While penning down his own ideas on Hinduism, Vijay Singal ended up writing an entire book. He shared his inspiration with Iknoor Kaur
Many a times we struggle to get the right word to express ourselves. Putting things down on paper is rather simpler. Therefore, we end up writing things that we are not able to convey otherwise. It may mean filling a few pages of our personal diaries or writing an entire book.
Vijay Singal is not the kind who would present his thought at a social gathering, but he put down every word that clouded his mind on Hinduism and this was how the book, Hinduism–From Maya to Moksha, took its form. An engineer by profession, he had no plans of writing books.
“I am not a scholar or a person of literature. When I strongly feel about a subject my thought process moves in that direction. I start on one thing not knowing if it will become a full length book,” he said
After writing eight books on topics ranging from psychology to spirituality, Vijay feels no genre can define him. He said, “I write on whatever comes to mind and touches my heart. I don’t want to preach. I feel about something and I put it on paper.” His book looks at various aspects of Hinduism including its history and relationship.
He elaborated, “I have tried to spread the message of universal brotherhood through my book. Most of my earlier books took a lot of inspiration from my personal experiences, but for this I had to read a lot. I have tried to grasp as much as I can. The book covers realistic and spiritual aspect of Hinduism. The essence of Hindu philosophy is the main thing.”
He continued, “I’m working in a multinational company so it is not like writing is my bread and butter. I write to say something. People think writing on religion is controversial, but the essence of any religion cannot be controversial. I’m only touching on the aspect of brotherhood,” he said adding that today people consider it a fashionable thing to create controversy.
“People don’t look at the spiritual aspect of the holy scriptures. The essence of Hinduism is nature-friendly and serene.” According to him, the book’s title intrigued many, “From Maya to Moksha did attract a lot of attention. However, I mean it in the literal sense, from the beginning to the end. Maya is considered as wealth by a lot of people, but as per Vedanta philosophy it is the power of Brahma, which manifests itself into creation. Moksha on the other hand is the ultimate aim or goal in life. So it is like starting from scratch and eventually reaching the ultimate. It is the journey of Hinduism from its birth to the zenith.”
Vijay has also received criticism for the book for the lack of explanation on important topics. However, he feels that if he would have started to explain a topic like Hinduism, there would have been no end to the book.
“I think it is a big deal that I have managed summing up my thoughts in only 200 pages. I have written it like a story in simple language for people to relate to it,” he added. The writer has now decided to take his thoughts forward through a social networking site.
He feels that whatever he writes can make a difference in the way people think and because of the upcoming online industry, spreading his word through Twitter will be a good idea.
“In today’s time people have stopped reading. E-books have become a threat. That is why I feel if I put down a few thoughts on different subjects everyday on Twitter, I can actually make an impact on people.” Vijay now plans to use Twitter to share his thoughts and interact with his readers till the time an idea for his next book comes to his mind.