List three books that have had an impact on you. Why?
For a loner like me, settling down with a book and getting absorbed into it is one of biggest joys of life. It’s an Alice in a new wonderland with each new book.
While a good story where I can imagine myself as protagonist is always my most preferred option, I’ve had several life altering experiences with reading non-fictions and autobiographies. I might not know what I wanna be but I definitely know what I do not want.
This 20 pages essay was written by the Indian revolutionary Bhagat Singh while he was in jail. In his words, this essay was prompted by the desire to defend himself from the conclusion that his atheism was foolishness and an outcome of vanity.
How does a young man of ~23, imprisoned and seeing death in the eye, go about writing such philosophy with such extraordinary clarity of thought and unflinching attitude. Maintaining his stance of atheism while clearly articulating the basis of his belief is the kind of courage the world needs today and every day. Here are some of my most favourite lines from the essay.
All these faiths differ on many fundamental questions, but each of them claims to be the only true religion. This is the root of evil.
Any person who claims to be a realist has to challenge the truth of old beliefs. If faith cannot withstand the onslaught of reason, it collapses.
In the world where each of us have labels based on caste, colour, creed, EQ, IQ, gender, origin, religion, power,… be a Michelle Obama.
Becoming is the memoir of Michelle Obama, the former First Lady of the United States. The book is a chronicle of her experiences from childhood to adulthood, from becoming the First Lady till walking out of the White House as the former First Lady. A heart warming first account of her accomplishments laced with hardships and disappointments.
This isn’t a book to read and forget. It’s a book to hold onto and live by the values. Think right, Believe, Work hard, Become! And here’s my most favourite line from the book.
Dominance, even the threat of it, is a form of dehumanisation. It’s the ugliest kind of power.
This very famous fable by George Orwell, in which animal characters are endowed with human qualities (or should I say weaknesses) is supposedly banned in a few countries. This book is a perfect depiction of “With great power comes great responsibility” and “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”.
I read this book in my early twenties and it was a massive eye opener on how shallow human beings are – greed, betrayal, inequality leading to the doom of human kind. More than a decade later, it seems to be getting worse. And that brings me to my most favourite lines from the book.
Man serves the interests of no creature except himself.
