A Modern Day Siddhartha
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With the sheer will, guts, determination, and sacrifice of his mother throughout his childhood, Max fought and scratched his way out of the slums of NYC, watching out for his litter sister Sophia the best he could. A Harvard graduate, he landed a lucrative job in finance, and by societal standards is living the American dream. But after nursing his mother through cancer and her early death, Max comes to realize that his life is hollow and the dreams he's pursued are not his own. A chance encounter with a shirtless Indian man, impervious to the freezing winter  selling falafel from a cart, sets Max on a new path, with this phrase as his road map:

"So, if there is birth, age, suffering, sorrow, and death, then there must be something that is unborn, un-aging, un-ailing, sorrowless, and deathless - immortal, as it were."

Max sets off to India to find it, to see it face-to-face.

The rest of the story details Max's quest. Karan Bajaj handles a seemingly impossible task beautifully: to enable a reader to experience very personal, first-hand experiences of intense yoga, meditation, glimpses of bliss through the eyes of another.

Everyone who reads this story will come away with different wisdoms, insights, and learnings. I come to this story as a Christian, Universalist, and seeker.

On the one hand, it has strengthen and refined my personal paradigm in ways that are fundamentally different from Max's: that a belief in karma and reincarnation can lead to harmful feelings of inadequacy and superiority; that sex, love, and commitment are inextricably intertwined; devotion to family and friends is not in opposition to our personal journey but the most precious part of one's life tapestry; and a knowledge that we will always be flawed, are loved unconditionally, and Christ as our advocate and mediator brings us fully into the presence of God. In Dying to Be Me, Indian author Anita Morojani presents another, karma-less account of reaching bliss, simply by accepting the unconditional love that is offered to all and living each moment authentically and fearlessly.

On the other hand, there are many wisdoms in this story that I am reaping the benefits from in my daily living and in seeking God. It has drawn me back to my yoga mat, put the seed in my mind of taking a meditation-based retreat one day, renewed my belief in the miraculous and each of us as miracle-workers, and encouraged me to further push the limits in quiet, simple, service-centered living.
2762041
Swami Vivekananda was one of the first Indians in modern times to effectively convey the message of Indian Philosophy and Religion in the West. He was a powerful orator, a clear writer, a nice poet, a fine humorist, a master of Indian and Western philosophy, a deep thinker, a dreamer of an ideal human society and a great social worker. He is one of the greatest thinkers of modern India. This book contains notes taken down by his disciples when he stayed for a few days at the Thousand Islands Park. He was at the peak of his spirits during the time. This book records the most inspired thoughts of Swami Vivekananda. The language is very powerful. The ideas are very mature and clarvoyant. Many of the ideas create a great surprise in the reader considering the fact that the words were spoken around 1900. This book is a must for anyone who wants to get a glimpse of Swami Vivekananda. It will also serve as a mine of ideas on religious harmony, social equality, spiritual aspiration and achievement, etc.
4289823
If an ordinary worldly-minded person was to read this book, there would only be two extreme reactions. One would feel shocked and disgusted while the other would be filled with deep admiration for this class of human beings. I belong to the latter!

While reading this book, I felt a great shift of my consciousness to a higher plane. It was as if most of the sadhus were blessing me and were aware that I was reading about their fascinating way of life. It is definitely light years away from the modern world! The pictures of these holy men were simply breath-taking and the authors objective view (filled with subtle humour) of these sadhus is amazingly filled with reverence and a deep understanding of Hindu philosophy.

If one were to visit India, he/she must pay a visit to these holy men. That is the REAL India!
4408094
AP World History Review: a description of your opinion of the book Mansi Patel

I think this book was well written considering it was written in the 1900s. The author does a good job employing the purpose of how Buddhism spread through the land of India and how Buddhism influenced the thoughts of the characters in the book. They realized that people show live a simple way of life without desires. He incorporates elements of Hindusim and Buddhism to show that religions are equal and that no one religion is greater than the other. I would recommend this book to others if they would like to learn more about the spread of Buddhism and how castes worked in India.

I also liked how he made the book into Siddhartha's journey to finding enlightement and finding who he himself was. I don't like how the author includes a lot of characters to show their influence on Siddhartha becasue it makes the whole journey seem unreal. Overall, the main concepts of the books are written well and in a way that he can get his purpose across through the descriptions of the ways of life in many groups of people. I also liked how he incorporated descriptions of basically each type of people in the society from brahimins, merchants, ascetics, to even women in the society. This really helped show that even throughout society people practiced realitively the same customs of the religion and how people incorporated both Hindu and Buddhist beliefs. This emphasized how many religions are equal even if different people practice them, and that no one religion is more important than the other.
3557870
'Old Path White Clouds' is a story of Siddhartas life and the early spreading of the buddhist teachings, or "Dharma". The book is an excellent introduction to the basic ideas of buddhism.
2081541
This book describes the background and philosophy of a group of historically and spiritually significant yogis.  The author points out some very interesting facts about various kinds of enlightenment.  He also mentions several different definitions of the term Siddha.  This term is used too loosly in several modern spiritual groups and is hence a bit misleading because the term really does have specific meanings that are not fulfilled by the modern spiritual groups who us the term.  The author has researched the topic thoroughly citing well established texts and resources on the topic.  It is an interesting and well written book on the topic.
394357
Meet Shirdi Baba!  This modern rendering of Baba's life and wisdom is easy to read with each chapter a treasure for the reader.  I started by using a practice of reading a chapter a day.  I found a new insight from Baba each day and it always felt like it was just for me.  Now that I have read the entire book, I randomly open the book and it seems like it is brand new. It feels like a living text that seems to know the reader and what the heart needs today. Monika and her team have put together a spiritual experience and brought Baba of Shirdi to the West.
2417244
Sivananda was true guru, he knew a lot and this is interesting reading. Style is not
that perfect but it is not that important.
654713
I haven't enjoyed a spiritual adventure in reading like this since I read Siddhartha by Hesse in college many years ago.  The combination of science and spirit dealt with issues most authors shy away from.  Either one must be rational and scientific or else spiritual and religious.  The author shows that they are not mutually exclusive.  Lightman 'lights' the way into the creation of our universe with fact, some humor, and philosophy.  This was an enjoyable read; a pleasant way for the layperson to understand our evolution from nothing to something.
2893661
No one knows when or how the Panchatantra was composed. However, according to the legend, a Brahmin scholar named Vishnu Sharma designed it to teach the sons of a king something about life, neeti (policy) and real-politik. The result was a mosaic of interlocking stories that emerge from one another, and leave you with a lot of understanding about dealing with life. Incidentally, though some people compare Panchatantra with Arabian Nights, the comparison is not apt. Arabian Nights do not really offer any learning, they are purely for entertainment. Panchatantra has the power to deepen your understanding of the world in immeasurable ways.

The book reached Arabia sometimes in the fifth century AD, and then later it reached Europe, where it is believed to have led to development of Aesop's fables. It is difficult to judge how it has affected these societies, but in India it has had tremendous impact, which continues to this day. Its lessons are alive and well even today, and almost every child will know at least one story from Panchatantra.

The present translation from the original Sanskrit is good one, though it appears to have been condensed at many places, with many critcal comments left out. If you want a more faithful translation, you may look in Penguin Classics where it has been published as 'Pancatantra', translated by Chandra Rajan, and offers an excellent introduction to boot.

However, Sanskrit and English are two very different languages in their orientation (though they belong to the same family). As a result, the translation of many ideas suffers. Also, some of the particularly interesting comments have been left out altogether. So if you know Hindi or Sanskrit, then you should try and buy the Panchatantram in Sanskrit/ Hindi (published by Motilal Banarasi Das of Delhi).

Even so, going through this book may open up another world for you, particularly if you were not brought up in India. It will change your perspective on many ordinary things and challenges that you face in everyday life. There are stories which teach you how to recognise deceit, fraud, cheating, make friends, cooperate with people, and generally get on with life. And there are arguments over particular positions that the protagonist takes, so that you get to see both points of view. You would also find this book particularly useful if you are dealing with Indians in business or in diplomacy, just as Western audiences have found the Art of War (Sun Tzu) to be a fascinating insight into the Chinese mind.

As the stories are built around animals, many people mistake these for nursery stories or for fables. This is not correct. Panchatantra is as relevant for adults as it is for teenagers. In fact some of the stories involving adults are not appropriate for young children (<13 years).

All in all, an excellent book for your own enjoyment or as a gift to a young or old friend.
2330334
Datta's revisioning of the Ramayana is truly majestic. Sophisticated and subtle, shimmering and muscular, it deserves to be included in the Western contemporary global canon. I actually prefer it to the Illiad--to my mind, its equal in heroic gravitas. An appropriately lucid and rich introduction firmly grounds the reader in the matrix of the work's origins as well as its relevance for the contemporary reader of global literature. A timeless work of art.
4892429
Well worth reading if you like modern day Indian culture.
3582020
I'd always wanted to read the Bhagavad Ghita, but had never got around to it, until I happened across this translation at the library.

In short, the Bhagavad Ghita is a battlefield conversation between Arjuna, a warrier and the Lord Krishna. The scripture is an important part of Hindu religious scriptures and in it Krishna essentially lays out for Arjuna the nature of the soul and the various types of Yoga or paths to God.

The conversation originally comes about because Arjuna is extremely distressed at the prospect of having to kill his own relatives in the battle before him.  Krishna explains that souls can never die and that Arjuna must play his assigned role in the great scheme of things.  Furthermore, Krishna explains to Arjuna how to balance the spiritual journey with worldly obligations, and how the intentions with which we fulfill our worldly duties differentiate the spiritual man.

This book contains an introduction by Aldous Huxley which discusses the Bhagavad Ghita's relationship to Huxley's concept of the Perennial Philosophy (a common meaning of things that all religious ultimately depict).  Included at the end of the text are brief discussions on the "Cosmology of the Ghita" and the "Ghita and War".

If I could change anything about this translation, I would have liked to see more annotations throughout the text but that's a minor gripe becaus overall I found this quick and interesting and accessible for me as a first time reader of the Bhagavad Ghita.
1637598
This book is an excellent insight into the life and times of both Princess Mandharava and the great Guru Padmasambhava, as told by Padmasambhava himself and recorded by his Tibetan consort Yeshe Tsogyal. This book is a terma (a teaching which was written down and then hidden for this present time). Also, it has a blessing prophecy attatched to it, making it very beneficial to read or even be near a copy of this text. The terma itself is very easy to read and follows Mandharava's extrordinary life, in a most interesting progression. It's a very inspiring story!
841341
Being a student of Kriyananda and Yogananda, I thought I knew much about Swamiji. This book has disclosed something I'm not sure I have read elsewhere, and not knowing him personally I had never understood.

Swamiji has many mystical powers. He has the power of Prescience.

  It is important to me to know these things. I now see Swamiji with a
new pair of glasses.
Reading the intimate details of the daily decisions made by this living Saint as he leads his followers on the upward path is indeed a rare revelation.
I learned much from Swamiji's approach to problems large and small.

Highly Recommended!

Please also check out his new book "Relations of Christ"  listed below

&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Revelations-of-Christ-Proclaimed-by-Paramhansa-Yogananda-Presented-by-his-disciple-Swami/dp/1565892224/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Revelations of Christ: Proclaimed by Paramhansa Yogananda, Presented by his disciple, Swami</a>
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Visakha eloquently reveals how a young,lovely,educated, all American girl of Jewish birth and atheistic leaning bloomed into a transcendental seeker firmly grounded in one of the worlds most mystical paths to God. Her early success as a renowned photographer and published author were not accomplished by dallying about with the rest of the hippies in the 60s but were her launching pad into a philosophy and culture most never have the courage to explore. Through her dignified and elegant approach with her writing she reveals a most sacred, loving relationship with her beloved guru, Bhaktivedhanta Swami, the only reason she was able to remain fixed in her choice to study the most elevated and complex scriptures of the revered Vedas. Anyone that thinks the Hare Krishna Movement in America was or is just a bunch of societal rejects hiding in a colorful cult will be very surprised to read the depth and sincerity of the spiritual practices and disciplines.
Visakha also reveals the prejudices of many of the male students towards females in the Krishna society, just as females experience in the contemporary secular world. This was very shocking and caused great difficulty for her in the execution of her appointed service as personal photographer for Bhaktivedhanta Swami along with her husband John Greisser.
 She explains that miraculously, in spite of Bhaktivedhanta Swami directly instructing everyone through his 60 published books and years of personal, direct instruction that no one should be identified by their body,
male, female, black, white etc. Yet,many in ego fertilizing positions of power and management missed the point.
Her world travels with her Guru are exciting and inspiring to read. The dignity and grace in which she conducted herself in her role as disciple,driven to please her guru in spite of the hardships and insults presented to her through the medium of young, novice, aspiring, male Krishna monks. The unspoken love and respect between guru and female disciple permeates every page of this book. It leaves one with hope for the future of one of the worlds most beautiful and brilliant spiritual paths.
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Anyone who knows there is more to life than just the prerequsite blah, blah, blah of dogma that is handed down by those who think their version of reality is the only path to the Self, should read this book. The author has done extensive study of the Sanskrit version of the Gita as well as the interprepations of various renowned translations of this enlightening  bit of the Mahabarata epoch.
His approach to bringing this text into the 21st century, for those of us who do not believe in dogma, is Revise and Restate. It took more than ten years of meditation and reflection to arrive at an Absolute underestanding of the presented topic and the meanings of the Sanskrit words. This author makes the meanings of each verse studied accessible to todays seeker of True Wisdom.
Scott Teitsworth has presented his version without any coloratiion or destortion of the Truth espoused by his wisdom teachers. He passes this emlightenment on to us, the readers, and in so doing opens the doors to our inner Self allowing it to soar free.  .