The Bhagavadgita is among the most revered texts of literature and philosophy. It has universal appeal irrespective of region, religion, sect or creed. This is because what the Gita says is more ethical than theological. The world over we see translations of the Gita, as it is with the Bible, and has been guiding the destinies of people across the globe, speaking different languages and belonging to different cultures. They make for a wide range as well: from highly scholarly expositions to simple popular essays.
The “Karnataka Bhagavadgite” is one such wonderful translation from Sanskrit to Kannada by Nagarasa Kavi, who lived around 1650 AD. This is one more addition to the existing abundance. It is supposed to be the first of its kind in the regional language. Perhaps, the poet might have seen the necessity of the translation, as the Kannada people were eager to understand the essence of Gita in their own lingua franca. In fact, it's not surprising that most saints writing during this period made Kannada their medium of expression. The “Karnataka Bhagavadgite” was a chance finding however. The palm leaf manuscript of this book written in Bhamini Shatpadi meter by the author was first found in a bundle of such manuscripts in the house of Srinivasa Rao, an advocate in Madhugiri of Tumkur District, perhaps in the last decade of the 19th century. This was published in 1908 by Sosale Ayya Shastri, who was a scholar in the Mysore Royal Palace. Shastri was the relative of Srinivasa Rao.
Later, it saw several reprints, but they were sold like hot cakes, thanks to the simple nadugannada employed by Nagarasa, according to Mathoor Krishnamurthi, Director of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bangalore. “It was a co-incidence,” recalls Mathoor, also a sought after commentator on the Kumaravyasa Bharata, along with Hosahalli R. Keshavamurthy, who recites it in the gamaka style. Kumara Vyasa Bharata has only ten cantos and without the rendition of the chapter on Bhagavadgita their presentation, the Vaachana-Vyakhyana, would be incomplete. As they were worrying over this, a friend of Mathoor came over to him with a bundle of old books and said, “See if it's of any use to you?” As he looked through these ancient pages, Mathoor was thrilled with joy to find a copy of the Nagarasa's work, and it was truly godsend. His happiness had no bounds, because like Kumaravyasa Bharata, Karnataka Bhagavadgite was also in Bhamini Shatpadi and easy to render. The beauty of Bhamini Shatpadi is the second letter in all the six lines would be the same and it remains to be so in the entire text. It would be to diminish the value of the text to put it in the framework of religion, says Mathoor. He explains it with an anecdote. While he was in London, acclaimed director Richard Attenborough, requested him to compere multi-religious prayers at the St. Paul's Cathedral in London on the occasion of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the BBC; this was a rare honour to a Hindu.
“It was not an easy task to present it to an English audience on a foreign land,” he remembers. True to the motto of the Santana Dharma of giving pre-eminence to the “minorities”, he first requested a Sikh priest to offer his prayer. Sikkism is the youngest religion. He then called priests from Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Zorastraniasm, Jainism, Buddhism, Confucianism and lastly, the Vedic hymns. When he concluded it with two words — “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”, it evoked a thunderous applause. “The world is one family,” he reiterated, moving many in the audience. It drew the attention of the Queen of England as well, who evinced interest in learning more of Sanatana Dharma which included Bhagavadgita. Mathoor gave 104 lecturers under the Festival of Nights on the quintessence of this ancient Indian religion on the BBC television and was praised by none other than Prime Minister James Callaghan. “Reading our holy texts elevates us spiritually. For the Mahatma, Rama and Christ were equally important. We must go back to reading our sacred books for moral sustenance,” said Mathoor, who believes that if Bhagavadgita is taught well in schools it will not harbour bad thought. However, we should study other religious texts as well, he emphasises. Mathoor seriously recommends that Nagarasa's book should be included in the syllabus for Kannada graduate and post-graduate students.
The book, which has now been published by the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, has a beautiful preface by the nonagenarian Kannada lexicographer G. Venkatasubbaiah.
