Book ReviewGITA:The Song Extraordinary by Damodar Thakur [Archives:2005/888/Education]

A. K. Sinha
Department of English
Hodeidah University
Writing about this extraordinary book is like squeezing eternity into a grain of sand. But the very fact that a lethargic common reader like me is motivated to come out with some comments shows how positive is the influence of the book.

The book has given ample proof of an encyclopaedic knowledge,and it can certainly be described as a significant contribution not only to world literature but to a study of human thought all the world over.

When things are falling apart and the centre seems unable to hold, this book makes human beings conscious of universal brotherhood.

Now let me address myself to a simple question: How far is this book relevant to the common man today?

In order to answer this question, I would like to refer to some assertions made in the book itself:

A typical man of today would like to know whether this text has for him a recipe saying how he can achieve the delicate balance that we need for combining the best of material prosperity with the highest degree of the serenity and equanimity of mind. (Pg.29)

It is this harmony between spiritual elevation and material progress that is going to save man today in the Wasteland of the modern age.

Another ability that the Gita would like the people to emulate is the ability to withdraw at times from the outward world of sensate experiences and to dive deep into the innermost depth of one's being for the source of energy lying dormant there (Pg.42)

This ability to withdraw at times and meditate is also going to save the modern man from all the tensions he is carrying.

The Message of the Gita is intended to affect the inner psyche of man. And its message is of a profound spiritual nature, its impact goes deep down into the innermost depths of ones awareness and energizes the very essnce of his being(pg.60)

This energizing of the very essece of being is indeed yet another positive contribution to the people today

The book further observes:

In the perspective of the Gita, we can say that the environment in which we find ourselves is nothing but the manifestations of the divine. The trees, the plants, and the shrubs around us and, similarly, the lower and the higher forms of animal life around us are nothing but the manifestations of the divine. We have started destroying the manifestations of the divine and so the divine has in its turn started destroying us.(pg.182)

How relevant and useful is the conclusion drawn from the book!

The book aptly observes in its concluding chapter:

The beauty of the Gita lies in the fact that although it was written more than two thosand years ago, it continues to be relevant and intellectually stimulating even now.(pg.238)

And he is right.The book Gita :The Song Extraordinary is indeed relevant and useful for the common reader of today and for all times to come.
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