On reading ‘Sahit Sanjivani’
It would perhaps be trite to say how powerful and ennobling the magic pull of a written word can be. Of the many books that have enthralled me Jung Bahadur Goyal’s ‘Muhabbatnama’ occupies a special niche. A riveting account of the lives and loves of some of the all-time-greats in limpid, unpretentious tapestry of Punjabi words, the book inspired me to write a middle on it carried by the Tribune (30 November 2018). While that pull still abides, I never thought that another book by the same author that fell on my lap to round off the year with, would also stake its claim for similar accolades. But ‘Sahit Sanjivani’ compels, and commands to be lauded. A slim, 168-page, beautifully brought out volume, it shines the light on the therapeutic effects of books. Recounting his own bleak days when struck low by fortune’s hard knocks making life all woe and pain, Goyal reveals how the charm of ‘Jane Eyre’, ‘Wuthering Heights’, ‘Vanity Fair’, ‘War and Peace’ and many other great classics caressed and healed his aching soul and pulled him out of the morass– resurgent and triumphant. Acquiring more wing and elevation, ‘Sahit Sanjivani’ then holds the reader’s finger for a wider view revealing how some of the world’s greatest writers, scholars, philosophers and literary giants broke themselves free from the infernal corridors of acute loneliness, gloom and mental distress with the blazing sunshine of books. Short but insightful snippets from the lives of persons like John Stuart Mill, thinker and writer from England, Bertrand Russell, the great British philosopher, America’s economist Robert Hall, Peruvian Nobel laureate Mario Vargas Llosa and innumerable other luminaries fill the pages of this book as glowing illustrations both poignant and profoundly inspiring to keep the reader glued. Similarly, valorous stories of actress Manisha Koirala and polio-fighting Manisha Bansal from Chandigarh also tell us of the curative power of the written word.
If the printed word that travels from the eye into the mind to act as sanjivani for the tormented soul, its twin - the word that spawns from pen-in-hand - is equally, if not more, therapeutic. And we encounter many iconic figures in our voyage through ‘Sahit Sanjivani’ who took to pen and paper to ward off depression and crippling disabilities, and became celebrities. Thus, we read about how Rabindranath Tagore fought off loneliness with the balmy sunshine of books and writing; how Sharat Chandra and Munshi Premchand wriggled out of demeaning, life-threatening despair of penury with the magic wand of the written word eventually to bestride the literary horizon like colossuses.
The book also makes interesting revelations about the mounting
scientific evidence of the healing power of reading and writing, and how ‘bibliotherapy’
is now becoming an integral part of wholesome treatment in clinics, asylums and
hospitals the world over.
My revealing more about ‘Sahit Sanjivani’ would divest the reader
of the literary feast that lies in store by delving into the book. Suffice it to
say that it is yet another sparkling gem from Jung Bahadur Goyal’s trove to
enrich the Punjabi literature with.
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I purchased a few books of topical interest to me from Readers Digest before I was to retire from my active service in the fond hope that I would engage myself post retirement.Now almost 12 years past my books are just gathering dust! I think time management is essential to channelling one’s energies. It’s still not too late to do so. Writing books of course, is a far cry.
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