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Gita Featured in Prog Rock Song?

sealchan

Well-Known Member
The progressive rock band Yes has a song called Angkor Wat which ends with a narration of something not in English. Here is the song:


My searches online indicate that this is a "Cambodian poem" and the translation offered is:

I am a child of the universe.
I deserve total recognition of this in the light of God.
Being a child of the universe,
I want to live in a world without war
I want to live in a world without starvation
I want to live in a world without pestilence
I want to live in a world of love, peace and harmony
Because I am a child of the universe.

However, I was watching B.R. Chopra's Mahabharat and it was in episode 73 or 74, in the midst of the Gita, that Krishna said those same words! Those words weren't translated...and throughout the Gita Krishna would speak untranslated words (in the English captions) and then, I assume, speak in another language (Hindi) which was translated.

Did I hear correctly? This narrative "poem" at the end of this song is actually a recitation of a portion of the Gita (in its original Sanskrit?)?!

Thanks to anyone who can confirm.
 

Aupmanyav

Be your own guru
Yes, Arjuna says something like that, of course, not exactly like that, to show why he is not ready for a war. That is the first chapter of BhagawadGita and is known as 'Arjuna Vishad' (Arjuna's lament). This is my copy of BhagawadGita which was available at Krishna.com previously. It is simple and precise. When I click on the verse numbers on left, I get the verses in Roman, word meaning and also the purport which I never need to go through.

Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: O Sañjaya, after my sons and the sons of Pāṇḍu assembled in the place of pilgrimage at Kurukṣetra, desiring to fight, what did they do?
Sañjaya said: O King, after looking over the army arranged in military formation by the sons of Pāṇḍu, King Duryodhana went to his teacher and spoke the following words.
Pāṇḍu, so expertly arranged by your intelligent disciple the son of Drupada.
Bhīma and Arjuna: great fighters like Yuyudhāna, Virāṭa and Drupada.
Kāśirāja, Purujit, Kuntibhoja and Śaibya.
Subhadrā and the sons of Draupadī. All these warriors are great chariot fighters.
BG 1.7: But for your information, O best of the brāhmaṇas, let me tell you about the captains who are especially qualified to lead my military force.
Bhīṣma, Karṇa, Kṛpa, Aśvatthāmā, Vikarṇa and the son of Somadatta called Bhūriśravā, who are always victorious in battle.
BG 1.9: There are many other heroes who are prepared to lay down their lives for my sake. All of them are well equipped with different kinds of weapons, and all are experienced in military science.
Bhīṣma, whereas the strength of the Pāṇḍavas, carefully protected by Bhīma, is limited.
Bhīṣma, as you stand at your respective strategic points of entrance into the phalanx of the army.
Bhīṣma, the great valiant grandsire of the Kuru dynasty, the grandfather of the fighters, blew his conchshell very loudly, making a sound like the roar of a lion, giving Duryodhana joy.
BG 1.13: After that, the conchshells, drums, bugles, trumpets and horns were all suddenly sounded, and the combined sound was tumultuous.
Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna, stationed on a great chariot drawn by white horses, sounded their transcendental conchshells.
Kṛṣṇa blew His conchshell, called Pāñcajanya; Arjuna blew his, the Devadatta; and Bhīma, the voracious eater and performer of herculean tasks, blew his terrific conchshell, called Pauṇḍra.
Yudhiṣṭhira, the son of Kuntī, blew his conchshell, the Ananta-vijaya, and Nakula and Sahadeva blew the Sughoṣa and Maṇipuṣpaka. That great archer the King of Kāśī, the great fighter Śikhaṇḍī, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Virāṭa, the unconquerable Sātyaki, Drupada, the sons of Draupadī, and the others, O King, such as the mighty-armed son of Subhadrā, all blew their respective conchshells.
BG 1.19: The blowing of these different conchshells became uproarious. Vibrating both in the sky and on the earth, it shattered the hearts of the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra.
Arjuna, the son of Pāṇḍu, seated in the chariot bearing the flag marked with Hanumān, took up his bow and prepared to shoot his arrows. O King, after looking at the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra drawn in military array, Arjuna then spoke to Lord Kṛṣṇa these words.
Arjuna said: O infallible one, please draw my chariot between the two armies so that I may see those present here, who desire to fight, and with whom I must contend in this great trial of arms.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra.
Sañjaya said: O descendant of Bharata, having thus been addressed by Arjuna, Lord Kṛṣṇa drew up the fine chariot in the midst of the armies of both parties.
Bhīṣma, Droṇa and all the other chieftains of the world, the Lord said, Just behold, Pārtha, all the Kurus assembled here.
Arjuna could see, within the midst of the armies of both parties, his fathers, grandfathers, teachers, maternal uncles, brothers, sons, grandsons, friends, and also his fathers-in-law and well-wishers.
Kuntī, Arjuna, saw all these different grades of friends and relatives, he became overwhelmed with compassion and spoke thus.
Arjuna said: My dear Kṛṣṇa, seeing my friends and relatives present before me in such a fighting spirit, I feel the limbs of my body quivering and my mouth drying up.
Gāṇḍīva is slipping from my hand, and my skin is burning.
Kṛṣṇa, killer of the Keśī demon.
Kṛṣṇa, desire any subsequent victory, kingdom, or happiness.
Govinda, of what avail to us are a kingdom, happiness or even life itself when all those for whom we may desire them are now arrayed on this battlefield? O Madhusūdana, when teachers, fathers, sons, grandfathers, maternal uncles, fathers-in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law and other relatives are ready to give up their lives and properties and are standing before me, why should I wish to kill them, even though they might otherwise kill me? O maintainer of all living entities, I am not prepared to fight with them even in exchange for the three worlds, let alone this earth. What pleasure will we derive from killing the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra?
Dhṛtarāṣṭra and our friends. What should we gain, O Kṛṣṇa, husband of the goddess of fortune, and how could we be happy by killing our own kinsmen?
Janārdana, although these men, their hearts overtaken by greed, see no fault in killing one's family or quarreling with friends, why should we, who can see the crime in destroying a family, engage in these acts of sin?
BG 1.39: With the destruction of dynasty, the eternal family tradition is vanquished, and thus the rest of the family becomes involved in irreligion.
Kṛṣṇa, the women of the family become polluted, and from the degradation of womanhood, O descendant of Vṛṣṇi, comes unwanted progeny.
BG 1.41: An increase of unwanted population certainly causes hellish life both for the family and for those who destroy the family tradition. The ancestors of such corrupt families fall down, because the performances for offering them food and water are entirely stopped.
BG 1.42: By the evil deeds of those who destroy the family tradition and thus give rise to unwanted children, all kinds of community projects and family welfare activities are devastated.
Kṛṣṇa, maintainer of the people, I have heard by disciplic succession that those who destroy family traditions dwell always in hell.
BG 1.44: Alas, how strange it is that we are preparing to commit greatly sinful acts. Driven by the desire to enjoy royal happiness, we are intent on killing our own kinsmen.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra, weapons in hand, were to kill me unarmed and unresisting on the battlefield.
Sañjaya said: Arjuna, having thus spoken on the battlefield, cast aside his bow and arrows and sat down on the chariot, his mind overwhelmed with grief.
 

sealchan

Well-Known Member
Thanks for this. But it was Krishna who spoke in the TV show. And the fact that I recognized it while watching the show suddenly and a part from any thing else was telling.

The Gita spans part of episode 72 and all of episode 73 and 74. I am sure that it was in episode 73 that I heard this. I will find it again and get the exact time. My wife thinks that I recognized the words when Krishna was standing up in the chariot.
 

sealchan

Well-Known Member
This was a case of mistaken identity. At minute 34 of episode 73 Krishna started to say something that sounded super familiar...my brain thought it was a recited poem at the end of a song by Yes...but as it turns out, it is merely the words that are song at the beginning of each episode of B.R. Chopra's The Mahabharat!

Sorry for the confusion.

It is Chapter 4 v7-8 of the Gita.
 
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