Pressing for the Centre to declare Bhagavad Gita as a ‘Rashtriya Granth’ (national scripture), External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday said only a formality remained to be done in this regard.

Ms. Swaraj, who was speaking at ‘Gita Prerna Mahotsav’ at the Red Fort, said she was able to face the challenges as External Affairs Minister only because of the teachings of Bhagavad Gita.

“Bhagavad Gita has answers to everybody’s problems and that’s why I said it while standing in the Parliament that, ‘Shrimad Bhagavad Gita’ should be declared as the national holy book.”

“Everyone should read two shlokas of Gita everyday...it is a scripture of 700 shlokas and it can be finished in a year. Read it again and continue this till the end. After reading it three to four times, you will discover a path to lead a life, the way I discovered,” she said, addressing the crowd.

“When I read Gita for the first time, I did not agree with the concept of whatever happens, happens for the best and whatever happens in future, will be for good. But when I read it for the third and fourth time, I understood its meaning. This has helped me all through my life. Even now, when I am handling the External Affairs and the challenges related to it,” she said.

Congress leader Manish Tewari said the essence of the Bhagavad Gita lies in its substance and not in its symbolism.

“So, if anybody has seriously read and internalise the teachings of the Gita they would not make such a frivolous statement,” he said.