Primary source, translation

The Song Celestial

or Bhagavad-Gîtâ (from the Mahâbhârata)

By Vyāsa

Translated by Edwin Arnold

Trübner & Co., London, 1885

First written c. 200 BCE – 200 CE

In the public domain

About this text

Edwin Arnold’s translation of the Bhagavad Gītā into English blank verse, with lyrical measures where the Sanskrit changes metre. It was the Gītā most English readers knew for half a century; Gandhi first read the poem in it.

How to cite

Vyāsa. The Song Celestial: or Bhagavad-Gîtâ (from the Mahâbhârata). Translated by Edwin Arnold. Trübner & Co., London, 1885.

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Cited in Metanoia

Action Without Attachment7 November 2026Must the seeker leave the world? The Bhagavad Gītā was spoken to a man who wanted to, on a battlefield, and its answer is the way of action without attachment: to act fully and give up the claim to the fruit. What that teaching asks, how the Mahābhārata tests it, and how it has been misread.

Cite this entry

Chicago (bibliography): “The Song Celestial.” Source. The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society. Last modified November 7, 2026. https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/library/sources/song-celestial-arnold.
Chicago (note): “The Song Celestial,” source, The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, last modified November 7, 2026, https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/library/sources/song-celestial-arnold.
MLA: “The Song Celestial.” The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society, 7 Nov. 2026, www.unitiveknowledge.org/library/sources/song-celestial-arnold.
BibTeX: @misc{sources-song-celestial-arnold, title = {{The Song Celestial}}, howpublished = {The Library, Unitive Knowledge Society}, note = {Source. Last modified November 7, 2026}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.unitiveknowledge.org/library/sources/song-celestial-arnold} }

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The Song Celestial(translated by Edwin Arnold)

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