#21 A book set in your hometown/region

 Around India in 80 Trains – Monica Rajesh

This book borrows its title very obviously from the classic tale of Phileas Fogg and Passepartout in Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne. But adapts it to a different context -  traveling across the length and breadth of India on 80 trains instead. This was probably the most exciting part of the book - its title (and I did like the cover design).

The author, Monisha Rajesh has attempted to write a personal travelogue of her inspired journey across India, so as to reconnect with the land of her origin. Her parents being doctors and settled in London, she had only been to India intermittently. And her past experiences with her hometown had left a bitter taste in her memories. In order to alter this image of India, she along with her photographer friend Passepartout (he is from Sweden, but his real name is never revealed) embarks on a most intriguing and daring one of a kind trip. 

Since the British first started the rail network in India by flagging off the first passenger train from Bombay to Thane in 1853, the Indian railway network has grown to a route of 64,000 km across villages, cities, mountains, coastlines and wastelands. It has earned the nickname the 'Lifeline of the Nation’ which is no small feat.  

Since the author and her friend are foreigners, they do get passes that allow them to get reserved seats a lot more easily than others, but still they do endure a lot of struggles to accomplish their 80 train marathon.  They begin their journey from Chennai and snake their way through the southern most tip of mainland India , Kanyakumari to the end of the railway line in the north – Udhampur. 

From their travels we definitely get a glimpse of the vast and extensive network of the Indian railways as well as several interesting tidbits – mostly about trains. For instance, did you know that the 5 digit number painted on every coach can be deconstructed to figure out in which year it was made (the first two digits) and the kind of coach it would be (2^nd class/sleeper etc.)  The train number can reveal in which zone it plies as well as furnish us with a kind of insider information on how fast it travels. And a few random facts about which trains should not be missed – either for the scenic view or for the experience on board. 

However, even though the premise of the book was interesting and kept me reading for a while, it did get tedious since a large portion of the book dealt with her bitter experiences with India in the past, and a rift between both her and Passepartout on the topic of religion and faith. In the first few chapters she does zero in on a lot of the  non-charming aspects of her travel, and mostly leaves us feeling that she complains too much and in exquisite detail. For instance, I simply can’t get over these lines of her describing the  grand Madurai Meenakshi Temple:

“It was a gaudy, wedge-shaped monumental tower, decorated with radioactive paint and covered with rows of gods, goddesses and demons.  They had eyes like Chihuahuas being squeezed at the neck…..”

Clearly, her dismay at what she saw as a child somehow lingers in the first half of her journey. Even though it does get better, the damage is somehow done, and there is a disconnect between the traveler and the journey. This is a major let-down considering that her language and wry wit is actually quite well drawn out. Probably with more research this book could have transcended its limits from a mere entry book of trains they traveled in and more of an insightful and unique travel narrative.

The author and Passepartout meet a lot of colourful characters on their travels – which immediately dispels any lingering idea that one can define and classify India once and for all. As Mark Tully, one of my favourite writers on India puts it, “India is a land of no full stops”.

They explore many places including the controversy ridden Osho ashram, breathtaking but troubled Assam, vibrant Mumbai, heartwarming and welcoming Amritsar and the caste-driven temple premises of Puri. The readers will definitely keep hoping and wishing she had more to say and describe, since we are left with snatches and glimpses alone.

The last thing she does before she embarks on her final train journey is that checks herself into a ten-day meditation programme which is run for free under the aegis of Goenka in Hyderabad. It basically requires one to be silent for ten days – no phones, no writing, no music, no media or distractions except your breathing and your thoughts. This is called Vipasana , a Burmese technique practiced by the Buddha. But it does have a clichéd tone to it – a troubled foreigner coming to India, finding themselves in one of the spiritual paths prescribed – sound familiar? Probably.

Her final thoughts on the journey as she steps of the final train were truly insightful, when she realizes that she was holding the bad memories from her childhood memories of India and had become a hostage to the past. But it does come too late.

If you don’t go into the book with any high expectations , it would not be a complete let-down. It must be said that this book, is neither a book on trains, nor a travelogue completely. But it straddles a unique combination of personal recollections, intrepid data on the railways, glimpses of a unique nation. Though it fails to ignite a desire in one like the famous classic it is named after, it definitely leaves one with an idea that this is probably a great way to see a country as varied and diverse as India.

   

   

#20 A book about philosophy

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance – Robert M. Pirsig

 First published in 1974, Robert M. Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance went on to be described in The London Telegraph as ‘the most widely read philosophy book ever.’ What helped elevate it to a cult-like status was that it came at a time when authority, in all forms, was being challenged everywhere; when the debate on whether technological advancements were good or bad were being waged worldwide.

  

As the subtitle of the book suggests, this book was simultaneously “an inquiry into values” – it basically captured the essence of 20^th century philosophy, thereby catapulting it to a cult classic.

Although it is deep and complicated and takes a lot of focus to read, it dwells upon some pertinent questions about life and Quality (yes, with a capital Q) in particular. Interlaced with stories from an across-the-west motorcycle trip with his son and some friends, Pirsig tells the story of his past in an almost former life before being admitted to a mental institution after going crazy in his pursuit of Quality. He often uses the motorcycle as an analogy.

Being a student of philosophy and a Professor of rhetoric, he is an authority on the subject by itself. But he goes further to explore the ideas of rhetoric, quality, the scientific method, technology and many ideas of the ancient Greek philosophers.

This book in fact has three narrative threads:

    

    1)      A road-trip on a motorcycle across the United States by a father and son

    2)      A philosophical mediation

    3)      A story of a man who is being pursued by the ghost of his former self (Phaedrus)

Let me explain.

Robert M. Pirsig was a Professor of Rhetoric and Creative Writing who was well known as an excellent analytical thinker. While teaching the rules of good writing to his students he came to an understanding – knowing rules of good writing, only resulted in bad writing. So, in fact he says, there are no rules as such, but we can differentiate between good and bad writing. However, this undermines the tenets of philosophy, if you can’t formalize Quality and can’t define it. His attempts to deal with this deceptively simple question – What is Quality? – leads him into a frantic search into philosophies of the past (Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Hegel…)

Unfortunately , this feverish attempt on his part only leads him to a complete breakdown for which he is institutionalized and given electroshock therapy.  ‘Phaedrus’ is the name the narrator gives to that former self of his, before the electroshock therapy created a schism in his personality.

Robert Pirsig and his son Chris on the 1968 road trip that inspired this book

So that’s one part of the book.  This flashback is slowly revealed to the readers as he travels across the United States on his motorcycle along with his eleven year old son, Chris. Their experiences on the road , what they see and do are also a part of this book. In these parts we come across some real classic lines which will instil a lifelong love for motorcycle riding.

“In a car you're always in a compartment, and because you're used to it you don't realize that through that car window everything you see is just more TV. You're a passive observer and it is all moving by you boringly in a frame. On a cycle the frame is gone. You're completely in contact with it all. You're in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming.”

During their travel, there are many digressions on several topics including a very important one for the author – the two attitudes towards life. He uses the motorcycle as an analogy. According to him there are these two viewpoints: classical and romantic. And he explains this through the way we interact with a motorcycle.

If you are a romantic, you would be thrilled with the act of riding a motorcycle, feeling the wind rushing past , happy to be riding a bike , and being “in the moment.”

But, if you are a classicist this would not be enough since you would insist on familiarizing yourself with the working parts of the machine, developing a feel for how tight to secure the bolts etc. Basically you not only enjoy riding the bike, but also knowing everything possible on how to maintain the bike.

This is a major difference in attitude that underlies our interactions with the world around us, according to Pirsig. Slowly, we begin to see how his past inquiry into Quality dominates his current bike trip with his son, and seemingly jeopardizes his identity again. The ghost of his former self, Phaedrus, seems to be an ever-present shadow that challenges his current mental stability.

However, the only way he can seem to come to terms with all this is by explaining what he went through in his past philosophical inquiry and that is what forms a major part of the book.  

His thoughts on the educational system and the method of grading in universities are quite revolutionary and still may be read that way. But we can’t deny his passionate exploration into what truly is relevant and meaningful in our lives and in improving the Quality of our lives.

So why the title – why Zen? And why ‘Motorcycle Maintenance’?  Zen being a practical form of Buddhism believes in a non-dualistic way of life and incorporates silence and meditation into daily practice. Essentially, we will realize that the author intends the motorcycle to be a symbol of the soul itself.  We need to maintain a balanced peace with who we are first and foremost. Just like a motorcycle that can give you wings to freedom, but you must also know how to maintain it.

Roberst Pirsig’s book was rejected by 121 publishers he sent it to, except one. But like he says, “one is all you need.” This book probably will become clearer only with some re-readings, but it certainly has a lot of intriguing points and can be said to belong to the category of books that can change the way you think. But then, this is just my opinion. 

[P.S. if you would like to try reading a book on philosophy and find it  confusing where to begin, I would strongly recommend Sophie’s World  by Jostein Gardner – take a pen and notebook, lots of notes are sure to ensue! ]

#19 A book published in the 20th century

The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco

Umberto Eco was one on the most well-known European literary critic of the 20^th century. His fame would have rested on just his contribution to semiotics (the study of signs) alone, but he went a step further. He published his first novel, The Name of the Rose in 1983 and became an international literary sensation.

Being a historian specializing in medieval aesthetics, Umberto Eco is able to conjure up almost exactly the pervasive mood of doubt and suspicion of the 14^th century religious conspiracies.  The Name of the Rose is set in the year 1327, in a wealthy Franciscan abbey in the mountains of Italy, where a monk has been found dead.  William of Baskerville, an English brother and follower Aristotle’s logic and Roger Bacon’s scientific enquiry, is sent on a delicate mission to this abbey.  Over the course of seven days, seven grisly murders take place. Turning detective, it is up to Brother William to collect evidence, decipher secret symbols and coded manuscripts as he digs into the eerie mystery that lies behind the murders. He has the help of Adso, a novice monk. So basically it will appear to be Sherlock Holmes and Watson thrown into a 1300s medieval abbey with a lot of theological debate thrown in. And when I say a lot of theological debate, I mean a lot. 

Being a postmodernist cultural critic, Umberto Eco’s book is clearly no simple plot-driven thriller (so if you thought this book sounds kind of like Da Vinci Code, you will be wrong). He interweaves so many genres into this one novel –it could be labelled as historical fiction, mystery, theology and philosophy, meta-fiction, detective fiction, literature, and more. Being a professor of semiotics, he is also concerned with how signs produce meanings. So, in many ways the ‘detection’ of Brother William also becomes a metaphor for our investigation into the nature and limits of human knowledge itself. William's method of deduction hinges on his ability to "read the signs" in the world around him.

Perhaps the most fascinating part of this book would be that this is a book on books! And you will be completely awestruck with the library in this monastery – it is constructed as a labyrinth – only the librarian and assistant librarian know where the each book is kept, no one else. Even if you wanted to get into the library labyrinth – there would be no way a layman would be able to get out. 

"There are reasons for the silence and the darkness that surround the library: it is the preserve  of learning but can maintain this learning unsullied only if it prevents its reaching anyone at all, even the monks themselves.”

And since all the murders point towards a secret manuscript in the library, Brother William and Adso need to find a way to navigate their way through this top secret, forbidden ‘labyrinthical’ library. Absolutely fascinating those scenes are!

Since there is a lot of untranslated Latin in the book, it would leave one a bit disoriented at the start. But I felt that the author may have meant us to be a little bit of a detective ourselves! Turns out there is an (expensive) reading companion to this novel …but I found the next best thing – a blog that is dedicated to collecting all the Latin translations in this book!

The pace of this book is very slow, and for the first two hundred odd pages, you may even find it utterly mind-boggling. But, it is a work of a 20^th century postmodern mind set in a medieval times with a ton of history at its back. So, I guess it is inevitable. As the plot thickens and you wish to get closer to the mystery, there may occur digressions on philosophy, religion, logic or even architecture. Be ready to tackle a bit of confoundment if you are getting ready to read this one.

Surprisingly there is a touch of humour too that mostly is sprinkled in the dialogues between William and Adso, while at the same time make an interesting comment on the nature of truth itself:

“But then…” I ventured to remark, “you are still far from the solution….”

”I am very close to one,” William said, “but I don’t know which.”

“Therefore you don’t have a single answer to your questions?”

“Adso, if I did I would teach theology in Paris.”

“In Paris do they always have the true answer?”

“Never,” William said, “but they are very sure of their errors.”

[...]I had the impression that William was not at all interested in the truth…..he amused himself by imagining how many possibilities were possible.  

Though it was made into a movie with Sean Connery as Brother William, the author was extremely disappointed with it apparently, and never did allow any of his further fictions to be translated onto the big screen. I have yet to watch the movie though, but the book will probably have the last say.

Sic semper erat, sic semper erit :)