The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divkaruni:Book Review

 

“..Dhri’s tutor was of the opinion that virtuous women were sent directly into their next birth, where, if they were lucky, they reincarnated as men. But I thought that if lokas existed at all, good women would surely go to one where men were not allowed so that they could be finally free of male demands. However, I prudently kept this theory to myself.”

Mahabharata…isn’t it a story we all have enjoyed and we are quite sure we know?

But how far does our knowledge extend, when it comes to Panchaali, one of the protagonists?

About the Pandavas, our knowledge is quite vast, we know everything about their birth, childhood, and every single important moment of their life but when it comes to Panchaali, our knowledge comes to a full stop in a painfully shorter time. Why?

So, here we have Divakaruni presenting us with the same Mahabharata only now, we have Panchaali at the center of action.

We are taken from her fiery birth, to the pain she experienced at the initial rejection from her father, through her childhood, her fantasies, her view of her marriage with the five Pandava brothers, her relationship with the charming Krishna, her secret attraction for Karna, her expectations, her trials and tribulations in a world shaped by the desires and rules set by men.

Narrated entirely in first person, we have Panchaali herself, telling the epic. But this does not mean that she’s justifying herself, nor does it mean that the male characters are in shadows.

It’s just that Panchaali is brought out from the shadows.

Divakaruni entirely takes us by surprise as we find the numerous events we missed and helps us delve deeper into the intricate details as she beautifully unveils the different layers of such a strong woman as Panchaali.

Reading the book is just like holding an intimate conversation with Panchaali as we discover her questioning the innumerable male chauvinist rules of our society, detesting them, and protesting against them.

We discover Panchaali for who she was, a strong woman ready to challenge the world, to rebel against the boundaries society has prescribed for women, for Vyasa himself agreed,"I only tell people what they can stand………But you- I’ve always known you to be stronger than your husbands."

With its amazing dialogues, flowing style, and its precise narration, this book indeed, is a page-turner.

Its alluring cover, depicting the ‘Palace of Illusions’ Panchaali designed  herself (did you know that?), certainly adds to the charm.

I would strongly recommend reading the Palace of Illusions as it unravels a whole new perspective of the timeless tale we have always loved.

The Palace of Illusions, a book by a feminist, about a feminist, indeed deserves to be read by every feminist.

Happy Reading!!

Happiness Unlimited by B.K. Shivani: Book Review

 “…..rethink and reprogramme your mind to tune in to a happy frequency, pause and notice how life all around you improves in drastic ways.”-B.K.Shivani

Happiness unlimited….. isn’t it something we have all desired for all those years. And lo! Here it is presented in our hands in the form of a beautiful book by a wonderful soul.

Happiness unlimited is not about attaining happiness after an achievement. It is about happily working towards that achievement.

B.K.Shivani very lucidly and methodically explains how we miss out on happiness and the ways in which we can be happy, enjoying and actually living, each and every moment of our life. Along with her, is our favourite, Suresh Oberoi, always ready to ask all those questions which keep popping in our minds during the discussions.

This is a book to be read with a certain amount of peace. Do not read the book in one go. Go chapterwise, slowly, one chapter a day or two, for though the teachings are simple, they are not very easy. You have to work with yourself to reprogramme your thought process. At the end of each chapter there are some beautiful thoughts on which we can reflect on and some summarized points which contain the essence of the conversations in that chapter.

Take some time, sit with yourself, read the book, contemplate and try implementing the required changes and you’ll surely get Happiness Unlimited!!

B.K.Shivani’s talks open up a whole new perspective of the world leading to a deep realization that everything could be so different if only we remove our coloured glasses, coloured with our own point of view.

Inspiring, heartwarming and cheering, this book can be a beautiful start to a new year, a year in which we chose thoughts and feelings aligned with our true nature of peace, love and happiness, a year in which we have our state of mind on top, on the list of the perfections we seek.

Happy New Year :))

and

Happy Reading!!