I had heard a lot about Paulo Coelho and how his novel The Alchemist never fails to inspire the readers to do new things. And somehow I had always avoided this book . I very frequently came across this book in most unimaginable places and I always left it like that . And so when I landed in kerala this time and went about all the books in the house , i saw two of PC's book lying around . One was Alchemist and other was Zahir. And with nothing much to do , i started reading both of them together. I was very much impressed by the poem Ithaca with which he began the Zahir..
As you set out for Ithaka
hope the voyage is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
angry Poseidon- don't be afraid of them:
you'll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
wild Poseidon- you won't encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.
Hope the voyage is a long one.
May there be many a summer morning when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you come into harbors seen for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind-
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars.
Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you are destined for.
But do not hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you are old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.
Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaka won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.
So impressed was I with this poem that i searched for it over the internet , read some of the treatise of it and then sent it across to some of my friends who are studying at Ithaca .. I started reading Zahir during my idle times , during my commute time to physio therapist , during my physiotherapy sessions and so on. I had informed SK and some other friends about my India trip. As people called me up to inquire about accommodation and other mumbai arrangements for me even before I reached Mumbai , I marveled at the concept of favor bank and realized how my deposits in this bank had smoothed my path most of the time , got me new friends who opened up much faster . And while everything was going on pretty ,suddenly I realized that the Zahir has become a Zahir for me.. I was continuously thinking about how the story will progress. How and when the author will meet his lost wife. Wondering about the reaction of the author , wondering about how I will react in case I am in a similar situation. As the author went through many selfish/spiritual/mind opening experiences which changed his outlook , I also traveled in a parallel world of my own taking a peep on my past wondering whether I did the right thing or not whenever it mattered. And then since all things good or bad are supposed to end , Zahir novel also ended some 1 week before i left my home for Mumbai .I got busy with my packing and farewells and my Zahir didn't resurface. I came to mumbai , got in touch with old friends , made fresh deposits in the favor bank and as i fitted into a daily routine , I again met my Zahir. And this time it seemed more persistent. I tried other books but my Zahir on Zahir refused to go .
A long weekend came and I used it to go to kerala to pick up some of my stuffs. I picked up the copy of Zahir too and started rereading it. My dad observed that I had already read that book once . I replied back I am not having any other book to read.. So he gifted a recent english novel . I finished it off in 3 hrs and went back to Zahir ..
In Mumbai, with the life becoming a pattern , Zahir became my steady companion for a few days .And then the unthinkable happened. I misplaced the Zahir somewhere in the office. And now with Zahir gone , I started trying to get a replacement for the Zahir. As i searched the bookstores for Zahir, Gafoor suggested to check internet. And I saw a collection of 14 PC books for sale.
And so now instead of one PC book to deal with , I was having 14 PC books to finish off.
As you set out for Ithaka
hope the voyage is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
angry Poseidon- don't be afraid of them:
you'll never find things like that on your way
as long as you keep your thoughts raised high,
as long as a rare excitement
stirs your spirit and your body.
Laistrygonians and Cyclops,
wild Poseidon- you won't encounter them
unless you bring them along inside your soul,
unless your soul sets them up in front of you.
Hope the voyage is a long one.
May there be many a summer morning when,
with what pleasure, what joy,
you come into harbors seen for the first time;
may you stop at Phoenician trading stations
to buy fine things,
mother of pearl and coral, amber and ebony,
sensual perfume of every kind-
as many sensual perfumes as you can;
and may you visit many Egyptian cities
to gather stores of knowledge from their scholars.
Keep Ithaka always in your mind.
Arriving there is what you are destined for.
But do not hurry the journey at all.
Better if it lasts for years,
so you are old by the time you reach the island,
wealthy with all you have gained on the way,
not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.
Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.
Without her you would not have set out.
She has nothing left to give you now.
And if you find her poor, Ithaka won't have fooled you.
Wise as you will have become, so full of experience,
you will have understood by then what these Ithakas mean.
So impressed was I with this poem that i searched for it over the internet , read some of the treatise of it and then sent it across to some of my friends who are studying at Ithaca .. I started reading Zahir during my idle times , during my commute time to physio therapist , during my physiotherapy sessions and so on. I had informed SK and some other friends about my India trip. As people called me up to inquire about accommodation and other mumbai arrangements for me even before I reached Mumbai , I marveled at the concept of favor bank and realized how my deposits in this bank had smoothed my path most of the time , got me new friends who opened up much faster . And while everything was going on pretty ,suddenly I realized that the Zahir has become a Zahir for me.. I was continuously thinking about how the story will progress. How and when the author will meet his lost wife. Wondering about the reaction of the author , wondering about how I will react in case I am in a similar situation. As the author went through many selfish/spiritual/mind opening experiences which changed his outlook , I also traveled in a parallel world of my own taking a peep on my past wondering whether I did the right thing or not whenever it mattered. And then since all things good or bad are supposed to end , Zahir novel also ended some 1 week before i left my home for Mumbai .I got busy with my packing and farewells and my Zahir didn't resurface. I came to mumbai , got in touch with old friends , made fresh deposits in the favor bank and as i fitted into a daily routine , I again met my Zahir. And this time it seemed more persistent. I tried other books but my Zahir on Zahir refused to go .
A long weekend came and I used it to go to kerala to pick up some of my stuffs. I picked up the copy of Zahir too and started rereading it. My dad observed that I had already read that book once . I replied back I am not having any other book to read.. So he gifted a recent english novel . I finished it off in 3 hrs and went back to Zahir ..
In Mumbai, with the life becoming a pattern , Zahir became my steady companion for a few days .And then the unthinkable happened. I misplaced the Zahir somewhere in the office. And now with Zahir gone , I started trying to get a replacement for the Zahir. As i searched the bookstores for Zahir, Gafoor suggested to check internet. And I saw a collection of 14 PC books for sale.
And so now instead of one PC book to deal with , I was having 14 PC books to finish off.
