Hindus laud Gabbard for oath of office on ‘Bhagavad-Gita’

Hindus have applauded Hawaii Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, for taking the oath of office on a copy of the ancient Hindu scripture “Bhagavad-Gita (Song of the Lord)” when she was sworn in to office Jan. 3 in Washington, D.C.

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, speaking from Nevada, commending Gabbard, 31, for this act, urged other politicians also to do the same.

Zed, president of the Universal Society of Hinduism, said that as “Bhagavad-Gita” talked about endeavoring constantly to serve the world’s welfare without any thought of personal gain, it should be the treatise for all the politicians and rulers of the world.

He pointed out that “Bhagavad-Gita” also urges selfless action and selfless service, always keeping focus on the welfare of others, and calling for people to be guided by compassion in their work.

Zed noted that this philosophical and intensely spiritual poem was often considered the epitome of Hinduism. Besides being the cornerstone of Hindu faith, “Bhagavad-Gita” was also one of the masterpieces of Sanskrit poetry and had been commented by hundreds of authors and translated into all major languages of the world.

It was a dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjuna, just before the beginning of the great Mahabharata war, in which Krishna gave spiritual enlightenment to the warrior, who realized that the true battle was for his own soul. It contains 700 verses.