Free classics · c. 2nd century BC
The Bhagavad Gita
Vyasa (attributed) · translated by Edwin Arnold
On a battlefield, a warrior refuses to fight, and Krishna answers his doubts in one of the world's great spiritual texts.
- to read
- 1 h
- to read
- at 20 min a day
- 5 days
- at 20 min a day
- public domain
- Free
- public domain
What it’s about
Arjuna faces his own family across the field of Kurukshetra and lays down his bow. Krishna, his charioteer, explains duty, action and the nature of the self.
The free Arnold edition is a Victorian verse translation in English. It is short: eighteen chapters you can read one a day.
- Duty
- Action without attachment
- The self
Why people stop, and how to finish
Arnold's Victorian English and unfamiliar Sanskrit terms make it hard going in English.
What helps: Read it in Hindi or your own language alongside the English, a chapter a day.
At 20 minutes a day you’ll reach the last page in about 5 days.
Finish The Bhagavad Gita with Librai.
Download the free EPUB from Project Gutenberg, open it in Librai, then read it the way that works for you.
Read it in your language
Turn the page you're on into Hindi, Spanish, Arabic or one of 24 languages, sentence by sentence. Tap to see the original.
Listen to it
Apple's natural voices read it aloud and light up every word, even with your phone locked.
Ask when you're lost
Who is this again? What just happened? Ask, and get an answer from what you've read so far, never a spoiler.
Read First
A few lines of the book before the apps you scroll too much. A page here, a page there, and it's finished.