Amma's Gospel by Rajender Krishan
Paperback: ISBN-13: 978-1-947403116
Amazon ebook ASIN: BO8LSYFLN4
Sales: Amazon USA | Amazon India

An interesting read through and at one go too! It is really good and made me go back ages and ages to my childhood and visits to granny’s places. So many questions put forth and so many answered all sewn together to make a bouquet of language, literature and life. Longings are visible behind every word of Amma’s Gospel, and the poet and thinker has done a great job in teaching to teach without the interference of dreams in the upbringing of the future generation. The nuclear families of today have stolen away the stories of dada dadi and nana nani and the future generation are all in a run to make their lives smooth but without the heart that was there with the elders at home.

Queries and questions, celebrations and quarrels all a very important part of life and growing up which the poet Rajender Krishan has aptly displayed in his writings. At every turn he questions himself and asks if he has as yet fathomed the answers granny had to say. His poems are filled with the richness of love for his grandmother and has tried to follow many teachings in life given by his grandma. Teachings of grandmas did carry tales of the Indian tradition, religion and culture and all these are intrinsically worked into his poems.

Money is not everything as granny says, but prayer is the answer to all you can gain in life. HE is the ultimate goal in whom we all shall be absorbed unto the universe. A bend of philosophy in which we all learnt from mouth to ear without the help of books. The poet is reminiscent of his childhood days and all the lessons it taught him. The child in him still wants to traverse life listening to and absorbing the richness of culture into himself and the others surrounding him.

Some of Amma’s stories are reminiscent because they bring back beautiful thoughts sharing memories and making his readers relive their memories.

As an academician I would like to say that though the poems do not follow any rhyme or style but still are enticing and unique as well as interesting for they make you look back. Some of the poems show how the poet has strived to give the best to the modern worlds. Lovely lines that teach:

Remember
Life is in the Now
of cause and effect
Not in the past nor in the future.

So true – you can never recapture yesterday nor ever look into tomorrow what you can do you have to do today.

“ — transforming into a dream
Fantasy, an inspiration,
An aim, a goal or target.”

Which today has become the lectures faced by children. The egos of parents ruin the free childhood. All busy in their lives with very little time for the family. Just pave the way and let them choose is the lesson that is very aptly portrayed. Last but not the least I would like to say that a delving into the tradition and culture is a must for India is rich in heritage and we need to search the views on the immortality of the richness of the culture that is India. And this is the most important; and hats off to Rajender Krishan for communicating these through his work Amma’s Gospel.

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