Typographical error in the Bhagavad-Gita?

[Bharat Gupt]

Claude Setzer wrote:
>      I think there are two things that are not being considered
>      by you here:
>      1) The transmission of these texts was mostly by recitation,
>      not by transcription.

While the teaching of the text was through recitation and verbal instruction, the
gurukuls and sampradayas also preserved written texts. Part of the duties of the
students of standing was to copy the text of a sampradaya every thirty forty years


>      2) The concept of the women being in a lower position,
>      whether valid or not, was a common theme in Sanskrit
>      literature. It is not, by any means, stated only in the
>      Gita.

This is indeed true, as the number of vais'ayas , s'udras and women going for
formal education to gurukulas was negligible.

It may be noted that the Gita is one of the earliest texts that offers bhakti as a road
to salvation of  status equal to philosophic study or diks'aa into hatha/raaj yoga or
even the Buddhist and Jain practices.  Bhakti could be available to women and the
s'udras outside formal education (a sort of open university or cyber cafe). Another
example of this was giving the status of Pancamaveda to theatre and the
elevation of Naat.yas'aastra, where it is stated that this is being done to bring Vedic
knowledge to women and s'udras who do not have access to Samhitaas taught formally.

Bharat Gupt

[admin note: changed date from Fri, 4 Jan 1980 00:51:44 +0000]