The Scion of Ikshavaku

Reading books is was and will be the best way i can possibly spend my time.

Now a days, reading books have had the most profound impact on me. There are some books that I am in such a hurry to finish that even after 4 - 5 readings I barely manage to remember the outline of the plot, and there are some that with just reading a parah it sets me thinking ...

I have just started reading the latest book by Amish Tripati- The Scion of Ikshavaku which is about Lord Ram - supposedly another version of The Ramayana made reachable and readable to laymen.

There are many writers of late who look like they have done a lot of research into the ancient works of Ramayana & Mahabharata, but are out there just to deframe the very God they worship.

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Amish Tripati's work looks a little different, at least to me. It's like a breath of fresh air among the other books of similar nature. His books are food for the brain. His role of an author is not done with just writing the book and stopping it at that. He sets your thoughts into action and makes you think about what he has written once you are done with the reading. The Shiva Triology was one such, and the Scion of Ikshavaku is another.

And like always there is a passage in the book sets my thoughts into motion.

The passage is about a discussion between Guru Vashishta and Sri Rama about Suras (Devas) and the creation of another clan called the Asuras by Guru Shukracharya. The passage goes such:

Guru Vashishta 'As it often happens, the very reason for your success, over a prolonged period of time, can lead to your downfall. Guru Shukracharya united the Asuras with the concept of 'Ekam, the One God. All who worshipped the One God were equal in His eyes.

Ram frowned. 'But that was hardly a new idea! Even the Rig Veda refer to ekam, the One Absolute. To this day we call him tge Sum of all Souls,the Parmatma. Even the followers of the feminine principle, like the Devas, believe in Ekam.

'There is clearly a nuance, that you're missing Sudas. The Rig Veda states clearly that while Ekam is the One God, He comes to us in many forms, as many Gods, to help us grow spiritually, in the hope that we will eventually understand Him in His original form.

With the help of Guru Vashishta, Lord Ram himself was able to understand that God is one in His true form. We just worship many manifestation of him as Jesus & Allah. Even Lord Ram is a manifestation of the Supreme One.

Why in the lord's name are we fighiting over religion then???