Not, as you might imagine from the title, a book about cats, but the latest offering from that excellent travel writer and historian of India William Dalrymple. I have read and greatly enjoyed his White Mughals and have dipped in to several of his other works. This one was a Christmas present and I only started it a few days ago. It is in fact a series of essays -- nine of them, of course -- each one devoted to the life of someone who is pursuing a spiritual path in modern India. A hundred, or even fifty, years ago this would have been a normal and acceptable thing to do on the Indian sub-continent, where many religions have coexisted in relative harmony for centuries. But India, as everyone knows, is changing with incredible rapidity, and as it changes, the old beliefs and traditions are coming under threat. So, though in many ways inspiring and fascinating, these life stories almost invariably end sadly. The maker of sacred statues for Hindu temples, whose family has been following the craft for over seven hundred years, has taught his son the Sanskrit rituals and the modelling skills needed to follow the trade, but the boy wants to go to Bangalore and be a computer technician. The Tibetan monk has been forced to throw off his robes and fight the Chinese despite his vows of non-violence. The temple prostitute, dedicated to the goddess at thirteen, plies her trade in the backstreets, has lost two daughters to AIDS and is herself HIV positive. And so it goes on.
Each of these life stories is a fascinating blend of biography and history, and though I thought i knew quite a lot about India and Indian religions, I have learned a great deal more. William Dalrymple, who lives in India with his wife and family, writes wonderfully well about his adopted country. Good stuff.
