Gitas beyond the Bhagavad Gita
Besides the Bhagavad Gita, Hindu tradition has dozens of texts called a Gita, a word that means song. The catalogue at sanskritdocuments.org lists more than a hundred. Most are teachings set inside a larger work, the Mahabharata or a Purana. A few stand alone, like the Ashtavakra and Avadhuta Gitas, and a few are modern.
Below are twenty of them, with where each one sits, who speaks and what it is about. We say plainly when a text is a later anthology or a modern publication, since many are sold or shared as if they came from a Purana.
- In the Mahabharata
Bhagavad Gita
Krishna teaches Arjuna to act without clinging to results, on the eve of a war he does not want to fight.
- Source
- Mahabharata, Bhishma Parva
- Speakers
- Krishna and Arjuna, reported by Sanjaya to Dhritarashtra
- Length
- 18 chapters, 700 verses
- Stands on its own
Ashtavakra Gita
A teacher tells a king that he is already the free witness of everything, and the king finds that it is so.
- Source
- Independent text, also called the Ashtavakra Samhita; date unknown
- Speakers
- The sage Ashtavakra and King Janaka
- Length
- 20 chapters, 298 verses
- Stands on its own
Avadhuta Gita
A wandering sage sings of the Self that was never bound. The eighth chapter is likely a later addition.
- Source
- Independent text attributed to Dattatreya; surviving manuscripts date to about the 9th or 10th century CE
- Speakers
- Dattatreya
- Length
- 8 chapters, 289 verses
- In the Mahabharata
Anu Gita
After the war Arjuna asks to hear the teaching again, and Krishna answers through older dialogues.
- Source
- Mahabharata, Ashvamedhika Parva (Book 14), from chapter 16
- Speakers
- Krishna and Arjuna after the war, narrated by Vaishampayana
- In the Mahabharata
Brahmana Gita
A husband and wife talk about the body, the senses and rebirth.
- Source
- Mahabharata, Ashvamedhika Parva, inside the Anu Gita
- Speakers
- Krishna retells a conversation between a Brahmin and his wife
- In the Mahabharata
Vyadha Gita
No honest work is impure; dharma lies in how you do your own duty.
- Source
- Mahabharata, Vana Parva
- Speakers
- Markandeya tells Yudhishthira of a proud ascetic and the righteous meat-seller of Mithila
- In the Mahabharata
Hamsa Gita (Mahabharata)
On truth, self-restraint and patience under harsh words.
- Source
- Mahabharata, Shanti Parva (chapter 288 in the critical edition)
- Speakers
- Bhishma tells Yudhishthira of a swan speaking with the Sadhyas
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Uddhava Gita
Krishna's last teaching before he leaves the world, including the story of the avadhuta and his teachers.
- Source
- Bhagavata Purana, Book 11, chapters 6 to 29
- Speakers
- Krishna to his friend Uddhava, narrated by Shuka
- Length
- About 1,100 verses
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Hamsa Gita (Bhagavata)
How the mind and the objects of the senses cling to each other, and how to see past both.
- Source
- Bhagavata Purana, Book 11, chapter 13, inside the Uddhava Gita
- Speakers
- Krishna tells Uddhava how he once taught the sage Sanaka and his brothers in the form of a swan
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Bhikshu Gita
A miser who loses everything finds that the mind alone makes happiness and sorrow.
- Source
- Bhagavata Purana, Book 11, chapter 23
- Speakers
- Krishna tells Uddhava the song of a mendicant from Avanti
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Kapila Gita
A son teaches his mother the path of knowledge joined with devotion.
- Source
- Bhagavata Purana, Book 3
- Speakers
- The sage Kapila to his mother Devahuti
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Gopi Gita
A song of longing, sung when Krishna disappears from among them.
- Source
- Bhagavata Purana, Book 10, chapter 31
- Speakers
- The gopis of Vrindavan
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Guru Gita
On the guru, who the guru is and how to honour one.
- Source
- Skanda Purana by most accounts; some place it in the Vishvasara Tantra
- Speakers
- Shiva to Parvati
- Length
- From about 100 to over 400 verses, by version
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Ribhu Gita
The Self is described again and again by negation and affirmation. Ramana Maharshi encouraged its study.
- Source
- Shiva Rahasya, sixth part
- Speakers
- The sage Ribhu to the sage Nidagha, on the slopes of Kedara
- Length
- About 2,000 verses
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Devi Gita
The Goddess teaches that she is the Self of all and shows how to worship her. C. Mackenzie Brown dates it no earlier than the 13th century.
- Source
- Devi Bhagavata Purana, last ten chapters of Book 7
- Speakers
- The Goddess to Himavan, king of the mountains
- Length
- 10 chapters, 507 verses
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Ganesha Gita
Closely modelled on the Bhagavad Gita, with Ganesha as the teacher.
- Source
- Ganesha Purana, Krida Khanda, chapters 138 to 148
- Speakers
- Ganesha, as Gajanana, to King Varenya
- Length
- About 412 verses
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Shiva Gita
Shiva teaches Rama about the Self, devotion and liberation.
- Source
- Padma Purana
- Speakers
- Shiva to Rama, relayed by Suta to the sages of Naimisha
- Length
- 16 chapters
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Ishvara Gita
Advaita and yoga taught by Shiva, often read beside the Bhagavad Gita.
- Source
- Kurma Purana, second part, first eleven chapters
- Speakers
- Shiva to the sages gathered at Badarikashrama
- Length
- 11 chapters
- In a Purana or Ramayana
Rama Gita
Rama gives his brother the Advaita teaching that the Self alone is real.
- Source
- Adhyatma Ramayana, Uttara Kanda, chapter 5 (the Adhyatma Ramayana is dated to the 13th to 15th century)
- Speakers
- Rama to Lakshmana
- A later anthology
Pandava Gita
A garland of prayers of surrender to Krishna.
- Source
- A devotional anthology, also called the Prapanna Gita; most verses are not found in the Mahabharata
- Speakers
- Prayers voiced by Yudhishthira, Arjuna, Draupadi, Kunti, Vidura and others, with gods and sages
- Length
- 82 to 91 verses, by edition
- Modern publication
Vishnu, Shambhu, Shakti, Surya and Dhish Gitas
Modern compositions in the style of the Puranic Gitas. They are not found in any Purana. A different Surya Gita, attributed to the Tattvasarayana, is also listed by sanskritdocuments.org.
- Source
- 20th-century Sanskrit works published by the Shri Bharat Dharma Mahamandal of Kashi. The Hindi edition of the Dhish Gita confirms this; the other four share its form and frame and appear to belong to the same series
- Speakers
- Teachings framed as questions to a guru, each centred on one deity
Where to begin
Most readers begin with the Bhagavad Gita, then go to the Uddhava or Anu Gita for more of Krishna, or to the Ashtavakra Gita for the shortest statement of Advaita. Our side-by-side comparison can help you choose.
Sources and method
Sources, speakers and chapter ranges were checked on 30 October 2026 against the list of Gitas at sanskritdocuments.org, Wikipedia's articles on each text, hindupedia and wisdomlib, and the Mahabharata critical edition for the Hamsa Gita. Sizes vary between editions. Where sources disagree, we name both.
Wisdom translation, edited by Ankur Shukla. Commentary AI-drafted, human review pending.