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Vivek Shanbhag’s second novel “Ondu Badi Kadalu”, significantly widens the horizon of his earlier novel “Innoo Ondu”. “Innoo Ondu” mainly foregrounded the search for self identity of urbanised individuals with their modern anxieties and preoccupations. “Ondu Badi Kadalu” opens up a placid landscape, the spirit of which is marked by the absence of the turbulence of big cities. The people who inhabit this world do not possess either the neurotic emotional energy or the aggressive intellectual power of those who occupy frenzied areas of huge metropolises. The universe and the people we reckon with in the novel represent ways of life and states of consciousness that are distant and unfamiliar to the modern spirit. Vivek displays great courage in portraying a cosmos that appears irrelevant and anachronistic to the values and concerns of the contemporary world driven by its own ideological constructs of history.

The great achievement of the novel is that it makes us recognise and understand men and women who confront their destinies and existential challenges without ever resorting to abstract theoretical arguments. The characters of the novel, especially the women, display extraordinary strength, resilience and poise while dealing with the tremendous adversities of life without grumbling or whining about their miserable fate. Vivek’s novel dares to interrogate the rather growing position of many creative writers and critics that only the crises of modern societies, by which is meant the pressures and conflicts of capitalist global cultures and the brutalising forces unleashed by a dehumanised nation-state, are relevant and important. The attempts of writers to capture the realities of communities and individuals located in “alien” spaces are termed as vain creative efforts that are utterly apolitical and romantic.

The works of writers like Vivek are actually the struggles of a certain kind of conscientious creative force trying to overcome the arrogance of the modern world that further marginalises (and even tries to totally erase) human beings, societies and cultures outside its strong central framework. Creative works like “Ondu Badi Kadalu”, thereby engender a new kind of cultural politics. It is for the reason that this work blends its realistic elements with a subtle kind of allegorical quality. The novel is a fine integration of the realistic and metaphorical dimensions and poses a challenge to conventional ideas of social realism.

One of the most amazing features of the work is the profound depiction of women who, in their very state of ‘being’, simply go beyond the reaches of the men who surround them. The “creative search”, the “artistic quest” and the “imagined self” of the men appear pompous and even ludicrous before the quiet strength of women who do not flinch or quiver while carrying their heavy burden, most of which are imposed upon them by pathetically weak men who constantly try to ignore or overlook their weaknesses. Without letting deliberate ideological frames of feminism pontificate on patriarchy, the work, through the sheer will of the women protagonists, engenders refreshing images of the feminine spirit. Characters like Pandari, Yamuna, Godavari, (to name a few) radiate dynamism and strength. They offer radically different ideas of the nature of women that have the power to alter many theoretical assumptions as regards the woman as a social being.

In a seemingly stationary, static, lethargic environment one can behold incredible changes, developments and radical energies, and all these are negotiated brilliantly only by women. The novel is certainly more than a work of imagination, for it has a sense of history to lend insights to our understanding of the complex transition the Indian society is undergoing at present.

N. Manu Chakravarthy

Pustaka Shakti Prakashana, Rs. 125

Why do Hindus worship so many gods? So confusing! — is a common refrain. But a deeper study reveals that there is an order, a well-laid out gradation among the gods with one supreme head, Paramatma, in control of the demi-gods and the affairs of the world. This concept has been mentioned in the Upanishads and highlighted by Sri Madhvacharya. Sri Jagannathadasa, one of the saint-singers of the Dasa tradition, has explained this in Kannada in his Harikathamrutasara, which can be considered an encyclopaedia of Hinduism.

At the top of the heap is Lord Vishnu, followed by His consort Lakshmi. Then comes His sons Brahma and Vayu and then Garuda, Sesha, Rudra etc. Indra is in rank 8, Yama in 12, Agni in 15, Ganapati in 18 and so on. Sri Jagannathadasa has devoted verses to each of the gods, praising their role and highlighting their powers. Praising Agnideva, the dasa says “you deliver to the respective gods the corresponding oblations made in the sacrifical fire.” He extols Shanideva as the one who punishes those who disregard the gods. Words such as “Nitya”, “Muktha” and “Vikhyata” are deftly interplayed in the praise of Goddess Lakshmi.

The verses are lilting and sweet. The explanations to complicated lines are simple. An ideal guide to those who want a better understanding of our religion.

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