The Obvious Truth that is Hidden by Chethana is my recent read. This book can easily be put under the category of motivational and self-help books. But, I do not prefer to call it a self-help book. For me, it is not a self-help book. It is something else that you will understand as you read this review. The Obvious Truth that is Hidden is more than self-help and motivational book. Why? Because it is the book that makes us believe in our great history. It fills us with a sense of respect for our scriptures, sages and saints. It motivates and pushes us to follow the path that is shown to us by Lora Krishna, Lord Ram and that is clearly texed in our Granthas, Puranas, Vedas, and Upanishads.

Sages, wise men and women and our ancestors had made sure to transfer the great knowledge (that is preserved in our scriptures) to us so that we can understand life, its meaning, its purpose, and see the path that will lead us to detachment and then the ultimate truth. The stories which we have been hearing since our childhood days, of Ram, Krishna, Sita, Shiv, Parvati, Ganesh, and many more are not mere stories. If you try to go into the depth of these stories, you will find that they are actually words of wisdom. They tell you many things, take you to the right path, and satisfy the storm of questions and thoughts that trouble you constantly. That takes you away from the path of realisation. They make you meet your soul, the God, that is there in every living being. Sadly, this wisdom is now tagged as mythical. And people who talk about them are called as backwards and possess a poor mentality.

Unlike other self-help books, this book doesn’t talk about ego, greed, or selfishness. Rather, it discusses about perceptions, perseverance, purpose, silence and acceptance. And more deeply, it explains in detail what a soul is. From where does it come? What is the concept of Free Will, Karma, Birth and Rebirth? The author has gone in-depth with these words to clear all your doubts and present a realistic and scientific perspective for you so that you can better understand the theory behind them. This book also tells us about what is Mantra Chanting and the benefits of believing in Mantra Chanting. And in the end, the author has given an effective mantra of three small lines – I love You! I am sorry! Thank you! The author says, whatever happens with us is predefined and destined. So, instead of complaining and questions about what has happened and is happening is waste of time and energy. And you should always accept whatever comes to you happily and always repeat the Three Line Mantra to your soul as it will help you in internal healing and self-realization.

One needs constant reading and re-reading, thinking and re-thinking (of our scriptures and books of great knowledge) to reach the level of understanding where you can actually unleash the true meaning that is hidden in them. And then you will be able to break the vicious circle of emotional attachment and make a move towards knowing the inner self. The author has tried to explain this with a wonderful story of Krishna Leela- when Maiya Yashoda caught little Krishna eating mud and asked him to open his mouth and show it to her, little Krishna followed Maiya’s order. And as soon as he opened his mouth, Maiya Yashoda saw the infinite universe in his small mouth. We all must have listened to this story narrated by our parents and grandparents. However, if you try to interpret this Leela of Lord Krishna, you will find the entire universe lies in you. You are packed with infinite power, potential and energy. You just need to find it out by focusing on yourself and going inward.

The flip side is that the author has written her thoughts for the first time in a book. As it happens with most of the first-time authors, there are a few occasions when a reader might wish to have a better paraphrasing of thoughts or a better narrative. Chethana has tried to cover every possible bend in the thought that could have happened. However, in doing so, you may feel, the book emphasises a few more and leaves a few behind. This is, to be frank, natural when an author writes in a flow which is spontaneous and random.

On the whole Chethana’s book seems very very helpful to me, and certainly has a very insightful way of helping us understand our thoughts, actions, and inner workings better. It points out finding all ‘Whys and Whats’ from ourselves and accepting the things as they come your way instead of slipping into complaint mode.

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Review by Parakashtha for Indian Book Critics