Through a poetic retelling of Ahalya’s story, Koral Dasgupta shines a spotlight on the life of this resilient character from Hindu mythology.
From her birth to the events leading up to sage, Gautam’s curse on her, this book gives you a glimpse into Ahalya’s perspective. It addresses questions of women empowerment, societal norms, and patriarchy in an attempt to deliver the story with great clarity.
What a splendidly written book! I am always mesmerized by stories of Hindu mythology. But the writing in this one takes the cake.
Koral Dasgupta has penned Ahalya’s story with such a fluid and dream-like composition. The writing is driven by nature imageries and the constantly pondering state of Ahalya’s mind.
The book starts from the point where Ahalya is a spirit, waiting keenly for her father, Brahma to create the perfect vessel for her soul. And so we get to see her as a curious child who is oblivious to the ways of the humans. The statements about about mother, father, woman are fundamental to the field of philosophy and can be considered as thought-provoking.
Over the course of the story, we see Ahalya’s character transform from that of an innocent child to an enthusiastic grown woman who has discovered the pleasures of life on her own accord.
Gautam’s character will make you wish that Ahalya had found a better companion for herself, someone who reflects her enthusiasm for life and engages her intellect.
There are so many profound thoughts that form the basis of this book. I annotated so many pages and I look forward to revisiting the story again later.
Also, I am really elated to know that this is the first book in the Sati series and I can’t wait to get my hands on the other 4 titles.
Highly recommend this book to everyone who is interested in mythology!
The Life Stories 