TITLE: The Lokamanya Ba ~ Garigadhar ~i~ak's Srimadbhagavadgita- rahasya in the Light of the Saintly Tradition of

ii The Lokamanya B. G. ri~ak wrote a commentary on the- ~ Bhagavadgita, which is called Srimadbhagavadg1tarahasya athava Karmayogasastra but is popularly known as the Gitarahasya. In the Gitarahasya, Tilak often quotes three of the prominent saints of Mahara~~ra, namely, Jnanesvar, Tukaram, and Ramdas. A few scholars have indicated that there might be some influence of the theology of the prominent Mara~ha saints on the G1tarahasya. But no one has studied this matter in detail and demonstrated the depth of their influence on the Gitarahasya. This thesis hopes to fill that gap in Ti~ak scholarship. In attempting to do that this thesis traces out how the religious, social, philosophical, and ethical ideas of Jnanesvar, Tukaram, and Ramdas influenced!i~ak's religious, social, philosophical, and ethical thought in the GI tarahasya