Devi Mandir Co-Founder Translates Sacred Texts

By a Staff Reporter

from India-West

NAPA, Calif. – New English translations by Devi Mandir co-founder Swami Satyananda Saraswati of the Bhagavad Gita and the Sundara Kanda portion of the Ramayana will be out soon. The Swami has also translated into English a text on Kali puja, according to a spokeswoman of the temple here.

While there are scores of translations of these texts available, Swami Satyananda believes that his translation is unique in that he has drawn upon his multi-cultural experiences “to personalize each individual’s search through the eyes of (the) scripture(s).”

The scriptures, the Swami said, are like a mirror in that one can see what kind of character he or she is while reading about the various characters that appear in the scriptures.

“Are you a scheming, conniving, selfish individual like Kaikeyi? Are you filled with clarity, purity and devotion like Kaushalya? Or maybe you are manifesting divine characteristics and giving solace to everyone like Rama,” he is quoted as saying in an interview with temple spokeswoman J. Victor, noting that the scriptures are a mirror to look into one’s soul.

Acknowledging that there are many translations of the Bhagavad Gita out already, the Swami said that he decided to translate the sacred text because Devi Mandir co-founder Shree Maa wanted a translation that did not merely place the book in a historical context but in a way that would be useful to a seeker on the path of sadhana.

Our translation deals with the battle each one of us faces every moment while we live in these human bodies,” he is quoted as saying.

The three translations contain the original texts in Sanskrit and Bengali, as well as the English transliterations.