of English literature before coming to the West on a Fulbright scholarship. A gifted teacher, he is recognized as an authority on the Indian classics and world mysticism.
The Bhagavad Gita opens, dramatically, on a battlefield, as the warrior Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life. Yet, as Easwaran points out, the Gita is not what it seems - it's not a dialogue between two mythical figures at the dawn of Indian history. The battlefield is a perfect backdrop, but the Gita's subject is the war within, the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage if he or she is to emerge from life victorious.
Arjuna's struggle in the Bhagavad Gita is acutely modern. He has lost his way on the battlefield of life and turns to find the path again by asking direct, uncompromising questions of his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, the Lord himself. Krishna replies in 700 verses of sublime instruction on living and dying, loving and working, and the nature of the soul.
Easwaran shows the Gita's relevance to us today as we strive, like Arjuna, to do what is right.
No one in modern times is more qualified - no, make that 'as qualified' - to translate the epochal Classics of Indian Spirituality than Eknath Easwaran. And the reason is clear. It is impossible to get to the heart of those classics unless you live them, and he did live them. My admiration of the man and his works is boundless. Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions.
Easwaran's best-selling translation of the ancient wisdom texts called the Upanishads is reliable, readable, and profound.
In the Upanishads, illumined sages share flashes of insight, the results of their investigation into consciousness itself.
In extraordinary visions, they experience directly a transcendent Reality which is the essence, or Self, of each created being. They teach that each of us, each Self, is eternal, deathless, one with the power that created the universe.
Easwaran's best-selling translation of selections taken from the principal Upanishads and five others is reliable and accessible. It includes an overview of the cultural and historical setting, with chapter introductions, notes, and a Sanskrit glossary. But it is Easwaran's understanding of the wisdom of the Upanishads, and their relevance to the modern reader, that makes this edition truly outstanding.
Each sage, each Upanishad, appeals in different ways to the reader's head and heart. As Easwaran writes, The Upanishads belong not just to Hinduism. They are India's most precious legacy to humanity, and in that spirit they are offered here.
A comprehensive manual for living a spiritual life, based on a verse-by-verse commentary on India's timeless scripture - from the author of its best-selling translation.
(The ebook The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living 9781586381455 includes all three volumes in this series.)
The Bhagavad Gita is set on the battlefield of an apocalyptic war between good and evil. Faced with a dire moral dilemma, the warrior prince Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life.
Easwaran points out that Arjuna's crisis is acutely modern. The Gita's battlefield is the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage. Arjuna represents each of us, and Sri Krishna is the Lord, instructing us in eighteen chapters of lofty wisdom as we face the social, environmental, and global challenges that threaten our world today.
Easwaran is a spiritual teacher and author of deep insight and warmth. His verse-by-verse commentary interprets the Gita's teachings for modern readers, explaining the Sanskrit concepts and philosophy and applying them with practicality, wisdom, and humor to every aspect of our work, our relationships, and our lives. With everyday anecdotes, stories, and examples, he shows that the changes we long to see in the world start with the transformation of our own consciousness.
The practical exercises recommended by Easwaran to achieve transformation are part of a spiritual program he developed for his own life. They are accessible to people from all backgrounds and cultures. Urging us to adopt a higher image of the human being, he assures us that peace and unity are within reach.
Each volume of this series covers six chapters of the Gita. Each may be read on its own, but all three volumes together form an in-depth, verse-by-verse explanation of this ancient scripture and its relevance today. Each volume includes instructions in Easwaran's universal eight-point program of passage meditation.
Volume 1: The first six chapters of the Gita explore the concept of the innermost Self and source of wisdom in each of us. Easwaran explains how we can begin to transform ourselves, even as householders engaged in busy lives.
Volume 2: The next six chapters of the Gita go beyond the individual Self to explore the Supreme Reality underlying all creation. Easwaran builds a bridge across the seeming divide between scientific knowledge and spiritual wisdom, and explains how the concept of the unity of life can help us in all our relationships.
Volume 3: The final six chapters put forth an urgent appeal for us to begin to see that all of us are one - to make the connection between the Self within and the Reality underlying all creation. Global in scope, the emphasis is on what we can do to make a difference to heal our environment and establish peace in the world.
Easwaran's commentary is for all students of the Gita, whatever their background, and for anyone who is trying to find a path to wisdom, love, and kindness in themselves and our troubled world. Written as an authoritative, accessible guide to a much-loved scripture, it is a handbook for finding peace and clarity within.
This second edition incorporates revisions made across all three volumes following the author's final instructions.
Easwaran's best-selling translation of this classic Buddhist text The Dhammapada is reliable, readable, and profound.
Dhammapada means the path of dharma, the path of harmony and righteousness that anyone can follow to reach the highest good. The Dhammapada is a collection of verses, gathered probably from direct disciples who wanted to preserve what they had heard from the Buddha himself.
Easwaran's comprehensive introduction to the Dhammapada gives an overview of the Buddha's teachings that is penetrating, and clear - accessible for readers new to Buddhism, but also with fresh insights and practical applications for readers familiar with this text. His translation is based on the original Pali. Chapter introductions, notes and a Sanskrit glossary place individual verses into the context of the broader Buddhist canon.
Easwaran is a master storyteller, and the introduction includes many stories that make moving, memorable reading, bringing young Siddhartha and his heroic spiritual quest vividly to life. This faithful interpretation brings us closer to the compassionate heart of the Buddha.
---
A comprehensive manual for living a spiritual life, based on a verse-by-verse commentary on India's timeless scripture - from the author of its best-selling translation.
(The ebook The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living 9781586381455 includes all three volumes in this series.)
The Bhagavad Gita is set on the battlefield of an apocalyptic war between good and evil. Faced with a dire moral dilemma, the warrior prince Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life.
Easwaran points out that Arjuna's crisis is acutely modern. The Gita's battlefield is the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage. Arjuna represents each of us, and Sri Krishna is the Lord, instructing us in eighteen chapters of lofty wisdom as we face the social, environmental, and global challenges that threaten our world today.
Easwaran is a spiritual teacher and author of deep insight and warmth. His verse-by-verse commentary interprets the Gita's teachings for modern readers, explaining the Sanskrit concepts and philosophy and applying them with practicality, wisdom, and humor to every aspect of our work, our relationships, and our lives. With everyday anecdotes, stories, and examples, he shows that the changes we long to see in the world start with the transformation of our own consciousness.
The practical exercises recommended by Easwaran to achieve transformation are part of a spiritual program he developed for his own life. They are accessible to people from all backgrounds and cultures. Urging us to adopt a higher image of the human being, he assures us that peace and unity are within reach.
Each volume of this series covers six chapters of the Gita. Each may be read on its own, but all three volumes together form an in-depth, verse-by-verse explanation of this ancient scripture and its relevance today. Each volume includes instructions in Easwaran's eight-point program of passage meditation.
Volume 1: The first six chapters of the Gita explore the concept of the innermost Self and source of wisdom in each of us. Easwaran explains how we can begin to transform ourselves, even as householders engaged in busy lives.
Volume 2: The next six chapters of the Gita go beyond the individual Self to explore the Supreme Reality underlying all creation. Easwaran builds a bridge across the seeming divide between scientific knowledge and spiritual wisdom, and explains how the concept of the unity of life can help us in all our relationships.
Volume 3: The final six chapters put forth an urgent appeal for us to begin to see that all of us are one - to make the connection between the Self within and the Reality underlying all creation. Global in scope, the emphasis is on what we can do to make a difference to heal our environment and establish peace in the world.
Easwaran's commentary is for all students of the Gita, whatever their background, and for anyone who is trying to find a path to wisdom, love, and kindness in themselves and our troubled world. Written as an authoritative, accessible guide to a much-loved scripture, it is a handbook for finding peace and clarity within.
This second edition incorporates revisions made across all three volumes following the author's final instructions.
Life-affirming and lyrical writings for inspiration and meditation, from saints and sages of the Christian, Hindu, Sufi, Jewish, Native American, Buddhist, and Taoist traditions.
Eknath Easwaran taught meditation and spiritual living for nearly 40 years and drew deep, ongoing inspiration from the sacred literature of the world's traditions.
Read these 149 passages for daily inspiration, for the insights they give into other spiritual traditions, for the light they throw on how to live, for the sustenance they offer when we feel sad or tired, and for the deep transformation they can bring in Easwaran's spiritual practice of passage meditation.
Rich supporting material includes detailed background notes, suggestions for memorization and for studying the texts, and instruction in using these sacred writings in passage meditation.
These short readings, one for each day of the year, offer deep inspiration for readers who want to develop a more spiritually grounded lifestyle.
In the midst of our busy world we need islands of calm. Each of these daily readings is paired with a quotation from one of the world's great philosophers, poets, saints, and sages. Easwaran taught spiritual living for forty years, and his commentaries show how the wisdom of the ages can guide us in our own lives.
Augustine and Einstein, Emily Dickinson and Jalaladdin Rumi, Biblical verses, Buddhist sutras, Hasidic proverbs, and Hindu Upanishads can all be found here. As we go through the year with Easwaran, some days will be joyful, some will be hard, but each one can further our journey. One day at a time is enough.
This is the story of Gandhi's spiritual evolution - the turning points and choices that made him not just a great political leader but also a timeless icon of nonviolence.
Eknath Easwaran grew up in India and witnessed how Gandhi inspired people of all races, backgrounds, and religions to turn anger into compassion and hatred into love.
How had Gandhi transformed himself from an ineffective young lawyer into the Mahatma, the great soul who led 400 million ordinary men and women in their nonviolent struggle for independence? To find out, Easwaran visited Gandhi's ashram and watched the Mahatma absorbed in meditation on the Bhagavad Gita - the wellspring of Gandhi's spiritual strength.
Easwaran, a leading authority on the Bhagavad Gita and on spiritual living, explains the principles underlying Gandhi's nonviolence. He highlights how we can all use Gandhi's teachings to make our families, workplaces, and communities more peaceful in the world today.
More than 70 photographs illustrate his life, and a detailed chronology provides historical context.
Use your mantram when you're ill or anxious, tired or restless, and it will guide you and comfort you like a true friend.
The Mantram, or mantra, is a short, powerful, spiritual formula from the world's great traditions, repeated silently in the mind, anytime, anywhere. Easwaran, the author of Passage Meditation and the best-selling translations The Bhagavad Gita, The Upanishads, and The Dhammapada, taught the use of the mantram for forty years as part of his passage meditation program.
The mantram can help you to steady your mind and free it from anxiety, anger or resentment. Easwaran explains how the mantram works, and gives practical guidelines for using it to focus your thoughts and access deeper resources of strength, patience, and love.
Find balance, peace, and even wisdom, by learning to steady the mind.
Stress and anxiety affect many of us as we struggle with work pressures, money worries, strained relationships, and the nagging sense that life may be running out of our control. But a truly calm mind can weather any storm.
Eknath Easwaran, a respected teacher of meditation, offers a wealth of insights, real-life stories and practical suggestions to help us try something more successful next time we're facing our stressors. He explains how to use a mantram (or mantra) to quiet the mind. He describes how to slow down and stay in the present, improve creativity and concentration, shed anxieties and resentments, strengthen our relationships, and stay kind and strong when faced with conflicts, supporting those around us.
Easwaran (1910-1999) left a rich archive with thousands of recorded talks, as well as works in progress to be completed under the direction of his wife and editor, Christine Easwaran, Strength in the Storm is drawn from his essays and other previously unpublished material. Each chapter contains:
- An introduction, presenting Easwaran's timeless ideas in the light of today's challenges
- Easwaran's article, which is the main part of each chapter
- A workbook section to help get the most out of each article.
We learn to calm the mind through practice - there's no magic about it. We can't control what life throws at us, but we can learn to access the courage, patience, and compassion that we need to ride the waves of life minute-by-minute, day-by-day.
A comprehensive manual for living a spiritual life, based on a verse-by-verse commentary on India's timeless scripture - from the author of its best-selling translation.
(The ebook The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living 9781586381455 includes all three volumes in this series.)
The Bhagavad Gita is set on the battlefield of an apocalyptic war between good and evil. Faced with a dire moral dilemma, the warrior prince Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life.
Easwaran points out that Arjuna's crisis is acutely modern. The Gita's battlefield is the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage. Arjuna represents each of us, and Sri Krishna is the Lord, instructing us in eighteen chapters of lofty wisdom as we face the social, environmental, and global challenges that threaten our world today.
Easwaran is a spiritual teacher and author of deep insight and warmth. His verse-by-verse commentary interprets the Gita's teachings for modern readers, explaining the Sanskrit concepts and philosophy and applying them with practicality, wisdom, and humor to every aspect of our work, our relationships, and our lives. With everyday anecdotes, stories, and examples, he shows that the changes we long to see in the world start with the transformation of our own consciousness.
The practical exercises recommended by Easwaran to achieve transformation are part of a spiritual program he developed for his own life. They are accessible to people from all backgrounds and cultures. Urging us to adopt a higher image of the human being, he assures us that peace and unity are within reach.
Each volume of this series covers six chapters of the Gita. Each may be read on its own, but all three volumes together form an in-depth, verse-by-verse explanation of this ancient scripture and its relevance today. Each volume includes instructions in Easwaran's eight-point program of passage meditation.
Volume 1: The first six chapters of the Gita explore the concept of the innermost Self and source of wisdom in each of us. Easwaran explains how we can begin to transform ourselves, even as householders engaged in busy lives.
Volume 2: The next six chapters of the Gita go beyond the individual Self to explore the Supreme Reality underlying all creation. Easwaran builds a bridge across the seeming divide between scientific knowledge and spiritual wisdom, and explains how the concept of the unity of life can help us in all our relationships.
Volume 3: The final six chapters put forth an urgent appeal for us to begin to see that all of us are one - to make the connection between the Self within and the Reality underlying all creation. Global in scope, the emphasis is on what we can do to make a difference to heal our environment and establish peace in the world.
Easwaran's commentary is for all students of the Gita, whatever their background, and for anyone who is trying to find a path to wisdom, love, and kindness in themselves and our troubled world. Written as an authoritative, accessible guide to a much-loved scripture, it is a handbook for finding peace and clarity within.
This second edition incorporates revisions made across all three volumes following the author's final instructions.
Through stories, insights, and step-by-step advice, Easwaran shows us how to calm our minds.
When the mind is unhurried, we are patient, kind, and focused, ready to respond to what really matters amidst the clamor of a busy day. The secret is to train our minds to work steadily and with one-pointed attention, however many tasks confront us.
For over forty years, Easwaran taught meditation and the wisdom of slowing down. As we read, we find ourselves in situations where we may get impatient or upset - standing in line, dealing with difficult colleagues, shopping with children with agendas of their own - but as Easwaran relates each event, we see it from the perspective of an unhurried mind. And we see small ways to change how we respond, opening the door to rich, loving relationships, creative and productive work, and a quiet sense of joy that can permeate our lives.
In this companion to his best-selling translation of the Bhagavad Gita, Easwaran explores the essential themes of this much-loved Indian scripture.
Placing the Gita in a modern context, Easwaran shows how this classic text sheds light on the nature of reality, the illusion of separateness, the search for identity, and the meaning of yoga. The key message of the Gita is how to resolve our conflicts and live in harmony with the deep unity of life, through the principles of yoga and the practice of meditation.
Easwaran grew up in the Hindu tradition and learned Sanskrit from an early age. A foremost translator and interpreter of the Gita, he taught classes on it for forty years, while living out the principles of the Gita in the midst of a busy family and community life.
In the Bhagavad Gita, Sri Krishna, the Lord, doesn't tell the warrior prince Arjuna what to do: he shows Arjuna his choices and then leaves it to Arjuna to decide. Easwaran, too, shows us clearly how these teachings still apply to us - and how, like Arjuna, we must take courage and act wisely if we want our world to thrive.
A comprehensive manual for living a spiritual life, based on a verse-by-verse commentary on India's timeless scripture - from the author of its best-selling translation.
(The ebook The Bhagavad Gita for Daily Living 9781586381455 includes all three volumes in this series.)
The Bhagavad Gita is set on the battlefield of an apocalyptic war between good and evil. Faced with a dire moral dilemma, the warrior prince Arjuna turns in anguish to his spiritual guide, Sri Krishna, for answers to the fundamental questions of life.
Easwaran points out that Arjuna's crisis is acutely modern. The Gita's battlefield is the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage. Arjuna represents each of us, and Sri Krishna is the Lord, instructing us in eighteen chapters of lofty wisdom as we face the social, environmental, and global challenges that threaten our world today.
Easwaran is a spiritual teacher and author of deep insight and warmth. His verse-by-verse commentary interprets the Gita's teachings for modern readers, explaining the Sanskrit concepts and philosophy and applying them with practicality, wisdom, and humor to every aspect of our work, our relationships, and our lives. With everyday anecdotes, stories, and examples, he shows that the changes we long to see in the world start with the transformation of our own consciousness.
The practical exercises recommended by Easwaran to achieve transformation are part of a spiritual program he developed for his own life. They are accessible to people from all backgrounds and cultures. Urging us to adopt a higher image of the human being, he assures us that peace and unity are within reach.
Each volume of this series covers six chapters of the Gita. Each may be read on its own, but all three volumes together form an in-depth, verse-by-verse explanation of this ancient scripture and its relevance today. Each volume includes instructions in Easwaran's eight-point program of passage meditation.
Volume 1: The first six chapters of the Gita explore the concept of the innermost Self and source of wisdom in each of us. Easwaran explains how we can begin to transform ourselves, even as householders engaged in busy lives.
Volume 2: The next six chapters of the Gita go beyond the individual Self to explore the Supreme Reality underlying all creation. Easwaran builds a bridge across the seeming divide between scientific knowledge and spiritual wisdom, and explains how the concept of the unity of life can help us in all our relationships.
Volume 3: The final six chapters put forth an urgent appeal for us to begin to see that all of us are one - to make the connection between the Self within and the Reality underlying all creation. Global in scope, the emphasis is on what we can do to make a difference to heal our environment and establish peace in the world.
Easwaran's commentary is for all students of the Gita, whatever their background, and for anyone who is trying to find a path to wisdom, love, and kindness in themselves and our troubled world. Written as an authoritative, accessible guide to a much-loved scripture, it is a handbook for finding peace and clarity within.
This second edition incorporates revisions made across all three volumes following the author's final instructions.
Feeling trapped by unwanted thoughts and emotions can seem an inevitable part of life. But Easwaran, who taught meditation for nearly forty years, shows a way to break free.
Just as a fitness routine can create a strong, supple body, spiritual disciplines can shape a secure personality and a resilient, loving mind. Writing as an experienced, friendly coach, Easwaran takes the timeless teachings of the Buddha and other mystics and shows how we can train the mind not just during meditation but throughout the day.
Working with difficult colleagues, choosing what to eat, and listening to a child's needs are all opportunities to try out different, wiser responses. Easwaran shows how training the mind is a glorious challenge - one that brings joy and purpose to life.
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