I recently read this collection of Bengali short stories translated from the original by Arunava Sinha. It is simply outstanding – to put it in short. Verily a collection of carefully curated masterpieces by some of the most well-known as well as not so famous writers from Bengal that provide the reader with the cultural, … Read more
Here are my notes (part 4) from Life’s Amazing Secrets: How to Find Balance and Purpose in Your Life by Gaur Gopal Das. WHEEL 4: SOCIAL CONTRIBUTION You can be completely selfish, completely selfless or any of the combinations in between. Life is a journey from being selfish to becoming selfless. ‘Act without expectation.’ There … Read more
A Happy New Year 2024 to Everyone! I recently watched a series on Netflix called ‘Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones’. It is a documentary on a set of zones in the world (called Blue Zones) which consist of the highest percentage of centenarians as compared to the rest of the world. The … Read more
Here are my notes (part 3) from Life’s Amazing Secrets: How to Find Balance and Purpose in Your Life by Gaur Gopal Das. WHEEL 3: WORK LIFE At work we tend to compare and compete with others, instead of comparing and competing with ourselves. ‘Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me. … Read more
I recently read a novel by Vivek Shanbhag, the acclaimed Kannada writer, titled ‘Sakina’s Kiss’ – translated in English by Srinath Perur. I was introduced to this author by an earlier novel titled ‘Ghachar Ghochar’ again translated into English. At that time, I was left with a feeling of intrigue after finishing it in a … Read more
Two book recommendations for the yearend. Both by Ruskin Bond. I read both of these one after the other almost a year back and was just going through my Kindle to check them out again. Unhurried Tales is a collection of the longer, well-known stories by Ruskin Bond. Time Stops at Shamli is one of … Read more
Here are my notes (part 2) from Life’s Amazing Secrets: How to Find Balance and Purpose in Your Life by Gaur Gopal Das. WHEEL 2: RELATIONSHIPS ‘A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.’ Having fewer possessions frees one of anxiety, giving you more mind-space for the vital things in … Read more
The source of irritation and anger is within us. Whenever some act by someone else creates that emotion within us, the source of it can be tracked back to an unfulfilled expectation within. The only freedom from this is to fix that expectation. But it does not mean leading a dry life without expectations. It … Read more
Here are my notes from Life’s Amazing Secrets: How to Find Balance and Purpose in Your Life by Gaur Gopal Das. WHEEL 1: PERSONAL LIFE I have found that we as a people have got busier over time. We tend to exclude parts of our lives which are not directly related to hard work and … Read more