Reading outline · Liberation & salvation
What does freedom mean in these texts?
Different understandings of the goal.
Salvation, emancipation and Nirvana have distinct doctrinal histories. These readings preserve the translators’ terms instead of equating them. The Gita discusses action and renunciation; the Gospel passage links salvation and divine love; the Dhammapada speaks of Nirvana in relation to practice.
In this reading
Bhagavad Gita · Hinduism
Krishna compares abandonment and disciplined action.
Read passage · Bhagavad Gita →“The Holy One said—‘Both abandonment of actions and application to actions lead to emancipation. But of these, application to action is superior to abandonment. He should always be known to be an ascetic who hath no aversion nor desire. For, being free from pairs of opposites, O thou of mighty arms, he is easily released …
Bible · Christianity
A passage about divine love and eternal life in John.
Read passage · Bible →For God so loved the world, that he gave his only born Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Dhammapada · Buddhism
Hunger, suffering and the excellence of Nirvana.
Read passage · Dhammapada →Hunger is the worst of diseases, the body the greatest of pains; if one knows this truly, that is Nirvana, the highest happiness.
What changes when we read them together?
Preserve the translators’ terms before explaining them. A shared English label such as liberation does not establish a single account of the goal or the way to it.
Words in these readings
- Emancipation
- Freedom or release. Here Ganguli uses this word for a spiritual goal discussed through renunciation and disciplined action.
- Eternal life
- The Gospel selection connects its promise with divine love.
- Nirvana
- Müller’s rendering appears beside a reflection on hunger and suffering.
Sources & reading notes
These are selected passages, not a complete account of any tradition. Introductions and explanations are editorial writing. Quotations use the named translations; an ellipsis marks a shortened selection.
All edition sources & licensing