Why did Srila Prabhupada call his Gita commentary As It Is? (Bhagavad-gita)

Answer Podcast

Transcript

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Refer to his commentary as it is. See, basically, Prabhupada never claimed exclusivity. He only claimed authenticity.
There is a difference. Exclusivity means that this is the only right commentary. No, Prabhupada dreamed from other commentators in the tradition and not just in his own Gaudiya tradition.
He referred to Ramanujacharya’s commentary. He referred to commentaries by teachers in other traditions also. So, his claim saying that as it is, what does it mean? Prabhupada himself says in Bhagavad Gita, in his Bhagavad Gita introduction, that the Bhagavad Gita was spoken by Krishna to Arjuna for a particular purpose.
And that purpose was clear from the context itself. Arjuna, after hearing the Bhagavad Gita, I will discuss the subject more elaborately later, but quick answer over here, that Arjuna after hearing the Bhagavad Gita in the 10th chapter itself says, I accept you as the supreme. And at the end of the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna becomes a devotee of Krishna or at least acts in a devotional way.
I will do your will. So, the Bhagavad Gita is essentially spoken to address the question of dharma and dharma has two things, sadhya and sadhana. What is it that is to be achieved and how is it to be achieved? And the Bhagavad Gita reveals from what Arjuna himself has learnt, that the sadhya, that the objective is Krishna and the sadhana is bhakti.
So, when Prabhupada says Bhagavad Gita as it is, that means he keeps this original purpose of the Bhagavad Gita clear in his commentaries. And now, can the Bhagavad Gita give other wisdom? Yes, there is a lot of other wisdom in the Bhagavad Gita and that can also be drawn from it. But if that other wisdom is made into the conclusion of the Gita or the essence of the Gita, then that becomes a problem because the Bhagavad Gita is, at least in the Indian tradition, is a very well-known book.
So, many people have tried to justify their own philosophies by claiming that it is, that the Bhagavad Gita says their philosophy. And that is what Prabhupada had strong issues with, that the Bhagavad Gita itself is open to multiple explanations. But from the context, the Bhagavad Gita leads to one conclusion in terms of the understanding and the actions of the original student of the Gita.
So, in terms of that faithfulness to the original intent of the Gita, Prabhupada s commentary is very clear. So, in that sense, Bhagavad Gita as it is, is a declaration of the authenticity of the commentary with the original conclusion of the Gita as revealed in the Gita itself. Specific explanations can be multiple and Prabhupada himself said at times that he would like to write another commentary on the Gita.
So, it is not a claim to exclusivity, it is a pointer to authenticity. So, thank you very much for your attention. There are some other questions remaining, which we will answer separately and I will send the answers in the WhatsApp group.