A book that inspired an entire generation of freedom fighters in Maharashtra is celebrating centenary this year.
The celebrations for the centenary of Gitarahasya, the commentative treatise by Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak startrd from March 27 to 30. The occasion was marked by lectures of eminent speakers during this period.
The Kesari Mahratta Trust in Pune, headed by Lokmanya's great-grandson Dr. Deepak Tilak, organises Gitarahasya Jayanti (birth anniversary) each year on March 30. Since 1962, a lecture is organised bringing out aspects of philosophy in Gita. This time, the series of lectures are organised because of special occasion.
Lokmanya wrote Gitarahasya as a commentary on Srimad Bhagwadgita. It advocates the way of works as against way of renunciation as propagated during Lokmanya's time. The new thinking was easily lapped up by the patriots, providing inspiration to the thousands.
The popularity of the book can be gauged by the fact that till now, 24 editions of the book have been sold. It has been translated into English, Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil.
The book is also special because of process of its creation. Lokmanya Tilak started writing this book on November 2, 1910 and completed it on March 30, 1911. He was placed in Mandalay Jail (Now in Myanmar) then on sedition charges. He was released in 1914. In the meantime, he wrote the book sitting in his cell, many a times yearning for right references.
After coming out of jail, Lokmanya once quipped that he could wrote his scholarly books only because he was placed in the solitary cells, away from hustle-bustle of politics. Commenting upon Gitarahasya, Mahatma Gandhi had once said, “ThIs book is the perpetual memorial of Lokmanya Tilak.”
Even though Tilak wrote the book in jail during 1910-11, he was influenced by the greatest theological book of Hinduism since 1872 when he was just 16 years old. Little Bal (Lokmanya's original name) was made to read the holy book when his father was very ill.
