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Prarthana: A Book of Hindu Psalms

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Arun Shanbhag has created a beautiful, lyrical book of Hindu psalms that captures the poetic essense of all religions, all faiths, all spirituality. And the further the reader progresses into this slender volume of prayers, the more engaged he or she feels. It is wonderful reading for those who practice Hinduism and for those who simply wish to learn more about what this ancient religion offers.

What's a Unitarian Universalist Buddhist doing reading Arun Shanbhag's ew translation of Hindu Psalms: Prarthana? A reasonable question, unless you'd ever met the author. If you had, you'd know that Arun is the kind of person you see and think to yourself "I'll have whatever he's having, thanks very much!" A positive energy surrounds him, and his smile just glows with peace and contentment. A scientist, athlete, blogger, avid reader and photographer, Arun's engagement with the world inspires people -- I ran a half marathon yesterday because of him -- and connects people.

So when Arun told me he was working on a book of Hindu prayers, to make them interpretable to those who don't know Sanskrit, I was intrigued. My UU faith draws from Eastern religions, and I've already incorporated Buddhism into my spiritual life. I wondered what Hindu prayers might offer, since they have so clearly benefited Arun.

What I found is that these prayers speak to something common to all of humanity: a spiritual impulse for light to dispel darkness; for connection to nature, to other people, and to the universe itself; for the courage to rise above our anguish or fears, to find hope and the best within ourselves, and to share our best selves with the world. In a time of great divisions, it is heart-warming to dip into another faith tradition and find common bonds, rather than alienation.

As a UU, I responded in particular to the tribute to the earth and the sun, and the Gayatri mantra that calls upon "that quintessence of earth, air and heaven; May it bestow wisdom, enlighten our thoughts, and energize our consciousness!" I was moved by the Invocation of Peace: "May She protect us friends; May she nourish us; May we work together, And learn with purpose. May we never quarrel. May we be blessed with peace, peace, and perfect peace!" These words reach all of us, regardless of our faith tradition.

In his engaging interpretations of the psalms, Arun calls for faith to remain a grounding force, but a flexible one that changes with human development. He weaves vivid story-telling about the Hindi gods with his own childhood experiences of the prayers, making them richer and more accessible to those not familiar with them.

Arun, you've given us all another gift. Thank you for sharing yourself and your understanding of these ancient prayers with the world. We need people like you -- the glue that unites us.

Ellen Duranceau

My husband bought this book because he liked the author's blog...and the book also turned out to be very well-written. The explanations are simple - he read some of the smaller ones with our 9 yr old - and yet have an adequate level of interpretation and background provided. Attention to pronunciation is excellent. A great book to have in the family. Wonderful job.

Neeta

For those who practice it everyday, the hope is that the ritual of prayer releases love energy and uplifts the entire human race. Arun Shanbhag has reinforced this hope in his book, "Prarthana," in which he has done a superb job of transliterating and translating many prayers from their Sanskrit version into English. I was particularly impressed by his mastery in translating the Suprabhatam - a prayer that most of us awake to in South India and is actually intended to awake the divine presence within each of us. The Gayatri mantra, a prayer that is simple and easy to recite, is explained as a way to "invoke the Sun from within oneself."

The essence of the Sanatana Dharma from the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad:

"From the unreal lead me to the real,

From darkness lead me to light,

From death lead me to immortality."

shows us how we can attain final emancipation or `moksha.' These are but a few of the gems contained in Shanbhag's rendering of Hindu prayers and psalms. The explanations that go hand-in-hand with the actual Sanskrit verses are so easy to read and understand and at the level where I could easily explain them to my children who were both born in the US.

The author has done a great service to the Indian diaspora living abroad, and also to Indians living in India who are not well-versed in Sanskrit. I would recommend this book to everyone who believes in the power of prayer and wants to understand a little bit of the meaning and significance of many popular Hindu hymns.

It is a remarkable book indeed. I can wax eloquent end on, in unerring superlatives. Arun, the maestro weaves a brilliant tapestry - the venerable 'Prarthana', out of profound spiritual hymns of the yore and does that with extraordinary insight, compassion, warmth and understanding. 'Prarthana' is a subliminal anchor, upon which we preside our very personal conversations with the unknown, the invisible, the indescribable, and an almost intangible being.

However, human beings enormously benefit from the creation of visible incarnates of that profound unknown, which is presented in the magnificence of icons and the munificence of poetry. 'Prarthana' is a fitting tribute in colorful poetry. The invocation hymn - ganesha vandana has a universal resonance as much the bhumi vandana, raising the collective conscience of our priceless ecological heritage. The sublime message of peace, harmony and tranquility at its beatific best captured in santi patha. The guru prarthan and saravati stuti are rendition of reverence to the teacher and the glory of learning.

These are just a couple of nuggets of inspiration from vast ensemble that Arun has diligently distilled into one absolutely compelling narrative between the covers of 250 odd pages. It is no small achievement, by any stretch of imagination.

He has beautifully and painstaking garnered, arranged and enunciated this enormous opus of rich Vedic legacy dating back to 4000 years or more in this humble exposition called 'Prarthana' - a priceless gift for the posterity.

I've been reading this book and have truly enjoyed it. Growing up with a Christian background the names and places are foreign to me, but the underlying sentiments are not. I love having a window into other religions, beliefs, and cultures, and with Prarthana, I am able to learn more about Hinduism, but not in a textbook fashion. Rather I am brought into the daily prayers which reveal the beliefs and the emotions of the religion. I highly recommend this book to people of any religious background.