Premnath Bazaz's Introduction to his rare work of critical analysis of Bhagavad Gita "The Role Of The Bhagavad Gita In Indian Life"

In the enormous Indian literature, both sacred and profane,produced from pre-historic age to contemporary times, no .other book has earned such a tremendous reputation as the poem of seven-hundred verses entitled the Bhagavad-Gita (Lord’s Song).

Not long after it appeared in its present form, in the early centuries of the Christian Era, the philosophy of life contained in the dialogue between Sri Krishna and Arjuna fascinated the Hindus steeped in social malaise. The poem became the subject of special study by intellectuals and, in course of time, the most adored scripture of the Hindu community.

Whether or not a Hindu has had the opportunity to read the Bhagavad-Gita, or even to have seen a copy of the sacred poem, his ideas, conduct and behaviour are deeply influenced by its teachings because the prevalent Hindu culture is founded on them and the Hindu moral life draws sustenance from them.

Aurobindo Ghosh says that the influence of the Bhagavad-Gita“is not merely philosophic or academic but immediate and living,” and that “its ideas are actually at work as a powerful shaping factor in the revival and renewal of a nation and a culture.”

Any book to have become so popular and powerful in shaping the destiny of a people must have responded to their inner urges and fulfilled their vital social needs. Popular literature is an echo of national life. If the Bhagavad-Gita secured the highest position in Hindu religious literature, practically excelling even the Vedas, it must have ably presented crucial human problems as well as given vent to the excruciating anguishes of the society of the age in which it was composed and put into circulation. Those problems and agonies must have continued unresolved through the centuries to maintain the undiminished popularity of the philosophic lore. What are those grave problems and intense feelings and why did the remedies proposed by the Bhagavad-Gita fail to resolve them?

This book tries to answer these momentous questions.

No sooner had the Gita achieved the unique distinction of being treated as sacred revelation of the highest doctrine, than innumerable commentaries, some of them quite ingenious, came to be written on its contents. It has been translated not only in all regional languages of India, but also in most of the civilised languages of the world. Hardly a year passes by when a new translation or commentary is not published here or abroad.

Broadly speaking, Indian scholars have little to offer by way of criticism in their commentaries; their remarks are usually laudatory and if occasionally some one among them raises a doubt on a point he immediately covers it up by long explanations to uphold the integrity and sublimity of the holy teachings.

Hindu writers find the most advanced philosophy in the scripture; to them it is the last word in human wisdom. Foreign scholars are not uncritical, though some of them are equally lavish in its praise. In his introduction to a translation of the Bhagavad-Gita produced jointly by Swami Prabhavananda and Christopher Isherwood in 1945, Aldous Huxley says: “The Gita is one of the clearest and most comprehensive summaries of the Perennial Philosophy ever to have been made. Hence its enduring value, not only for Indians, but for all mankind.”

But some European commentators have brought a sense of objectivity to bear on their views of the poem, and while paying tributes to the divine teachings, they have pointed out that the holy text is not free from those blemishes which are more or less characteristic of all other scriptures. On the whole, however, it may be stated that there is not a single thoroughly critical study of the Bhagavad-Gita available for an accurate assessment of the historical role that the great poem has played in Indian society.

It is generally claimed that the Bhagavad-Gita is a treasure-house of profound knowledge and great wisdom; that it contains the mysterious secrets of spiritual life and is the best moral code for the guidance of a cultured society. Some of the more enthusiastic Indian writers, endowed with imagination, have even suggested that the teachings of the sacred poem can help the world, especially Western nations, now plagued by intractable social and moral problems born of scientific advance and technological progress. Neither any Indian teacher nor any foreign scholar, however, has taken the trouble of telling the suffering humanity why the Indians detonated  intellectually and morally, lost freedom, and suffered for hundreds of years after they had given unstinted allegiance to the doctrines of the Bhagavad-Gita.

There is, I suppose, consensus on two points or facts of history: One, that the Gita has been the most venerated scripture of Hindus from the fourth century A.C., if not earlier, and two, that India plunged into a dark age at almost the same time from which she may or may not have emerged in 1947, when the British power came to an end. Jawaharlal Nehru has drawn a clear picture of the Indian society in the pre-Gita and the post-Gita periods, though he does not allude to them as such. Dividing the first thousand years of the Christian Era into two, he says about the earlier centuries: “It is a period of a vigorous national life, bubbling over with energy and spreading over in all directions. Culture develops into a rich civilization flowering out in philosophy, literature, drama, art, science and mathematics. India’s economy expands, the Indian horizon widens and other countries come within its scope.” And what happened in the second half of the millennium when the Gita doctrines had gained the wide acceptance of the people? Nehru answers: “Yet for all these bright patches, an inner weakness seems to, seize India, which affects not only her political status but her creative activities … as the millennium approached its end, all this appears to be the afternoon of a civilization, the glow of the morning had long faded away, high noon was past…the heart seems to petrify, its beats are slower, and gradually this putrefaction and decay spread to its limbs…. The sense of curiosity and the
spirit of mental adventure give place to a hard and formal logic and a sterile dialectic. Both Brahminism and Buddhism deteriorated and degraded forms of worship grow Up.”

 Why did this dismal fate overtake the country when it had welcomed and chosen for its guide the exalted doctrines of the Bhagavad-Gita? Unless and until this riddle is solved any study of Indian history must remain unintelligible.

Contrary to the view sedulously fostered by Brahmin writers after the downfall of Buddhism that the idealist or the so-called spiritualist philosophy is the only system of thought evolved by Indian thinkers since the Vedic Age, the fact remains that for a long period stretching roughly from 500 B.C. to 500 A.C. the widely accepted philosophy in this country was rationalist-materialist. It had bred a radically different outlook and effected basic changes in the primitive social structure raised earlier by Brahmin theology. Notwithstanding persistent efforts made to ignore or underrate the importance of this revolutionary development, its positive achievements form an inalienable part of Indian culture. To accurately assess the historical significance of the Gita doctrines, it is essential to have an understanding of this deliberately neglected part of Indian study. I have, therefore, endeavored to shed some light on the thought-processes which led to the unfolding of that glorious era and the main intellectual, social and political features which characterized it.

The Bhagavad-Gita represents only one aspect-the idealistic-religious aspect-of Hindu culture. The claim that the poem contains a synthesis of all ancient Indian philosophies is not borne out by a critical study of the scripture. Moreover, it mostly ignores other aspects of Indian thought not liked by the author. If, and when, any opponent’s views are referred to, they are distorted and presented in a way as to support the author’s cherished assumptions. I have, therefore, deemed it necessary briefly to narrate, in the first part, the history of Indian thought from the early age, which makes it easier to grasp the underlying purpose of the Gita teachings.

Indian idealist philosophy has developed more from mysticism than common sense, and is generally beyond the comprehension of the average intelligent person. I have taken pains to summarise the main theories of the different idealist schools and reduce them to terms which J can understand, and which, I think, the reader also will be able to understand.

The argument that whereas the Hindus accepted the Bhagavad-Gita as their supreme scripture and unquestioned guide, they failed to act up to the ideals preached by Sri Krishna does not hold water. When members of a society apotheosize a person they have the ambition to emulate him and to fashion their lives in accordance with the principles taught by him, They cease to do so only when the hero loses charm and fails to captivate. If there is agreement on the statement that the Bhagavad-Gita has been the most popular scripture of the Hindus for the past fifteen centuries, it is absurd to hold that the sufferings of the community have been caused not by the doctrines venerated by them but because they acted in defiance of those doctrines.

A dispassionate and objective study of the Bhagavad-Gita will show that despite the extravagant claims made on its behalf, it is not an unfailing guide to spiritual freedom or worldly advancement. It is true that the holy poem mentions some lofty ideals, puts forth a few sublime thoughts on different aspects of human culture and lays down certain noble precepts for success in mental discipline. But, on the whole, its teachings can help (and have helped) only to subvert human progress and nourish social evils. It is a philosophy of the upper classes meant to be utilized by them as a weapon for maintaining a frustrated society in some sort of stability and equilibrium by inculcating ideas of patience and contentment in disinherited, exploited and down-trodden millions.

Since its appearance the Bhagavad-Gita has been repeatedly invoked to fight against the forces of revolution. If Shankaracharya sought its assistance in the ninth century A.C. to deal a death blow to declining Buddhism, Mahatma Gandhi utilized its teachings to annihilate the rising tide of secular democracy. This is true even though Shankara was dubbed as a crypto-Buddhist and Gandhi acclaimed as the champion of democratic freedom. Not only have the medley doctrines of the holy poem to be properly analysed by application of reason which is, after all, the one reliable criterion as well as the supreme court of authority, but we have also to see how Hindus fared in their personal lives and dealings among themselves and with others, after they came fully under the influence of the Gita philosophy.

F:om day to day and year to year, for at least fifteen centuries the venerated scripture has been powerfully exercising the mind of Hindus and making them think and function in a certain manner, thus leading them towards particular ends. Therefore, the relevance between the divine teachings and the life lived by Hindus during this long period has to be brought out in bold relief in order to make history a profitable study.

The history of India written and taught in the past is the history as studied by Brahmin intellectuals. No efforts have been made to present the common man’s viewpoint in it because it would have been ridiculed and fiercely opposed. When, for the first time, in the beginning of the present century, T.W.Rhys Davids made an attempt to describe the period during Buddhist ascendancy from the kshatriya (warrior caste) angle, he was afraid that “it would be regarded by some as a kind of lese majeste.” His Buddhist India, however, has become a classic which shows that the time has come when we may interpret the entire Indian history from a non-Brahmin stand. The change from the Brahmin stance to the common man’s stand in the study of our past makes every event, development and person in Indian history look entirely different. Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) describing the consequences of a radical change in his outlook stated; “What had previously seemed to me good seemed evil, and what had seemed evil seemed good. It happened to me as it happens to a man who goes out on some business and on the way suddenly decides that the business is unnecessary and returns home. All that was on his right is now on his left, and all that was on his left is now on his right…. The direction of my life and my desires became different and good and evil changed places.”.  While compiling this unconventional study of India’s past I have had the same experience as the Russian sage.

Like some other advanced languages, Sanskrit can be very difficult and, indeed, many books, religious and secular, written in it are not easy to understand. The Bhagavad-Gita, happily, is composed in easily intelligible language; it abounds in poetic art; and its lucid style and musical sound add to its charm.

Probably, apart from its religious merit, its linguistic beauty helped it to become so popular. The German Indologist, M. Winternitz, observes: “It is on the strength of its poetic value, the forcefulness of its language, the splendour of the images and metaphors, the breath of inspiration which pervades the poem, that it has made such a deep impression on the impressionable minds of all ages.” But the commentators have not infrequently projected their own notions and concepts into the verses of the poem. By doing so they have made the text mystifying and inexplicable. They have a purpose in doing so.

If studied without aids, while the main theme of the Bhagavad-Gita becomes manifest, its contradictions and inconsistencies cannot remain concealed from an intelligent student. By giving far-fetched meaning to words and reading what is not given in the text, the commentators try to cover up the defects and establish the integrity of the author. Sanskrit is a rich language, and many words carry dozens of meanings which are sometimes opposed to each other. By taking advantage of the richness of language the commentators can interpret the poem as they like and, as a matter of fact, many of these works are full of the preconceived views and strongly cherished beliefs of the devoted Gita-lovers.

While this device may strengthen orthodoxy and preserve the sanctity of the scripture, it cannot help in estimating the historical importance of the poem and its contribution to Indian social life.

The Bhagavad-Gita has in the past played a great role in shaping the mind and character of Hindus and thereby in making the history of India. As long as the social conditions prevail which gave birth to Gita doctrines, the scripture will continue to play the same role and exercise a powerful influence.

We can discover the nature of this role and its effectiveness by studying the sacred poem in an unbiased manner. The poem is entitled to highest respect which it deserves as the adored scripture of the millions of Indians. But regard for truth demands that we should rationally analyze the declarations made and the theories adumbrated in the holy poem. It will be strictly in accordance with our past cultural traditions. Besides, the findings thus arrived at alone can be conducive to the future welfare of the Indian society.

I was a lad of fourteen years when I first secured a copy of the Bhagavad-Gita with a simple translation by Mrs. Annie Besant. For the last fifty-three years I have carefully gone through scores of translations and commentaries which were available to me. I have had discussions with friendly scholars, both orthodox and liberal, on the philosophical and religious themes dealt with in the scripture. The conclusions set forth here are the outcome of these studies and discussions.

Being the first attempt to write a critical commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita after hundreds of books have been brought out by Indians and foreigners eulogizing it, some-circles may regard my endeavour as presumptuous. It would be an unfair charge and by no means justifiable. As a free nation we need to develop in us the faculty to criticise not only others (in which we are lavish and specially adept) but also ourselves-our politics, our religion, our culture, our institutions and our traditions.

We are woefully lacking in this and have therefore failed to develop on healthy lines and produce the expected results in various fields of social activity. To be thoroughly self-critical was a trait of intellectual thinking in the Upanishadic age. It has to be fostered again with the purpose of guiding India towards an intellectual revolution which is a sine qua non for long-needed social transformation. Self-criticism is the lever of progress. In critically examining cherished beliefs, hoary traditions  and age-old customs one cannot avoid treading on corns of orthodox scholar and religious-minded devotee. But the intention far from being to offend anyone is solely to arrive at the truth by sifting the grain from the chaff. In undertaking this arduous task I have drawn inspiration from the venerable Upanishads. In the Taittiriya the sage says; ritam vadishyami Sat yam vadishyami tanmamavato (I will speak of the right; I will speak the truth; may that protect me). Following in the footsteps of the bold thinkers who proved to be the harbingers of the great revolution India has ever witnessed in its history, I venture to present this study in the hope that it might help in instilling a healthier outlook on life among the Indian people than the prevailing one laboriously nourished through the past ages by the Brahmins currently called Indian nationalists.