short takes
Spreading sunshine
Randeep Wadehra

Sunrays for Monday
by Priya & Sanjay Tandon Competent Professionals, Chandigarh. Pages: 214. Rs 150

THE 52 stories in this volume are short, lucid and absorbing, with each title carrying the individual fable’s message. At the end of several stories there’re quotes from Sathya Sai Baba’s sermons. Whether it is Arjuna’s conceit being cured by Krishna in Arjuna’s Bridge, a grandpa talking of good and bad wolves struggling for supremacy inside us in The Battle Within, or Raghu learning from Lord Shiva the essence of true worship, these narratives make one feel impelled to reflect and introspect. And one tends to go along with Pooja Punchchi’s poem on self-transformation titled The Gift.

This book is certainly a worthy sequel to Priya and Sanjay’s earlier effort Sunrays on Sunday. Parents, and schools, would do well to encourage kids to read these stories.

The Forger is Smart but the Expert Smarter
by Dewan K.S. Puri Dewan K.S. Puri Foundation, Chandigarh. Pages: 213. Rs. 120

Crime – white collar or blue collar – comes in myriad hues. One is forgery, which, again, has different streams. There are counterfeiters who can print fake currency notes and revenue stamps etc that could bemuse even an expert detective. Forging of signatures is, of course, quite common. Then there are documents like passports, wills/bequests, contract agreements, etc, the fabrication of which has been turned into a fine art. The easy availability of technology has only made the work of law-enforcing agencies that much more daunting.

However, the author, an internationally renowned forensic criminologist who was much in demand as consultant during his lifetime, both in India and abroad, asserts in the book that it is possible to detect any forgery. He gives authentic case studies of such difficult-to-detect felonies from countries like the UK, USA and, of course, India.

This book can be of immense value to wannabe forensic experts, policemen and other such professionals.

Principles of Buddhism
by Kulananda Rupa. Pages: xi + 138. Rs 150

THERE are about 300 million followers of Buddhism worldwide. It began in India as Vajrayana, with emphasis on ritualism. In the 7th century, it reached Tibet and thence to China and Japan. Today Buddhism has two major schools of thought: Theravada, predominant in Sri Lanka and parts of SE Asia, and Mahayana, different versions of which are practised in China, Japan, etc.

Though Buddhists do not acknowledge the soul’s existence, they do believe in reincarnation. To escape the birth-death cycle, Nirvana must be attained by imbibing virtues of kindness, compassion, sympathy, joy and equanimity.

Kulanada, born Michael Chaskalson in South Africa, is a practising Buddhist for three decades now. Although he explains the principles of Buddhism through the eyes of a westerner, one can read it profitably for getting introduced to one of the world’s great creeds. You will enjoy re-reading the legend of Angulimala as also of king Bimbisara among other stories in this book. Kulanada makes some thought-provoking assertions on such topics as meditation, women in Buddhism and other facets of this ancient religion that make the volume a rewarding read indeed.

HOME