SynopsisA riveting account of love and desireIndia is the only civilization to elevate kama-desire and pleasure-to a goal of life. Kama is both cosmic and human energy, which animates life and holds it in place. Gurcharan Das weaves a compelling narrative soaked in philosophical, historical and literary ideas in the third volume of his trilogy on life's goals: India Unbound was the first, on artha, 'material well-being'; and The Difficulty of Being Good was the second, on dharma, 'moral well-being'. Here, in his magnificent prose, he examines how to cherish desire in order to live a rich, flourishing life, arguing that if dharma is a duty to another, kama is a duty to oneself. It sheds new light on love, marriage, family, adultery and jealousy as it wrestles with questions such as these: How to nurture desire without harming others or oneself? Are the erotic and the ascetic two aspects of our same human nature? What is the relationship between romantic love and bhakti, the love of god?
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Binding: HardBack
About the author
Gurcharan Das is an author, commentator and thought leader. His latest book, India Grows at Night: A Liberal Case for a Strong State, was on the Financial Times?s best books for 2013. His much-acclaimed The Difficulty of Being Good is ?a riveting examination of governance and corruption in the modern world,? said Newsweek. His international bestseller, India Unbound, ?is a quiet earthquake? according to the Guardian, and available in seventeen languages and filmed by BBC.
Gurcharan Das studied philosophy at Harvard University and later attended Harvard Business School (AMP) where he is featured in three case studies. After heading Procter & Gamble India and South East Asia, he became managing director, Procter & Gamble Worldwide (Strategic Planning). At fifty, he took early retirement to become a full-time writer. He writes a regular column for five Indian newspapers, including the Times of India, and contributes to the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, Foreign Affairs and the New York Times. He has served on the juries of the Templeton Prize, the Milton Friedman Prize and the McKinsey Award.
His other literary works include a novel, A Fine Family, a book of essays, The Elephant Paradigm, and an anthology, Three Plays, consisting of Larins Sahib, a prize-winning play about the British in India, which has been presented at the Edinburgh Festival; Mira, which was produced off-Broadway to critical acclaim from New York critics; and 9 Jakhoo Hill which has been performed in major Indian cities. He is presently editing for Penguin Random House The Story of Indian Business in fifteen volumes, of which seven have already appeared. He lives in New Delhi with his wife.
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