When she is sitting in her living room chatting about her life as a reporter with leading newspapers back in the day, it seems unlikely that spirituality will be a part of this practical journalist. However, thanks to a series of events, spirituality is the topic on which Lakshmi Narayan, the author of the critically acclaimed Bonsai Kitten chose to write on.
“Sometime around November 2008, I started to ‘hear’ certain words — persistent and consistently in my mind. When I consulted the great healer, the late Roxan Marker, to whom the book is dedicated, she said, ‘What’s your problem? Just write them down as they come along.’ I started doing just that and the headache-like feeling would go away as soon as I wrote the thought down,” she recalls.
Whisperings From Beyond by Lakshmi Narayan Hay House pp.377, Rs 309
Even while she wrote them down, Narayan had little intention of printing her work, since she was afraid of being called a ‘fraud’ or a ‘crackpot’. However, when she finally decided to approach the publisher, they readily agreed to print. While her book has already received positive response, the poet herself is rather doubtful of her own poetic prowess. “I have never written poetry in my life, except for some girlish stuff in school — where every other sentence end had to rhyme in order to be called poetry!” she laughs.
She has received letters from many a fan claiming that the book has helped them make sense of the nuances of life and has helped them in their spiritual journeys, she laments that she was unable to find any answers in her own work when she re-read it. “Recently, I heard some very bad news that devastated me. Since my book had helped others, I felt I could maybe find answers in it to solve my dilemma. However, despite leafing through it I could find no answers. Maybe my time hasn’t come yet,” she says.
With two books under her belt, the writer is now looking towards history for inspiration, though she admits that she is not actively involved in the process of writing. “There are two kinds of books I would love to write. Having lived in Singapore, I discovered a long link between the South Indian kingdoms of yore and the Far East, stretching up to the Phillippines and Japan. The stories of these kings and queens, so full of colour, mystery and valour, need to be told to a larger readership. Secondly, I have long nourished the longing to take a certain year in history and connect it to different parts of the world and interlink,” she signs off.
