The Gita : For Children by Roopa Pai

by Roopa Pai

book

Genres: Nonfiction, Mythology, Self Help, Philosophy, Hinduism, India, Spirituality

Paperback

First published August 5, 2015

Reviews

[Promita Bhowmick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this book from the library for my 8 yr old son but realized that he is still not eligible to read this. Just when I was thinking of returning it and get another book, my husband started reading it. When he was near completion, he told me "leave whatever you reading now, and start reading this." I never thought that I will be able to read Gita because A) I am not into mythologies, and B) I always felt Gita is a very heavy book, and you need a lot of time, patience and intelligence to understand it. I truly admire Roopa Pai for writing this wonderful book, which not only helps children but it benefits adults as well. I picked up the book and started reading it, and after that there was no looking back. The book gave me the answer to all my questions, which knowingly or unknowingly I was searching for a long long time. Apart from the Shlokas of Gita, the examples given by Roopa from our day to day lives are so easy to relate and understand. For someone like me, who never thought of reading mythology, this came as a blessing from God almighty through Roopa. There are so many things in our everyday lives that we ignore or simply do not pay attention to, but they are very important for our own betterment, and are explained beautifully in this book, e.g. a thing as simple as praying and thanking god or the supreme power before every meal. In our so called hushed and ultra urban lives, we tend to forget things and start taking the privileges for granted. Nothing can be better than this book, to bring us all back to the ground and reality. Above all, what I liked the most about Gita and this book is that it talks about how to respect every religion because ultimately there is only one Supreme Power, no matter how and what we call it. if everyone understands this one simple thing, then there won't be any communal disturbance and violence, and people will stay in peace and harmony for ever. Sadly, everything has been distorted by human beings for their own selfish desires and greed, but there still is hope. For me, this book is life changing and I would strongly recommend it to everyone. Read it and understand the true meaning of life and the purpose of your own being in this earth.

[Deepak Jaisinghani · Rating 5 out of 5]

'The Gita for Children' is the kind of book that you happen to come across by chance, casually start reading, and after getting intoxicated by the premise and the initial pages, you cast aside whatever you are currently reading to finish this wonder of a book.

The title is a misnomer; don't be fooled by it. This book is not just 'for children', it's for every person of any age in every walk of life. I've frequently heard people complain about how difficult reading Gita is. It is hard, yes. Good persons and good books are always hard to read; you don't necessarily have to understand them on your first try. Engage with them quite often, and the meaning of their wisdom slowly starts to ooze out.

Roopa Pai has solved that problem though, to an extent. She has explained the content as simply as it is humanely possibe. At the same time, she has also somehow managed to avoid diluting or watering down the complexity of it by oversimplification (that's why I use the words 'to an extent'). In other words, she has given a whole new meaning to the word 'lucid'.

The second major point which works for the book is its light-hearted tone. While I understand Arjuna could not have possibly used the word 'BFF' for Krishna at that time, usages like this not only render a contemporary taste to the scenario, it also works as a breather in an otherwise serious volume. If your book title says 'for children', you have to keep the language accessible to children.

I am an atheist by nature, a rather firm and provocative one at that. However, I don't see Gita as a religious book. In my perception, it's more of a management book than a spiritual one, a solid guide on 'how to' questions than a propagandist volume meant to pedal a certain religion or a certian god. Krishna may or may not have been a figment of fiction, but these words are certainly not. These advices are practicable and time-tested. People are constantly in awe of Gita, because it bloody well works! If you have not read Gita till date, this is a good starting point. Even if you've read some other version, I urge you to check this out too.

[Rushmee Thapa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended book for everyone who wanted to read The Bhagavad Gita but couldn't. Explicitly beautiful as much as Lord Krishna and Arjuna. I cannot thank you enough Roopa. My kids love this book.

[Theredheaded_Bibliomaniac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for children. It is illustrated and translation is made specially keeping in mind the children.
Even adults can read if they want fast and easy understanding of Gita ..

[Dr. Shilpi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lucidly written..relatable..comprehensive..can be easily understood by children...Thank you@ Roopa Pai, @ Sayan Mukherjee

[Charlie Calver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let’s normalise abridged books pls (ie children’s books 🤣)

[Sagar Sumit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple text and beautiful illustrations. I gifted this book to my niece who will surely enjoy it just as much as I did.

[Pallavi Kamat · Rating 5 out of 5]

While it's The Gita for children, even adults can enjoy reading it. It's a good refresher of one of our biggest epics and religious books, and has some shlokas in Sanskrit, with words also in English, along with their translation. A kind of a guide for people while reading and trying to understand The Bhagavad Gita.

[Jayakrishna · Rating 4 out of 5]

To all the kids and those who still have kid in them,A must read.

[Ed Goodbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anil Menon reviews the book on Goodbooks: "A.K. Ramanujan famously remarked that no Hindu reads the Mahabharata for the first time. Though the Bhagavad Gita is equally central in the Hindu’s moral imagination, I suspect few have read it even once. Roopa Pai’s book should help in correcting this state of affairs. It is a retelling of the Bhagavad Gita with a focus on teenagers. She has undertaken no small task, and for the most part, succeeded very well." Click here to read the full review: http://goodbooks.in/node/7387

[Aishwarya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty good stuff.. got it for my little niece and ended up reading it myself :) Of course almost all of us know the plot but i liked the writing style. It’s presented in a clear no fluff way without losing personality.. There are bulleted summaries which were surprisingly refreshing to read. All in all, don’t let the title put you off.. if you like your Gita you’ll enjoy it.

[Garima Rathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book at a time when I was keenly looking for a spiritual read. I am happy that this book satiated my thirst. It is a good book on Gita which can be equally read by Adults and children. The Gita has been explained in the simplest way possible for better understanding. This is a book that needs the luxury of time to understand what it entails.

[Akshatha ⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Gita for Children - I would say it's not just for children.

It was a good read with simple writing. Easy to understand.
Appreciate the extra details provided that would describe some things about ancient India and also provide more understanding.
Beautiful illustrations to accompany the conversation makes it even better.

[Ramya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have always wanted to try and explore The Gita. But never did it work. Thanks to Roopa Pai you made it. It's not only for children. I felt its for adults too. Wonderful and simple writing. Hats off Roopa and once again thank you for making me to understand our great Gita.

[Sunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can say that it is one of the most interesting books I have ever read. I don't think if I would have ever read Gita if this book wasn't there. It is a very easy read and helped me relate to my personal life and its challenges. A must read book that I would highly recommend to everyone.

[Aruna Kumar Gadepalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though the book is meant for children (as mentioned in the title), this book talks about Gita in terms of knowing about oneself.

[Chandan Ravandur n · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for every one

[Tejal Daftary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The clarity and simplicity of the book qualifies it as most recommended and must read for children and adults.

[Archana A · Rating 5 out of 5]

The conversation between Lord Krishna and Prince Arjuna during the kurukshetra war is well known as the Gita. Isn't it one of the top choices for parents? As a parent or an uncle or aunt, haven't you had a wish to teach Gita to the kids? I figured out this book released by Hachette India recently and was eager to read it. I absolutely loved everything about this.

As a fan of Roopa Pai's books, this was another treat to me. The author has explained the concepts of Gita to early readers so well that they can't stop falling in love with it, alongside learning.

I'm gifting my copy shortly.

The eye-catchy illustrations by Sayan Mukherjee are beautiful and will make the kids fall in love with them.

[Siddharth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so heartwarming to read, I don't believe there can be a better 1st experience of the Gita (note: 1st experience and not a mere introduction). Further commentaries that I read will have to really impress me to beat this one. It's not a verse-to-verse translation, but more an "overall translation" of each chapter of the Gita followed by commentary on it.

Like the author said towards the end, "everyone is a child infront of books like the Gita", it never really felt like I was reading a children's book, but more like the book was talking to the child in me.

[Nijanshi Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Gita is one of the greatest conversations in the world to listen into because what Krishna is telling Arjuna is really a message he is sending out to all of us, on 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙝𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙩, 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮.
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[𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙞𝙩𝙖 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙧𝙚𝙣, 𝙗𝙮 𝙍𝙤𝙤𝙥𝙖 𝙋𝙖𝙞] :
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👉Not only children, but people of every age will also find this book interesting, thought-provoking, and enjoyable.
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👉 Gita is surely a long and super difficult book to read but the way Roopa Pai has explained it, breaking it down to simple, precise, easy-to-digest chunks, makes it a pure joy for the readers.
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👉Each chapter contains part of the epic conversation.
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👉After each chapter, the author talks with the reader, explaining the conversation in a simple way also providing some illustrations, funny examples and intriguing questions making the book super fun to read.
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❤ Being a teen, full of confusion about what lies ahead in the future, this book completely helped me with its hints, nudges, and recommendations to think clearly and I hope to make better choices now.
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❤highly recommended to everyone
Rating:5/5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
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[Anbarasan Samandan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful!

[Tine Fincioen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every human being should read this, I truly enjoyed it, and am very grateful for the person who gave it to me.

[Hari Narayanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many people, from politicians to our own relatives tell us, we must do exactly these sets of things or behave in exactly this manner to be a Hindu, or even to be a good person, and we often gullibly fall for this. Reading this book will let you see how accommodating and friendly the Lord of the religion himself is. He lays down different paths for progress and acknowledges that the journey can vary depending on the innate nature of different people. And at the end of the Gita, even after breaking down the whole thing, he doesn't command. He only says 'ponder over this and do as you choose.'

It is a shame that a doctrine that is this broad and non-restricting often gets painted in a narrow dogmatic light. We should read this book, if for no better reason, just to see how unsubstantial these claims are.

[Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

it's a kids book but if I knew any of the kids reading this then they'd be the smartest children I'd ever met

[Rubik Joshi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only realized later that the children mentioned in the title is addressed to all children of God. 🙃

[Mahesh K Adewar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucid and very good presentation of Gita. One who wants to introduce himself to actual gita should start from this.. As the name suggest it's for children but it's for all since all of us are like children when comes to religious philosophical understanding. So who have not read any book regarding gita Or tried to read but could not connect with it then they must go for this.

Lucid and best gita interpretation...

[Dhruv Kumar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Grateful!

I'm grateful to Roopa to so beautifully and simply present a text that has always appeared so daunting. I bought this book for my son to read, but I found it too found it really engaging ... And it has inspired me to further study this book of great wisdom about life and the art of living! Thank you, Roopa.

[Gopi Krishnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great start to the Holy Bhagavad Gita (or just Gita, for short) for kids and adults alike. Roopa has tried hard and mostly succeeded in making complex constructs and philosophies relatable to everyday life and living, including school and studies. You'll find this a quick and breezy read and would want to visit specific pages for reference later on. Highly recommended.

[Himanshu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Update 1 : Re-Reading it . I feel it's one of the better take on GITA with simplistic examples and with great way of representation ( pictures and boxes) etc. I rarely re-read book until its special Will update the review as and when I complete more of it