On the weekend of the 27th and 28th September I will be leading an online weekend retreat on the topic of the Bhagavad Gita. During the retreat we will be looking at three aspects of the book: The teachings on Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga. These are the paths of action, devotion and knowledge.
The Bhagavad Gita is probably the most chanted text in the world. It is around 2,600 years old and is considered by many to be the culmination of Vedanta, the earliest spiritual teachings from India. Much of what we do today in yoga is founded on the teachings in the Gita.
The retreat will be held using Zoom and will be taught in English. The time zone for the classes will be London (U.K.). We will be holding three practice sessions each day and there will be three lectures on the Gita over the weekend. There will be plenty of time given for any questions.
Full instructions on all practices will be given. The retreat will be suitable for people with any level of experience.
Full details and the link for registering are here:
It won’t be necessary for people taking part in the retreat to read the book first. We will be looking at specific verses in the text that relate to Krishna’s teachings on Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Jnana Yoga and I will be putting the verses on the screen and also sending them out as PDF’s.
But for anyone who does want to read the book there are three versions I recommend:
“The Bhagavad Gita: A Walkthrough for Westerners” by Jack Hawley. This is a translation of only the text itself (no commentary) and is a very easy read. It is a thin book, and is written as a novel. The translation is loose (not word for word) but is still accurate.
“The Yoga of the Bhagavad Gita” by Yogananda. This is a more traditional translation with commentary. It is verse by verse and is around 200 pages.
“God Talks with Arjuna: The Bhagavad Gita” by Yogananada. This is an expanded version of number two and is around 1,000 pages.