Currently, leading a proper lifestyle is the buzz word; be it yoga or exercising or having a better immunity to protect our lives. There could not have been a better timing to publish this book which tackles the subject of handling our minds. Yes, not just the body, but the mind needs to detox, flex and de-clutter itself to remain immune to stress and probably understand the it is okay to not understand everything, it is okay to not be a part of the rat race and it is okay to devote time for self love!!

Let us try to see through the book!!

• Book Title– See through Words
• Author’s Name– Ravish Mani
• Published by – Self Published on Blogchatter platform during Blogchatter E book Carnival 2020.
• About the Author– Ravish Mani is a Bio-technologist by profession but he has unique qualities of being a life coach apart from being a business & leadership consultant. When it comes to blogging he is well known in the blogging community as he has been doing it for a considerable amount of time.He is a voracious reader who loves to delve into the mind of the authors by reading their work of creation with a lot of passion. He has a keen observation and has the ability to read between the lines with his acumen. Many accomplished bloggers nod their head in affirmation when talking about this very quality of the Author. You can appreciate his work on his website where he posts regularly. The author has previously published three books and details of the same is in the book itself. You can mail the author directly and obtain them.
• Title and Book Cover- The book Cover is in the shade of aqua blue and there are various words printed on it having a darker shade. Then you can see the title and the name of the author in white colour popping out of the background. The very technique of camouflage used here is to complement the message that the book holds. Not everything in life can be seen, felt or perceived clearly. They have to be seen through, felt across and experienced .
• Narration: The narration is very simple and comprehensible . It has a flow to it. The moment you find yourself lost, the next paragraph comes to your rescue. It is like the Author is guiding the readers from one page to another. Unique quality of the book is that Ravish has also developed an audio version of the same . This is really note worthy. The book is divided into six chapters.
• Content: Dealing with Philosophy is tricky, as the subject itself has amorphous qualities. It requires in depth knowledge and mastery of the subject to attempt to write a book in this genre.The book See through words by Ravish Mani is like a lotus flower with multiple layer of meanings & inter linking aspects. The multiple layers when uncovered one after another convey various perceptions.It tickles your mind and demands you to revisit many parts again and again to visualize the multi dimensional angles of the book. The first few lines like, it is being dedicated to seekers and is uncopyrighted makes you understand that to soak in the content you truly have to be a seeker; a seeker of knowledge; a seeker to understand the mind or the life; a seeker for truth, if I may say. The six chapters flow like a river channel thereby channeling your thoughts and the understanding process into self awareness. The Author has used his fine skills to make it easy to grasp the context of what is being said. I had many learning lessons in the book and there were moments , I re-read a page or line to grasp the meaning. Interesting facts like how words like Zen have their origin from a Sanskrit word Dhyana, the difference between Dhyana and Meditaion, the language of laughter etc. have been shared. Few of my favorite excerpts are as below:

The drop equals the ocean,what a miracle!who to tell?

Rahim the seeker astounded, looking at himself.

and

Kabir said,” When I went in search of God, I could not find Him

and when found, I wasn’t there”

• Understanding the life,our purpose of existence, meaning of the word enlightenment,emptiness, the activity of being present in the moment and how laughter along with use of giving jerks to our own thinking pattern can help us de- clutter our lives is discussed in the book. Reading the book has made me think about faith, religion, spirituality and why it is important to kill the Buddha, when you see Him. Yes… surprising… isn’t it? Yes, surprise is also an element to be understood in the book. I probably need more reading lessons to get to the depth of the book. However I have tried my best to convey what I understood in the first go. Till then, I will urge my readers to read the book so that they can learn to dance like the Son of Kabir in the rhythmic pattern of life and its mystical mysteries . I thank the Author for the endeavour and specially drafting the Acknowledgement section, which made me laugh and probably I realized my little Zen moment then!
• What I missed? Though the book cover is appropriate , I think it could have had a better look and feel . The book wants you to have more and may be the Author can publish a sequel to it so as to share more such stories having life lessons.
• Hurry up Guys… This is  available  to download in the below link! Click below:
• https://www.amazon.in/dp/B08KT29JX5

My interview with the seasoned Author

Q-Please introduce yourself.

Well, my name is Ravish Mani. I try to keep my life simple. I eat, sleep, work, and help others. I’ve been into blogging for more than 15 years. It’s because of blogging now I do one-to-one Spiritual/Motivational Chat online, help authors in Developmental/Substantive Editing. See Through Words is my fourth book.

Q-Please tell us how you started writing or what made you think that you can pursue writing.

For me, writing isn’t an act of pursuing but overwhelming. There comes a time when you cannot contain anymore and it starts to flow out of you. I have always this understanding to jot down my thoughts on paper when it out pours.

Q-How has been your writing journey so far?

Like life with full of surprises.

Q-How do you keep yourself motivated to create and deliver?

I cannot make me sit & write because I have to write. I only write when I cannot resist writing. It comes from within. It’s spontaneous. I myself don’t know which emotion, idea, or thought could trigger it though a good book, movie, series, song, conversation, etc., often serves the purpose.

Q-What has been the inspiration to write the current book & what are your expectations from it?

He he… Dan Poynter said, “If you wait for inspiration to write you’re not a writer, you’re a waiter.”

What are the expectations of the sun for rising every day? What does a flower expect when it spreads in fragrance? Why does the universe exist?

Bhagvad Geeta Chapter 2 Verse 51 says, “For wise men endowed with equanimity, renouncing the fruit of actions and freed from the shackles of birth, attain the blissful supreme state.”

Zen Master Basho said, “When composing a verse let there not be a hair’s breadth separating you from what you write; composition of a poem must be done in an instant, like a woodcutter felling a huge tree or a swordsman leaping at a dangerous enemy.”

The crux is that the expectation is the cause of misery in life and bliss lies in living spontaneously.

Q-Who do you think are your target audience and what can readers expect from your book?

Though the book has not been written for a targeted audience, it will appeal to those who are interested in spirituality, especially mysticism & Zen. The book will give you a glimpse of Spiritual Awakening & Zen Way of Living. Chapters 1 to 5 are for the people who want to know about Zen. And, chapter 6 is for the people who want to experience Zen.

The book comprises Zen stories. So, anybody who likes to read stories can read the book for the stories only. In fact, the book is my interpretation of Zen stories from many dimensions.

The book also provides an insight on how to analyze stories or manuscripts, keeping in mind people with different intellectual capacities.

Q-Please share your favorite part of the book that you enjoyed penning down. You may also share any experience that you came across while penning down the book.

As Zen is about choicelessness, there’s no favorite part as such. Well, I compiled this book in one day using my earlier works.

Q-How do you envision your writing journey in future?

Thinking about the future is one way of coping with present stress: “We shall overcome someday.” We may think about the future, but we live in the present only. So, I focus on learning how to live in the moment happily. Here-now is the only reality of significance.

Q-Name your favorite authors/poets. Please share any favorite excerpt from your favorite book.
Though the list of the authors I’ve read is pretty long, for the sake of naming, here are some: Ved Vyas, Kalidas, Javdev, Malik Muhammad Jayasi, Khalil Gibran, Mansur Al Hallaj, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Kafka, Descartes, Kant, Nietzsche, Deepak Chopra, Coelho, Harari, etc.

As my present book is about Zen, let me quote from the book Zen in the Art of Archery by Eugen Herrigel. Herrigel is a professor of philosophy who went to learn Zen through the art of archery. The book is his experience of Zen with Master Awa Kenzo. It’s a contrast between intellect & mysticism.

“The right art,’ cried the Master, ‘is purposeless, aimless! The more obstinately you try to learn how to shoot the arrow for the sake of hitting the goal, the less you will succeed in the one and the further the other will recede. What stands in your way is that you have a much too willful will. You think that what you do not do yourself does not happen.”
Q-What is one strong philosophy that you live by?

That life is no philosophy but mystery.
Q-Failure is inevitable in life. Have you ever faced it? If yes, how did you overcome it? What has been your learning lesson that you can share with us?

What’s there to overcome? It’s all about attitude. Edison had tried more than 6000 things for the filament of the electric bulb but had not found till the time when someone asked him about his feeling regarding failing 6000 times. Edison exclaimed on his question and calmly replied that he had succeeded in finding 6000 things that were not suitable for filaments.

You are gaining experience whether you get what you want or not. It’s always a win-win. Failure and success are two sides of a coin. If you don’t like the side, flip the coin. I’ve talked about failure in detail in my post Failure—A Door to Success.
Q-How has recent pandemic affected your thought process and what is one message that you would want to advocate during these stressful times?

Everybody wants to go to heaven but afraid to die. Use your stress constructively. Instead of pulling your hair, pull weeds in the garden.
Q-What needs to be done to inculcate the habit of reading and writing among today’s young generation?

Today’s young generations are very much into reading & writing. In fact, the parents are very concerned with this habit of theirs. It’s the other thing that they prefer social media & the internet instead of books. When they get bored, they’ll eventually turn towards books.
Q-Please give your review links to your book so far.

http://lifewithmypenguin.com/see-through-words-by-ravish-mani-a-book-review/

https://matheikal.blogspot.com/2020/06/mystery-of-life.html

https://soniadogra.com/2020/06/09/zen-see-through-words/

https://eraofillumination.wordpress.com/2020/06/06/blogchatter-book-review-see-through-words-by-ravish-mani/

http://livelife2dfullest.blogspot.com/2020/06/blossoms-foliages-trapped-in-heaven-see.html

Contact Information:

Website: https://rvsh.in

Email ID: booksasisee@ravishmani.com

Social media handles @ravishmani (on all but I’m active on Twitter only)