Taking a cue from my friend and fellow blogger on “intolerance
and all that jazz” that she guest posted on Onestoryaday, I found a perfect
book for everyone to fall back on in these chaotic times. When in doubt or
confusion, it’s not uncommon for us to turn to God or religious scriptures - be
it the Gita, the Bible or the Quran. As a practising Hindu brought up and now
married into a traditional household, seeking solace in religious activities
like Bhajan singing, or reciting religious texts have been integral part of my life. Though Abhay is still young, we make sure he participates in some of our
routine religious activities at home, in whatever way he can afford to. While I
am not sure how religious or spiritual my son will be in the future, it is our duty as
parents to introduce them to our roots so that they know where to find them if
and when they go looking for the same!
So when I learnt about Roopa Pai’s “Gita for children”, I jumped
and reserved my copy in advance. Though Bhagvad
Gita is essentially known as the single most important Hindu scripture, Roopa
Pai’s rendition has a universal appeal, irrespective of religion one follows. Rated
as one of the top-five selling books of 2015 in the Children’s and Young adult
category by Amazon, “The Gita for children” by Roopa Pai brought out by Hachette India promises to be a one-of- a kind retelling of
the Bhagvad Gita and I must say that it sure lives up to this promise! It
starts with the million dollar question like “What’s the big deal about the Bhagvad Gita?” that opens into a quiz
on the Gita that might as well serve as a preface to the book. With a brief
explanation of the background facts leading up to the most important
conversation in Hindu mythology, like any other commentary on the Gita, this
one too is divided into eighteen chapters or “yogas” in which Arjuna learns all
there is to learn about the secret of good life from Krishna! Employing a rather
contemporary narrative, using catchy phrases and titles, Gita for children
takes the reader through each of the shlokas or verses and explains their true
essence in an uncharacteristic way that the current generation is able to
relate to. For instance….have you ever heard of Lord Krishna being described as
a Dark Knight??!!! With each chapter featuring the progress of conversation
between Arjuna and Krishna and followed by a child appropriate analysis of the life’s
lessons embedded in them, the author also throws light on lesser known facts in
the form of fun trivia. Not to forget, the reader is also given a glimpse into excerpts
of other works from Harper Lee’s To Kill Mockingbird to Paul McCartney’s song “Ebony
and Ivory” that echo the sentiments of Gita! In all, “The Gita for children” beautifully
presents the timeless epic without oversimplifying its concepts so as to serve
as a wonderful guide book to children and adults alike! A must have for every
library!!!
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