The Old man and his God: :Discovering the spirit of India

The Old Man and His God: Discovering the Spirit of India
The old man and his God: Discovering the spirit of India Sudha Murthy once told someone that when people often wondered why so many interesting things happened only to him, he replied that he, like all of us, meets strangers and some of these strangers have left a lasting impact on his life. All he does is that he embraces those encounters and that is what makes his life so interesting. He believes that if you have a sensitive mind and record your observations regularly, you will see that your life too is a vast storehouse of stories. This is the essence of this book 'The old man and his God '. While reading the book, do not expect nerve wracking story of magic and supernatural powers. It contains what the author has been referring to as 'real’ because real is what we experience. As far as the reality of India is considered, this book can show you many layers of it. If one wants to know what the soul of India says (and not necessarily how they look or speak), this is an ideal read. These aren't complex stories. They are simple and honest. Many unspoken areas of human life have been touched upon. There are accounts of struggles and hardships that the people of India face on a daily basis. The emotions that emerge out of this short story collection range from love to friendship to betrayal and covers domains from business to philanthropy to counselling and from freedom to injustice to selfishness. She talks about the selfless too and the generous honest ones. The title story is about a visually impaired old man who lives in his little Shiva temple. He doesn't need help, he refuses any. He is his own maker. Other stories contain unheard tales from the remote corner of the country. She is trying to represent those hidden people who didn’t have a voice till now. This book is available online at A. About the author A computer engineer, a chairman of one of the leading company in India, a writer, a movie buff and a social worker. Sudha Murthy is all this and more. She acts as the chairperson of Infosys foundation and is also a member of the Gates Foundation. She has spent her entire adult life in the welfare of the people who need her. She was facilitated at Harward University where she opened 'The Murty Classical Library of India’. She is the wife of Narayan Murthy, former Infosys Supremo.

The Bird with Golden Wings: Stories of Wit and Magic
A poor little girl is rewarded with lovely gifts when she feeds a hungry bird all the rice she has. What happens when the girl’s greedy, nosy neighbour hears the story and tries to get better gifts for herself? Why did the once sweet sea water turn salty? How did the learned teacher forget his lessons only to be aided by the school cook? And how did the king hide his horrible donkey ears from the people of his kingdom? For answers to all this and more, delve right into another fabulous collection of stories by Sudha Murty.

The Old Man And His God is a collection of short stories by Sudha Murthy based on her own experiences as she encounters many different kinds of people in the course of her work.

Summary Of The Book

In the introduction to The Old Man And His God, the author says that she is often asked how such interesting incidents happen to her. Her answer is that these are ordinary incidents and encounters that occur in the life of everyone. It is just that many people do not observe and record them.

The book contains stories that hold up a mirror to every characteristic of humanity, generosity, selfishness, greed, contentment, and ambition. These are tales of people’s behavior and reactions in ordinary circumstances and during crisis.

She tells the story of a banyan tree in a remote village in Karnataka that gives shelter to travelers under its shade, and of the man who sits on a stone under the tree and lets passersby share the seat and their troubles with him, acting as a counselor to them, letting them unburden their worries on him for a while.

There are stories of women trying to make a difference in the community against odds, of acts of selfishness and generosity in times of disaster, of young professionals and the attitudes that make some of them succeed in the corporate race.

There is also the title story of an old couple in a small temple, who give the author shelter during a storm. They then refuse an offer of help from her, saying that they are happy with what they have, offering a lesson in contentment.

As the author herself points out, the stories in The Old Man And His God are ordinary events that might happen to anyone. In her case, she is sensitive enough that they leave a lasting impression upon her and she learns from each of them. She also happens to be a good writer who shares these experiences with her readers.

About Sudha Murthy

Sudha Murthy is the chairman of Infosys Foundation.

She has written numerous other books like Gently Falls The Bakula, Dollar Bahu, Wise and Otherwise, and How I Taught My Grandmother To Read And Other Stories.

Sudha Murthy, who holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from IISc, was the first female engineer to be hired by TELCO. She is active in many social causes. She has received the R. K. Narayan's Award for Literature and the Padma Shri. She is married to Narayana Murthy, the co-founder of Infosys.

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