The Facets of Human Life: Moods and Moments

The Facets of Human Life deals with the serious and light sides of our existence. The focus is on varied themes, such as romantic love, domestic life, social hypocrisy, decline in fundamental values, moral degradation, lack of manners, nostalgia, right living and ethics. This weaving of various strands in to the mesh of the essays is natural, not obtrusive. The reason being the author has a wide and varied frame of references on the tip of his pen, so to say. The knowledge that he brings to bear upon his topics is that of Atma-Satkaran, in Sri Aurobindo’s language, not just that of intellectual assimilation. As for thematic variety, there’s God’s plenty-iridescent with gems of insight and gentle humour. To catalogue a few insights: The charmed circle argues that it is important to step out of one’s habitual circle for fresh stimulus and cerebral growth. In the other side of Shimla, the Author evinces a lot of monostalgia, but his nostalgia enriches the present. In the Alcemy of joy too he dwells on the same theme. He is critical of the mindset which dodges the present and avoids the challenge and promise of the future by overdwelling on the past, positive or negative. In some essays, without any jjargon and theoretics, he shows rare insight into the matter concerning life as in The anatomy of anger. The second childhood, A timely utterance and Hoping against hope. As for style it is lucid throughout. No rhetorical stilts are used. At times it becomes evocative. It is not just in felicity of phrasing, in the weave of quotations, mesh of echoes but also in the tenor, which is in accord with the vehicle. So there is no dissonance. His forte is suavity and gentleness. He is at his best when he is tender, whimsical, ironic, nostalgic and reflective.