The Obvious Truth That is Hidden by Chethana – Book Review

Spiritual books by modern authors are often garish, looking down from above or just too cryptic for ordinary readers to make sense of the ideas and arguments. On rare occasions, I have come across titles having empathy, simple analysis, easy-to-understand arguments and, most importantly, a seeker’s attitude. One such title by Chethana, published recently, is The Obvious Truth That is Hidden. The book has very few pages (compared to other titles in the genre), and it is written from the perspective of a fellow seeker rather than an accomplished Guru. And therefore, I assume readers will find situations and scenarios in the book that would resemble real-world equivalents.

The book begins with a personal note about the author’s inclination toward spirituality. Chethana, the author, reveals that she became a divorcee within a year of her marriage and the proceedings began within the first two months of her marriage. In Indian circumstances and within the Hindu fold, this is certainly abrupt, surprising and perhaps shocking. She met with the same reactions from her family members. And then, the book turns to the basic concepts of spirituality, philosophy, metaphysics, Yoga and other ideas we rarely discuss in our general lives.

Basic questions like what is a soul, where does the soul live, when does it enter the womb, how does the soul suffer and many like these are answered in the book by the author (with help from various sources she has been very kind to mention). Discussions on subjects like free will, destiny, the pattern of the universe, Karma and who controls it, and other aspects of Karma are there in the book as well.

While these discussions are useful, we can always conjecture about the quality of such discussions. The author has taken help from various resources to make her assertions. However, an open source like Wikipedia certainly does not qualify for more than general awareness because we can all agree that it cannot be more than that. While mentions of philosophers and scholars like Carl Jung and Plato, Rajneesh (Osho) and the book on Science of Mantras, scriptures from Hinduism and the philosophers’ paradise like The Gita itself are honourable and do inspire curiosity, the author’s personal opinions and reflections do subside while doing so. Nevertheless, there are references to the life events of the author and also her years in training and tenure as a seeker that will allow the readers to gather inputs they can use for their growth in the world and seeking truth.

On the aesthetic and technical fronts, the book might use a touch-up. The writing should be more polished. The editorial direction could do better so that the first-time author knows what is she supposed to do. The book, overall, is a very impressive treatise for beginners in the world of self-exploration, spiritual rendezvous, religious excursion and even just for minutes with oneself. Chethana (nice pseudonym by the way) has done well and she should do better if she plans to bring out any updated edition of the book. The book is readable, helpful and interesting. You can get a copy from Amazon India by clicking the link below:

Get a copy today – click here to go to the Amazon book page

Review by Madhav for Literature News