BEGINNING IS THE TOUGHEST

One of the must-dos of my life is to write a book and publish it.

One day, probably a year back while discussing with EM, decided to start writing about a topic. It took me one year just to get the skeleton of the theme ready. About 70 pages of rambling thoughts in one doc file.

I know the real effort commences from here on. But, the feeling of playing with this word file is so satisfying...

A SUNSET TO REMEMBER

One of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen....over the Atlantic Ocean.

(Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro)

SUGAR LOAF TO CORCOVADO

The hill chain of Rio starting from Sugar loaf on the left to Corcovado on the right...

(On a evening from Niteroi)

THE COUNTRY OF PAULO COELHO

Work and profession pulled me to Brazil. Since the last few days, I have been through Sao Paulo, walked through the streets of Rio de Janeiro, visited potential business partners in these hubs of Brazil, travelled through Niteroi appreciated the beauty of the Sugar Loaf and Corcovado mountains and have seen Ipanema and Copacabana amongst other places.

These are incidentally the names of some of the places which my favorite author Paulo Coelho frequently mentions in his books while describing Brazil, his home country. Feel like reopening those classics again and start reading especially after this experience.

SUN IN THE CLOUDS

Sun and the clouds playing with each other on the top of Corcovado in Rio. Loved the way sun acts as an halo to the hazily visible Cristo.

RIVER OF JANUARY

Currently, tens of thousands of miles away from near and dear ones, in a city whose English translation is River of January, I rediscover the magic India has...

BUDDHA

Difficult to believe a rock taking such an articulate pose of the meditating Buddha. That too on the top of Swiss Alps.

(Top of Mt. Titlis, Swiss Alps)

ALEPH

“…..letting himself be guided by signs, he travelled to various continents – Europe, Africa and Asia – on a journey through time and space, through past and present, in search of himself.”

I have developed a new fascination about this topic of time and space converging and surprisingly the books I am picking up randomly to read these days are also based on this theme. First the “Power of Now” and now “Aleph”.

In the beginning, Paulo Coelho reveals his frustration due to a crisis of faith he finds himself in. Typical Paulo Coelho, he once again uses extensive travel for the purpose of self discovery and in the process of reconnection with the universe. The medium of transport, this time, is the Trans Siberian rail across Europe and Asia from Moscow to Vladivostok. The book is about the author’s experiences during Trans Siberian train journey he took with his publishers and a girl whom he meets in the journey. This girl had shared a mysterical and mystical relationship with the author in one of their previous lives and the whole theme of the book revolved around Paulo Coelho and this girl.

This book uses the concept of reincarnation as the guiding philosophy. Like every other Paulo Coelho book, this is also about signs, omens, love and forgiveness with a sense of beauty of expression.

THE POWER OF NOW

A few months ago, I completed reading “The Power of Now” by Echarte Tolle. I spent almost a couple of months with this book trying my best to grasp the essence of the book. I am not the best person to comment on books of such genre.

Even though I am not successful in practicing what is presented in this book, yet it is intriguing to think about these concepts and practices. Extensive words like self, ego, deeper presence, separation, resistance, inner body, acceptance, surrender, infinity, eternity etc. might give the book an esoteric look. But as far as I understood, it’s a book on meditation techniques and meditation by its very nature stresses on the concept of “now”. The techniques are way beyond my levels of understanding. But one thing I can safely claim is that I am better off reading this book.

A line from the book:
"am I one or two? If I cannot live with myself, there must be two of me: the 'I' and the 'self' that 'I' cannot live with”
One more:
"Feel (your body) from within. Is it alive? Is there life in your hands, arms, legs, and feet? … Keep focusing on the feeling … Do not start to think about it. Feel it … Perhaps there is just a slight tingling in your hands or feet … the more attention you give it, the clearer and stronger it will become”.

If you think such lines and concepts appeal to you, then you will love this book. Even if it doesnot, no harm in trying to learn something new for good.