A work so surreal that it initially seems absurd, but its sense of mythology, mysticism, and introspection will still give...
Two long poems on philosophy and yoga, respectively, take meditation and introspection to strange places.
In the middle of his book’s first poem, “Philosophy,” Bhattacharyya (Rise of the Native, 2016, etc.) offers a footnote-style explanation of his use of numbers in his verse: “In a nut shell, Ignorance scores as 5, Disability as 28, Contentment 9, Success or Grand Success 8.” Like much of the content of this book, this information poses more questions than it answers; are these number assignments pulled from an ancient tradition or are they completely arbitrary? Similarly, the personifications of mankind and nature that drive the first section feel like both a classic origin story and a surrealist jumble: “In a rapid move, Primal-Nature / emerges before Cosmic Man….‘I have seen her,’ one stands indifferent / ‘I have been seen,’ desists the other.” The second poem, “Yoga,” is more grounded and digestible, reading like an ontological examination of the titular practice: “Thus the initiation of yoga / When yoga regulates the mind amused / comes the moment, the Seer sees his true self / the Self for a moment exposed.” Distorted illustrations, including one that shows the outline of three ballerinas jumping from a photo of a pond, accompany the verses. Although these images contribute to the text’s serene, surreal atmosphere, they fail to ground or guide readers. Instead, Bhattacharyya delves directly and deeply into an unusual landscape of introspection, obviously inspired by Eastern philosophy, but he presents it entirely without context or explanation for a wider audience, who may wonder whether these verses are the author’s own reinterpretations of classic yoga sutras or a translation of the foundations of Hinduism. Concrete answers never arrive, so some may find the poems to simply be a disorienting mishmash of New-Age aphorisms. However, Bhattacharyya’s unusual rhythms do take on an entrancing, ethereal, and even transcendent quality the more time one spends with them, which calls to mind an early verse that he simultaneously directs to strangers, neighbors, and himself: “Every time I reflect / The less strange you appear.”
A work so surreal that it initially seems absurd, but its sense of mythology, mysticism, and introspection will still give patient readers a sense of the uncanny.Pub Date: March 22, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5234-9247-3
Page Count: 88
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: July 21, 2016
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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BOOK REVIEW
In this highly learned yet accessible book, Robinson offers believers fresh insight into a well-studied text.
A deeply thoughtful exploration of the first book of the Bible.
In this illuminating work of biblical analysis, Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Robinson, whose Gilead series contains a variety of Christian themes, takes readers on a dedicated layperson’s journey through the Book of Genesis. The author meanders delightfully through the text, ruminating on one tale after another while searching for themes and mining for universal truths. Robinson approaches Genesis with a reverence and level of faith uncommon to modern mainstream writers, yet she’s also equipped with the appropriate tools for cogent criticism. Throughout this luminous exegesis, which will appeal to all practicing Christians, the author discusses overarching themes in Genesis. First is the benevolence of God. Robinson points out that “to say that God is the good creator of a good creation” sets the God of Genesis in opposition to the gods of other ancient creation stories, who range from indifferent to evil. This goodness carries through the entirety of Genesis, demonstrated through grace. “Grace tempers judgment,” writes the author, noting that despite well-deserved instances of wrath or punishment, God relents time after time. Another overarching theme is the interplay between God’s providence and humanity’s independence. Across the Book of Genesis, otherwise ordinary people make decisions that will affect the future in significant ways, yet events are consistently steered by God’s omnipotence. For instance, Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers, and that action has reverberated throughout the history of all Jewish people. Robinson indirectly asks readers to consider where the line is between the actions of God and the actions of creation. “He chose to let us be,” she concludes, “to let time yield what it will—within the vast latitude granted by providence.”
In this highly learned yet accessible book, Robinson offers believers fresh insight into a well-studied text.Pub Date: March 12, 2024
ISBN: 9780374299408
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Oct. 14, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
A very welcome instance of philosophy that can help readers live a good life.
A teacher and scholar of Buddhism offers a formally varied account of the available rewards of solitude.
“As Mother Ayahuasca takes me in her arms, I realize that last night I vomited up my attachment to Buddhism. In passing out, I died. In coming to, I was, so to speak, reborn. I no longer have to fight these battles, I repeat to myself. I am no longer a combatant in the dharma wars. It feels as if the course of my life has shifted onto another vector, like a train shunted off its familiar track onto a new trajectory.” Readers of Batchelor’s previous books (Secular Buddhism: Imagining the Dharma in an Uncertain World, 2017, etc.) will recognize in this passage the culmination of his decadeslong shift away from the religious commitments of Buddhism toward an ecumenical and homegrown philosophy of life. Writing in a variety of modes—memoir, history, collage, essay, biography, and meditation instruction—the author doesn’t argue for his approach to solitude as much as offer it for contemplation. Essentially, Batchelor implies that if you read what Buddha said here and what Montaigne said there, and if you consider something the author has noticed, and if you reflect on your own experience, you have the possibility to improve the quality of your life. For introspective readers, it’s easy to hear in this approach a direct response to Pascal’s claim that “all of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” Batchelor wants to relieve us of this inability by offering his example of how to do just that. “Solitude is an art. Mental training is needed to refine and stabilize it,” he writes. “When you practice solitude, you dedicate yourself to the care of the soul.” Whatever a soul is, the author goes a long way toward soothing it.
A very welcome instance of philosophy that can help readers live a good life.Pub Date: Feb. 18, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-300-25093-0
Page Count: 200
Publisher: Yale Univ.
Review Posted Online: Nov. 24, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2019
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