TELUGU
Living up to ideals
SRIRAMUNI DAYACHETANU — Novel: Vasundhara; Pub. by Vahini Book Trust, 1-9-286, Vidyanagar, Hyderabad-500044. Rs. 100.
THE TITLE of this novel meaning "By the Grace of Sri Rama" is taken from the 12th Century poet Baddena's Sumati Satakam a very popular work with Telugu readers. It inculcates how a literary work ought to be, if it is to serve the benefit of humanity.
The grandeur of the Satakam is that it translates the spiritual truths into ethical teachings that are practical in the day-to-day world. The poems provide apt behavioural patterns of men and women of the world. Each of the 14 chapters of the novel is annotated with a piece.
Adiseshaiah, the grand old man of the family has a model of life in his mind and trains his sons and daughters accordingly. Visalakshi, his daughter, is a stickler of this pattern and she ultimately communes with Sri Rama to learn the undesirability of reversing the wheel of time.
Facing everday challenges in the modern world, the family members face numerous social issues and meet them adequately. The novel introduces a supernatural character "Ramadoota" (messenger of Rama) who periodically visits them to exchange views and to inculcate values in them. The characters also take clues from ancient scriptural texts like the Bhagavad Gita.
Transformation of ideas with the passage of generations, need for adapting to the times, and compatability among couples are the important themes of the novel. The story of the Ramayana and contemporary Indian polity are juxtaposed.
Serialised in a popular monthly journal, the novel has already drawn many accolades for its timeliness and readability of style. The book has graphic illustrations that make it more enticing.
N. C. RAMANUJACHARY
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