Book Review – Kohinoor, William Dalrymple & Anita Anand

A few months ago, when a famous Indian industrialist – famous more for his debauched lifestyle than for any worthwhile achievements – took asylum in Britain, absconding after his financial crimes were brought to light, a friend of mine made a sarcastic tweet. Paraphrased, it went like ‘Even Mr. ______ seems to know that Britain is the best place to take refuge after looting India.’ For all the hilarity of that tweet, it conceals a sense of bitterness that many generations of Indians feel against the so-called global ‘super power’ that plundered and looted their motherland for almost two centuries in a clinical manner. Sowing dissensions where there were none, widening the chasms where there were only cracks, looting the natural resources, causing one of the worst man-made famines in the history, the so-called Raj did all that and more to loot her colonies, prime among them India. In a cruel twist of irony, one of the most noteworthy items plundered thus now crowns the royalty of England – the Koh-i-Noor!

Almost all of us Indians would have heard of the Koh-i-Noor, along with the Peacock throne, as one of the most precious things robbed from us. If you ever became keen on knowing about the entire story, then I would recommend this book. Such a breathtaking chronicle this turned out to be.

This book is divided into two parts. The first part, deals with the hazy origins of the Kohinoor, its comparison/identification with the mythical Syamantaka gem – associated with Lord Krishna, the arrival of Babar and the transfer of ownership of the stone. Leading us through the Mughal lineage, the history then takes a bloody turn at the hands of the marauding Nader Shah, the Persian who soaked Delhi’s streets in blood. The stone then continues its journey from Persia to Afghanistan, arriving with Ahmad Khan Abdali, the once loyal servant of the now assassinated Nader Shah. Fortunes rise for Ahmad Shah only to fall soon for his descendants. When one of the famed Indian royals – Raja Ranjit Singh – attains the diamond from Shah Shuja under disreputable methods, the Kohinoor comes a full circle in its journey – from India to Persia to Afghanistan to India. Dalrymple ends his portion with the death of the Lion of Punjab.

Picking from where he left, Anita Anand continues in a style that is in no way secondary. Recalling the gore history of Punjab after Ranjit Singh, Anita Anand goes on to recount the regicides, blood feuds and eventual decline of the once-mighty empire into a rudderless ship to be swayed by the wily hands of the East India Company honchos. Prince Duleep Singh, left orphaned, much like his motherland, is whisked away and then removed permanently from his homeland. His uninformed acquiescence with the British, eventual decline and pitiable death form the final few chapters. The passage of the ‘Mountain of Light’ (Koh-i-Noor) through the many hands during this phase and its final arrival in Britain as a ‘gift’ to the Queen Victoria, are all given in such vivid details that you will feel a medley of emotions surging through your mind. The spineless efforts of the Indian government to reclaim the symbol of what was once a glorious ‘Hindustan’ is told in the fading pages.

The pursuit of wealth has almost always blinded humans, making beasts out of even the best among them. Add to it the mystery and aura surrounding something like the Koh-i-Noor, and you have all the ingredients of a disastrous tale in your hands. Disaster the Koh-i-Noor has very well proved to be. Not in the superstitious sense though. The greed and cruelty inherent in each and every human being has time and again found unbridled expression in people occupying the thrones. Things like the Koh-i-Noor have merely thrown light at such blatant behaviours and bloody results.  Sadly, this ‘Mountain of Light’ has only managed to leave behind a trail of darkness and tragedy.

Shashi Tharoor isn’t someone that I thought that I would ever agree with. But when he appreciated this book saying that ‘there is nothing more you need to know about the Kohinoor’, I couldn’t agree more!

A masterpiece indeed!

Book Review – Seven Basic Lessons on Physics, Carlo Rovelli

With this book, Penguin Publishers play with us the usual trick in publishing – of producing a bunch of papers out of thin air and calling it a book. With a majority of the books on my shelf having had their origin at Penguin, I could safely vouch for it. A bunch of essays / stories / poems shuffled and printed under different names in different combinations, articles that appeared in the web/newspaper bunched together and sold as a book are just two of the samples of such money-minting techniques in publishing industry. This book is the product of one such trickery.

The seven ‘lessons’ in this book were all a series of articles originally published in the supplement of an Italian newspaper. By increasing the font size and using a little thicker paper, Penguin has tried to publish a ‘book’, which, sadly doesn’t even reach the count of hundred pages to become ‘book’ enough for a voracious reader. At best, this is just a booklet.

More than the size or the manner of publishing, it is the content that adds to the disappointment. If you are looking to cut your teeth into Physics, in a more academic manner, then this book is not for you. This booklet is more like a cursory peek at the world of Advanced Physics, with some of the major theories and techniques, like the Theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics, being talked about in a poetic language. Yes, the book feels more like it was a literary work than a scientific one, which makes it a bit tiring to read.

Also, the book deals with the two extremes of Physics – that of a Cosmic scale and then of the Quantum state. So, if you are new to science, with no basic idea about Astronomy or Atoms, simply here to learn about the basics of Physics, you might even end up disappointed.

This book is a casual read for those who already have a fair introduction into atomic physics and astrophysics. As for the rest, I am not sure that everyone would enjoy it.

2.5/5 stars!

Wish You A Delightful Diwali 2017!

Gone are the days when festivals were affairs of colours and gala moods. These days, no festival is complete if not preceded by a cacophony of ‘social activists’ and ‘intellectuals’ asking for a ban on something or the other. Ban on animal slaughter, ban on water wastage, ban on crackers/fireworks - in the pretext of pushing for social causes, we have turned our festivals into cheap opportunities to settle political vendetta and serve our vested interests.

In childhood, Ramzan and Bakr-id were chances for me to learn about the five pillars of Islam. Christmas made me aware of Compassion as taught and practised by Christ. Puja holidays and Pongal (Sankaranthi) were occasions that taught me the value of labour and the importance of gratitude. Diwali, well, there was no other festival that could ever match the grandeur and fun of Diwali for my innocent little mind.

But these days, TV channels and national media is ablaze with debates, discussions and dizzying offerings of hatred, paranoia and information on bans of some kind or the other. Is this the way we want our children to celebrate their festivals? Is this what we have learnt as human beings? If all the religions are teaching only love and peace, are we truly the practitioners such graceful religions? If all our religions point to only one god in reality, are we being the worthy followers of such a compassionate, merciful god?!

Show compassion to all the animals on all the 365 days of the year. Not just when another religion is about to celebrate its festivals based on animal sacrifice. If you want to save water, do so by creating awareness, preventing wastage of water in your home and neighbourhood before asking for a ‘ban’ on other’s festivals. If you want to avoid pollution, ditch your costly sedans and swank SUVs that guzzle fuel by gallons and start using public transportation. Plant trees, clean your surroundings, and spread awareness on cleanliness.

Festivals are all occasions that were created for the purpose of uniting people, to develop in them a sense of solidarity, to bring out the love and to spread euphoria all around. Let’s stop using such auspicious occasions as a launchpad for our hateful campaigns, please. Let’s all learn to live and let live.

May the lamps that we all light today dispel the darkness of our homes as well as our hearts, fill them both with a pleasant warmth! May the crackers and fireworks blast away our egos and petty thinking to pieces! May the gifts that we share today act as symbols of our love for each other and the fresh garments that we wear today brighten even our souls and fill them with colors.

Compassion, happiness, care and love are all not mere words to be exchanged on any single day but principles to be practised throughout our lives. Let’s learn the same this Diwali.

Here’s to all of you and your family members, hearty wishes on this auspicious day. Live long, in good health, in absolute peace, with abundant happiness and unwavering love!

Book Review - The Magic of Thinking Big, David Schwartz

Books on personal development, or the so-called ‘self’-help genre, have been around for so long, there is no doubt about that. There is a plethora of such books, which promise to help a person overcome the tough situations in life and sail through smoothly. Especially in our modern times, where publishing a book has become as easy as ordering a product online, there is a rise in the number of authors who promise to improve your life by offering some quick-fix solutions for your troubles. But there are very few authors who write books that leave a lasting impact, without merely indulging in flowery language and empty platitudes. 'The Magic of Thinking Big' is a book of the first kind.

Make no mistakes about it, all of us started our lives by dreaming big. We had high ambitions, we dreamt big and hoped big. But sooner than later the 'reality' gave us a wake-up call and the world around made us shrink our dreams and thoughts. Few of us, if ever, arrived at our last day with all our dreams fulfilled and all our hopes intact. Life shakes us all up and shatters our dreams. But some of us march on, tough as nails in the face of struggles. What separates such victors from the vanquished is their thought process. When Life throws you a challenge, one can simply wilt down and wither away or one can simply toughen oneself up and tear apart the challenges. And, one's self-belief plays the most crucial role in how one overcomes the challenges.

In this book, Dr.David Schwartz elaborates on the ageless principle of 'you become what you think'. What is so refreshing about this book is the very practical approach to the problems and the offering of subtle solutions. This book does not ask you to write some self-assuring line for 100 times daily. This book does not ask you to stare at yourself in a mirror - except on one rare occasion - and repeat some 'magical phrase' so many times to encourage yourself. All this book asks you is to think and to think BIG.

One of the most interesting aspects of this book is, this is quite comprehensive. Whether you are suffering from self-imposed inferiority complex or you have been told by people that you’re incapable of doing something, whether you’re suffering a setback in your venture or you’ve not even started yet due to fear, this book will add a dash of confidence to your thoughts and deeds. It all flows in simple, plain language, as if a friend is sitting across the table, speaking with you about your troubles and help stimulate your thought process, through which you get to correct your thought process and solve your troubles on your own. There is no peppering of quotes from ancient philosophers and certainly no repetition of platitudes as many popular modern-day authors wont to do.

If you would want to read only one book of the personal development genre ever, choose this one. For, this is such a beautiful, brilliant and worthwhile stuff!

Book Review - Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman, Haruki Murakami

The next time you visit an art gallery, try visiting the abstract arts section. Or, much easier, perform a Google search for the works of painters like Markus Rothko or Jackson Pollock. You will then be gazing at paintings that will be in stark contrast to those of Raphael, Michelangelo or Da Vinci. While the Renaissance masters garnered glory by creating works that were more lifelike, the kinds of Rothko and Pollock shunned realistic representation in favour of abstraction. In other words, they didn’t show you what they wanted to ‘show’, choosing instead to make you ‘feel’ whatever it was that they felt while they created their works of art. For a mind that is capable of correctly discerning and absorbing those ideas, the paintings feel like sheer genius. For the lesser mortals, however, their paintings will appear to be mere lozenges of colours and dribbles of paint.

It is the same with the authors too. Some of them portray an idea, in the usual flow of a beginning, middle and the end, whereas some others merely let their brushes - or pens, in our case - dab a line here, smear some colour there and make a few random streaks across the canvas. It is for the discerning readers to identify the ideas and plot lines to relish the story. However, not all of us emerge successful in reading such books and not all the authors create such works of mastery.

I have quite often come across the name of Haruki Murakami in the bookshops and the web. What really kindled my interest in his works was how he was recommended to me as an author capable of portraying surreal experiences and mystical experiences. So, when the book arrived, I held and opened it with almost a sense of reverence. However, like every high expectation, mine fell flat on its face too.

Of course, I am not here to completely write him off as a merely hyped up author. I liked the stories - some of them - for their ability to penetrate deep into the reader’s hearts, tug some of their strings, stir up a sense of nostalgia and leave some sharp pangs as they ended. Stories like ‘Birthday Girl’, ‘The Mirror’, ‘Nausea 1979’, ‘Hanalei Bay’, add a sense of mystery, while tales like ‘’The Seventh Man’, ‘Tony Takitani’, ‘Firefly’ wring the heart with poignant depictions of love and loss. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these stories. On the other hand, there were stories like ‘Dabchick’, ‘Crabs’ and ‘A Perfect Day for Kangaroos’ which made me wonder as to why did even bother picking this book in the first place. From start to end, these tales made little or no sense whatsoever. In fact, they made reading a drab.

I picked this book also hoping that I would be able to have a peek at the Japanese culture. Apart from haikus, I have no acquaintance whatsoever with the Japanese literary world. But there was next to nothing that could have made me feel that if I was reading anything unique. The routine references to drinking, unapologetic portrayals of adultery, constant references to the Jazz circle, all made me feel as if I was stuck with the work of a Paulo Coelho or even one of those wannabe’ NRI writers. May be I am not doing justice to the author by expecting too much, but reading all these stories at once, I felt as if the writing had a kind of dull, routine style.

I am not trying to brush this book off as a complete loss though. I really liked a lot of those stories for the sense of magical aura, their deep emotional quotient, a sense of nostalgia that they stoke within and the flowing style. However, some of them really made no sense and sounded more like garble. And, that leaves me with mixed emotions. Should I be reading more Murakami? I am not sure. May be Murakami isn’t for me!