Bhagavad Gita

Among my many ambitions as a 17-year old immigrant to America was the pursuit of higher education, and the life of an intellectual, whatever that might mean. And, so, I was advised by an English teacher, “to become an intellectual, you need to read at least 2000 books.” 

Being a young engineering student, my focus was then on the selection of which 2,000 books to read, and how big of a library I would need to house them. In fact, one of the reasons I bought Highland was that its 12’ ceilings could accommodate the construction of the largest library possible.

The selection of which books to read proved to be more complicated, so I asked every wise and educated person I met to share their favorite books and, over time, noticed that the Bhagavad Gita was included among almost every intellectual’s Top-10 list.

After many false starts, I finally found a translation by Gandhi, written while he was in the British jail from 1930 to 1932, that made sense. It has been on my bed stand ever since.

I mention all this because, whether it happens to be Gandhi as he suffers in a British jail or Martin Luther King as he struggles in an American jail, or the many of us who are anxiety-ridden dealing with viral pandemics and crushing inflation, one does well by turning to Arjuna, Gita’s main character, for guidance. In fact, Arjuna is the root of the word arduous,  a good description of the times in which we live.

Though true we live in yet another difficult period in man’s history, we are also blessed to have libraries full of books addressing the ways to get through them, whether they be the wisdom of the Old Testament, the works of the Greek Stoics, the Bhagavad Gita, or Victor Frankel’s Man’s Search For Meaning.

We are all prisoners of our own minds, so let’s plan to carry a good book with us while serving time.

— Sina.

This Newsletter includes items reflecting the personal opinions of their respective authors. This forum is dedicated to the free exchange of ideas and welcomes alternative perspectives submitted in good faith. Neither the original submissions nor any counter-points represent the position of either City Club or Highland Institute. We invite you to engage in these discussions.