Anant | A Meaningful Book By Abhaidev | Personal Review

We love reading.

And, so do you! Right?

Of course, that is the reason you stopped by here to read this small genuine book review :).

Well, not all books (or for that matter, any form of media) are worthy of money and more importantly, the time we need to spend to read it. But, some of them are literary gems. They often prove to be one of the best investment of our time.

The books focused on spirituality often explore a quest or a journey of seeking the ultimate truth. Possibly, the motive might simply be at peace with one’s self, surroundings and situations. It eventually lead to self-realization and you don’t know when your spiritual progress is already started.

We found many such books over the course of our reading journey. Here are quick links to some of them.

• The Quest of the Sparrows by Kartik and Ravi Nirmal Sharma
• Books By Manoj V. Jain

In our never ending quest to find good books, we came to know about Mayank Chandna – better known by his pen name – Abhaidev.

We are fortunate to read some of his books and shared our thoughts about the same in various forms. Here are quick links to our book review articles for some of them.

• The Influencer
• That Thing About You
• The Gods Are Not Dead

Recently, we came across his book ANANT and we found it worth talking about.

Book Cover:

Of course, a book must not be judged by its cover. Yet, we cannot ignore the influence the cover page makes on a casual browser and drives him/her to pick the book for further exploration.

As you can see, the cover page of this book is quite interesting. The literal meaning of Anant is infinite. To represent the same the designer has used outgoing circular waves, it is a a thoughtful gesture. It also represents the ripple effect when you disturb the still water. Which quite effectively represents the central aspect of the story.

The shades pf white, blue and black used for various elements complements the thoughtfulness.

Overall, not very attractive yet honest-to-the-book cover page.

Story as it unfolds:

Let us take a bird’s eye view of the story.

A typical Indian middle class couple in the heart of India (that is Bharat) Savitri Garg and Anil Garg are blessed with a baby boy. Like almost all other traditional families, they also believe in astrology, and have invited Vishwas Parashar (an astrologer) to get his Janm-Kundali (birth chart) prepared. They were keen to foresee the possible future of the newborn with a hope that he will have a good fortune and live prosperously.

This is what all parents desire for their offspring.

Accompanied by Kishore, his assistance, Vishwas did the astrological calculations and predicted a really good fortune for the kid. The duo’s internal exchange of thoughts, however, was suggesting something unexpected will happen in the future of the kid. And, time will tell it better! The kid was named – Anant.

Since the early age, while Anant started showing excellence physically and mentally, he started having visions which came abruptly while he was busy in doing something. The vision show a small door to a portal attracting him towards it. It makes him unaware of the surrounding for the few moments the portal opening is visible to him!

What does that mean? And, will Anant live a regular domestic life and follow the path of material success and happiness; as his parents desired? Well, you need to read the book get your answers.

Over the course of the story, you will meet with Anant, Anil Garg, Savitri Garg, Sofia, Vishwas Parashar, Kishore, Vikrant Khanna, Pradyumna Dixit, and others.

Views and Reviews:

As per Bharatiya Culture or Indian Spirituality, Lord Vishnu is responsible for well-beings of everything and everyone. To keep the balance, he incarnate himself in the form of Avatars. As per this mantra, Lord Vishnu takes 10 major avatars during a cycle of Yugas.

Buddha – is the 9th and recent most avatar of Lord Vishnu in that sense.

Well, even if you don’t follow the Sanatan traditions or don’t believe in Hindu philosophies of life and beyond, the name of Gautam Buddha is not unknown to you. His teachings and life has influenced people across countries and continents.

Gautam Buddha was born as Siddhartha, a prince who has all the joys and material happiness at his disposal. Inspired by the questions rose in his minds, he went on quest to seeking the truth and meaning of everything that matter.

The author clearly mentions:

So, I decided to have a modern take at Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha.

So, you know the roots of the story and what could have been the possible course of actions.

The book surely follow the path “known” in those aspects, however, the way, the author represents it, is interesting.

What I like in the most in this book is – contemporariness.

Am I gonna spend the next 35 years in this absurd circus? Office: A hell, by the people, of the people, for the people.

The way the youth is attracted towards smoking, alcohol, weeds, psychedelics, and other paths, to run away from the realities; is represented quite realistically. At places, the book becomes – for mature readers only. And, the author seems to be very clear with that.

It also talks about the bond of friendship.

You may find the protagonist vulnerable, sometimes, even more than what he should be! But, he comes back and fulfils his commitments made to loved ones. He loves exploring the stuff to find the answers to the questions he was seeking the solutions too, and he wanders in unknown for that. At the same time, he explores material happiness and enjoys material happiness and success too! So, his journey is like a pendulum.

The author doesn’t hesitate talking about “spiritual influencers”, by the way, I like this term. It explains the present scenario quite well.

The baba was nothing more than a spiritual influencer masquerading as a sage, who dodged tough questions by answering them with yet more questions, rendering his gullible and naïve followers speechless and more confused than before.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“Those who know the truth,” Anant said with gravity, “are so intoxicated that they don’t bother lecturing about it to others. Those who know nothing talk about it all the time.”

I guess, you will connect the dots 🙂 .

The exploration of ISKCON philosophy is interesting. In this book, through a character, the author talks briefly about religious extremism as well.

As a result, he became sure that no organized religion or faith would ever lead him to his true destiny. Freedom of thought just wasn’t there. All they expected was complete capitulation. All they required was complete submission, no questions asked.

And, writings of Camus, Sartre and others got a mention as well.

The love between Sofia and Anant is something one would love to fall for. The author explored it nicely.

At places, the things seems being stretched, or the protagonist’s journey may not be what you have expected, but, I think, that is how things happen in the life.

Here are two lines delivering life-lessons, I would love to quote:

“Everyone is just speculating. People will always talk, no matter what you do.”
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“Because people prefer to be served sweet poison instead of the bitter truth.”
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
“At times, it is better not to know what lies ahead.”

And, here is a really thought-provoking lines:

“But do parents really desire truly great people as their children?”

It is deeply meaningful when you re-read it.

So, the book is like a roller-coaster ride, which demands your attention. If you love exploring the books where you have to keep your brain engaged, the questions of existence and beyond tickle your little grey cells, then you should go for this book. It is not for everyone. As the author says in the book:

… realized that knowing makes no difference if you can’t imbibe what you learn.

Summary:

It is a nicely written self-exploration book. It is not meant for time-pass reading. It demands your focus and if you are ready to interact with the story mentally, it is definitely a worthy choice.

ThinkerViews Rating:

Around 7.5 stars out of 10.

Quick Purchase Links:

• Buy - Anant by Abhaidev - Paperback - Amazon IN
• Buy - Anant by Abhaidev - Kindle EBook - Amazon IN
• Buy - Anant by Abhaidev - Paperback - Amazon US
• Buy - Anant by Abhaidev - Kindle EBook - Amazon US

Over To You:

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