Songs of the mist: Spiritual

***Spoiler Alert***
The writing and the quotes were so deep that shows how much one should have dug into self realization to write such a book. I am only reviewing the book and not commenting on spirituality or divinity. This is just a few remarks on the beautiful thoughts and insights shared by the author which has touched me and inspired me and given me a few moments of peace of and clarity while reading the book. I hope that it lasts forever.

"When the living gets unburdened with needs and desires, the life becomes simple and easy to carry."We all have so much to do in the short span of time, but we never really are sure what we are doing and why we are doing it. We just follow what is being done for generation to generation. We don't even find the time to stop and think for a second. When we look back at our life towards the end, we realize that we have been running a race without noticing that we were on the wrong track.
I am not a big fan of spiritual books or divinity for that matter, but I must say that I was really looking forward to reading this book and the author didn't fail to impress me in anyway. I was so entranced in the story that I was reading even while travelling in bus, something that I normally don't prefer doing.

I am not going to analyse the characters in detail here but instead I shall share a few thoughts that popped up in my mind while reading this story. The line of narration along with the varied characters threw a new light in the area of story telling. When it comes to books like these (Spirituality, philosophy or divinity), the author is burdened with the responsibilities of getting the readers' attention. They have a high risk of going off track from the story and concentrating too much on the theme of their book that will end up fetching a snore or two from the readers. This book on the other hand was quite interesting and the deviation from the story to the message that was bound to be conveyed was very subtle. Although towards the end I felt that the discussion on love and life was getting out of hands. There are a few pet peeves about this book like there were one too many metaphors here and there, and a few sentences were way too long to follow the thought process of the author. Ayan's search for the Monk from his dreams was left incomplete. But these can be excused when you are presented with a fulfilling story and a pressing message.


A few quotes from the book that I loved and would like to refer to...."To really live, one has to break the shackles of time which contains one to doing things in a limited way.""To make lasting memories, it is important to be within that moment, with the whole of your awareness involving all your senses rather than get distracted by being involved in actions, like taking pictures.""You don't grab the air that's slipping through your fingers."


The eccentric character Kyaka came off as a cool tribal girl who heals Ashutosh's wounds. Her part in the book was very little compared to the protagonist she was trying to make an impact on, but I'd say that she played a vibrant role that leads the readers to speculation. It makes one wonder if she was real or his apparition. Ashutosh's old life had left him with a daughter he wasn't aware of. But his last words in the book saying "Kyaka lives with me" was a shocking surprise that was in store for the readers. 


Now, I am not going to say this book brings God to you or makes you look at spirituality in a whole other angle, because that is something you should experience and realize for yourself. But I will say that if you want to try and understand the inner divinity and the true meaning of life, look no further, you start with this book. 


The three stars is not because the book is only okay, it is because I am not wise enough to understand the mystical ways of life yet. When I reach that point in my life, I shall read this again and I am sure it will be so popular by then that my five stars may not even matter.


P.S: Thanks a lot to the author and Goodreads for the book.