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Rendezvous with a Monk
What is the meaning of our life? What is the relevance of Swami Vivekananda and his teaching's in today’s fast-paced world? Are religion and spirituality the same?
When Deepak and Dipali arrive in Dehradun to meet their childhood friend Jayant, they bring with them a monk. His addition in the mix ensures a rather unusual route of conversation on spirituality. Stories that are both thought-provoking and interesting emerge from the perspective of ancient Indian ethos rather than philosophy or theism.
When Deepak and Dipali arrive in Dehradun to meet their childhood friend Jayant, they bring with them a monk. His addition in the mix ensures a rather unusual route of conversation on spirituality. Stories that are both thought-provoking and interesting emerge from the perspective of ancient Indian ethos rather than philosophy or theism.
256 pages, Paperback
Published December 8, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 13, 2021
Extraordinary book which helps you choose the right direction in your life with an assertive attitude towards how we find this world. It guides you with the help of different conversations made.
Its an emblem of new vision and leadership.
Loved the way Upanishad’s are explained in brief with deep meaning.
I would highly recommend this book.
Its an emblem of new vision and leadership.
Loved the way Upanishad’s are explained in brief with deep meaning.
I would highly recommend this book.
July 12, 2021
Excellent read.
The questions and answers style really helps in understanding the complex issues very well. Highly recommended for those who keen to understand Vivekanand and his philosophy and it's relevance to Modern day management.
The questions and answers style really helps in understanding the complex issues very well. Highly recommended for those who keen to understand Vivekanand and his philosophy and it's relevance to Modern day management.
August 21, 2021
Its an excellent book, easy to read yet with beautiful insights. It takes you on a journey with characters you can identify with and extremely engaging. Highly recommend this to anyone who is interested in exploring philosophical insights.
July 13, 2021
Amazing read! Very well written and offers lots of valuable insights!
July 12, 2021
Reading another one of his masterpiece from my fav. Author friend.
July 12, 2021
Great excellent
July 12, 2021
One of the best books I have ever gone through.
Must read.
Must read.
July 12, 2021
Best Book! We must read it..
July 12, 2021
A must read. It is a multi-layered book that deals with philosophy and spirituality
July 12, 2021
Superb book by super Author
July 12, 2021
Excellent book by the author. The writing methodology is unique and brings out better understanding and perspective .
July 12, 2021
I will recommend this book to everyone. It is of great use to people across all age groups. This is a book one can refer again and again.
July 12, 2021
A wonderful book, makes you ponder and the question and answers style is easy to understand. Makes you think and gives solutions too. A must read. Looking forward to more from the author
April 20, 2018
Indian philosophy and spiritual materials are like an ocean for normal readers. It is not surprising that the vastness itself will hold back a reader from initiating an exploration. Jayant's book is a welcome step in that direction. He has done the hard task of digesting and presenting important debates from the point of view of Indian Ethos. The book is written in easy to follow conversations format. The readers will be surprised that the actors in the book asking the same question you would have asked. It is broadly driven by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda and covers the relevance to this generation.
August 20, 2018
Good to read in case want to know about works of Swami Vivekananda
February 10, 2023
If you ever felt like going to a gym for self- reflection, you will love the conversation between friends in this book narrated in a lucid manner. The book is replete with sayings and quotes that unravels the myriad inspirational facets of Swami Vivekananda’s life experiments and his intuitive management style. It is in these chapters, the veil slowly drops and the reader can see through the mask of His world, and feel a deep connect with the underlying spiritual force operating in the world. Reading this book offers practical insights for modern age leaders and management practitioners from not only doing the right things but also doing things right.
- Balachandran Kairalisadanam (Founder & CEO – Quantilez)
“As an ardent student of Indian philosophy, I find Jayant’s efforts in putting together this volume extremely helpful in understanding Vedanta and its relevance to modern living. In a conversational tone, Jayant manages to raise some fundamental questions that plague us as we go along our daily living, and to resolve them from the learnings gleaned from Vedanta and Vivekananda’s thoughts. The characters make you believe you are one of them, and therein lies Jayant’s skills in distilling the dilemmas of modern times for a query into wisdom which comes to us as our heritage. While contemplating serious issues, you will find yourself smiling a lot, every now and then, because of the wit and humour in these pages. I compliment Nandita for the beautiful illustrations. This is recommended reading for any young person – young by age or curious by mind.”
- G R Venkatesh (CHRO - Reliance Retail)
The author’s dedication to his profession, passion for sharing his points of view with others and his creativity all come together to bring to us this remarkable book. The author combines life like people, with who the reader can identify, their experiences, shared love for Swami Vivekananda and his works, to bring to us insights about Management that the Swamiji did not specifically call as such but, as discerning students of Management can glean, if approached with an open mind. Despite being a teacher the author’s non-tutorial approach is welcome and makes reading the contents a pleasurable experience. The illustrations by Nandita Mukherjee are apt and very pleasing additions to the narrative. This is a book that Swami Vivekananda would have liked.
- Ramana Rajgopaul (Philosopher, writer, and mentor http://rummuser.com/ )
It was a sheer source of joy for me to read this book. I had no idea that the complex and difficult subjects like philosophy, religion, Upanishads as also the teachings of the Vedas, verses from Kabir etc. can be intermingled so easily and effortlessly and narrated in a story telling mode as Jayant has done so seamlessly and fluently. Personally I stand much more enriched knowledge wise after reading the book. It has also given me newer insights to life. I am still wondering how much of research work Jayant must have done to write this book. I take my hat off to Jayant.
- Abhinandan Chatterjee (Ex President and CFO, BPTP Ltd.; Ex President and CFO, IndoRama Synthetics(I) Ltd )
A book shaking our beliefs, trying to answer the questions which each one us ask from ourselves everyday but seldom get the answer. A must read.
- Kunal Bhardwaj (Author)
"A remarkable book on Swami Vivekananda, which merits to be read widely for its considerable ingenuity with 'conversational narrative' -- and giving epistemology, a chance to be perceptible among the masses. This timely addition may open the constructive debates on the core philosophy of Swami Vivekananda -- a great son of Mother India and legendary thought leader, who influenced the world through his rich vision and knowledge.”
- Atul K Thakur (Journalist & Writer)
The content shows tons of research. It isn't easy to quote verses from Upanishads and closely follow Swami's trail across continents unless every detail in history has been read and adhered to. It was good to read and reaffirm that change comes through intensive hard work, vision, relentless pursuit of excellence, discipline, and finding people you can learn from. Change comes with its fair share of resistance but it is important not to lose sight of the goal. Unnecessary focus on religion, caste and creed are impediments to development. Several stories in the content made the reading more insightful. Loved the way the chapters flowed from ‘Raison D'etre’ to ‘Reality’. This book has many lessons for me.
- Suresh Ramakrishnan (Publishing Director – Haymarket India)
What an enjoyable book. In his quest to understand the essence of Swami Vivekananda's life, Jayant has delved deep into India's past - into the ancient texts: Texts that are shamefully and wilfully lost to the inheritors of India. Vivekananda's understanding of the thousands of years of complex philosophical evolution that helped shape the Indian identity gave him the vision - the divya drishti - of what we might make of our inheritance. Thank you for opening a window into that world and reminding me of the stories that were part of my growing up years - Ashtavakra, Dadheechi, Angulimal and so many others. In becoming part of the globalised, homogenised, international work-force, we lost these stories in translation. We lost Vivekananda. Thank you for bringing him back.
- Roli Jindal (Global Leader, Commercialization Practice DuPont; Author)
There are hundreds of books on Swami Vivekananda. And Philosophy interests few. What would interest one to read yet another book on Swamiji? And so, here it is. Like a home setting. Like the learnings are coming from your family members. Like you are sitting in your garden, and talking to your friends. Like the discussion is about you. Like you are living through the learnings. Like you experience the learnings. Here is a book, of Swamiji, emphasising on his teachings, made so simple and friendly, that it doesn’t feel like philosophy any more. Jayant puts it so simply, almost like he is sitting on the couch in front of you, along with some friends and discussing the teachings. At the end of the book, you never felt like you were taught something, but yet learnt so much. Well laid out for an objective reader.
- Raja Sekhar Reddy (Director & COO - Innovsource Pvt. Ltd.)
It is truly a remarkable book that transcends beyond describing the life of Swami Vivekananda and guides you on how best you can be his true follower like millions of others across this world by your simple actions every day. I will be honest I was skeptical on what to expect when I started the book but I got addicted with every page and couldn't put it down. The references to Vedas, Upanishads and popular fables provide for refreshing reading and a simple message that relates to our lifestyle in the current times. I am most intrigued by the innovative style of story writing that engages the reader of all ages by offering them something that they can relate to. It even has references to how Swamiji's management style is relevant to the workforce development in today’s cut throat corporate world. For the first time in my life I have come across a publication that breaks down the meaning of spirituality and purpose of life in terms that I can relate to. I can imagine the tremendous amount of research and hard work that has gone into it and I can sincerely hope it enlightens the lives of many more, just like it has done for me.
- Vikas Handa (Executive VP & Board Member – Kloudgin Inc.; Co-Founder and Board Member Enterprise Signal (SurfBI); Former President & CEO – FCS)
- Balachandran Kairalisadanam (Founder & CEO – Quantilez)
“As an ardent student of Indian philosophy, I find Jayant’s efforts in putting together this volume extremely helpful in understanding Vedanta and its relevance to modern living. In a conversational tone, Jayant manages to raise some fundamental questions that plague us as we go along our daily living, and to resolve them from the learnings gleaned from Vedanta and Vivekananda’s thoughts. The characters make you believe you are one of them, and therein lies Jayant’s skills in distilling the dilemmas of modern times for a query into wisdom which comes to us as our heritage. While contemplating serious issues, you will find yourself smiling a lot, every now and then, because of the wit and humour in these pages. I compliment Nandita for the beautiful illustrations. This is recommended reading for any young person – young by age or curious by mind.”
- G R Venkatesh (CHRO - Reliance Retail)
The author’s dedication to his profession, passion for sharing his points of view with others and his creativity all come together to bring to us this remarkable book. The author combines life like people, with who the reader can identify, their experiences, shared love for Swami Vivekananda and his works, to bring to us insights about Management that the Swamiji did not specifically call as such but, as discerning students of Management can glean, if approached with an open mind. Despite being a teacher the author’s non-tutorial approach is welcome and makes reading the contents a pleasurable experience. The illustrations by Nandita Mukherjee are apt and very pleasing additions to the narrative. This is a book that Swami Vivekananda would have liked.
- Ramana Rajgopaul (Philosopher, writer, and mentor http://rummuser.com/ )
It was a sheer source of joy for me to read this book. I had no idea that the complex and difficult subjects like philosophy, religion, Upanishads as also the teachings of the Vedas, verses from Kabir etc. can be intermingled so easily and effortlessly and narrated in a story telling mode as Jayant has done so seamlessly and fluently. Personally I stand much more enriched knowledge wise after reading the book. It has also given me newer insights to life. I am still wondering how much of research work Jayant must have done to write this book. I take my hat off to Jayant.
- Abhinandan Chatterjee (Ex President and CFO, BPTP Ltd.; Ex President and CFO, IndoRama Synthetics(I) Ltd )
A book shaking our beliefs, trying to answer the questions which each one us ask from ourselves everyday but seldom get the answer. A must read.
- Kunal Bhardwaj (Author)
"A remarkable book on Swami Vivekananda, which merits to be read widely for its considerable ingenuity with 'conversational narrative' -- and giving epistemology, a chance to be perceptible among the masses. This timely addition may open the constructive debates on the core philosophy of Swami Vivekananda -- a great son of Mother India and legendary thought leader, who influenced the world through his rich vision and knowledge.”
- Atul K Thakur (Journalist & Writer)
The content shows tons of research. It isn't easy to quote verses from Upanishads and closely follow Swami's trail across continents unless every detail in history has been read and adhered to. It was good to read and reaffirm that change comes through intensive hard work, vision, relentless pursuit of excellence, discipline, and finding people you can learn from. Change comes with its fair share of resistance but it is important not to lose sight of the goal. Unnecessary focus on religion, caste and creed are impediments to development. Several stories in the content made the reading more insightful. Loved the way the chapters flowed from ‘Raison D'etre’ to ‘Reality’. This book has many lessons for me.
- Suresh Ramakrishnan (Publishing Director – Haymarket India)
What an enjoyable book. In his quest to understand the essence of Swami Vivekananda's life, Jayant has delved deep into India's past - into the ancient texts: Texts that are shamefully and wilfully lost to the inheritors of India. Vivekananda's understanding of the thousands of years of complex philosophical evolution that helped shape the Indian identity gave him the vision - the divya drishti - of what we might make of our inheritance. Thank you for opening a window into that world and reminding me of the stories that were part of my growing up years - Ashtavakra, Dadheechi, Angulimal and so many others. In becoming part of the globalised, homogenised, international work-force, we lost these stories in translation. We lost Vivekananda. Thank you for bringing him back.
- Roli Jindal (Global Leader, Commercialization Practice DuPont; Author)
There are hundreds of books on Swami Vivekananda. And Philosophy interests few. What would interest one to read yet another book on Swamiji? And so, here it is. Like a home setting. Like the learnings are coming from your family members. Like you are sitting in your garden, and talking to your friends. Like the discussion is about you. Like you are living through the learnings. Like you experience the learnings. Here is a book, of Swamiji, emphasising on his teachings, made so simple and friendly, that it doesn’t feel like philosophy any more. Jayant puts it so simply, almost like he is sitting on the couch in front of you, along with some friends and discussing the teachings. At the end of the book, you never felt like you were taught something, but yet learnt so much. Well laid out for an objective reader.
- Raja Sekhar Reddy (Director & COO - Innovsource Pvt. Ltd.)
It is truly a remarkable book that transcends beyond describing the life of Swami Vivekananda and guides you on how best you can be his true follower like millions of others across this world by your simple actions every day. I will be honest I was skeptical on what to expect when I started the book but I got addicted with every page and couldn't put it down. The references to Vedas, Upanishads and popular fables provide for refreshing reading and a simple message that relates to our lifestyle in the current times. I am most intrigued by the innovative style of story writing that engages the reader of all ages by offering them something that they can relate to. It even has references to how Swamiji's management style is relevant to the workforce development in today’s cut throat corporate world. For the first time in my life I have come across a publication that breaks down the meaning of spirituality and purpose of life in terms that I can relate to. I can imagine the tremendous amount of research and hard work that has gone into it and I can sincerely hope it enlightens the lives of many more, just like it has done for me.
- Vikas Handa (Executive VP & Board Member – Kloudgin Inc.; Co-Founder and Board Member Enterprise Signal (SurfBI); Former President & CEO – FCS)
January 1, 2021
Great book! But the writting style is not so great.. But i totally still recommend it.!
August 22, 2021
Excellent book...the book to read...the book to live.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews