Thursday, September 29, 2011

Shiva Trilogy - Part 2

As the Shiva trilogy goes on, Amish continues to weave the magic of mixing the fiction with his words.The story of the great Mahadev takes further turns as he discovers not only new things from his journey but also leaves many thoughts for the reader to pick up along the read.The enlightening conversations with the different Vasudevs which Shiva has all along show how a person discovers the good among himself & most importantly the fact that there is no absolute evil or good but a balance of good & evil in everyone.All this in the most intriguing way.

However, the catch of the book is not just its mighty protagonist but the characters associated with it.The valiant Sati & her intelligence which so wonderfully complements the lord is delightful & inspiring in her own way.The faith of Nandi, Bhagirath & Parvateshwar & many more whom the lord befriends on the way is simply worth knowing about.The secrets which keep opening one after the other are just enough to keep one engrossed to the book till the end, until a yet another to be continued which starts the wait for the last part of the book because the secret of the Nagas very well remains just uncovered.

As an author Amish completely does justice to the second part too unlike other sequels which usually get shadowed by its main book.The pace & the description very well matches with the part one & hoping the same for the last part of the trilogy too.

P.S. 4 Years of My Galaxy :)

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Gratitude

Alok was too lost in his thoughts & may be that is why he didn't notice that his flight was about to land.It was only when the otherwise noticeable Air hostess asked him to tie his seat belt, he shifted his attention from the clouds ,which as always had a unique soothing formation of their own, outside his window that he came back to the present. The journey had given him the time he so badly wanted.A time with himself, alone or rather as they say in the "neutral grounds".It was the journey between his source & the destination, between the two parts of his life he had been struggling with. Alok just wanted to stay there wished this moment could stay.It was a rare peace he felt during that short flight when his thoughts didn't have to fight among themselves.
As they say, present is where you live! but the bad thing about present is that it flies away too soon specially when it is so good & specifically here when it is so peaceful because Alok could soon see the beautiful city,where his flight was about to land, just below him.And then to his surprise he felt a teardrop trickle down his cheeks, a smile which touched his lips & a relief that his heart actually showed some emotions. It was that view of the city which he recognized really well, like some amateur pilot.It was a view which had always filled him with extreme emotions.View of this city which had too many memories to give him.Memories of the joy he had by the mere sight of this view rushed him.

Alok thanked God that that things were still the same. Even though if it was for the last time.He closed his eyes as he cherished this moment with gratitude.

Monday, September 19, 2011

Among the good reads

I just completed an Indian fiction "The Immortals of Meluha" - the book 1 of the Shiva Trilogy series by Amish & the first thing I did after completing it was ordering the book 2. I never expected it to be so intriguing given that I had not given much try to such topics as spiritualism specially the one concerning the Great Indian God Shiva, whom we don't find as friendly as the other Gods in the numerous story books or TV series we all grew reading/watching up. Though its cover itself attracts many a reader to the different kind that it is. And as for me ,it definitely has opened a vast genre of the mythological fiction yet again.

Must say the author had done a wonderful job of carving out a beautiful story from his imagination as he started with a simple human yet a courageous tribe leader called Shiva who goes on through tough decisions concerning his tribe & its well-being & takes us through any normal human emotions as Shiva & his group accept the invitation and immigrate to Meluha. The author then beautifully carries forward the story of Shiva, as he discovers Meluha, understands its people, finds his soul-mate & most importantly discovers his abilities while protecting Meluhans who as their legend said had waited for him since years.The ability which ultimately makes him find the Mahadev in him as others had expected in their neelkanth (Blue-throat).

A must read for anyone who has the patience to wait for the 3rd part, as of me, would have loved to read its all the 3 parts together had I known it before.. Can't Wait! :)

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

A Sunday well spent

[Edited]
Since the last post a lot has happened! I have turned a year older, gave my big exam, have traveled to my family & met people who have again made me introspect what am I really running after.

Traveling indeed teaches & I have already learnt a lot last two days.So on my way back home, thanks to the delayed AI Flight, I happened to come across a defense personnel.I was lucky enough to have talked to him, as he shared his experience, his professional challenges & how it has taught him to live his life to the fullest.Hearing him, my respect for him & his profession not only grew by leaps and bounds but also made me respect mine as I saw it from his views.I would rather think it in this way that such things are not mere coincidences but small doses from the universe it would like to give us.

Right! Now before the label of this post switches to 'Philosophical me' let me continue with the Travelogue part.

Reaching home after months is simply so beautiful & specially when the coming Sunday has been planned by moma! :)

So here we were through the beautiful country-side of Udaipur, the city of lakes as it is popularly known as with its rich Rajputana history which gives it the royal touch. Add to it the the clouds weaving their magic in this amazing weather as it turned the complete place into nothing less than a hill station as we discovered.

We started on our way to Kumbhalgargh & the route itself had some worth-stopping-your-car & running off to trek scenic places like this one :

Yes! I know far away from the office/routines & blah blah, straight to the nature's lap.

As we reached the Kumbhalgarh fort, another surprise awaited us.The clouds! Forget about trying to get a view of the 36 Kms long fort wall, the place is famous of.(It is supposed to be the longest wall in the world after the China wall! ) All we could manage was a wall infront as the visibility had reduced to its minimum but I wouldn't complain.It is not everyday you get to walk amidst the clouds that too just a few hours drive away from home! :D

By evening we started back towards the city & with still good time left with us & mood & spirits all freshened up even after the complete day's trekking, courtesy the weather gods, we turned towards Sajjangarh, or as it is better known as The hilltop Monsoon Palace which as can be seen gave a wonderful aerial view of the city, its lakes full with water & the mountains under the green velvet around it.
One of the many aerial views from Sajjangarh fort

Trying to focus on the lake palace in the Lake Pichola for sis!

P.S. Nothing beats an amazing family Sunday trip after what seems like ages.Yes am home!! :D