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Bharat Series
Kalachakra ke Rakshak (Keepers of the Kalachakra): Bharat Series 5
"A seemingly random selection of heads of state are struck down like flies by unnamed killers who work with the clinical efficiency of butchers. Except that they leave no trace of their methods. Welcome back to the shadowy and addictive world of Ashwin Sanghi. After The Rozabal Line, Chanakya's Chant, The Krishna Key and The Sialkot Saga, Ashwin Sanghi returns at last with another quietly fearsome tale-this time of men who guard the 'Kalachakra' or The Wheel of Time. Sanghi describes a world of people at war with one another-a boomeranging conflict of faiths that results in acts of such slow and planned human cruelty that they defy human imagination. Caught in the midst of this madness is Vijay Sundaram, a geek scientist who is only dimly aware that the wider sky outside his laboratory is stretched taut and close to being torn apart by forces that he wants simply to have nothing to do with. But events conspire to propel Vijay into the labyrinth of Milesian Labs, a centre of research deep in the forested hills of Uttarakhand. What he stumbles upon is a primordial clue to a galactic secret that could accelerate the downward spiral of humankind. Trapped and wholly unaware of his actual foe, Vijay races against time to save humanity-and himself. Zigzagging from Rama's crossing to Lanka to the birth of Buddhism; from the origin of Wahhabism to the Einsteinian gravitational wave-detectors of LIGO; from the charnel-grounds of naked tantric practitioners to the bespoke suits of the Oval Office; and from the rites of Minerva, shrouded in frankincense, to the smoke-darkened ruins of Nalanda, Keepers of the Kalachakra is a journey that will have you gasping for breath-but one that you cannot abandon till all the pieces of the jigsaw come together. Till you come up gobsmack against an end that you simply did not see coming."
432 pages, Paperback
Published July 24, 2023
545 people are currently reading
2695 people want to read
About the author
Ashwin Sanghi
28 books2,737 followersAshwin Sanghi—entrepreneur by day, novelist by night—has all the usual qualifications of an Indian businessman. Schooling at the Cathedral & John Connon School, a B.A. (Economics) from St. Xavier’s College, and an M.B.A. (Finance) from the Yale School of Management. Besides being a businessman, Ashwin manages a parallel career as writer of fiction. Ashwin’s first novel, ‘The Rozabal Line’ was originally self-published in 2007 under his anagram-pseudonym—Shawn Haigins. The book was subsequently published by Westland in 2008 and 2010 in India under his own name and went on to become a national bestseller. ‘Chanakya’s Chant’ is his second novel in the historical-fiction genre. The book has remained on AC Nielsen’s India Bookscan Top-10 for all of 2011. It won the ‘2010 Crossword-Vodafone Popular Choice Award’ in September 2011. UTV has purchased the movie rights to the book and a film based upon the story is expected soon. Dr. Shashi Tharoor released the novel in Mumbai calling it an “enthralling, delightfully-interesting and gripping read with historical research that is impressive.” The Hindustan Times has called it “a cracker of a page-turner.” Ashwin is currently working on his third novel, as yet untitled, that explores business strategies in ancient India. Ashwin is also working towards a Ph.D. in Creative Writing from Bangor University in Wales. Ashwin lives in Mumbai with his wife, Anushika, and his eight-year old son, Raghuvir.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 495 reviews
May 11, 2018
“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality.”
----Carl Sagan
Ashwin Sanghi, the country's bestselling mythological author, has penned a compelling part sci-fi and part mythological thriller called, Keepers of the Kalachakra that revolves around the murder mystery of the world's prominent leaders under strange circumstances while an Indian scientist along side with his colleague is trying to figure out the real purpose behind his research at his new employer's lab, located somewhere deep within the forests.
Synopsis:
A seemingly random selection of heads of state are struck down like flies by unnamed killers who work with the clinical efficiency of butchers. Except that they leave no trace of their methods. Welcome back to the shadowy and addictive world of Ashwin Sanghi. After The Rozabal Line, Chanakya’s Chant, The Krishna Key and The Sialkot Saga, Ashwin Sanghi returns at last with another quietly fearsome tale—this time of men who guard the ‘Kalachakra’ or The Wheel of Time.
Sanghi describes a world of people at war with one another—a boomeranging conflict of faiths that results in acts of such slow and planned human cruelty that they defy human imagination. Caught in the midst of this madness is Vijay Sundaram, a geek scientist who is only dimly aware that the wider sky outside his laboratory is stretched taut and close to being torn apart by forces that he wants simply to have nothing to do with.
But events conspire to propel Vijay into the labyrinth of Milesian Labs, a centre of research deep in the forested hills of Uttarakhand. What he stumbles upon is a primordial clue to a galactic secret that could accelerate the downward spiral of humankind. Trapped and wholly unaware of his actual foe, Vijay races against time to save humanity—and himself.
Zigzagging from Rama’s crossing to Lanka to the birth of Buddhism; from the origin of Wahhabism to the Einsteinian gravitational wave-detectors of LIGO; from the charnel-grounds of naked tantric practitioners to the bespoke suits of the Oval Office; and from the rites of Minerva, shrouded in frankincense, to the smoke-darkened ruins of Nalanda, Keepers of the Kalachakra is a journey that will have you gasping for breath—but one that you cannot abandon till all the pieces of the jigsaw come together.
Till you come up gobsmack against an end that you simply did not see coming.
Vijay has been hired by the shady and secretive Milesian Labs to research the quantum and metaphysical behavior of the Earth. But with the guidance of his new Russian colleague, together they discover the dark side and the real agenda behind this lab that is located somewhere deep within the woods. And their discovery leaves Vijay stupefied as the discovery might eventually affect the existence of and the fate of mankind of this world. And when the murder count is increasing and so is terrorist attack's death toll count, Vijay's nosiness along with his colleague puts them in grave danger. Can they save the world by unraveling the ancient spiritual studies and by exposing that lab?
Wow, this book is really something. Hats off to the author for his incredible research and for enlightening the readers about so many diverse topics from spiritualism to quantum physics to religious anomalies to history to mythology to geography and topography to mathematics. This man has covered almost every other subject under the sun in this book. And thus the story is bound to be a vast one with lots of detailed explanations about myriad of topics. And yes, there's no doubt about the fact that the book is highly engrossing to read as any common human mind would find the book and its story line to be extremely intriguing enough to keep them engaged.
Sadly, too much explanations and the usage of too much technical jargon has marred the charm of this book. If the topics were explained in gentle nuances, then it could have been fantastic. But the book is equally boring and left me yawning and sometimes even googling about those topics or terms that I came across the story with zero explanation.
The outlines of the characters are really brilliant and realistic, sadly, they all lacked depth. The protagonist, Vijay could have been an excellent character, sadly his character graph speaks otherwise about him. Even the supporting characters needed a bit of edge and backstory to make them look convincing and interesting in the eyes of the readers. Nevertheless, their voices have been captured in a striking manner by the author.
The story opens with a bang, when one of the world leader has dropped dead, from them on, the story is bound to peak the readers' interest, but right in the middle, the story drags too much, as it goes on and on about same topics. And in the end, the story is rushed and felt like the dots and the conclusion was drawn forcibly by the author.
The author's writing style is pretty good, and is laced with so many elements from suspense to drama to unpredictable twists to the hand-drawn diagrams and pictures. The narrative along with the plot, both were subdued by the facades of the spiritual, scientific, religious, historical and mathematical theories.
Honestly, most of the theories went above my head, even though I'm an engineer.
In a nutshell, I would recommend this book to the highly intellect and intelligent readers only. Others, kindly skip it.
Verdict: A great plot indeed but it was too heavy on my grey matter!
Courtesy: Thanks to the publishers for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
----Carl Sagan
Ashwin Sanghi, the country's bestselling mythological author, has penned a compelling part sci-fi and part mythological thriller called, Keepers of the Kalachakra that revolves around the murder mystery of the world's prominent leaders under strange circumstances while an Indian scientist along side with his colleague is trying to figure out the real purpose behind his research at his new employer's lab, located somewhere deep within the forests.
Synopsis:
A seemingly random selection of heads of state are struck down like flies by unnamed killers who work with the clinical efficiency of butchers. Except that they leave no trace of their methods. Welcome back to the shadowy and addictive world of Ashwin Sanghi. After The Rozabal Line, Chanakya’s Chant, The Krishna Key and The Sialkot Saga, Ashwin Sanghi returns at last with another quietly fearsome tale—this time of men who guard the ‘Kalachakra’ or The Wheel of Time.
Sanghi describes a world of people at war with one another—a boomeranging conflict of faiths that results in acts of such slow and planned human cruelty that they defy human imagination. Caught in the midst of this madness is Vijay Sundaram, a geek scientist who is only dimly aware that the wider sky outside his laboratory is stretched taut and close to being torn apart by forces that he wants simply to have nothing to do with.
But events conspire to propel Vijay into the labyrinth of Milesian Labs, a centre of research deep in the forested hills of Uttarakhand. What he stumbles upon is a primordial clue to a galactic secret that could accelerate the downward spiral of humankind. Trapped and wholly unaware of his actual foe, Vijay races against time to save humanity—and himself.
Zigzagging from Rama’s crossing to Lanka to the birth of Buddhism; from the origin of Wahhabism to the Einsteinian gravitational wave-detectors of LIGO; from the charnel-grounds of naked tantric practitioners to the bespoke suits of the Oval Office; and from the rites of Minerva, shrouded in frankincense, to the smoke-darkened ruins of Nalanda, Keepers of the Kalachakra is a journey that will have you gasping for breath—but one that you cannot abandon till all the pieces of the jigsaw come together.
Till you come up gobsmack against an end that you simply did not see coming.
Vijay has been hired by the shady and secretive Milesian Labs to research the quantum and metaphysical behavior of the Earth. But with the guidance of his new Russian colleague, together they discover the dark side and the real agenda behind this lab that is located somewhere deep within the woods. And their discovery leaves Vijay stupefied as the discovery might eventually affect the existence of and the fate of mankind of this world. And when the murder count is increasing and so is terrorist attack's death toll count, Vijay's nosiness along with his colleague puts them in grave danger. Can they save the world by unraveling the ancient spiritual studies and by exposing that lab?
Wow, this book is really something. Hats off to the author for his incredible research and for enlightening the readers about so many diverse topics from spiritualism to quantum physics to religious anomalies to history to mythology to geography and topography to mathematics. This man has covered almost every other subject under the sun in this book. And thus the story is bound to be a vast one with lots of detailed explanations about myriad of topics. And yes, there's no doubt about the fact that the book is highly engrossing to read as any common human mind would find the book and its story line to be extremely intriguing enough to keep them engaged.
Sadly, too much explanations and the usage of too much technical jargon has marred the charm of this book. If the topics were explained in gentle nuances, then it could have been fantastic. But the book is equally boring and left me yawning and sometimes even googling about those topics or terms that I came across the story with zero explanation.
The outlines of the characters are really brilliant and realistic, sadly, they all lacked depth. The protagonist, Vijay could have been an excellent character, sadly his character graph speaks otherwise about him. Even the supporting characters needed a bit of edge and backstory to make them look convincing and interesting in the eyes of the readers. Nevertheless, their voices have been captured in a striking manner by the author.
The story opens with a bang, when one of the world leader has dropped dead, from them on, the story is bound to peak the readers' interest, but right in the middle, the story drags too much, as it goes on and on about same topics. And in the end, the story is rushed and felt like the dots and the conclusion was drawn forcibly by the author.
The author's writing style is pretty good, and is laced with so many elements from suspense to drama to unpredictable twists to the hand-drawn diagrams and pictures. The narrative along with the plot, both were subdued by the facades of the spiritual, scientific, religious, historical and mathematical theories.
Honestly, most of the theories went above my head, even though I'm an engineer.
In a nutshell, I would recommend this book to the highly intellect and intelligent readers only. Others, kindly skip it.
Verdict: A great plot indeed but it was too heavy on my grey matter!
Courtesy: Thanks to the publishers for giving me an opportunity to read and review this book.
June 6, 2020
Two-dimensional characters oscillating between Einsteinesque intelligence and mind-boggling credulity, a plot that reads like Mathew Reilly on one of his severest bad-writing days, with everything being boiled within utterly absurd pseudoscience presented as metaphysics...
Yes, that's 'Keepers of the Kalachakra' for the uninitiated.
People rightly compare Ashwin Sanghi with Dan Brown. Among the so-called bestseller-producers, Brown's writing is the absolute worst one. Sanghi comes really close.
And, unlike writers of genuine techno-thrillers like James Rollins, Sanghi doesn’t kindle the desire for study. Like typical junk food, it fills the belly without nourishment.
Naturally he writes bestsellers. As does Brown. But if you are actually interested in infotainment, this book would be a major letdown.
Not recommended.
Yes, that's 'Keepers of the Kalachakra' for the uninitiated.
People rightly compare Ashwin Sanghi with Dan Brown. Among the so-called bestseller-producers, Brown's writing is the absolute worst one. Sanghi comes really close.
And, unlike writers of genuine techno-thrillers like James Rollins, Sanghi doesn’t kindle the desire for study. Like typical junk food, it fills the belly without nourishment.
Naturally he writes bestsellers. As does Brown. But if you are actually interested in infotainment, this book would be a major letdown.
Not recommended.
August 6, 2019
The book has made me fall in love with quantum physics. The first ever thriller on Buddhist iconography and beliefs, it is a great mix of science, mysticism and religious iconography. Extremely relevant for the modern times, the issue of Islamic reformation is dealt with great pragmatism. The end unlike Dan Brown novels leave you with a nerve soothing effect. Another best seller on its way. Do not forget to pick up one.
February 29, 2020
Expected nothing less from Indian Dan Brown.
I like the fact that author is leveraging depth of Indian scriptures. Connection between science and Veda is wonderfully portrayed.
Detailed review may appear
I like the fact that author is leveraging depth of Indian scriptures. Connection between science and Veda is wonderfully portrayed.
Detailed review may appear
February 2, 2018
A highly anticipated book, Keepers of the Kalachakra is the next in the Bharat series by Ashwin Sanghi. I have absolutely loved his previous works. He is the master of unlocking secrets and mysteries from the past and he weaves it so beautifully into a fast paced thriller backed by tonnes of research, it is a commendable feat indeed! Sadly, this time his book failed to impress me.
Keepers of the Kalachakra begins with some prominent world leaders dropping dead, and some not so prominent. Vijay Sundaram is a scientist who is offered a job at Milesian Labs and it seems to be a lucrative offer. When he joins the firm, built deep inside the forests of Uttarakhand, he notices some weird things. Soon he realizes what the real reason behind the firm is and unearths some secrets that are not only dangerous for him in person but can alter the course of mankind.
Well, the book started off strongly. There were mysterious murders happening and our protagonist is on the hook right from the beginning. But as the story advanced, I found myself just googling terminologies and references mentioned there. I expected a shocking revelation anytime but nothing happened. It was like reading a textbook (with practical explanation, of course) for quantum physics, particle behavior and Buddhist spiritualism, all rolled in one.
The story didn't have the usual grip that his books have because, in my opinion, majority of the pages were dedicated to explaining the science behind it all and there were hardly any nail biting sequences. It did talk a lot about terrorism, Islamists and Hindu mythology. Some of the facts explained were very enlightening, I must mention.
The reason I didn't quite like the book was this. The actual story seemed to be dwarfed in front of the huge theories explained. The author intricately built a big framework but, unfortunately, the story in itself lacked significance to match the framework.
So, I can't say that I thoroughly enjoyed the book. For someone who is miles away from a subject such as Physics, it was an extra effort to read and re read some parts just to comprehend. Yeah, I'm illiterate like that!
But if you are someone who is even averagely intelligent, I guess you'd find this book very interesting. So do give it a try and let me know what you thought about it.
Keepers of the Kalachakra begins with some prominent world leaders dropping dead, and some not so prominent. Vijay Sundaram is a scientist who is offered a job at Milesian Labs and it seems to be a lucrative offer. When he joins the firm, built deep inside the forests of Uttarakhand, he notices some weird things. Soon he realizes what the real reason behind the firm is and unearths some secrets that are not only dangerous for him in person but can alter the course of mankind.
Well, the book started off strongly. There were mysterious murders happening and our protagonist is on the hook right from the beginning. But as the story advanced, I found myself just googling terminologies and references mentioned there. I expected a shocking revelation anytime but nothing happened. It was like reading a textbook (with practical explanation, of course) for quantum physics, particle behavior and Buddhist spiritualism, all rolled in one.
The story didn't have the usual grip that his books have because, in my opinion, majority of the pages were dedicated to explaining the science behind it all and there were hardly any nail biting sequences. It did talk a lot about terrorism, Islamists and Hindu mythology. Some of the facts explained were very enlightening, I must mention.
The reason I didn't quite like the book was this. The actual story seemed to be dwarfed in front of the huge theories explained. The author intricately built a big framework but, unfortunately, the story in itself lacked significance to match the framework.
So, I can't say that I thoroughly enjoyed the book. For someone who is miles away from a subject such as Physics, it was an extra effort to read and re read some parts just to comprehend. Yeah, I'm illiterate like that!
But if you are someone who is even averagely intelligent, I guess you'd find this book very interesting. So do give it a try and let me know what you thought about it.
August 24, 2020
This book is basically the story of an omniscient immortal sage, a keeper of the Kalachakra, who for some reason opts to sleep through subcontinent's history of foreign invasions, Deccan conquests, colonialism, pandemics, world wars, famines, terrorism and every thing that ruined the ancient knowledge he was supposed to protect. He finally wakes up now, against a foe worthy of his cause - Islamic fundamentalism, by passively arming a fail safe - right wing leaders. I don't know, the plot is somewhere on that line and I give up.
Also there is this 'baddest motherfucker' officer who can't shut up about getting hurt in Kashmir for some reason and the most textbook hero-herione who serves the role of exposition machines, of everything author researched for his book. Though those expositions are sometimes illuminating enough to hold one on to his or her conspiracy chair and satiate a sense of false pride by equating everything science to spirituality and eventually to ancient Indian wisdom, author ruins it all by reducing them to literal rituals by the end. I am usually a sucker for these Dan Brown-esque reads, but this one was extremely bad and was written with the intention to confuse since conviction with plot was way out of the equation. Book had everything, from CIA to KGB to RAW, from Brazil to Afghanistan to Tibet, from Aryabhatta to Descartes to Einstein, from LIGO to CERN to ISRO, and even Trump; and a shit ton of drawings which ranges from a Venn diagram of Muslims to golden ratio to that of a ceiling fan. Then there were fragmented yet repeated monographs that uses Huntington's civilizational clash as ultimate truth to assert intrinsic evil for everyone in that previously mentioned Islamic venn diagram. Even if I ignore the blatant generalizations, forced esotericism and ancient-alien type logic, I still can't find any redeeming elements, for this book offers nothing other than what has already been dished out in previous installations.
As someone who has read most of author's books, this one was easily the least enjoyable of all. This felt like a lace - one that includes plot holes by design - where author decided to knit basic movie/tv tropes and personal convictions to include everything he read in the name of book's contract.
Also there is this 'baddest motherfucker' officer who can't shut up about getting hurt in Kashmir for some reason and the most textbook hero-herione who serves the role of exposition machines, of everything author researched for his book. Though those expositions are sometimes illuminating enough to hold one on to his or her conspiracy chair and satiate a sense of false pride by equating everything science to spirituality and eventually to ancient Indian wisdom, author ruins it all by reducing them to literal rituals by the end. I am usually a sucker for these Dan Brown-esque reads, but this one was extremely bad and was written with the intention to confuse since conviction with plot was way out of the equation. Book had everything, from CIA to KGB to RAW, from Brazil to Afghanistan to Tibet, from Aryabhatta to Descartes to Einstein, from LIGO to CERN to ISRO, and even Trump; and a shit ton of drawings which ranges from a Venn diagram of Muslims to golden ratio to that of a ceiling fan. Then there were fragmented yet repeated monographs that uses Huntington's civilizational clash as ultimate truth to assert intrinsic evil for everyone in that previously mentioned Islamic venn diagram. Even if I ignore the blatant generalizations, forced esotericism and ancient-alien type logic, I still can't find any redeeming elements, for this book offers nothing other than what has already been dished out in previous installations.
As someone who has read most of author's books, this one was easily the least enjoyable of all. This felt like a lace - one that includes plot holes by design - where author decided to knit basic movie/tv tropes and personal convictions to include everything he read in the name of book's contract.
August 26, 2018
A Novel as Brain Numbing as the "HUMSHAKALS" Movie by Sajid Khan
I think Ashwin Sanghi is going down the Dan Brown Lane. Although Both are my Favorite Authors, both have became Top Class Narcissists, doing occasional Show off of their Knowledge rather than Focusing on the Narration.
I Think Ashwin Sanghi should start writing Blogs of Conspiracy Theories, Physics, Big Bang etc etc so that atleast his Itch of Sounding Intellectual will decrease in the Future & he won't come up a Novel with so much Narcissism.
Plot - An Evil Corporation finds out that Every Individual has a Mirrored version of him. You Kill the Mirrored Version, the Person automatically gets Killed. Hehe Even Bollywood Movies aren't so Stupid. Anyways, this Theory is supported by Tons & Tons of Boring Theory about Big Bang, Physics, Astronomy, Mathematics & Old Studies. The Dialogues spoken by Characters are usually Mind Numbing Lectures about Physics, Astrology & Conspiracy Theories. The Author has Also Added a Meta Human & some Real Life Magic in the Climax which often makes you Question - "Is this Crap really written by the Great Ashwin Sanghi"? Worst Part of the Book is that Most of the Theories explained by the Author for Several Pages doesn't even add up to the Narrative. Its Basically Show off.
Dear Ashwin Sanghi, Please Either be a Teacher, a Physicist, an Astrologer, a Mathematican or a Author. But Please don't Mix all these Professional & give a Bhelpuri to Your Reader
I think Ashwin Sanghi is going down the Dan Brown Lane. Although Both are my Favorite Authors, both have became Top Class Narcissists, doing occasional Show off of their Knowledge rather than Focusing on the Narration.
I Think Ashwin Sanghi should start writing Blogs of Conspiracy Theories, Physics, Big Bang etc etc so that atleast his Itch of Sounding Intellectual will decrease in the Future & he won't come up a Novel with so much Narcissism.
Plot - An Evil Corporation finds out that Every Individual has a Mirrored version of him. You Kill the Mirrored Version, the Person automatically gets Killed. Hehe Even Bollywood Movies aren't so Stupid. Anyways, this Theory is supported by Tons & Tons of Boring Theory about Big Bang, Physics, Astronomy, Mathematics & Old Studies. The Dialogues spoken by Characters are usually Mind Numbing Lectures about Physics, Astrology & Conspiracy Theories. The Author has Also Added a Meta Human & some Real Life Magic in the Climax which often makes you Question - "Is this Crap really written by the Great Ashwin Sanghi"? Worst Part of the Book is that Most of the Theories explained by the Author for Several Pages doesn't even add up to the Narrative. Its Basically Show off.
Dear Ashwin Sanghi, Please Either be a Teacher, a Physicist, an Astrologer, a Mathematican or a Author. But Please don't Mix all these Professional & give a Bhelpuri to Your Reader
August 4, 2018
Quote from the Book I Liked - 'The British did a Great Disservice to India by giving the tag of MYTHOLOGY to our HISTORY.' (Page 42)
&
'Do you know the difference between Mythology and History?
Mythology is - A set of lies that people Rarely Believe.
History is - A set of Lies people have agreed to Believe.
Both History and Mythology contains embellishments and sometimes outright Lies. But that doesn't take away the fact that they also contain Core Truths.' (Page 43)
Rating - 4 Stars
Synopsis - A seemingly random selection of heads of state is struck down like flies by unnamed killers who work with the clinical efficiency of butchers. Except that they leave no trace of their methods. Welcome back to the shadowy and addictive world of Ashwin Sanghi. After The Rozabal Line, Chanakya’s Chant, The Krishna Key and The Sialkot Saga, Ashwin Sanghi returns at last with another quietly fearsome tale—this time of men who guard the ‘Kalachakra’ or The Wheel of Time.
Sanghi describes a world of people at war with one another—a boomeranging conflict of faiths that results in acts of such slow and planned human cruelty that they defy human imagination. Caught in the midst of this madness is Vijay Sundaram, a geek scientist who is only dimly aware that the wider sky outside his laboratory is stretched taut and close to being torn apart by forces that he wants simply to have nothing to do with.
But events conspire to propel Vijay into the labyrinth of Milesian Labs, a center of research deep in the forested hills of Uttarakhand. What he stumbles upon is a primordial clue to a galactic secret that could accelerate the downward spiral of humankind. Trapped and wholly unaware of his actual foe, Vijay races against time to save humanity—and himself.
Zigzagging from Rama’s crossing to Lanka to the birth of Buddhism; from the origin of Wahhabism to the Einsteinian gravitational wave-detectors of LIGO; from the charnel-grounds of naked tantric practitioners to the bespoke suits of the Oval Office; and from the rites of Minerva, shrouded in frankincense, to the smoke-darkened ruins of Nalanda, Keepers of the Kalachakra is a journey that will have you gasping for breath—but one that you cannot abandon till all the pieces of the jigsaw come together.
Till you come up gobsmack against an end that you simply did not see coming.
About The Book - So Ashwin Sanghi is back with yet another Masterpiece, Weaving through Fantasy and Indian Mythological facts with Proofs (Yes you can crosscheck the facts by the Reference links given at the end). Ashwin Sir has always been one of My favorite Authors. The first book I read Written by him was 'The Krishna Key' gifted to me by a Dear Friend. The Krishna Key literally blew my mind by the Facts it provided, the Writing Style and almost everything. It actually made me fall in love with Mythology Genre. The Krishna Key became an Instantaneous Favorite of mine and I keep on Recommending it to my Friends and Colleagues. After that, I read all of his book published till date in Bharat Series except 'The Sialkot Saga', So naturally, I had a High expectations from this one too, which this book almost, Just almost stood on the Expectations.
Umm... Writing a much about this book will surely ruin it for the reader and writing its Review is one of the Hardest ones for me. Yet, here it goes.
Okay! So the story focuses on a Top secret Scientific Facility called 'The Milesian Labs' located in Uttarakhand in India and its sister 'Molecular and Universal Audio' situated in Louisiana. There is not just 1 poignant but many of them or we can say that almost all of the characters play an important and lead role in the story. The story takes you on a Rollercoaster ride taking you from Canada to the Middle East to India. There is an Organisation named IG4 comprising of Secret Agencies of 4 Nations came together keeping their differences aside to fight the rising terror of Islamist Extremist.
The Book mingles and acknowledges the reader about Islamist Terrorist Leader, Buddhism and most importantly about the Quantum Physics. (Yeah It does contain a lot of Geeky Stuff of Physics, Biology intermingled with Ancient History of India).
Across the Globe, many popular leaders and Head of many Organisations are getting Killed and the cause of death remains Unknown. IG4 is appointed to hunt down the reasons of these Deaths and bring a Halt to the disarray spreading across. But all of a sudden it is found that IG4 is been compromised. With loads of death and Plot twist, with Einsteins to Buddha, The story takes turns explaining each character and explaining all parallel storylines to weave them into one Larger Plot that keeps the reader on the edge to discover the actual plot and the Motive behind the whole Storyline.
Verdict - Must, Must read for all Ashwin Sanghi Fans and all the Indian History and Mythology Lovers.
Full Review o n Blog. Link - The Tales of Fugitive Biker
&
'Do you know the difference between Mythology and History?
Mythology is - A set of lies that people Rarely Believe.
History is - A set of Lies people have agreed to Believe.
Both History and Mythology contains embellishments and sometimes outright Lies. But that doesn't take away the fact that they also contain Core Truths.' (Page 43)
Rating - 4 Stars
Synopsis - A seemingly random selection of heads of state is struck down like flies by unnamed killers who work with the clinical efficiency of butchers. Except that they leave no trace of their methods. Welcome back to the shadowy and addictive world of Ashwin Sanghi. After The Rozabal Line, Chanakya’s Chant, The Krishna Key and The Sialkot Saga, Ashwin Sanghi returns at last with another quietly fearsome tale—this time of men who guard the ‘Kalachakra’ or The Wheel of Time.
Sanghi describes a world of people at war with one another—a boomeranging conflict of faiths that results in acts of such slow and planned human cruelty that they defy human imagination. Caught in the midst of this madness is Vijay Sundaram, a geek scientist who is only dimly aware that the wider sky outside his laboratory is stretched taut and close to being torn apart by forces that he wants simply to have nothing to do with.
But events conspire to propel Vijay into the labyrinth of Milesian Labs, a center of research deep in the forested hills of Uttarakhand. What he stumbles upon is a primordial clue to a galactic secret that could accelerate the downward spiral of humankind. Trapped and wholly unaware of his actual foe, Vijay races against time to save humanity—and himself.
Zigzagging from Rama’s crossing to Lanka to the birth of Buddhism; from the origin of Wahhabism to the Einsteinian gravitational wave-detectors of LIGO; from the charnel-grounds of naked tantric practitioners to the bespoke suits of the Oval Office; and from the rites of Minerva, shrouded in frankincense, to the smoke-darkened ruins of Nalanda, Keepers of the Kalachakra is a journey that will have you gasping for breath—but one that you cannot abandon till all the pieces of the jigsaw come together.
Till you come up gobsmack against an end that you simply did not see coming.
About The Book - So Ashwin Sanghi is back with yet another Masterpiece, Weaving through Fantasy and Indian Mythological facts with Proofs (Yes you can crosscheck the facts by the Reference links given at the end). Ashwin Sir has always been one of My favorite Authors. The first book I read Written by him was 'The Krishna Key' gifted to me by a Dear Friend. The Krishna Key literally blew my mind by the Facts it provided, the Writing Style and almost everything. It actually made me fall in love with Mythology Genre. The Krishna Key became an Instantaneous Favorite of mine and I keep on Recommending it to my Friends and Colleagues. After that, I read all of his book published till date in Bharat Series except 'The Sialkot Saga', So naturally, I had a High expectations from this one too, which this book almost, Just almost stood on the Expectations.
Umm... Writing a much about this book will surely ruin it for the reader and writing its Review is one of the Hardest ones for me. Yet, here it goes.
Okay! So the story focuses on a Top secret Scientific Facility called 'The Milesian Labs' located in Uttarakhand in India and its sister 'Molecular and Universal Audio' situated in Louisiana. There is not just 1 poignant but many of them or we can say that almost all of the characters play an important and lead role in the story. The story takes you on a Rollercoaster ride taking you from Canada to the Middle East to India. There is an Organisation named IG4 comprising of Secret Agencies of 4 Nations came together keeping their differences aside to fight the rising terror of Islamist Extremist.
The Book mingles and acknowledges the reader about Islamist Terrorist Leader, Buddhism and most importantly about the Quantum Physics. (Yeah It does contain a lot of Geeky Stuff of Physics, Biology intermingled with Ancient History of India).
Across the Globe, many popular leaders and Head of many Organisations are getting Killed and the cause of death remains Unknown. IG4 is appointed to hunt down the reasons of these Deaths and bring a Halt to the disarray spreading across. But all of a sudden it is found that IG4 is been compromised. With loads of death and Plot twist, with Einsteins to Buddha, The story takes turns explaining each character and explaining all parallel storylines to weave them into one Larger Plot that keeps the reader on the edge to discover the actual plot and the Motive behind the whole Storyline.
Verdict - Must, Must read for all Ashwin Sanghi Fans and all the Indian History and Mythology Lovers.
Full Review o n Blog. Link - The Tales of Fugitive Biker
May 11, 2018
Vani via Quint
A seemingly innocuous job interview with a highly discreet organisation lands a young, quantum physicist in trouble when he is abducted from a busy marketplace in Delhi and assigned to a dangerous mission by a group of intelligence operatives. Away from the hubbub of his daily life, Vijay Sundaram soon finds himself working for a research outfit in Uttarakhand and stumbling upon secrets that promise to accelerate the downward spiral of mankind sooner than expected. Pitting his protagonist against dark forces that are bent on destroying the world, Ashwin Sanghi once again delivers a high-octane thriller, titled, Keepers of the Kalachakra that promises to keep his readers gripped to the book until the very end.
While most of his books in the Bharat series combine theology, politics, mythology, history, business, science and philosophy, Keepers of the Kalachakra (Sanghi’s fifth book in the series) is where philosophy meets sci-fi. Adding to the overall intrigue and a sense of amazement is the way he weaves a plot around religious fundamentalism and laws of Physics – the creative nudge for it came to him in a dream, 'or a nightmare, to be more specific,' he tells me in an email.
‘I awoke one morning feeling exhausted. The question that popped into my head was this: could my dreams be an alternative universe, my true reality? Was it possible that my daily life was actually someone else’s dream?’
Now before you rack your brains trying to understand Sanghi’s dream or skim through tomes to find answers to his questions, let me tell you that he has addressed this topic in quite a lot of detail in the book – alongside many other themes, of course. And that is perhaps the reason why Keepers of the Kalachakra is much more densely packed, complex and intense than all his previous novels, introducing readers to such esoteric concepts as space-time continuum, Akashic Records, Golden Ratio, Schumann Resonance and quantum twins. That last one especially intrigued me enough to ask him if he believed we all had a quantum twin – someone who was not connected to us by birth but quite capable of intimately affecting us, so much so that whatever happened to him also happened to us.
‘Yes,’ he says, and ventures to explain it thus: ‘Our sun is just one star among the two hundred to four hundred billion stars in our galaxy – the Milky Way. The universe consists of two trillion galaxies like the Milky Way. If we were to represent the entire universe as Earth, then Earth itself would proportionally be the size of a billionth of a pinhead! So the probability of not having a quantum twin in the universe is extremely low!’ This then opens up a world of possibilities for those who are interested. To quote the author from the book:
‘(What if)…a Chinese factory worker is also an American nightclub singer…a primary schoolteacher in India is a politician in Westminster…In effect, it is possible that every human being on earth shares consciousness with someone else – his or her quantum twin…As with entangled quantum particles, if you change the quantum characteristic of one, you will change the characteristic of the other. Kill one and the other will also die. In fact, killing the quantum twin is the cleanest way to kill high-powered leaders – who are always surrounded by several layers of high security – without leaving the slightest trace!’
And while you are still thinking about quantum twins and how to identify yours, Sanghi has found an ingenious way to do so, using a perfect combination of mantra, yantra and tantra. Quite a lot of research that might have involved, one might say, and the author doesn’t disagree. ‘Like most books in the Bharat series, this book also took around two years. The first year was spent on reading because I needed to understand the basics of quantum theory, as also the Kalachakra initiation process. Around two months were spent on developing the plot and another six months to actually write the novel. The remaining four months were spent on rewrites, edits and fact checks.’
Considering as a parallel plot line running in the book has to do with religious (read: Islamic) fundamentalism, and how liberals all over the world are on the verge of annihilation, paving the way for conservatives, I ask him if he feared a controversy to arise around the book, considering as how religion is such an itchy topic these days. ‘Not at all,’ he answers. ‘The position that I take in respect of the failings of several religions – Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism and Islam – are simply to show that philosophy trumps religion because philosophy is about questions that may never be answered while religion is about answers that may never be questioned.’
This review is also available to read on: https://goo.gl/iPMgHL
For my other reviews, please log on to vaniauthor.com
A seemingly innocuous job interview with a highly discreet organisation lands a young, quantum physicist in trouble when he is abducted from a busy marketplace in Delhi and assigned to a dangerous mission by a group of intelligence operatives. Away from the hubbub of his daily life, Vijay Sundaram soon finds himself working for a research outfit in Uttarakhand and stumbling upon secrets that promise to accelerate the downward spiral of mankind sooner than expected. Pitting his protagonist against dark forces that are bent on destroying the world, Ashwin Sanghi once again delivers a high-octane thriller, titled, Keepers of the Kalachakra that promises to keep his readers gripped to the book until the very end.
While most of his books in the Bharat series combine theology, politics, mythology, history, business, science and philosophy, Keepers of the Kalachakra (Sanghi’s fifth book in the series) is where philosophy meets sci-fi. Adding to the overall intrigue and a sense of amazement is the way he weaves a plot around religious fundamentalism and laws of Physics – the creative nudge for it came to him in a dream, 'or a nightmare, to be more specific,' he tells me in an email.
‘I awoke one morning feeling exhausted. The question that popped into my head was this: could my dreams be an alternative universe, my true reality? Was it possible that my daily life was actually someone else’s dream?’
Now before you rack your brains trying to understand Sanghi’s dream or skim through tomes to find answers to his questions, let me tell you that he has addressed this topic in quite a lot of detail in the book – alongside many other themes, of course. And that is perhaps the reason why Keepers of the Kalachakra is much more densely packed, complex and intense than all his previous novels, introducing readers to such esoteric concepts as space-time continuum, Akashic Records, Golden Ratio, Schumann Resonance and quantum twins. That last one especially intrigued me enough to ask him if he believed we all had a quantum twin – someone who was not connected to us by birth but quite capable of intimately affecting us, so much so that whatever happened to him also happened to us.
‘Yes,’ he says, and ventures to explain it thus: ‘Our sun is just one star among the two hundred to four hundred billion stars in our galaxy – the Milky Way. The universe consists of two trillion galaxies like the Milky Way. If we were to represent the entire universe as Earth, then Earth itself would proportionally be the size of a billionth of a pinhead! So the probability of not having a quantum twin in the universe is extremely low!’ This then opens up a world of possibilities for those who are interested. To quote the author from the book:
‘(What if)…a Chinese factory worker is also an American nightclub singer…a primary schoolteacher in India is a politician in Westminster…In effect, it is possible that every human being on earth shares consciousness with someone else – his or her quantum twin…As with entangled quantum particles, if you change the quantum characteristic of one, you will change the characteristic of the other. Kill one and the other will also die. In fact, killing the quantum twin is the cleanest way to kill high-powered leaders – who are always surrounded by several layers of high security – without leaving the slightest trace!’
And while you are still thinking about quantum twins and how to identify yours, Sanghi has found an ingenious way to do so, using a perfect combination of mantra, yantra and tantra. Quite a lot of research that might have involved, one might say, and the author doesn’t disagree. ‘Like most books in the Bharat series, this book also took around two years. The first year was spent on reading because I needed to understand the basics of quantum theory, as also the Kalachakra initiation process. Around two months were spent on developing the plot and another six months to actually write the novel. The remaining four months were spent on rewrites, edits and fact checks.’
Considering as a parallel plot line running in the book has to do with religious (read: Islamic) fundamentalism, and how liberals all over the world are on the verge of annihilation, paving the way for conservatives, I ask him if he feared a controversy to arise around the book, considering as how religion is such an itchy topic these days. ‘Not at all,’ he answers. ‘The position that I take in respect of the failings of several religions – Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism and Islam – are simply to show that philosophy trumps religion because philosophy is about questions that may never be answered while religion is about answers that may never be questioned.’
This review is also available to read on: https://goo.gl/iPMgHL
For my other reviews, please log on to vaniauthor.com
July 14, 2018
It's a good book. A good combination of science fiction, history, mythology, politics... a good racy fast paced thriller.
For entertainment, it's a good one. A 4-star read. You'll enjoy it. You'll speed through it.
BUT
For a person who is into this kind of genre... deep into it, it may disappoint. I think the reason is what I would call 'lazy writing'
The author thinks of theories and they're good. You won't buy all of them, not because they're unbelievable or something but because of something lacking in writing. So, that's there. More importantly, it's how the whole plot is. It's a lazy one. The author picks up the easiest storyline, he could have made it more intriguing and challenging in 100 different ways but he sticks to the easiest one, kind of made me question whether I would truly want to read more of this lazy writing.
However, it's still a good and entertaining read and impresses you with the science fiction part, quite enough.
For entertainment, it's a good one. A 4-star read. You'll enjoy it. You'll speed through it.
BUT
For a person who is into this kind of genre... deep into it, it may disappoint. I think the reason is what I would call 'lazy writing'
The author thinks of theories and they're good. You won't buy all of them, not because they're unbelievable or something but because of something lacking in writing. So, that's there. More importantly, it's how the whole plot is. It's a lazy one. The author picks up the easiest storyline, he could have made it more intriguing and challenging in 100 different ways but he sticks to the easiest one, kind of made me question whether I would truly want to read more of this lazy writing.
However, it's still a good and entertaining read and impresses you with the science fiction part, quite enough.
May 30, 2021
This book talks about mythology, science, liberalism, terrorism and few other things. There are some high profile leaders involved here in the story. The beginning of the book made me feel that the story will be very thrilling. Since it’s mentioned it’s a crime thriller I believed so. But as I turned the pages I realised it was not as interesting as I thought. There was too much extra information and I felt the story was fragmented and it was hard sometimes to follow the characters. I don’t understand why there was magic involved in this story. The ending looks like kind of typical movie ending. I expected more. It only led to disappointment. However, if you’re interested in science stuff like quantum physics you can pick this book. The author tries to show the connection between the Soul, Atma, Dharma and quantum physics. There are one or two twists.
Whatever.
The reason behind me finishing the book is I wanted to know where the story was going and how the author is going to articulate all the topics he mentioned. Anyway, relieved to get through this book. It was super frustrating.
I would give 2/5.
The quotes I liked from the book-
“Everything that is happening to you has happened before. Everything that has happened in the past will occur in the future. There is no past, present nor future. Everything just is.”
“You hit a coordinate in space-time, manifest as a particle. Then you move to another point in spacetime. In between those two points, you are a wave again. But the wave always has a memory of where it has been. Changing lifetimes are simply the same wave, call it the soul if you like, manifesting itself as a particle in a different point of spacetime.”
Whatever.
The reason behind me finishing the book is I wanted to know where the story was going and how the author is going to articulate all the topics he mentioned. Anyway, relieved to get through this book. It was super frustrating.
I would give 2/5.
The quotes I liked from the book-
“Everything that is happening to you has happened before. Everything that has happened in the past will occur in the future. There is no past, present nor future. Everything just is.”
“You hit a coordinate in space-time, manifest as a particle. Then you move to another point in spacetime. In between those two points, you are a wave again. But the wave always has a memory of where it has been. Changing lifetimes are simply the same wave, call it the soul if you like, manifesting itself as a particle in a different point of spacetime.”
July 19, 2018
I like books which hide valuable insights into history and science inside effortlessly.
This was an educative and thrilling ride.
I was familiar with many of the theories regarding Om, energy fields and cell memory before reading this book. Loved the way how the author used the various theories to create a riveting page turner.
This is my favourite from the author till now.
This was an educative and thrilling ride.
I was familiar with many of the theories regarding Om, energy fields and cell memory before reading this book. Loved the way how the author used the various theories to create a riveting page turner.
This is my favourite from the author till now.
January 31, 2018
KEEPERS OF THE KALACHAKRA : Ashwin Sanghi : The 401 page trip takes you on a global journey of Terrorism, Technology, Treason, Suspense, Murders, History, Mythology, Facts, Fiction, Knowledge, Assumptions, Beliefs, Science, Spiritualism, Religion and finally taking a Quantum leap settles within One’s Self. Revealing anything else about Ashwin Sanghi’s Best and Painstakingly Researched Novel so far, would be an absolute injustice to all the readers who haven’t yet ventured into this Treasure Trove Of Enlightenment disguised as a Thriller. Needless to add anything more except the fact that if there was a MUST READ Novel which is extremely relevant to the turbulent times we live in, THIS IS IT.
——- NABARUN GHOSH
——- NABARUN GHOSH
October 30, 2018
Keepers of the Kalachakra by Ashwin Sanghi is an interesting mix of different things like politics, spirituality, religion, philosophy and some physics though not sure about the physics part. It is a typical Ashwin Sanghi book with multiple things happening in parallel.
I would go for a bit over 3stars for this one.
I have liked the previous works of Sanghi especially Krishna Key but this one was a bit of dissappointment for me. It had too many things happening at the same time and was difficult to keep track of things.
I would go for a bit over 3stars for this one.
I have liked the previous works of Sanghi especially Krishna Key but this one was a bit of dissappointment for me. It had too many things happening at the same time and was difficult to keep track of things.
June 18, 2018
It isn't very often I give a book such a bad rating, but for once I was torn between whether to give this one star or two. Let me be clear, I actually like Ashwin Sanghi's writing. I absolutely LOVED Chanakya's Chant, and thought it was really brilliant. Krishna Key wasn't my favourite - and seemed like a very hard try at being very Dan Brown-ish and Bollywood at the same time. Wasn't great, but still not bad. But Keepers of the Kalachakra was actually difficult to get through. The writer clearly did a lot of research, in physics and mythology and everything that ties the two - but it seemed like then he just wanted to make sure the readers read every tiny bit of that research - it was all dumped into the book, and not in a very easy-to-read way. Nor after reading did it add a very wow moment at any point of time.
There are too many characters who don't really add that much to the plot, the book keeps jumping from one scene to another which adds more to the frustration than anything else, chapters end at random points, and the next chapter starts right there again, almost making you wonder why they needed a chapter break at all. And over everything else, you feel like you're sitting in a never-ending physics lecture by a super boring professor.
I'd not recommend this book at all. I understand that sometimes as the author you're too close to the project to realise when things are getting difficult for a reader to understand, so I completely blame the editors and publisher for this massive blunder of a book!
There are too many characters who don't really add that much to the plot, the book keeps jumping from one scene to another which adds more to the frustration than anything else, chapters end at random points, and the next chapter starts right there again, almost making you wonder why they needed a chapter break at all. And over everything else, you feel like you're sitting in a never-ending physics lecture by a super boring professor.
I'd not recommend this book at all. I understand that sometimes as the author you're too close to the project to realise when things are getting difficult for a reader to understand, so I completely blame the editors and publisher for this massive blunder of a book!
January 29, 2018
Here is my review of Keepers of the Kalachakra by Ashwin Sanghi.
The canvas was massive and the painting on it was minuscule.
http://www.literateidiotsclub.com/rev...
The canvas was massive and the painting on it was minuscule.
http://www.literateidiotsclub.com/rev...
October 13, 2019
I came to this with high hopes after reading Chanakya's Chant. The build up was very interesting, and the suspense kept me on edge through the entire read. But then I hit the climax.
Levitating yogis, quantum mumbo jumbo, and bizarre pseudo-scientific explanations to absurd phenomena let me down in a spectacular way. The author twists science into an unrecognisable irrational monstrosity to justify everything he had been building up to. It almost feels like the ending was unplanned, and the author just decided to wing it.
Why this book has a high rating is beyond me. I see two possible explanations. Either I am too narrow-minded and nitpicky, or other people have no problem lapping up cliché absurd reasoning in the name of science.
I've heard people tell me that this book is beyond my intellect, and I just don't understand it. The funny part is that they don't understand it either, however they believe whatever weak reasoning the author comes up with. Even a basic understanding of the Standard Model is enough to ruin this book for you.
In conclusion, if you're not a physicist, and you don't mind cluttering up your mind with fallacies, then go for it!
If you are passionate about science, and can't tolerate inaccuracies, then stay away.
Levitating yogis, quantum mumbo jumbo, and bizarre pseudo-scientific explanations to absurd phenomena let me down in a spectacular way. The author twists science into an unrecognisable irrational monstrosity to justify everything he had been building up to. It almost feels like the ending was unplanned, and the author just decided to wing it.
Why this book has a high rating is beyond me. I see two possible explanations. Either I am too narrow-minded and nitpicky, or other people have no problem lapping up cliché absurd reasoning in the name of science.
I've heard people tell me that this book is beyond my intellect, and I just don't understand it. The funny part is that they don't understand it either, however they believe whatever weak reasoning the author comes up with. Even a basic understanding of the Standard Model is enough to ruin this book for you.
In conclusion, if you're not a physicist, and you don't mind cluttering up your mind with fallacies, then go for it!
If you are passionate about science, and can't tolerate inaccuracies, then stay away.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 19, 2018
Like any other book by Sanghi, this one too is composed of passages oddly (not awkwardly) placed to build up a story about some secret societies who are in an attempt to murder some iconic personalities of the world. The societies were able to get some, but the deaths were so mysterious that it was a pain for the most intelligent agencies of the world. The book revolves around an IITian who falls unintentionally into the plot and eventually saves the world.
I will call it an okayish story with a lot full of drama in the end. I would love to go back to the book for the knowledge/ perspective it provides for the Hindu mythology. A good 3-day read for me anyways.
I will call it an okayish story with a lot full of drama in the end. I would love to go back to the book for the knowledge/ perspective it provides for the Hindu mythology. A good 3-day read for me anyways.
February 2, 2018
The complete and detailed review - https://www.bookgeeks.in/keepers-of-t...
March 9, 2018
Had potential, but central story not developed as well as it could be. Lot of distracting extraneous detail. 35 to 40 pages too long.
September 27, 2020
Various presidents of different countries started getting assassinated under conspiracy involving people funding in "M" lab doing astonishing research on existential questions of universe (where we come from & where we are going?). The Author has done an amazing amount of research on elements of mathematics coinciding with an ancient Hindu texts to find basic universal truth- depicting Fibonacci sequence leading to the golden ratio & sawstika formation in universe, tantric Buddhism and woven these amazing tale of religious disputes, Islamic threat, terrorism & conspiracy to eliminate the heads of state to bring about the balance in universe by the characters in the book. And 'how' was even even more astonishing then 'why', which I would not reveal here. I was immediately in to sync of this story describing these profound knowledge of universe, having just finished 'the way beyond any way' by Osho where the similar exsistential truth about consciousness, nothingness and Vedanta is discussed. From time & again, I have always observed, that I may randomly pick up any book to read but it comes to me at just the right time somehow. This confirms my belief further that nothing in this vast universe is random even if it appears so. Every tiny matter has a purpose & how!! I give this book 4 stars🌟🌟🌟🌟👍 & anticipate reading other four books released by this author.
April 11, 2023
Finished reading "Keepers of the Kalachakra by Aswin Sanghi.
🌟🌟🌟🌟
06/04/2023
I never thought I would enjoy reading this after my purchase. Even though I tried to console myself that I'm going to LOVE this book just by rewatching a video from my favorite book youtuber, I still wasn't able to ignore my deep visions of regretting by this.
But oh god, Did this author made my thoughts upside down? Yes he did. I'm truly surprised by how this book turned out to be the one of the thrilling book out there, for me. I was shocked by his plots and theories many times.
Okay, this story starts with the death of many prominent leaders. Vijay Sundaram, a scientist is offered a job at Milesian Lab and it seems to be pretty difficult one to be in. This research facility deep in the forest of Uttarakhand makes him realise alot more stuffs about the researchers plans which haunts him throughout his life.
The author Ashwin Sanghi paints a new world with alot of unique adventures and you can't put this down until all the pieces of the jigsaw comes together. I highly appreciate the time he took for all these interesting facts, theories, illustrations and lots more. I am happy to find mixture of different genres in one book which is written in a very beautiful yet intriguing manner. However, I would've loved it more if he gave a clear climax at the end. I felt that, alot of theories and science made the storyline fall a bit. Still, as a very beginner in the world of Sanghi, I enjoyed reading his marvellous writing. Besides, as I already mentioned, my expectations to this book was immensely low and that's what made me enjoy this ride more. I love how the author made me laugh, gasp, blush, all at once.
This book not only contains about science. It also depicts our history, Hinduism, Islamism, Buddhism and the war, problems, lives, death, memories, letters, in many way possible. His writing was crisp, clear and despite the theories which were new to me, the facts and science he mentioned were also easy to grasp.
I recommend you this book if you want to feel like being in a SciFi world full if wisdoms, facts, thoughts yet in a new fictional world. However, I don't recommend you to rise your expectations because it may end up failing you. Hope you will enjoy reading this.
Love❤️
🌟🌟🌟🌟
06/04/2023
I never thought I would enjoy reading this after my purchase. Even though I tried to console myself that I'm going to LOVE this book just by rewatching a video from my favorite book youtuber, I still wasn't able to ignore my deep visions of regretting by this.
But oh god, Did this author made my thoughts upside down? Yes he did. I'm truly surprised by how this book turned out to be the one of the thrilling book out there, for me. I was shocked by his plots and theories many times.
Okay, this story starts with the death of many prominent leaders. Vijay Sundaram, a scientist is offered a job at Milesian Lab and it seems to be pretty difficult one to be in. This research facility deep in the forest of Uttarakhand makes him realise alot more stuffs about the researchers plans which haunts him throughout his life.
The author Ashwin Sanghi paints a new world with alot of unique adventures and you can't put this down until all the pieces of the jigsaw comes together. I highly appreciate the time he took for all these interesting facts, theories, illustrations and lots more. I am happy to find mixture of different genres in one book which is written in a very beautiful yet intriguing manner. However, I would've loved it more if he gave a clear climax at the end. I felt that, alot of theories and science made the storyline fall a bit. Still, as a very beginner in the world of Sanghi, I enjoyed reading his marvellous writing. Besides, as I already mentioned, my expectations to this book was immensely low and that's what made me enjoy this ride more. I love how the author made me laugh, gasp, blush, all at once.
This book not only contains about science. It also depicts our history, Hinduism, Islamism, Buddhism and the war, problems, lives, death, memories, letters, in many way possible. His writing was crisp, clear and despite the theories which were new to me, the facts and science he mentioned were also easy to grasp.
I recommend you this book if you want to feel like being in a SciFi world full if wisdoms, facts, thoughts yet in a new fictional world. However, I don't recommend you to rise your expectations because it may end up failing you. Hope you will enjoy reading this.
Love❤️
August 17, 2018
A good blend of Indian mythology with current cutting edge Quantum physics principles. Gripping and thought-provoking. The writer keeps you hooked to the book by mixing the current world problems and incidents including the growing hatred towards Muslims and advent of Mr. Donald Trump in US. It also visits the pages of history to find out the origins of Islam and compares its then core principles with the current ones. It minutely examines the way interpretation of mythological texts have been changed over the years. While establishing the relationship between Indian mythology that goes back to the origin of Brahma and proceeds to Ramayana, Buddha, Nalanda and Kargil war with the advanced findings of physics including the detection of gravitational waves at LIGO, Ashwin has flawlessly united both of these ends as the two sides of the same coin. Spicing it up with a parallel espionage background that keeps you thrilled throughout the novel, going back to mythology too frequently and unnecessarily deep seems to be nagging at times and the possibly the only weak facet of the book. But if you have got a highly inquisitive mind, you are going to enjoy that. Also, while explaining the time-space dimensions and bringing Indian mythology into the picture, at times you feel as if this had already been mentioned somewhere back in the same book i.e., things get a bit repetitive.
Nevertheless, one of the best blending of the two extreme ends of science, one unravelled by our rishis and another being surgically revealed by physicists. An element of love, relationships, friendship, commitment and conspiracy takes the storytelling to new heights. Overall, a good read for someone who likes to know about our ancient science and wishes to look deeper into the origin of Islam along with its advent into the most feared and hated religions in the world. I would look forward to other books from Bharat Series by Ashwin Sanghi.
Nevertheless, one of the best blending of the two extreme ends of science, one unravelled by our rishis and another being surgically revealed by physicists. An element of love, relationships, friendship, commitment and conspiracy takes the storytelling to new heights. Overall, a good read for someone who likes to know about our ancient science and wishes to look deeper into the origin of Islam along with its advent into the most feared and hated religions in the world. I would look forward to other books from Bharat Series by Ashwin Sanghi.
March 20, 2018
Slightly above 3 Stars.
*Some Spoilers*
I am a regular reader of Ashwin and one of his biggest fans. Probably that may be the reason, i am not satisfied with this book. i gave it three stars which i think is generally not what i regard his books.
Any one who is well versed with the narrative style of ashwin would immediately get engrossed into the book right from the first page and "KEEPERS OF THE KALACHAKRA" is no exception. Through out the book, you will not find any chapter or even a page boring. But the explanation post climax is too lengthy and kills the entire pace of the book. Those last few chapters literally rubbed off one star from this rating.
The entire book follows the same template of his earlier works but still very engaging. This is the first book where Ashwin dealt with Buddhist mysticism. His understanding in quantum physics and co-relation with vedanta is very interesting. The theme of the book is contemporary and hence the reader gets engaged immediately.
I finished the entire book in a single sitting and that explains the interest levels the book offers. There are some places where the author went overboard in his imagination and I think that can be left under writers' liberty.
Over all, this book is lesser than his works like rozabal line, krishna's key and chanakya's chants but definitely better than his Sialkot Saga.
*Some Spoilers*
I am a regular reader of Ashwin and one of his biggest fans. Probably that may be the reason, i am not satisfied with this book. i gave it three stars which i think is generally not what i regard his books.
Any one who is well versed with the narrative style of ashwin would immediately get engrossed into the book right from the first page and "KEEPERS OF THE KALACHAKRA" is no exception. Through out the book, you will not find any chapter or even a page boring. But the explanation post climax is too lengthy and kills the entire pace of the book. Those last few chapters literally rubbed off one star from this rating.
The entire book follows the same template of his earlier works but still very engaging. This is the first book where Ashwin dealt with Buddhist mysticism. His understanding in quantum physics and co-relation with vedanta is very interesting. The theme of the book is contemporary and hence the reader gets engaged immediately.
I finished the entire book in a single sitting and that explains the interest levels the book offers. There are some places where the author went overboard in his imagination and I think that can be left under writers' liberty.
Over all, this book is lesser than his works like rozabal line, krishna's key and chanakya's chants but definitely better than his Sialkot Saga.
July 27, 2021
Some spoilers below.
Pseudo-scientific non-sense. The author is probably a brahmin male who wants to tell the world, that, his Indian ancestors already knew things that modern science has not achieved today. Even an Orphan character that grew up in an orphanage is named Iyer. The Sharmas and Iyers save the world through Meditations and Rishis. Also, Buddha, Ravana are promoted (!?) to Brahmins as part of the story.
Funnily I read this book when India is begging the western nations to supply vaccines and relax patents for drugs for Corona vaccines. But in the book, everyone from Russians, British and Americans seek the help of Indian rishis, who help them by, you guessed it right, meditation.
Also, this book talks about the 79degree longitude idiocy. Not sure if the whatsapp fwds came from this book; or if the author made the book from such whatsapp forwards. All the 5 star reviews of this book, is probably by the Indian RW Ecosystem, because of the hypernationalism of this book.
The book ends with advice to Moderate Muslims to fix the shit in their religion, like how Hindus brought changes in Widows, Education etc. as if the changes were smooth.
The book is not fit for even constipated toilet sessions.
PS: The author has good writing skill. I wish he writes something that is not this Hyper-Religious/Nationalistic.
Pseudo-scientific non-sense. The author is probably a brahmin male who wants to tell the world, that, his Indian ancestors already knew things that modern science has not achieved today. Even an Orphan character that grew up in an orphanage is named Iyer. The Sharmas and Iyers save the world through Meditations and Rishis. Also, Buddha, Ravana are promoted (!?) to Brahmins as part of the story.
Funnily I read this book when India is begging the western nations to supply vaccines and relax patents for drugs for Corona vaccines. But in the book, everyone from Russians, British and Americans seek the help of Indian rishis, who help them by, you guessed it right, meditation.
Also, this book talks about the 79degree longitude idiocy. Not sure if the whatsapp fwds came from this book; or if the author made the book from such whatsapp forwards. All the 5 star reviews of this book, is probably by the Indian RW Ecosystem, because of the hypernationalism of this book.
The book ends with advice to Moderate Muslims to fix the shit in their religion, like how Hindus brought changes in Widows, Education etc. as if the changes were smooth.
The book is not fit for even constipated toilet sessions.
PS: The author has good writing skill. I wish he writes something that is not this Hyper-Religious/Nationalistic.
November 1, 2022
How can anyone take this author seriously? A lot of what he writes makes me cringe on his behalf. Clearly he's got a serious affliction of the dunning Kruger effect - he thinks he's smart while he writes like a 13 year old Dan Brown fan writing fan fiction in his diary with glitter pens. He goes into too much detail where it is not required and does a disservice to the characters by making them very one dimensional.
If you are reading this Ashwin, please fire your editors.
If you are reading this Ashwin, please fire your editors.
March 5, 2018
Just finished reading “Keepers of Kalachakra” by #Ashwin Sanghi
As always, Ashwin Sanghi did it again with the new thriller which kept me on the edge of the seat and also made me fall in love with his writings again- The way it’s related between Hinduism elements, facts, history, and science is unrivaled. The book crisscrosses through the eastern mysticism, quantum physics, world politics and radical Islamism. Rather than just a storyline, the amount of information I've learned in this book is incredible. No wonder why people love him and compare his writings to “Dan Brown”. The flow was so well laced with history, political science, philosophy, and mythology is stunning. This book is a clear evidence of the research Ashwini does on the Vedic material – It’s a trip from Vedic period to modern science. I can write endlessly about this book, but don’t want to reveal the story not even a bit – otherwise, it will be a spoiler.
@ashwinsanghi: One of the references given in this book “kingdom of Oddiyana” which is not called as “Orrisa” is wrong, it’s Uddiyana which is part of Pakistan.
Few quotes/facts from the book :
- The distance between Earth and the sun is one hundred and eight times the sun’s diameter. The distance between Earth and the moon is one hundred and eight times the moon’s diameter. The diameter of the sun is one hundred and eight times Earth’s diameter.
- There are twenty-four letters in the Gayatri Mantra and 24,000 shlokas in Valmiki’s Ramayana
o The first letter of every thousandth shloka from Valmiki’s Ramayana, when put together, miraculously results in the Gayatri Mantra.
- We refer to quantum physics as science and Vedanta as philosophy, but they are one and the same. From Aristotle all the way to the nineteenth century, the term “natural philosophy” was used instead of science.
- What we call reality is the combination of observer and observed.
- ‘Mythology is a set of lies that people rarely believe, ‘And history?’ ‘A set of lies that people have agreed to believe.’
- love was not about finding someone you could live with. Rather, it was about finding someone you couldn’t live without
One of the best books and a remarkable one under “Historical Fiction”.
Happy Reading!!!
#ashwinsanghi
As always, Ashwin Sanghi did it again with the new thriller which kept me on the edge of the seat and also made me fall in love with his writings again- The way it’s related between Hinduism elements, facts, history, and science is unrivaled. The book crisscrosses through the eastern mysticism, quantum physics, world politics and radical Islamism. Rather than just a storyline, the amount of information I've learned in this book is incredible. No wonder why people love him and compare his writings to “Dan Brown”. The flow was so well laced with history, political science, philosophy, and mythology is stunning. This book is a clear evidence of the research Ashwini does on the Vedic material – It’s a trip from Vedic period to modern science. I can write endlessly about this book, but don’t want to reveal the story not even a bit – otherwise, it will be a spoiler.
@ashwinsanghi: One of the references given in this book “kingdom of Oddiyana” which is not called as “Orrisa” is wrong, it’s Uddiyana which is part of Pakistan.
Few quotes/facts from the book :
- The distance between Earth and the sun is one hundred and eight times the sun’s diameter. The distance between Earth and the moon is one hundred and eight times the moon’s diameter. The diameter of the sun is one hundred and eight times Earth’s diameter.
- There are twenty-four letters in the Gayatri Mantra and 24,000 shlokas in Valmiki’s Ramayana
o The first letter of every thousandth shloka from Valmiki’s Ramayana, when put together, miraculously results in the Gayatri Mantra.
- We refer to quantum physics as science and Vedanta as philosophy, but they are one and the same. From Aristotle all the way to the nineteenth century, the term “natural philosophy” was used instead of science.
- What we call reality is the combination of observer and observed.
- ‘Mythology is a set of lies that people rarely believe, ‘And history?’ ‘A set of lies that people have agreed to believe.’
- love was not about finding someone you could live with. Rather, it was about finding someone you couldn’t live without
One of the best books and a remarkable one under “Historical Fiction”.
Happy Reading!!!
#ashwinsanghi
August 25, 2019
As an irregular fiction reader, I ceased to believe that fiction can have depth; at best I thought it can be a lot of imagination.
But Ashwin Sanghi’s- ‘Keepers of Kaalchakra’ was a surprise in context to how much research can go into a book. As a first time reader of Sanghi, I was absolutely in awe of the writer whose research covered innumerable topics as he intelligently weaved that into a story, well interspersed with each other, without anything looking like an odd ball. At the heart of it, it is science fiction mixed with philosophy and religion.
To anyone who is a curious cat, I am sure this book will do wonders in satiating your intrigue. At no juncture in this book did I think it got boring. It forced me to introspect and think every few pages.
At the heart of the book are two concepts- quantum entanglement and quantum twin. It also briefly touches upon the war between religious fundamentalists and the global politico liberals, which I thought was interesting, as it is so aptly relevant in today’s times.
The other aspect he dwells on is the greatness of sages who lived on for centuries, who were beyond the realms of science. He ponders on how meditation elongated their lifeline while giving them their superlative intuitional abilities.
Sanghi has indeed created magic with an innovative blend of modern and ancient. In crux you realise that science and spirituality co-exist, as spirituality is very scientific.
To give you some perspective, these are the questions he tries to answer: 1) What is Vedanta, how is it related to physics? 2) Was it mythology, or just different version of reality? 3) How terrorism took shape in Iraq and Syria 4) Relation between astrology and mathematical regressions? 5) Golden ratio prevalence? 6) What is the connection between DNA and Reiki? 7) Effect of combination of Mantra, Yantra and Tantra?
While partially intimidating, with complex topics he covers, he has managed to give lucid explanations to most, and that is what makes him a remarkable writer in my opinion. He has set the bar high, I look forward to reading his other books.
But Ashwin Sanghi’s- ‘Keepers of Kaalchakra’ was a surprise in context to how much research can go into a book. As a first time reader of Sanghi, I was absolutely in awe of the writer whose research covered innumerable topics as he intelligently weaved that into a story, well interspersed with each other, without anything looking like an odd ball. At the heart of it, it is science fiction mixed with philosophy and religion.
To anyone who is a curious cat, I am sure this book will do wonders in satiating your intrigue. At no juncture in this book did I think it got boring. It forced me to introspect and think every few pages.
At the heart of the book are two concepts- quantum entanglement and quantum twin. It also briefly touches upon the war between religious fundamentalists and the global politico liberals, which I thought was interesting, as it is so aptly relevant in today’s times.
The other aspect he dwells on is the greatness of sages who lived on for centuries, who were beyond the realms of science. He ponders on how meditation elongated their lifeline while giving them their superlative intuitional abilities.
Sanghi has indeed created magic with an innovative blend of modern and ancient. In crux you realise that science and spirituality co-exist, as spirituality is very scientific.
To give you some perspective, these are the questions he tries to answer: 1) What is Vedanta, how is it related to physics? 2) Was it mythology, or just different version of reality? 3) How terrorism took shape in Iraq and Syria 4) Relation between astrology and mathematical regressions? 5) Golden ratio prevalence? 6) What is the connection between DNA and Reiki? 7) Effect of combination of Mantra, Yantra and Tantra?
While partially intimidating, with complex topics he covers, he has managed to give lucid explanations to most, and that is what makes him a remarkable writer in my opinion. He has set the bar high, I look forward to reading his other books.
October 11, 2018
Summary:
The book is about a lot many things starting from murder of world leaders who have liberal views, conflict of various faiths, the power of Om, the rosary with 108 beads and 1 Bindu, Ramayana from a different perspective, different time dimensions etc. All the things beautifully woven in a story.
My Take:
I’ve always been a fan of Ashwin Sanghi since I read The Krishna Key. The title of the book is quite intriguing. The book has a lot of elements viz, Science, Thriller, Action, Love, Hatred, Religion, secret agency etc. Etc. The chapters are short and crisp.
The characters are distinct and apt for the story. The story moved at a rapid pace with lots of happenings in each chapter. A lot of things happen simultaneously making it a bit time consuming to digest. As usual author doesn’t fail to astonish the readers about the vast knowledge he has acquired for researching for book.
The book is a treasure with logic defining and justifying the stories of Indian history. The tales are absolutely believable. The book is for hard core history lovers.
I loved this book and my rating for this masterpiece is 4.5/5
The book is about a lot many things starting from murder of world leaders who have liberal views, conflict of various faiths, the power of Om, the rosary with 108 beads and 1 Bindu, Ramayana from a different perspective, different time dimensions etc. All the things beautifully woven in a story.
My Take:
I’ve always been a fan of Ashwin Sanghi since I read The Krishna Key. The title of the book is quite intriguing. The book has a lot of elements viz, Science, Thriller, Action, Love, Hatred, Religion, secret agency etc. Etc. The chapters are short and crisp.
The characters are distinct and apt for the story. The story moved at a rapid pace with lots of happenings in each chapter. A lot of things happen simultaneously making it a bit time consuming to digest. As usual author doesn’t fail to astonish the readers about the vast knowledge he has acquired for researching for book.
The book is a treasure with logic defining and justifying the stories of Indian history. The tales are absolutely believable. The book is for hard core history lovers.
I loved this book and my rating for this masterpiece is 4.5/5
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