3 Review(s)

The title of this novel based on the life narrative of Jagatguru Shankaracarya Shanker is Shanker – Sanyas. Shanker had become a center of popular discussions due the miracles he performed even while he was just a child. While bathing in the river Alvai, the leg of Shanker was caught by a crocodile. Looking at the anxiety of Shanker at approaching death as his limb was in the jaws of the crocodile, his mother Vishishtha felt perturbed. "Vishishta’s resolve of not giving permission of Sanyas (Asceticism) to Shanker wavered at the request of Chief of Trivankur Mandal Rajshekhar. Looking at the gravity of the situation finally Vishishtha gave her consent for the Sanyas ( Asceticism) of her son.” Chanting the mantra “Chidanand rupam Shivo-aham, Shivo-aham” Shanker in the attire of an ascetic set off towards the Ashram of Govindpad at the bank of river Narmada.” The description of what followed has been given in the novel Shanker-Diksha. That this novel is influential and interesting for the readers is beyond doubt. This is a new experiment in the field of fiction writing. It is not just literature but encompasses in itself art in its totality. It is a manifestation of the childhood and the surrounding world of Shanker in addition to being a novel. The author has tried in all earnestness to make the subject and statements of the novel the best and hence the novel gets the sublimity of an epic. It is not just the voice of the soul of the author but is expression of the collective consciousness of the people of his time. The objective and ideas of Shanker are the soul of the novel. The author has modified, changed, amended and transformed the contemporary reality through his imagination.