Library

Modern Books

Love and Death

^{The popular story of Ruru and Priyumvada from the Mahabharata. — This is a blank-verse (unrhymed iambic pentameter) retelling of a popular story from the Mahabharata, the tale of Ruru and Priyumvada. The hero, Ruru, quests into the afterlife to beg for the resurrection of his beloved bride, Priyumvada, killed by snake-bite. Death's bargain with Ruru is that he is to give up half his life so that Priyumvada can live again. This is a common theme in world mythology: Orpheus, Gilgamesh, and many others take the same journey.}

• 📕 Love and Death (1921)

Rabindranath Tagore

^{The writings of Rabindranath Tagore. — Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) was a Bengali poet, philosopher, artist, playwright, composer and novelist. India’s first Nobel laureate, Tagore won the 1913 Nobel Prize for Literature. He composed the text of both India’s and Bangladesh’s respective national anthems. Tagore travelled widely and was friends with many notable 20th century figures such as William Butler Yeats, H.G. Wells, Ezra Pound, and Albert Einstein. His body of literature is deeply sympathetic for the poor and upholds universal humanistic values. His poetry drew from traditional Vaisnava folk lyrics and was often deeply mystical.}

• 📕 Gitanjali—Song Offerings (1913)
• 📕 Sadhana—The Realisation of Life (1916)
• 📕 Fruit Gathering (1916)
• 📕 Stray Birds (1916)
• 📕 Thought Relics (1921)

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

^{This is an early 20th century translation of the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, one of the earliest and most important texts of Yoga. The translation and commentary are intended for general readers, so there is a minimum of technical language and apparatus.}

• 📕 The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (1912)

Bhagavad Gita

^{The Bhagavad Gita, usually considered part of the sixth book of the Mahabharata (dating from about 400 or 300 B.C.), is a central text of Hinduism, a philosphical dialog between the god Krishna and the warrior Arjuna. This is one of the most popular and accessible of all Hindu scriptures, required reading for anyone interested in Hinduism. The Gita discusses selflessness, duty, devotion, and meditation, integrating many different threads of Hindu philosophy.}

• 📕 The Bhagavad Gita

Vedas

^{There are four Vedas, the Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. Traditionally the text of the Vedas was coeval with the universe. Scholars have determined that the Rig Veda, the oldest of the four Vedas, was composed about 1500 B.C., and codified about 600 B.C. It is unknown when it was finally committed to writing, but this probably was at some point after 300 B.C.}

^{The Vedas contain hymns, incantations, and rituals from ancient India. Along with the Book of the Dead, the Enuma Elish, the I Ching, and the Avesta, they are among the most ancient religious texts still in existence. Besides their spiritual value, they also give a unique view of everyday life in India four thousand years ago. The Vedas are also the most ancient extensive texts in an Indo-European language, and as such are invaluable in the study of comparative linguistics.}

• 📕 Rig Veda (c. 1500–1000 BCE)
• 📕 Sama Veda (c. 1200-1000 BCE)
• 📕 Yajur Veda (c. 1200–800 BCE)
• 📕 Atharva Veda (c. 1200–900 BCE)