Putinism: Russia and Its Future With the West - Walter Laqueur
Sunday, August 2, 2015
The Seeker - Karan Bajaj (Spoiler Alerts!)
Honestly, I wouldn't mind working in the fields or eating only millet and eggplants for meals. I wouldn't mind sleeping on a thin mattress in a hut where the only source of light is a candle. But scorpions, lizards and a cobra in the toilet would make me run to find the nearest exit. In a nutshell, I am not destined to become a yogi. Well, at least not in this life for sure, if what the protagonist of this book, Max, has to go through to reach Nirvana is anything to go by.
Okay. Here's another confession. This talk of misty Himalayan mountains, mysterious yogis and a person toiling away in an investment bank getting an epiphany to drop it all and head to the mountains in search of answers to universe's unanswered questions is what made me go for this book in the first place. Honestly, who hasn't had similar thoughts at least once a month? Okay, once a quarter or on an annual basis at least? :-)
So we have Max whose heart isn't anymore in analyzing excels sheets to make some sense out of all that data. He puts in his papers and lands in the country that people believe promises answers to life's most basic questions. A couple of pages full of descriptions of India's hot climate, poverty, population and decibel levels follow. A trip to a market of stolen goods (zebras and tiger in a market, huh?), a couple of nights spent at a youth hostel, an unsuccessful sojourn up the Himalayan peaks, an impromptu trip to Dehradun later he lands up at an Ashram in the middle of a nowhere. And the story loses its way right there. The long winded descriptions of the yogic poses and what they were doing to his body nearly put me in a deep coma. The awakening of his Kundalini was unbelievable enough but ability to walk on water (not sure why he didn't try his hand at turning water to wine while he was at it!) and talk to snakes (Harry would have been as green as a portion cooked by Hermione with envy!) was simply too much for me! I nearly put the book down.
The only thing that appealed to me later was the author's commentary on the subject of religious sects or Akhadaas. Also Max's decision to stay back to look after NaniMa in her last days rather than going in search of a Guru who may or may not teach him anything new.
But if someone were to ask me how Max's story ends, I have no clue. I read the last page twice but was unable to make up my mind about whether Max reaches Nirvana or not. I am not sure about Max but as far as I am concerned, I would forever be seeking an answer to that question!
Okay. Here's another confession. This talk of misty Himalayan mountains, mysterious yogis and a person toiling away in an investment bank getting an epiphany to drop it all and head to the mountains in search of answers to universe's unanswered questions is what made me go for this book in the first place. Honestly, who hasn't had similar thoughts at least once a month? Okay, once a quarter or on an annual basis at least? :-)
So we have Max whose heart isn't anymore in analyzing excels sheets to make some sense out of all that data. He puts in his papers and lands in the country that people believe promises answers to life's most basic questions. A couple of pages full of descriptions of India's hot climate, poverty, population and decibel levels follow. A trip to a market of stolen goods (zebras and tiger in a market, huh?), a couple of nights spent at a youth hostel, an unsuccessful sojourn up the Himalayan peaks, an impromptu trip to Dehradun later he lands up at an Ashram in the middle of a nowhere. And the story loses its way right there. The long winded descriptions of the yogic poses and what they were doing to his body nearly put me in a deep coma. The awakening of his Kundalini was unbelievable enough but ability to walk on water (not sure why he didn't try his hand at turning water to wine while he was at it!) and talk to snakes (Harry would have been as green as a portion cooked by Hermione with envy!) was simply too much for me! I nearly put the book down.
The only thing that appealed to me later was the author's commentary on the subject of religious sects or Akhadaas. Also Max's decision to stay back to look after NaniMa in her last days rather than going in search of a Guru who may or may not teach him anything new.
But if someone were to ask me how Max's story ends, I have no clue. I read the last page twice but was unable to make up my mind about whether Max reaches Nirvana or not. I am not sure about Max but as far as I am concerned, I would forever be seeking an answer to that question!
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