For anyone thinking of getting a Bhagavad Gita, this is for you.

A week ago, I bought myself Gita Prabodhini from Gita Press Gorakhpur, and man, believe me, it’s one of the best Gitas out there, if not the best. I saw people buying the ISKCON Gita, which is understandable given the heavy marketing they do. People tend to buy that one, thinking it’s the perfect Gita, but believe me, it is not. It contains propagandist ideas of the organization.

First, the Prabodhini Gita provides a more traditional and neutral interpretation based on Adi Shankaracharya’s commentary and other classical Indian scholars, whereas ISKCON’s version follows the Gaudiya Vaishnavism philosophy of Srila Prabhupada. This philosophy emphasizes devotion to Krishna as the Supreme God and the worship of Radha-Krishna specifically.

Secondly, Prabodhini gives word-to-word meanings in Sanskrit and Hindi, while ISKCON’s provides translations that are heavily influenced by the Gaudiya Vaishnav perspective.

While Prabodhini follows Sanatan Dharma as a whole, ISKCON’s approach is more sectarian. I could criticize the propagandist ideology of ISKCON non-stop for an hour, but I’m here just to say, choose the correct Gita instead of a market-driven piece. Also, I got this one for just ₹80, can you believe it?

A week ago, I bought myself Gita Prabodhini from Gita Press Gorakhpur, and man, believe me, it’s one of the best Gitas out there, if not the best. I saw people buying the ISKCON Gita, which is understandable given the heavy marketing they do. People tend to buy that one, thinking it’s the perfect Gita, but believe me, it is not. It contains propagandist ideas of the organization.

First, the Prabodhini Gita provides a more traditional and neutral interpretation based on Adi Shankaracharya’s commentary and other classical Indian scholars, whereas ISKCON’s version follows the Gaudiya Vaishnavism philosophy of Srila Prabhupada. This philosophy emphasizes devotion to Krishna as the Supreme God and the worship of Radha-Krishna specifically.

Secondly, Prabodhini gives word-to-word meanings in Sanskrit and Hindi, while ISKCON’s provides translations that are heavily influenced by the Gaudiya Vaishnav perspective.

While Prabodhini follows Sanatan Dharma as a whole, ISKCON’s approach is more sectarian. I could criticize the propagandist ideology of ISKCON non-stop for an hour, but I’m here just to say, choose the correct Gita instead of a market-driven piece. Also, I got this one for just ₹80, can you believe it?