Mystic Musings by Sadhguru: Book Review

Being in the lockdown for more than three months and continuing, almost, we all have experienced stillness (or the state of inactivity) recently, as we spent most of the time staying at home. All due to the outbreak of novel coronavirus which has become a global pandemic. However, have you ever experienced inner stillness? I am sure, there would hardly be a few people who could relate to what I am saying and could, possibly, connect with me too. In spite of confusions sliding, swinging and celebrating monsoon in my head, I was totally relaxed. My heart was rejoicing. This is what I felt as soon as I finished reading Mystic Musings, written by the famous Sadhguru. I can confidently say that there’s definitely some magic in each word and each sentence of the book as it literally blew my mind. I tried to read this book slowly, as it is advisable to go on a spiritual ride at a slower pace so as to grasp every nuance of it, but I got carried away with the interesting arguments posed in this book and finished the book in just one and a half-day.

So before I talk about the book and its content, I would first like to discuss the author of this life-changing book. Jaggi Vasudev, publically popular as Sadhguru, is a Yogi, I rather should say a modern Yogi. As he has changed the way we perceive or believe a yogi should be. Unlike other yogis in India, he wears modern clothes, rides a motorcycle, explores the world, paints his ideas on canvas, plays football and badminton, writes poetry and books and speaks fluent English.  Now, I am sure, this thought must have caught your mind that what type of Yogi is he?.   His way of seeing, understanding and dealing with life is rational and practical. And he makes people comprehend and solve severe life problems in an uncomplicated way.

Now coming back to the book, Mystic Musings is not a novel, but a spiritual adventurous ride that, I suggest, everyone should take once in a lifetime to live life without any insecurities, complaints, and negativity. Like the old school days, wherein, we used to refer the guide book containing important questions for the exam, this book is a guide which one should refer to appear confidently in the exam of life.

While reading this book it reminds me of Shri Bhagavad Gita. Why I am saying this because like Shri Bhagavad Gita, Mystic Musings is a documented series of questions and answers. Here, like Bhagwan Shri Krishna, Sadhguru answers, authoritatively and patiently, the questions of his disciples about life, death, re-birth, previous life, karma, sufferings, and Journey of the Self. Each answer given by him raises new questions in the mind of seekers and this wonderful conversation, between seekers and Sadhguru, helps open far deeper dimensions of life to celebrate every season of life to its fullest. On many occasions, he openly discloses incidents from his personal life to make disciples better understand the situation or problem.

I remember two such points about fear and confusion which actually drives me mad. First, He says about the fear that you don’t have to leave your fears and insecurities because they don’t really exist. You keep creating them unconsciously. If you don’t create them, they don’t really exist. Fear is just the creation of an overactive and out-of control-mind. So true it is. It’s not like that I don’t know this, but the way he has portrayed this was convincing and more believable. And second is about confusion, he mentions that the confusion is always a better state to be in than living in stupid conclusions. With the stupid conclusions that you had made in your life, there was comfort, there was solace, and there was convenience. There was a false sense of security in this. And we are always in hurry to draw conclusions thinking that confusion is burdensome.

To conclude the review, I would like to point out that the book connects the dots between life, death and the moments we spend in between, the birth and the moment we die. Sadhguru, in the extracts and selections from the finest of his talks and discourses, offers the readers, in his book Mystic Musings, a fine blend of knowledge, emotional intelligence and intellectual injections that we may need all the time in order to know ourselves better, understand the purpose of life and quench our thirst for knowledge beyond life and death. Thus, the book goes beyond the usual literature in the non-fiction genre we read day by day. You can get a copy of the book and start reading it right away! The link to buy the book is:

Buy the book from Amazon India: click here to get a copy

Review by Nidhi for Indian Book Critics