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The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna
AuthorMahendranath Gupta
TranslatorSwami Nikhilananda
LanguageEnglish
GenreSpirituality
PublisherRamakrishna-Vivekananda Center
Publication date
1942
Publication placeIndia
Pages1062
ISBN978-0911206012
OCLC19930528

The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna is an English translation of the Bengali religious text Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita by Swami Nikhilananda.

History

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Sri Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita is a Bengali five-volume work by Mahendranath Gupta (1854–1932) which recounts conversations and activities of the 19th century Indian mystic Ramakrishna, and published consecutively in years 1902, 1904, 1908, 1910 and 1932. The Kathamrita is a regarded as a Bengali classic[1] and revered among the followers as a sacred scripture.[2] Mahendranath Gupta published the conversations in a non-chronological order and his plans to publish it in a chronological order was left incomplete due to his death.[3][4] Mahendranath Gupta initially wrote A Leaf from the Gsopel of Sri Ramakrishna--A title influenced by the Bible. In 1907 he translated the first Bengali volume into English and M employed the language of the King James version of the Bible. M later revised the book four years later freeing it from its "biblical trappings".[4]

In 1942 Swami Nikhilananda published the translation of all the volumes and retained the title, The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna.Swami Nikhilananda worked with Margaret Woodrow Wilson, daughter of President Woodrow Wilson. Margaret helped the Swami to refine his literary style into "flowing American English". The mystic hymns were rendered into free verse by the American poet John Moffitt. Margaret and American scholar Joseph Campbell helped with editing of the manuscript.[5][6] Swami Nikhilananda wrote that he had written an accurate translation[7] of the Kathamrita, "omitting only a few pages of no particular interest to English-speaking readers,"[5] and stating that "often literary grace has been sacrificed for the sake of literal translation."[5]

Reception

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In 1942, the Time wrote that it was a "English translation of one of the world's most extraordinary religious documents".[8] In 1949 the New York Herald Tribune included it in the "three memorable books of the past twenty-five years".[9] Aldous Huxley likened it to James Boswell's Life of Samuel Johnson.[10] The book was voted as one of the "100 Most Important Spiritual Books of the 20th Century" by the American scholars convened by HarperCollins publishers,[11][12]

Walter G. Neevel in his 1976 essay, The Transformation of Ramakrishna writes that Nikhilananda's translation are "accurate and reliable efforts...it should be possible to get as close to Sri Ramakrishna's original teachings as is possible without a knowledge of Bengali and to have an adequate degree of certainty about their meaning."[13] Scholars Narasingha Sil, Jeffery Kripal argue that the book has been bowdlerized. Sil argues that this "standard translation of the Kathamrta by Swami Nikhilananda is bowdlerized, with the 'vulgar expressions' in Ramakrishna's earthy, rustic Bengali either removed or smoothed over: so that 'raman' (sexual intercourse) has become "communion" in the Gospel. Swami Tyagananda explains this as follows — "when a Hindu hears or reads about ramana[14] with God, there is no idea of sex involved."[15] The word raman also occurs in the Bhagavad Gita[16] and several other Hindu scriptures with different shades of meaning.

Philosopher Lex Hixon writes that the Gospel is "spiritually authentic" and "powerful rendering of the Kathamrita into dignified English."[17] Hixon writes that an eyewitness to the teachings of Ramakrishna reported that Ramakrishna's "linguistic style was unique, even to those who spoke Bengali" and it was "not literally translatable into English or any other language."[18] Hixon writes that Ramakrishna's "colorful village Bengali, replete with obscure local words and idioms", adds to the difficulty of translation. His "obscure local words" were interspersed with technical Sanskrit terms from "various strands of Hindu yoga and philosophy" and "extensive references" to the "complex realm of sacred history" of the Vedas, Puranas, Tantras.[18]

Religious scholar Jeffrey Kripal argues that although Swami Nikhilananda calls the Gospel "a literal translation," he substantially altered Gupta's text, combining the five parallel narratives into a single volume, as well as deleting some passages which he claimed were "of no particular interest to English-speaking readers."[19] These allegations wereaddressed by Swami Tyagananda, Somnath Bhattacharyya, Swami Atmajnanananda.

Narasingha P. Sil, and Jeffrey J. Kripal regard the book as a bowdlerization of the Bengali original. Other scholars Lex Hixon, Swami Tyagananda, Somnath Bhattacharyya argue that the translations considered the cross cultural factors, western decorum.

References

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  1. ^ Sen 2001, p. 32
  2. ^ Jackson 1994, pp. 16–17
  3. ^ Sen 2001, pp. 46–47
  4. ^ a b Tyagananda & Vrajaprana 2010, pp. 12–14
  5. ^ a b c Nikhilananda, Swami (1942). "Preface". The Gospel of Ramakrishna. Chennai: Sri Ramakrishna Math.
  6. ^ Lex Hixon. "Introduction". Great Swan. p. xiii.
  7. ^ Neevel, Walter G (1976). "The Transformation of Ramakrishna". Hinduism: New Essays in the History of Religions. Brill Archive. p. 61. ISBN 9004044957. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Religion: Prophet of All Gods". Time. Monday, Nov. 02, 1942. Retrieved 12 September 2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ Tyagananda & Vrajaprana 2010, p. 14
  10. ^ The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, preface
  11. ^ "100 Best Spiritual Books of the Century". Retrieved 2008-08-21.
  12. ^ Zalewiski, Phillip (2000). The Best Spiritual Writing 2000. San Francisco: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0062516701.
  13. ^ Neevel, Walter G (1976). "The Transformation of Ramakrishna". Hinduism: New Essays in the History of Religions. Brill Archive. pp. 53–97. ISBN 9004044957. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ Meanings of Raman
  15. ^ kali's child revisited, Note 42
  16. ^ "Bhagavad Gita 10.9". mac-cittā mad-gata-prāṇā bodhayantaḥ parasparam kathayantaś ca māḿ nityaḿ tuṣyanti ca ramanti ca
  17. ^ Hixon, Lex (1997). "Introduction". Great Swan. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. xiv. ISBN 9780943914800.
  18. ^ a b Hixon, Lex (1997). "Introduction". Great Swan. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. xi. ISBN 9780943914800.
  19. ^ Kali's Child, (329-336)
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