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Godsong

A Verse Translation of the Bhagavad-Gita, with Commentary

A Verse Translation of the Bhagavad-Gita, with Commentary

A Verse Translation of the Bhagavad-Gita, with Commentary

By Amit Majmudar

By Amit Majmudar

By Amit Majmudar

By Amit Majmudar

By Amit Majmudar

By Amit Majmudar

Best Seller

Category: Poetry

Category: Poetry

Category: Poetry

Paperback $18.00

Mar 30, 2021 | ISBN 9780525435297

Hardcover $25.00

Mar 20, 2018 | ISBN 9781524733476

Ebook $14.99

Mar 20, 2018 | ISBN 9781524733483

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    Godsong by Amit Majmudar
    Paperback $18.00
    Mar 30, 2021 | ISBN 9780525435297

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    • Paperback $18.00

      Mar 30, 2021 | ISBN 9780525435297

      Also available from:

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    • Hardcover $25.00

      Mar 20, 2018 | ISBN 9781524733476

      Also available from:

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      Mar 20, 2018 | ISBN 9781524733483

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    About Godsong

    Now in paperback–a fresh, strikingly immediate and elegant verse translation of the classic, with an introduction and helpful guides to each section, by the rising American poet.

    Born in the United States into a secularized Hindu family, Amit Majmudar puzzled over the many religious traditions on offer, and found that the Bhagavad Gita had much to teach him with its “song of multiplicities.” Chief among them is that “its own assertions aren’t as important as the relationships between its characters . . . The Gita imagined a relationship in which the soul and God are equals”; it is, he believes, “the greatest poem of friendship . . . in any language.” His verse translation captures the many tones and strategies Krishna uses with Arjuna–strict and berating, detached and philosophical, tender and personable. “Listening guides” to each section follow the main text, and expand in accessible terms on the text and what is happening between the lines. Godsong is an instant classic in the field, from a poet of skill, fine intellect, and–perhaps most important–devotion.

    About Godsong

    A fresh, strikingly immediate and elegant verse translation of the classic, with an introduction and helpful guides to each section, by the rising American poet.

    Born in the United States into a secularized Hindu family, Amit Majmudar puzzled over the many religious traditions on offer, and found that the Bhagavad Gita had much to teach him with its “song of multiplicities.” Chief among them is that “its own assertions aren’t as important as the relationships between its characters . . . The Gita imagined a relationship in which the soul and God are equals”; it is, he believes, “the greatest poem of friendship . . . in any language.” His verse translation captures the many tones and strategies Krishna uses with Arjuna–strict and berating, detached and philosophical, tender and personable. “Listening guides” to each section follow the main text, and expand in accessible terms on the text and what is happening between the lines. Godsong is an instant classic in the field, from a poet of skill, fine intellect, and–perhaps most important–devotion.

    About Godsong

    A fresh, strikingly immediate and elegant verse translation of the classic, with an introduction and helpful guides to each section, by the rising American poet.

    Born in the United States into a secularized Hindu family, Amit Majmudar puzzled over the many religious traditions on offer, and found that the Bhagavad Gita had much to teach him with its “song of multiplicities.” Chief among them is that “its own assertions aren’t as important as the relationships between its characters . . . The Gita imagined a relationship in which the soul and God are equals”; it is, he believes, “the greatest poem of friendship . . . in any language.” His verse translation captures the many tones and strategies Krishna uses with Arjuna–strict and berating, detached and philosophical, tender and personable. “Listening guides” to each section follow the main text, and expand in accessible terms on the text and what is happening between the lines. Godsong is an instant classic in the field, from a poet of skill, fine intellect, and–perhaps most important–devotion.

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

    Read An Excerpt

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    About Amit Majmudar

    AMIT MAJMUDAR is a diagnostic nuclear radiologist who lives in Westerville, Ohio, with his wife and three children. He is the author of four volumes of poetry, most recently What He Did in Solitary. His first collection, 0°, 0°, was a finalist for the… More about Amit Majmudar

    About Amit Majmudar

    AMIT MAJMUDAR is a diagnostic nuclear radiologist who lives in Westerville, Ohio, with his wife and three children. He is the author of four volumes of poetry, most recently What He Did in Solitary. His first collection, 0°, 0°, was a finalist for the… More about Amit Majmudar

    About Amit Majmudar

    AMIT MAJMUDAR is a diagnostic nuclear radiologist who lives in Westerville, Ohio, with his wife and three children. He is the author of four volumes of poetry, most recently What He Did in Solitary. His first collection, 0°, 0°, was a finalist for the… More about Amit Majmudar

    Product Details

    Category: Poetry

    Paperback | $18.00
    Published by Knopf
    Mar 30, 2021 | 256 Pages | 5 x 8-1/4 | ISBN 9780525435297

    Category: Poetry

    Hardcover | $25.00
    Published by Knopf
    Mar 20, 2018 | 256 Pages | 5 x 8-1/4 | ISBN 9781524733476

    Category: Poetry

    Ebook | $14.99
    Published by Knopf
    Mar 20, 2018 | 256 Pages | 5 x 8-3/8 | ISBN 9781524733483

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    Praise

    “Ravishing and faithful, marked by what Nabokov once called ‘the precision of a poet and the imagination of a scientist.’ Majmudar has a gift for imagery . . . Godsong reveals how beautifully this 2,000-year-old book lends itself to the careful, loving work of translation.” —Parul Sehgal, The New York Times

    “A well-crafted and exceptional translation of a spiritual and cultural masterpiece.” —Dave Pugl, Library Journal (starred review)

    Praise from India:

    “[Majmudar’s] commentaries, about karma and maya, the ethics of friendship and the changing nature of the self, and about the place of violence in our lives have made me think about myself in a new way.” —Sumana Roy, Hindustan Times (“Life-changing reads of 2018”)

    “Remarkable . . . A new translation of a much-translated classic must bring something new to readers. Godsong does just that.” —Sayali Palekar, Scroll.In
     
    “The philosophic text is made anew in the poet’s startling, fresh idiom.” —C. R. Sasikumar, The Indian Express
     
    “Reaches for the text’s beauty as well as its spiritual meaning . . . [Majmudar’s] summaries are succinct, pointed, and useful [and] his translation resonates with much that has come before him, absorbing and reflecting the long and rich tradition of Gita translations.” —Arshia Sattar, India Today

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