Book Review- Ramayana-The GAME of LIFE

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Shubha Vilas , a qualified engineer ,motivational speaker and a spiritual seeker  has come out with the book “ Ramayana- the game of life ,Shattered dreams” as a sequel to Ramayana series . I got hold of this book through blogadda and here is my review of the book .In the cover page the author writes

“Shattered Dreams is the sequel to the national bestseller, Rise of the Sun Prince, in the new spiritual and motivational series Ramayana - The Game of Life. Twelve joyful years have passed in Ayodhya since the wedding of Rama and Sita at the end of Book 1.

Now, in Shattered Dreams, Shubha Vilas narrates the riveting drama of Rama’s exile. Through tales of Rama’s unwavering and enigmatic persona, the book teaches us how to handle reversals positively; through Bharata’s actions, it teaches us to handle temptation; and through Sita’s courage, to explore beyond our comfort zone. This complicated family drama provides deep insights on how human relationships work and how they fail. 

With Valmiki’s Ramayana as its guiding light, Shattered Dreams deftly entwines poetic beauty from the Kamba Ramayana and Ramacharitramanas, as well as folk philosophy from the Loka Pramana tales, to demonstrate how the ancient epic holds immediate relevance to modern life. Experience the ancient saga of the Ramayana like never before.”

I congratulate the author for writing an English version of an epic written and mostly available in a sanskritised hindi form . With an easy to adept language and foot notes with ethical connotation , there are many leadership ,management and leadership mantras scattered all throughout the book .

History writing in India is just about 300 years old and is not exactly reflective of our past. The first generation of history writers in India was European, the second generation was nationalist and the third generation in the post-Independence era was dominated by Marxists, who use European tools of analysis. The Europeans have not considered Puranas and Itihasas as historical sources and simply called them myths. If Rama's story is not true then how has he survived in the collective memory for so long? People do not care whether Ram is historical or not. He is truth for them. India's need is a special study of its past and the truth of its past cannot be denied. We need to Indianise our history writing.

 The content of one Ramayana may be different from the other but the existence of Ram, Sita and Ravan is consistent. That's the truth. I might not know anything about my great great grandfather but I can't deny his existence for lack of evidence or how else would I be here? Similarly Rama's existence need not be proved by historical procedure

THE STORY UNFOLDS….

The story is what we all know,the oldest epic Ramayana . So without divulging the well known details of the life of warrior prince Rama ,this modern interpretation stands unique in the way syllogisms are drawn from our nature, environment around us and little things that matter. The message, which is more important than the story has been beautifully presented while keeping the reader hooked with flawless storyline.

LOOK OUT FOR

·         Unique footnotes giving lessons about our mind ,love ,relationships ,leadership and everyday              conduct

·         Simplistic and beautiful language with wonderful comparisons

·         Motivational bend to the epic we have grew up listening to

·         A great piece to read out to your children and getting them hooked

I wish it had……..

·         A reinterpretation in a different way making Rama more of a human than a god we worship

·         Language – words like Mumbo Jumbo could have been avoided

·         A greatest danger to rewrite an epic is the chances of reader leaving the book saying “I already           know that” ,this was felt intermittently

MY RATINGS – 3/5 STARS

 This review is part of the BlogAdda’s Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

हर क्षण ............धीरे धीरे

सांझ के दस्तक देते ही

बरबस आता है ख्याल

कि अभी रात आहट देगी

लम्बी अधूरी रात

जो इस भुलावे में कटेगी

कि आँखें बंद कर सोये थे हम

या कुछ भूले सपनों में खोये थे हम

हर पल जो बीतता है

हँसता है मुझ पर

कि ये जो छटपटाता हुआ इंतज़ार है

वह सुबह का है

या खुद को गुम कर लेने का

जिस गुम होने की बेचैन कोशिश में

हम खर्च करते हैं खुद को

हर क्षण

धीरे धीरे

सिगरेट के धुंए सरीखा

जो जलता हुआ दिखता नहीं

पर राख हो रहा है

हर क्षण

धीरे धीरे

पर इस खर्च होने और करने के बीच में भी

अनजान हम

जानते हैं कि

फिर दस्तक होगी

सिर्फ एक बार

और वही सन्नाटा

घुप काला अँधेरा

बिखर जायेगा चारों ओर

बिन पूछे

बिन चाहे

हर क्षण

धीरे धीरे 

TRY A NEW EXPRESSION THIS VALENTINE

Its valentine day and the color of town is red . Being single is a great thing, but on days like these, having a tough time is natural, because it’s not every day that you see people indirectly reminding you about how you don’t have a soul mate.What has actually destroyed the whole generation of youngsters is “ Dil to paagal hai” ,this idea of someone giving you hint that he or she is the one ,bells ringing, music in the background ,wind blowing at the back drop and a guy on his kneel……….Hello Hello wake up ,the movie made its money and now time to get real .

Love is a beautiful feeling ,the feeling of togetherness ,the feeling of being special to someone and making someone special but it does not have to be that age old way. Try something new ,Try something refreshing ,Try something funny in short try YOU

  1)   Sing a song – How about singing a song for the one you love ,not that “ Will you be my valentine “ types but something like “ Mujhe to teri lat lag gayi “ ,add the topping of a spicy song to make it less sweet and who knows your partner will love this surprise.

 

  2)   Go Trekking- Yay!! For all you travelers out there how about some trekking together or a drive along less treaded pathways. ok I accept Udaipur is downright romantic but so is Biking in Ladakh

     3)   KISS (Keep It Simple Sweetheart) – Why does it always 

       have to be red roses,a guy on his kneels ,why can't it be just simple and beautiful with a promise           and a ring .

      4) Cook Together – Its Sunday this valentine         day ,so how about preparing a lazy Sunday brunch together and having a quiet,romantic time that your careers usually takes away

   5)   Write a letter – Everyone among us must have swooned to “Letters to Juliet” movie ,so take a note pad and write something for your love ,a little note from your heart and NOT FROM GOOGLE. You don’t have to be a words worth to say to someone that you love

 “Only once in your life, I truly believe, you find someone who can completely turn your world around. You tell them things that you’ve never shared with another soul and they absorb everything you say and actually want to hear more. You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement. They are not embarrassed to cry with you when you are hurting or laugh with you when you make a fool of yourself. Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful. There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are. The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever. Memories of your childhood come back and are so clear and vivid it’s like being young again. Colours seem brighter and more brilliant. Laughter seems part of daily life where before it was infrequent or didn’t exist at all. A phone call or two during the day helps to get you through a long day’s work and always brings a smile to your face. In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby. Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon. You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible. You find that being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you. You find strength in knowing you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end. Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.”

I am participating in the #SoundOfLove activity atBlogAdda in association with Bluestone”.

DAMN YOU AIB ROAST .............HOW MUCH LOWER WILL YOU FALL??

SCENE 1 : A public toilet ,yes a ladies toilet with all the artists come alive portraying the two most important organs ,sorry two only organs of a female body ……..go demolish those damn toilets

SCENE 2 : A college class room , a medical college classroom ,where mortal men and women are turned into immortal gods i.e. Doctors filled with artistic demonstration of what you call a still porn with all the “F” word splattered around. ( don’t argue with me over that ,if you fail to notice I have a Dr before my name ) . Go ban those slutty doctors ,find them out and crucify.

SCENE 3 : A person hits someone’s car from behind and then what you hear in full public view is BEEP !BEEP! BEEP …………….how about shooting them at first sight.

SCENE 4 : The great Indian laughter challenge and comedy circus are a hit ,the misogynist ,sexist, racist and gender insensitive Masti makes hundreds of crores…………..Go burn the prints and the actors too.

SCENE 5 : The bazaaru literature with all the expletives and sex scenes are a kind of bestsellers ,I believe someone must be reading them?.............NO ,oh don’t murder me then.

What I am trying to say here is that its not like that we are a cultured ,complete no no society and AIB as an external force comes and destroys our values ,values which we may not have been preserving but indeed boasting since centuries . Before stating my opinion on the debate,let’s get our basics right ,all these jokes ,all these vulgur stuff were already flourishing in our society before AIB came out in open. We were finally "saying it in public what we say in parties " Rohan Joshi summed up the show.They were not saying something "alien" to us.But yes their breakthrough was making everyone uncomfortable by initiating a dialogue in public in a language that we have conveniently confined to our private spaces .Their sword was humour, the kind we indulge in with our friends. Stand up comedy is a form of resistance, resistance against "Don't say it Loud "culture.

I believe that they came out on you tube because they could not show it anywhere. You always have an option of closing the browser window if you feel offended. The rise of twitter and the fall of facebook in itself points to the thriving force of social media- Freedom ,freedom to say ,Freedom to vent .Have we become so intolerant a society that thoughts which are not in sync with the majority find a way out. The web based medium of you tube and short movies are a platform to have your own voice away from the state censorship.

The dispute is really the fact that the state cannot be selective about such actions. Threat to freedom of expression is the most disgraceful thing to be happening in the world’s largest democracy that takes pride in its fundamental rights of citizens.In the land of origin of Kamasutra ,the threat to creative freedom will kill any art that does not cater to the principles of majority.Even an criminal is given a chance to prove his innocence ,so why this ektarfa onslaught on artists?

The humour on the AIB Knockout was sharp and yes it was profanity.Should it have been diluted a little?I think No, you think Yes but do they really care what I and you think. I’m not advocating their idea of humour or roasting .The word roasting itself is self explanatory,its roasting someone ,insulting and making fun of . AND PLEASE AKBAR AND BIRBAL DID NOT ORIGINATE ROASTING (A right winged person tweeted me this most idiotic thing)  but intent and context are two crucial aspects to be kept in mind when one discourses upon what is it that constitutes the funny. Say they were bad, scorn them. Yes I accept that I won’t see it with my parents. But by maintaining silence on this whole issue of the video made to remove , you are letting someone snatch what we try to always clutch on –Our freedom

“If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all.”

P.S. - Hats off to Hiroo Johar for being in the audience when Karan was at his Gayish best.