Only a devotee who follows Krishna's direct words, not commentators' opinions, truly understands the Bhagavad-gita.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Introduction to Bhagavad-gītā As It Is — November 23, 1968, Los Angeles 681123BG-LOS ANGELES [71:26 Minutes] Prabhupāda: Somebody come read Bhagavad-gītā. You will read? Come on. Our publication by Macmillan Company, Bhagavad-gītā, is out. Devotee: Where shall I read from? Prabhupāda: Introduction. Devotee: This is the introduction to Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine "The Bhagavad-gītā is also known as the Gītopaniṣad.
It is the essence of the Vedic knowledge and one of the most important Upaniṣads in Vedic literature. There are many commentaries on the Bhagavad-gītā, and the necessity for another should be explained in the following basis. An American lady asked me to recommend an English edition of the Bhagavad-gītā which she could read. I was unable to do so in good conscience. "Of course, there are many translations, but of those I have seen, not only in America but those also in India, none can be said to be authoritative, because in almost every one of them the author has expressed his personal opinion through the commentaries without touching the spirit of the Bhagavad-gītā as it is. "The spirit of the Bhagavad-gītā is mentioned in the Gītā itself.
It is like this: If we want to take a particular medicine, then we have to follow the directions written on the label of the bottle. We cannot take the medicine according to our own directions or the directions of a friend not in knowledge of this medicine. "We must follow the directions on the label or the directions of our physician. The Bhagavad-gītā also should be accepted as it is directly by the speaker Himself. The speaker is Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
He is mentioned on every page as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or Bhagavān. Bhagavān sometimes means any powerful person or demigod, but here it means Kṛṣṇa." Prabhupāda: Most of you must have read some editions of Bhagavad-gītā. I will give you instances. One of the English translations, commentaries by Dr.
Radhakrishnan, in the Ninth Chapter the Lord says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru [Bg. 18.65], mām evaiṣyasi kaunteya asaṁśaya... [Always think of Me and become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.] The Lord says that "You just always remain thinking of Me." That means always remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Simply this Kṛṣṇa consciousness means some way or other you have to think of Kṛṣṇa always. Some way or other you just engage yourself in some activities so that it can remind you about Kṛṣṇa. That is the process. Therefore those who are elevated devotees, they, in everything, they remember Kṛṣṇa. That is the perfection.
[Bengali] Here is a light. A perfect devotee sees the light, not the light as it is, but he sees some relationship with Kṛṣṇa or Kṛṣṇa in the light. This is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā also, that prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ. Raso 'ham apsu kaunteya prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ [Bg. 7.8]. [O son of Kuntī [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man.] Kṛṣṇa says that, "I am the taste of the water." Now the..., when you are thirsty, you want water. You feel some nice taste in the water by which your thirst is satisfied, "Yes, now I am satisfied." Kṛṣṇa says, "I am that taste." Similarly, He says, prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ: "The light in the sun, in the moon, that I am that light." In this way He has described.