2024/03/19

The Gita for Children by Roopa Pai | Goodreads

The Gita for Children by Roopa Pai | Goodreads




The Gita for Children


Roopa Pai, Sayan Mukherjee (Illustrator)

4.51
915 ratings124 re
It's one of the oldest books in the world and India's biggest blockbuster bestseller! - But isn't it meant only for religious old people? - But isn't it very long... and, erm, super difficult to read? - But isn't the stuff it talks about way too complex for regular folks to understand?Prepare to be surprised. Roopa Pai's spirited, one-of-a-kind retelling of the epic conversation between Pandava prince Arjuna and his mentor and friend Krishna busts these and other such myths about the Bhagavad Gita. Lucid, thought-provoking and brimming with fun trivia, this book will stay with you long after you have turned the last page.Why haven't you read it yet?

310 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 5, 201

Roopa Pai

35 books66 followers

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 124 reviews
102 reviews · 7 followers
May 20, 2017
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.
Profile Image for Deepak Jaisinghani.
2 books · 23 followers
February 24, 2021
'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.
Profile Image for Rushmee Thapa.
50 reviews · 17 followers
August 15, 2020
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.
Profile Image for Theredheaded_Bibliomaniac.
291 reviews · 36 followers
April 2, 2021
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 ..
6 reviews
January 5, 2021
Lucidly written..relatable..comprehensive..can be easily understood by children...Thank you@ Roopa Pai, @ Sayan Mukherjee
Profile Image for Sagar Sumit.
26 reviews
November 22, 2022
Simple text and beautiful illustrations. I gifted this book to my niece who will surely enjoy it just as much as I did.
63 reviews · 32 followers
September 30, 2015
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
9 reviews
January 29, 2018
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.
Profile Image for Akshatha Murthy.
32 reviews · 8 followers
October 15, 2022
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.
5 reviews
December 8, 2015
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.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 124 reviews


M.Franke
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful
Reviewed in Germany on 12 January 2018
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Very well written not only for children also for adults, very philosophical but in understandable words. Going to read it again !
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for all ages
Reviewed in India on 31 March 2016
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Radhika said to me few days after she returned from WCF event, “Hey, I got a good book for you, which I bumped into at the Delhi Airport. It is completely in ‘dude’ (youth) language, and you will like it. It is about Gita, and I just read few chapters”. I said, “Cool, what is so cool about it”. She immediately, “Never mind. You will not read any book that I would suggest or bring”. With a partly faking hurtful tone, I said, “Fine. If you believe it so, don’t show it to me”.

However, like any desi wife who wants to do best for her spouse, she walked to me, and gave the book “The Gita – FOR CHILDREN”. I quickly read what’s on the back page, and browsed, few random pages. The book struck my chord somewhere, I have read first 3 chapters until midnight. I told Radhika, I will return it back to her only after I read it completely. Every 10 minutes, I was profusely thanking Radhika for recommending the book to me.

For next 4 evenings / nights (during ‘Holi’ / ‘Good Friday” weekend), I have read through the book, as If a kid was reading Harry Potter. Yes, I never forget the eagerness with which Revanth used to wait and complete Harry Potter books on a single night. Last time (in this decade), I read a book over a single night, was a book by John Grisham and/or a book by Dan Brown. I haven’t really read any book other than that

Roopa Rai’s rendition of Gita, gave me solid clarity on purpose of life, definition of happiness, definition of god, definition of a prayer, and definition of good living, good human being, and more. She used day-to-day examples and events, to explain abstract topics such as “You are not the doer” or “You are it” or “You are the God”. It connected random dots in my head, which were representations of various ideas and beliefs planted by various books, literature, conversations, that I have read over the decades.

I have immediately ordered few additional copies, to give them as a gift to folks around me, and evangelize the need for reading such a lovely / clear presentation of Gita. Though the title of the book says, “The Gita, FOR CHILDREN”, this book is thoroughly enjoyable by almost everyone out there (and specially you)

Structure / Few Highlights of the book:

Starts with story of Mahabharata and the lead characters. It gives the context of the events that lead to the deadliest war in the human history. I have actually learned few interesting data points, which I haven’t learned despite having watched several dozens of movies, sitcoms, reading zillion comic books on Mahabharata (which I am sure most of you did too)

Then it leads us to the confusion of Arjuna on why he needs to go through the pain of killing his friends, uncles, gurus / teachers, and extended family members, to earn back his lost empire. He just wants to give it up as he does not see the need for losing everything and not sure if he will be happy at the end. That’s when the Krishna begins his conversation which is the basis of Gita, and which is considered as holiest conversations in the human history

I have recently read that, our Union culture minister might soon recommend the inclusion of Gita, Mahabharata and the Ramayana in school curriculum. Now, I feel that it is a great move. Given that the book is religion agnostic, it should be adaptable and likeable by everyone.
If you take a look at these lesson that she documents, for each of the 18 chapters from the Gita, you will understand the ease with she explains Gita.

I loved the concept of “Multi Thinking”. Krishna says to Arjuna, “Those who are thinking about me, at the time of the death, will join me”. Then Arjuna says, “That is so difficult. I do not know when I am going to die. How will I know or ensure that I am thinking about you, at the time of the death? Author explains in the simple words, using the concept of “Multi Thinking”, similar to the lines of Multi Processing. She says, simple acts of being in content / gratitude is also same as act of prayer. We just need to practice the art of being content, all the time.

Author does mix a healthy dose of western examples to convey the essence of spirituality. Book is peppered with fun trivia and anecdotes, and interesting parallels, events, and nuggets that actually relate to teaching of the Gita and it’s 700-verse spiritual guide
In one of the examples, author quotes words of physicist J Robert Oppenheimer, who headed the team which created the world’s first nuclear weapon during World War II. After the first atom bomb, The Gadget, was tested in the desert of New Mexico, Oppenheimer had explained the mixed feelings of the team in the following words: “We knew the world would not be the same. A few people laughed, a few people cried. Most people remained silent. I remembered the line from the Hindu scripture, the Bhagavad Gita. Vishnu is trying to persuade the Prince that he should do his duty, and to impress him, takes on his multi-armed form”, and says, ‘Now I am become Death, destroyer of worlds.’ I suppose, we all felt that, one way or another.” You can hear him on this youtube link[...]

In another example, Pai talks of the importance of endurance by citing JK Rowling’s example, whose Harry Potter was rejected 17 times before it was accepted and went on to become a phenomenon. Coincidentally, JK Rowling had recently published some of the rejection letters on the web. Just google for them. She also uses analogies of The Beatles, Michael Jackson and Rudyard Kipling, too

She uses simple description and explanation to convey the message of Karma Yoga. Example: For instance, don’t expect to top the class just because you studied really hard, or get disappointed when you don’t. In fact, according to the Gita, performing an action (studying) because you want a certain result (to come first) is completely flawed action; the right way is to study simply because that is your work, your duty as a student.
Gita is supposed to be a guide book for enlightenment. To be able to convey its essence for the teens is not an easy task. Roopa Pai had significantly succeeded in this effort. Many techniques are used here to make the style reader friendly. The chapter titles by themselves attract attention. She summarises essence of 18 chapters using simple titles (see below) and super clear explanation. You cannot go wrong with the Gita! A lifetime may not be enough to appreciate fully the Gita, but the sooner one starts, the better. I would consider you as one heck of lucky dude, if you end up reading Gita, and actually persuade, compel, and motivate loved ones (starting with your kids) around you to read it too.
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Raj Choudhury
5.0 out of 5 stars Bliss
Reviewed in France on 15 August 2015
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The Gita has all the answers. Feel fortunate to finally discover it through this wonderful book from Roopa Pai. Thank You. OM TAT SAT.
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Evelyn Singh
5.0 out of 5 stars Gita for children
Reviewed in Canada on 20 January 2016
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I have not yet completed the book but the information is very accurate and can be used in bal vihar
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Aparna Shreenath
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring and accessible
Reviewed in the United States on 20 December 2023
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I am an adult. I have felt compelled to read The Gita but was too intimidated to even begin, until now. The sheer joy of reading this, the answers to my unformed questions- I am grateful. I will read this again and again even as I purchase other interpretations. I am inspired!
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Shopoholic
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 October 2023
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I bought this for my 2 year old daughter but turns out she was too young for it, but I’ve started reading it and I can’t believe the wisdom it’s captured. I would recommend to all, even if it’s just to scratch the surface to give you an understanding to allow you to go and research some more. Thank you to the author
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yamila
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing and inspiring!
Reviewed in Spain on 16 February 2021
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Amazing way to tell the Bhagavad Gita for children and for adults too! Thanks from Spain
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Just stuff
5.0 out of 5 stars Mind-blowing introduction to the Gita
Reviewed in the United States on 8 December 2019
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I love the Bhagavad Gita, especially the translation by Eknath Easwaran. However, if you are completely new to it and want a mind-blowing primer you can digest quickly, I highly recommend "The Gita For Children" Kindle Edition by Roopa Pai. She is a software engineer and I can tell from just reading this, a wonderful human being. She even provides secular explanations where appropriate. One caveat is that this is not a little children's book by any stretch of the imagination. Perhaps you could say it is for youth but more for beginners like me. :)
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful to understand this book
Reviewed in India on 11 February 2024
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I am an adult and the book for me as a yoga student is a great help to understand the teachings in this story. I am not Indian, nor hindu, so to read Roopa's explanations and descriptions is helpful and better to understand. I cannot evaluate if this book is suitable for children or teens.
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