Review: Voyagers into the Unknown

Voyagers into the Unknown Voyagers into the Unknown by Ruchira Khanna
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A trip to Tajmahal is all that it takes to unload your mental and emotional baggage. Taj is one of the seven wonders of world and symbol of love. Raj is an emphatic tour guide who has a gift to heal others. Meera is his ideal companion.

Raj is a tour guide who does no promotion or publicity. His business run on word of mouth publicity. He has a knack of feeling emotional traumas of others and heal them. He is in a way a therapist though not having a professional degree. His method is also unconventional. He makes the person feel and work through his/ her pain. There are five main tourist on this trip.

1. Ira is a beautiful woman who is deceived by her lover Peter. She became depressed and suicidal. But her well-wisher send her to Raj tours.

2. Darci and Lennard is a couple who went through a rough patch due to recession. This put financial strain on them and Darci does the unthinkable. Lennard never forgives her for this.

3. Carl is a millionaire who is so lost in making money that he ignored her wife and son completely. Now he is an irritable, moody, despondent, disillusioned and disappointed old man.

4. And finally there is Asha, a widow who is dealing with her grief.

Raj takes them on a trip to TAJ and they are made to see their sorrows in a new light. Ira meets the driver Peter and finds a new ray of hope. Darci and Lennard come closer. Carl relaise his mistake. But then an accident takes place and all are hospitalized.

The book has some interesting insights. Some passages which I liked are:

1. ….I have always had a fear of committing to a relationship because I want to avoid the sorrows that occur when life doesn’t live up to your expectations.

2. Sometimes a few words of flattery can break boundaries of any kind, leading to an unexpected friendship.

3. It is amazing how one expression of gratitude can make a person melt and go beyond one’s capacity to do something for another individual.

4. It is amazing how sharing of one’s intimate details can make human beings forget the formality of a relationship and bring them closer together. They can identify themselves just as mere humans since we all share the same kinds of mental states. Emotions tend to entwine Earthlings together. Happiness and Sorrow are the two fundamental states that we all go through, and when shared with another person, we benefit from invaluable support and guidance. Humans are fascinated by emotional material.

5. Presentation has always been the key for any individual. Is it the lust between two lovers that makes them look at their respective reflections prior to a meeting or just the fact that appearance is the key and it helps to start conversation between two known or unknown people?

The book is not an easy read. It is not hunky dory and is tedious. All of them have some issues. Even Raj is commitment phobic. But if you work through till end it will be satisfying.

There are some issues too. One is that the mental and emotional issues shown can’t be treated in one trip to Taj. Some like suicidal tendencies, depression, grief etc. need medical supervision and prolonged or sometimes lifelong treatment. Second issue is that this book though set in India is not meant for Indian readers. Though human emotions are same everywhere, I had a feeling that it is written keeping in view western audience. One such examples is the process of wedding where Pheras are described in a very westernized way. Third is the slow pace of book and sometimes it doesn’t move at all for many pages. They keep wallowing in their own sorrows for on and on. Lastly the issues shown are of very rich people who have plenty of money and spare time so they create problems for themselves. Even Darci action shows that she put more emphasis on money then on her children. By her logic no poor person will ever be a parent.

To sum up it is a very slow read but reward the patience if one sticks to end.

4.5/ 5 stars.




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