Shubhrangshu Roy
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An ancient gift for the new

A personal journey undertaken to explore the universal

Shubhrangshu Roy

Unrestrained curiosity and an innocuous question to a media mogul took me on a wild journey on the banks of the Ganges at the foot of the Himalayas, in Haridwar, 13 years ago. I was on the verge of a burnout from years of chasing news, and submitting to deadline pressures imposed by the printed word. That perhaps, had aroused an unrelenting urge to chase the stars, to figure out what really could be the purpose of life. Who am I, after all? I asked aloud. I convinced myself that chasing the stars would be the ultimate adventure, the final act of journalism, investigating into the nature of the bewildering unknown. Up there in the sky, I could finally join the dots.

Zara’s Witness is the culmination of that quest. Scripted in bursts of mystical insights and inspiration following rigorous study of secular Indic literature, it narrates the story of a young girl’s search for the meaning of life, figuratively, along the course of an imaginary river — from high up in the mountains to just short of where it merges with the sea before rising to the sky, first as vapour, and then, as cloud, repeating the cycle of birth and death, over and over again.

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For me, that journey, lasted a full 12 years — which, quite by grand coincidence, is the complete cycle from one Kumbh mela to another. It is also, by the ancient code of the ashramas in Indic life, the time that a student actually spends at the abode of his master (in the Brahmacharya ashrama), before moving forward to lead the life of a householder (Grihastha ashrama).

Through those eventful, if tiring, years, I periodically drove to Haridwar, to partake in the discourses at a little known satsang or gathering of lay folk, many of them top corporate honchos, under the guidance of an evolved spiritual teacher, little known to the outside world.

What I discovered there in the company of the seer (the teacher) and the seekers (on occasions, some 2,000 men and women) had so little to with the search of God -- of the One imagined, almighty, unknown, up there. And it had still little to do with the question if He was up there, for real.

Instead, it had to do with our mundane pangs of everyday grind. What happens to my business? What happens to my wealth? What happens to my health? What happens to my spouse? What happens to my offspring? What happens if I die? In other words, it was all about career, wealth, health, sex, inheritors and death. And why do all of these worries, either singly or in collective, not perform to my command. That raises the trite, yet profound, question, if wishes were horses…?

Zara’s Witness attempts to address those questions in a fairytale setting, by the river bank and through an enchanted forest, before culminating inside a star kitchen in a dazzling city of the bold and the beautiful. There, Zara discovers the fullness of her life’s longings. And that fullness is to be found in Universal Love!

The narration draws on concepts and images from early Indic literature to contemporary Disney classics. It also imports narrative techniques from poetry, theatre, classical Indian and Western music, cinema, and quantum computing to narrate Zara’s inner exploration.

Yet, this story, and the turmoil and euphoria it brings to life, is only apparent at the surface level for a first-time reader. At a deeper level, there are several underlying layers that transport readers to the inner realms of their being. And in it, is told the story of subversion, as if, by getting under the skin, to turn around the conventional wisdom handed down by word of mouth from generation to generation – that there is no merit in abstinence. No virtue in denial.

At another subcutaneous level, Zara’s Witness is a simple musical score of computational mathematics and the measurement of time and distance. Of how one became many over a period of time. How an epoch is hidden within a moment, and how a moment is hidden within an epoch. That story is not only for a mind informed on the subtle beauty of Indic wisdom. It should also fascinate a nerd exploring the final frontiers of computing. Which is why this story is not only for those seeking spiritual liberation or for those keen on listening to the songs of their soul. It is equally relevant for the high school grad, the IIT scholar and the Silicon Valley techie, to discover the beauty of a parallel universe.

A few years ago, I remember reading about Facebook’s maverick founder Mark Zuckerburg wondering aloud if there could be an equation that could explain everything in this Universe. I am not a scientist nor a technologist to be able to draw up a mathematical equation to satisfy that curiosity. But Zara’s Witness does attempt to draw up a linear stream of thought in a chapter at the end of the story titled “The Essence of This and That!,” which should take the reader on a wonderful chase into how all things fall into place, or a common (w)hole, so to speak.

Above all this, the story of Zara’s inner journey, seeks to invite the 21st century Gen Z to explore the hidden world of Indian classics in their unabridged and undiluted form, to figure out for themselves how millennia old knowledge is shaping our understanding of the complex human mind even now.

The Telegraph

March 24, 2019


Excerpts from the book
The Story So Far...

Dear Zara,
This book is for you, but it’s not your story. It is more of a coming-of-age manual for you as you step into your teens today.

The Enchanted Forest
Zara raised her hands, running them through her long auburn hair, and slipped into the water chanting, ‘Give up, give up, give up!’
Come, let me show you around my parlour. It’s remarkably quiet today,’ said the big fish and both glided into midstream with the current. Zara rising once in a while to the surface to catch her breath...
On the bank across the river at the feet of the Ah!nandita Hills... A crocodile basked in the sunshine at a distance, brooding over a batch of eggs...
'O Lizzy! You have learnt to look at the glass half empty, but you still need to fill up your tumbler before your wisdom can flow like Rivah!'
The lizard looked at Zara, amused, then smiled.
‘You’ve got it all. You have grasped the wisdom climbing up the steps that I spent a lifetime to learn by the river’s bank...,’ she said.
Truth, Zara,’ said the elephant winking, ‘is that that is invariant in all frames of reference. Just like me... To the creature with a limited vision, I might appear, at once, log; at others, a pillar or two or four;
sometimes, a rope or even a barrel. But to the one with complete vision, I am what I really am, an elephant...’
Zara sat pensive. Thinking. Thinking deep. ‘What’s true? What’s untrue?’ she wondered.

‘There’s hyacinth there... that’s true?’ she asked herself. Then, she replied. ‘No... there’s water there? That’s true?’

‘Where's the water?’ asked the turtle testing Zara.

Zara paused, and thought and thought and thought.

And then, slowly, raising her voice, she said, ‘There's only truth.’

‘Only truth?’ asked the turtle, now raising his brow...

Do not waste your emotions, Zara,’ the tree said. ‘Your sorrow comes from within. Solve your sorrows within. Remember, there is no joy in the material things of life. The treasure lies buried someplace else.’
The Soul Kitchen!
Food, Zara, is the highest state of being ... for truly, food is life.

Know well, Zara, those who kill don’t eat; those who eat don't kill.
Zara was only beginning to grasp what was on offer when Nigella interrupted her, peeling an onion: ‘Don’t get taken up by the broth, Zara. When you peel an onion to its end, you are only left with its essence. That essence alone is you. Your name and identity are only your skins. Sometimes they grow and sometimes they shrink. It’s only when you peel the skins, that you reach your essence. And from that essence another onion is born. So, feel the essence of your soul, Zara.
Food, Zara, is the highest state of being. For, truly life is food.

When you are starved of food, you cease to feel, you cease to smell, you cease to hear, you cease to speak, you cease to see, you cease to think, you cease to

And when you get to eat, life blooms in you. And you begin to think, you begin to speak, you begin to see, you begin to touch, you begin to hear, you begin to smell, you begin to feel.
And this, indeed, is the food, that you and I hanker after. So, fear not darling, and hate me not. From food are all creatures born, by food they grow and live.
From food are creatures, that dwell on earth, produced; by food they live and again into it, they finally pass.

I am food! I am food, I am food.

I am the eater of food! I am the eater of food, I am the eater of food.
Atop The Moonshine Mount!

Photo credit: Facebook

And so, there stood Zara, gloriously perched atop the Moonshine Mount, shining bright in the glow of the full-moon night, under a star-spangled sky...

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Floating beyond the horizon of reality,

On a carpet of smoke,

I see life abound in joy.

It’s a world of goodness, beyond measure.

I leave my land far behind

Flying over the clouds

To a magical place -- I find everlasting peace.

As the gateway to knowledge opens

Revealing to me the naked truth...

I find my greatest happiness

Standing at the golden gate.

There’s nothing here, but eternity!

In my flight of fancy

Among the stars, I see no god

Nor another being.

With both my arms outstretched

Grasping the pillars of conviction,

Facing the truth

And nothing, but the truth

I, the eternal being,

The highest form of creation,

Standing all alone by myself

I see none other than me.

The rest, mere projections of that

Great unknown that manifests

As the supreme being in my mind

Ever since I came down to earth.

Rising above the mundane,

I get to understand that

There’s only existence.

Existence self-existing.

I, the eternal eye that surveys the world

And pictures myself sometimes

As an elephant, at times a frog

And yet other times as a lizard, changing colours

And still more often as my likeness,

But another than my own self

Sometimes, I see myself in twos,

At others, in threes, fours; a multitude.

I see myself in you, in you, in you!

Jo tu hai, so main hoon;

Jo main hoon, so tu hai!

And so, in one and all, I find my whole.

Zara's Witness in Reviews
‘Much like the oral traditional in Indic discourse and storytelling, Zara’s Witness deserves not just to be read but to be listened to, fully to realise the multi-layered message it seeks to convey. Are you ready to listen?’
- Jug Suraiya
The Speaking Tree
‘(Zara’s Witness) reminds us of the Neverending Story of German writer Michael Ende (1993) … the narrator becomes part of the story and the differences between the two become indistinguishable.’
- Kuruvilla Pandikattu SJ
Vidyankur: Journal of Philosophical and Theological Studies
July-Dec 2019
‘Zara will smile in the company of Bach’s Jonathan Livingstone Seagull, St Exupéry’s The Little Prince, Gibran’s The Prophet and Coelho’s The Alchemist.’
- Azam Gill
writegill.com
‘Posited for the young-adult reader, Zara’s Witness can be a primer to Indic knowledge traditions and Vedic expositions along with precepts on universal values through the prism of Zara’s experiences’
- Sneha Bhura
The Week
‘Letter from a dad to a daughter. An ode to freedom and beauty, from the earth and sky to the forest and the river. While the city waits with its seductions and sensuality’
- Amit Sengupta
(Hard News Media)
‘I had forgotten about koels until I read Zara’s Witness. The book is a journey of revelation into the infinite lap of nature, in a reverse trajectory, from sanyas to youth.’
- Amit Sengupta
National Herald
‘The complexity of the book lies in it being part parabolic and part fable. (Zara’s Witness) is didactic in verse that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles.’
- Ranjit Bhushan
DNA
‘The complexity of the book lies in it being part parabolic and part fable. (Zara’s Witness) is didactic in verse that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles.’
- Ismail Butera
Musician, entertainer, purveyor of celestial world sounds, teller of ancient epics and spiritual tales
Comments from the Readers

A quirky but fascinating novel which, presented as a letter from a father to his daughter, covers serious philosophical and existential issues through parables and Veantic reflections.

Dr Karan Singh

Chairman of the Auroville Foundation, politician, philathropist and poet

A brilliant and original novel by Shubhrangshu Roy, Zara’s Witness uses fantasy, myth, science, music, poetry, and stream of consciousness to communicate deep insights on the nature of inner realtity. Zara begins her journey up in the mountains and by the river. She wonders who she is, and she is taught by creatures of the forest – a frog, a lizard, an elephant, a hyena, and a turtle – the elements, and the river. She confronts questions of being and identity and learns that willing renunciation is the essence of bliss. The book is like a prose-poem that asks to be read and re-read, while nudging the reader to mystical truths.

Dr Subhash Kak

Author, Vedic scholar, professor of artificial intelligence and on the Indian prime minister’s advisory council on science, technology, and innovation

I don’t usually read this kind of ‘fantasy', so it took me a while to settle into the rhythm and let myself be taken along rather than try to rationalise everything and keep pace with what was what.

Once I relaxed into the fact that the story was unexpected and fanciful I became comfortably accustomed. Thank you for the opportunity to try something new.

I particularly liked “The Essence of This and That”

“This Space is Time” very interesting

“Nothing Stirs”

These were cumulatively very helpful, a gentle assisting hand. Perhaps, if I’d read these three first I would not have wallowed so much at the start.

I’m very impressed, Roy.

My impression is that you’ve written this book for a market who have both a spiritual inquisitiveness (at least) and those who love the idea of escapism for a period of time into another realm.

I think you’ve achieved this.

Annie De Monchaux

Author
Freemantle, Australia

I enjoyed your book . So many beautiful philosophies, metaphors and analogies about the journey of life . I would pursue this book. I loved what you had to say.

Jane Haybittel

Author and Businesswoman
Tasmania

A marvellous story, full of the joy of life!

John K Lewis

Former co-founder at Consolidated Technologies and scholar of theoretical physics from RU Utrecht

AMAZING. Master stylist. Enjoying every twirl and turn of words and thoughts. The expressive language is unmatched

Amita Sharma

Former Additional Secretary,
Ministry of Human Resources Development and architect of the MNREGA initiative

Zara’s Witness is irreverent and inspiring at the same time. It is an imaginative rendering of Vedantic and yogic philosophy. It is fresh, attractive, humorous and witty. What has been presented through this simple story is actually Vedantic concept of negation, according to which every person has to go through the inessential, before he can outgrow the limitations imposed on him by his nature.

As per my understanding, it explains Sankhya philosophy and Patanjali Yog sutras at the same time. Sankhya has been best explained by the most impressive line in Level 1...

“Jo tuhai, so main hoon
Jo main hoon, so tu hai.”

Payal Garg

Sankhya Yog practitioner and Chartered Accountant

An absurdly fabulous book of brilliant writing: The author has done one hell of a crazy bit of writing that takes you to spaces from mythology to science to music with absolute ease, pretty much sharing his own interests in three different areas.

Sharif Rangnekar

Festival Director Rainbow Lit Fest and author of Straight to Normal

A cauldron of spiritual wisdom cooked innovatively in the Sage of Gurgaon's inimitable style - Poetry battling to find space with prose!!

Shubham Mukherjee

Media, brand and reputation management professional

Hop on, it’s a journey worth taking.

Roy has taken a complicated idea that had our ancient sages delving into their minds for eons – who am I – and has made it into an adventure. A beautiful read that takes us on a journey that for some could only be described as spiritual.

Jemima Raman

Book critic, TOI Chandigarh

A brilliant philosophical read: A story woven as a guide to discover the answers to existential questions of life.

Gargi Pal

Research scholar

“This universe, Zara, is the creation of our several desires. It is the product of our energy in motion. And when our imagination flounders, we feel sapped of energy.” Zara, enclosed in a plasma bubble, lands on the bank of the Ganges from the tongue of the glacier. She begins her life on the riverbank where the eternal question of ‘Who am I?’ drives her on a journey to the city where she reckons that she can find her purpose. But her voyage is not going to be an easy one as she confronts personal loss and materialistic pleasures. Zara’s Witness is a philosophical fantasy where Zara's story is told through the four ashram of life which guides a human towards fulfilment, happiness and spiritual liberation. This book is aimed towards anyone who is trying to find their purpose in life.

After a lot of days, I was able to read something miraculous and beautiful. This book focuses on self discovery and the challenges which one faces during a lifetime. The author’s writing is so beautiful and philosophical that it will definitely connect with an avid reader easily. It has a beautiful cover as well and I will recommend it to everyone.

Rujuta Ramteke

Book critic and social media influencer

Hello! I just received my copy of Zara’s Witness… I have only read around 30 pages yet, but had to say it’s one of the best books I have read recently. It’s a book that needs to be read by all.

Saloni Kumar

Reiki master

We often tend to forget or take nature for granted. Every single day, mother nature gives us innumerable lessons that we skip on. Only because we are ‘too busy’ or in other words, we make unconscious decisions. But just stop for a second, look around at any organic element of nature and observe. Tell me about one lesson that you extract from it. And if you don’t get any, read this book.

The title is relevant, the cover is deep, attractive, and gives us something to imagine.

The language is simple, easy to understand, but it is the writing style that makes the book different. It is poetic, going in a flow that is boundless but knows its destiny. The philosophical lessons and the fiction story have been woven well. It is inspired by the ancient Indian manner of storytelling where the living and nonliving have a conversation to prove a philosophical or spiritual point.

Many obvious lessons have been written in an unobvious way and therefore, makes the lessons digestible and amusing. A breeze of freshness hits. Some readers may find it incomprehensible due to its ‘unconventional’ writing style.

I enjoyed this book to no limit. I can happily say that I was MESMERISED in the process after finishing this book. I had not read something like this in a very long time and it reminded me of the stories that my mother and grandmother narrated to me as a child for me to learn the lessons of life. Therefore, I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read something fresh, something unusual, something fictional yet something enlightening.

LibroReview in Goodreads

“Since the best way to disarm your opponent is not to make an appearance at all, it's probably best to shut the noise of your mind.”

The author, Shubhrangshu Roy has done a remarkable job in blending spirituality and fiction together in this novel. The book deploys several tools used in other crafts and science such as literature, poetry, theatre, classical Indian and Western music, cinema and quantum computing to narrate Zara's inner exploration. It is a visceral read on spiritualism in the form of fantasy fiction.

This book is a vivid portrayal of Zara's search for her purpose in life in a fairy tale setting- from the stark wilderness by the riverside, through the forest and to her destination in the city - which resonates with all of us at some level. Throughout the book, Zara is mentored by the river, the lizard, the frog, and other creatures of the forest.

The novel offers a subtle discourse on Indic philosophy and the existential questions one faces in life amalgamated with elements of spiritualism and contemporary philosophy (think Paulo Coelho or Robin Sharma).

Personally for me, the book offered a cornucopia of things to ruminate about, it was a visceral and sublime read that takes you into the true nature of being, exhorts you to break free from the manacles of the chaos in your mind and makes you ask yourself: “Who am I?”

Shailee Basu

Books-i-read in Goodreads

Zara’s Witness by Shubhrangshu Roy is a fresh take in the self-help genre adding in a fantasy touch, thus making it more imaginative and colourful. The writing knits in the art of music, sound vibrations, mythology and science via nature that never fails to teach us the original lesson on how to lead a better life. However, we at times, take it all for granted.

Reading this book felt very different and gave me the Disney vibes, which through adventures, teach us numerous lessons to be authentic and to just be. The book aims for anyone who is trying to find their purpose in life. The characters break down with songs and philosophies bringing in the wave of lightness inside of you.

The extraordinary prose will transport you to Zara’s world, leave you spellbound, help you appreciate the finer nuances of life and compel you to go on a journey of self-discovery and rumination. The book is recommended to people/readers who love to read philosophical stuff. Especially for kids. This book could be a nighttime story to introduce a different universe to them to make.

Kinjal Parekh in Goodreads

For the young and uninitiated reader, discourses on Indic philosophy can be intimidating, but the author presents them in a refreshing, futuristic format.

Ranjeni Singh

Deputy Editor
The Speaking Tree

Zara’s Witness has also been featured in the Hindu Listing of Books
The Making of Zara's Witness

Zara's Journey From Here To There