Bestselling author M.K. Ramachandran is well-known for his unique travelogues. Not only does he beautifully recount his journey but he also delves into history and culture, tying in various threads to show the reader the many elements that make India what it is.
The Journey to Adi Kailash is no different. While detailing his trek to one of the most revered mountains of India, Ramachandran includes interpretations of our history, culture, traditions, the Puranas and the Upanishads, as well as contributions by great sadhus, sages and rishis. He weaves in interesting stories—of how the Asuras came to India, the ancient technology of turning metal to gold, the ninety-five-year-old woman who is well-versed in the 144 courses of Kriya Yoga, the yogi who acquires the power to fly into the sky . . .
The Journey to Adi Kailash is compelling reading, and a book that holds a mirror to the greatness of India.
Hamid Dalwai has been called a Muslim modernizer who relentlessly worked towards promoting reason and justice among Muslims. He was attracted by the ideas of Ram Manohar Lohia and became an active member of the Socialist Party. Soon after, concerned with issues besetting the Muslim community, Dalwai became a dedicated social worker, arguing for a critical introspection of the values that informed it. Forming the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal in the 1970s, he tirelessly fought the orthodoxy in the community, pursuing the emancipation of women through the abolishment of triple talaq and promoting a truly secular outlook that would inform the politics of the country.
The essays in Muslim Politics in India emerged from a series of interviews that Dalwai had with the Marathi poet Dilip Chitre, who then rendered them as essays in English. They display the same passion and forthrightness, eloquence and commitment that informed Dalwai’s actions as a social worker. Muslim Politics in India is arguably the most perceptive analysis of Muslim politics to appear in post-Independence India. It retains the same freshness—and relevance—that it had when it was first published some three decades ago.
THE ART OF FOCUS
By GAURANGA DAS
The Art of Focus presents forty-five simple stories filled with revelations to enthral readers with learnings from the experiences of the protagonists and the dynamics of the situations that manifested in their lives. Building on the first book, The Art of Focus inspires the resilient heart to develop a focused mind. This collective presentation will better equip readers to take charge of their lives and adapt to the new normal effectively.
ASK THE MONK
By NITYANAND CHARAN DAS
In Ask the Monk, celebrated monk Nityanand Charan Das lucidly answers over seventy frequently-asked questions—from young and old alike—on topics such as karma, religion versus spirituality, the mind, God, destiny, the purpose of life, suffering, rituals, religion, wars and so on. These answers are extremely crucial to help you, the reader, embark on a journey of self-discovery and self-realization.
THE POWER OF THOUGHTS
By SWAMI MUKUNDANANDA
In this book, Swami Mukundananda, a world-renowned spiritual teacher from India and an internationally acclaimed mind-management authority, will teach you about watching your thoughts, directing them, dismantling harmful thought structures, creative thinking, meditation and much more. When you focus on revolutionizing your thoughts—the most fundamental aspect of inner personality—you will discover yourself evolving to divine heights to fulfil the purpose of your life.
While the Puranas mention that Lord Brahma becomes an avatar whenever Lord Vishnu comes to Earth to establish dharma, it is in the Dasam Granth (one of the holy books of the Sikhs) that the avatars are actually listed. The common point in Hinduism and Sikhism regarding the avatars of Brahma is that they are seen as great thinkers and teachers.
In this book, the authors, who run the popular website, Scientific Monk, delve into the lives of each avatar, their works and the philosophies presented by them. They explain how the avatars of Brahma help us understand the Indian thought process and India’s intellectual heritage, and give readers a view of the works of India’s greatest yogis from a twenty-first-century world view.
Political Hinduism was once considered a sort of fringe ideology, shadowy and even misunderstood. Its ideas and narratives seemed, in popular discourse, to lack analytical rigour and were easily dismissed.
But history shows that political Hinduism as an intellectual idea was a pioneering theme in India’s nationhood. In fact, it precedes the Indian republic and has been one of the most resilient political theories of India, which survived many bans, boycotts and decades out of power to become, in the twenty-first century, the predominant political force of India. The adherents of political Hinduism are as determined as its detractors—one complains about facing relentless prejudice; the other throws accusations of promoting continuous religious strife. One believes that India cannot be saved without decimating political Hinduism; the other is sanguine that only political Hinduism can save the future of India.
Soul and Sword traces the journey of political Hinduism from events that are critical to its self-narration, that is, early Indian resistance to invasions, to intellectual definitions by nineteenth-century littérateurs and more contemporary electoral politics. It tries to understand the context and historical sources used to construct and promote political Hinduism’s world view.
From award-winning writer Hindol Sengupta, Soul and Sword is absolutely critical reading to understand India’s present and future.
No human is unacquainted with the concept of pain. It is an inescapable universal experience. Shweta Kirti’s pain has been, unfortunately, very public because of the death of her thirty-four-year-old brother, the Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
What she learnt, however, is that while pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. It is pain that can teach us how to rise above suffering and the limits we create for ourselves with our attachment to material goals like money, fame, success and relationships. In this book, Shweta shares her learnings so that no one is alone on this hard but necessary odyssey.
Synthesizing science, spirituality and philosophy, Pain: A Portal to Enlightenment is an invitation to embark on a transformative journey to find inner peace and fulfilment no matter what life throws at you.
In 1897, an Indian yogi named Bava Lachman Dass exhibited himself at the Westminster Aquarium in London, demonstrating forty-eight yoga positions to a bemused audience. Four years earlier, Hindu philosopher Swami Vivekananda had spoken at the first World Parliament of Religions in Chicago, where theosophist Annie Besant rhapsodized about ‘his inborn sense of worth’ and the ‘exquisite beauty’ of his spiritual message.
The Victorians had conflicted views on the religious beliefs and practices of the Indian subcontinent, blending fascination and suspicion. But within two generations, legions of young Westerners would be following the ‘hippie trail’ to India, and the Beatles would be meditating at the feet of the guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Journalist Mick Brown’s vivid account charts the eccentric history of the West’s evolving love affair with Indian religion through a curious cast of scholars, seekers, charlatans and saints.
From Edwin Arnold, whose epic poem about the life of the Buddha became a best-seller in Victorian Britain, to the occultist and magician Aleister Crowley; and from spiritual teachers Jiddu Krishnamurti, Meher Baba and Ramana Maharshi to the controversial guru Rajneesh, The Nirvana Express is an exhilarating, sometimes troubling journey through the West’s search for enlightenment.
Such has been the transformative effect of the Covid-19 pandemic globally that, today, we have begun to describe events in the world as pre-Covid and post-Covid. As we brace ourselves for life in the new world order, cultivating conducive and sustainable habits has become more important than ever before.
As the final book in the three-volume series (after The Art of Resilience and The Art of Focus), The Art of Habits presents forty simple stories filled with deep revelations. What will enthral the readers is the engaging narration, the dynamics of the situations that manifest and the deep learnings from such episodes.
While The Art of Resilience presented ingredients for the reader to inculcate resilience in challenging situations manifested at the beginning of the pandemic, The Art of Focus inspired the resilient heart to develop a focused mind during the multiple Covid waves. Now, The Art of Habits provides ideas for the focused reader to cultivate conducive and sustainable habits to adapt with the paradigm shift created by the pandemic, instilling in the reader a resolute mindset to handle multiple such unexpected transformative events in the future.
It contributes to current analyses of the health of liberal democracies-Rajmohan Gandhi
An impressive contribution to Gandhian studies-Bhikhu Parekh
This work merits attention-Gopal Guru
An extremely valuable and timely work-Prabhat Patnaik
Time and again, Mahatma Gandhi’s life, work and philosophy have played pivotal roles in bringing positive change in society. Poorna Swaraj, through its reading of the Constructive Programme: Its Meaning and Place, opens a window to his vision of attaining real and complete independence or ‘swaraj’ for India. With his ideas on communal unity, prohibition, basic education, emancipation of women, advisasis’ concerns, farmers’ distress, removal of untouchability, demystification of leprosy, the role of khadi, charkha, village and small-scale industries, among others, this book brings to light Gandhi’s road map for an egalitarian society.
This first critical edition, with a comprehensive contextual introduction by Dhananjay Rai, sets the backdrop for readers to understand Gandhi’s thoughts on making an ideal society. Amazingly relevant and thought-provoking, Poorna Swaraj is a must-read for students and scholars of history, social science, politics and Gandhian studies. An invaluable companion for policymakers and general readers, this book is a treasure trove.
Does destiny block our path to success?
How can we make complex relationships thrive?
Discover practical answers to these questions within the pages of DHRUVA, an enthralling narrative penned by Gauranga Darshan Das, an esteemed author, educator and monk, hailing from the prestigious IISc.
Prince Dhruva’s awe-inspiring journey evokes a spectrum of emotions–love, heartbreak, revenge, passion, guilt and devotion. As you immerse yourself in this gripping tale, Gauranga Darshan artfully weaves his realizations as pearls of wisdom that are refreshingly simple yet remarkably effective.
With a seamless blend of storytelling prowess and practical wisdom, DHRUVA shall deeply resonate with your pursuit of organic success and fulfilling relationships.
