BOOK REVIEW #THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRARI

Source-createyourself.today

                     

"What lies behind you and what lies in front of you matters little when compared to what lies within you."

These lines were perhaps the icing on the cake for what had been an amazing journey reading the book- The Monk Who Sold his Ferrari, written by Robin Sharma.

Having read his book 'The Greatness Guide' a few months back, I knew that I will surely enjoy reading his works, and was waiting to read 'The Monk who sold his Ferrari.' I had heard a lot about this book, and how it has helped so many people. it is widely proclaimed as one of the best self-help books. I felt that I must read this book too, and thus I got my hands on it. Truly, this book has left me mesmerised. Here is a complete review of this book:-

MAIN CHARACTERS-

John- He is the narrator of this tale. A professional lawyer and is rather frustrated with his job. He is a very inquisitive person by nature, but also someone who has a quest for knowledge, and seeks to learn from Julian. This is proved by the fact that he listens intently to Julian's story for one full night, sacrificing his sleep in the hope of getting inspired.

Julian Mantle- He is the protagonist of this tale, and the whole story revolves around the paradigm shift that took place in his life. He was initially a hot-shot lawyer and master litigator, owning a palatial mansion along with a red Ferrari. But after suffering from a life-threatening heart attack, he sells his Ferrari, quits his job, and goes to the Himalayas to understand the meaning of his life. After interacting with Yogi Raman, a mystic and a profound sage, he understands the culture of the Sages of Sivana, and transforms as an individual. He wishes to spread the knowledge to as many people as possible.The first person he shares this knowledge with is his close friend and colleague John.

PLOT:-

This book has three aspects to it. The first one is that this book is written in the form of a conversation between two lawyer friends. The second one is about the messages brought out in the course of this conversation. The third one is an internal story narrated by Julian, which aids the explanation of the  life-lessons The story brings out seven elements- a garden, a lighthouse, a naked sumo wrestler, a pink wire-cable, a gold-stopwatch, a fragrant rose and a path to diamonds. All these elements are symbolic in nature, and are covered one by one in subsequent chapters.
Julian describes his sojourn in the Himalayas along with Yogi Raman, learning about the culture of the Sages of Sivana. He understands the depth of the life given to him by God.
Ultimately, John realises how he has been living a life filled with monotony, performing the same tasks day in and day out. He understands the need for spending more time with his wife and children, as those moments will never come back. The book ends with Julian requesting John to share the knowledge of the Sages of Sivana to as many people as he possibly could.

WHY I ENJOYED READING THE BOOK-

I enjoyed reading the book because of many reasons:-

• Simplicity of language:- As a reader, I prefer reading sentences which are framed without any complexities. If I find it difficult to understand sentences, then I immediately stop reading the book. This book was completely different in that respect. The language used indeed was simple, and not obfuscating in any manner.
• Messages through a story- Frankly speaking, all of us love reading and listening to stories. If these stories bring out subtle messages, then it makes the stories all the more enjoyable. I loved the way such important life lessons were brought out by Robin Sharma with the help of this story. I was hooked on to the story till the very end, and did not feel like keeping the book down.
• Symbolic representation:- Each chapter concludes with an 'Action Summary', where the meaning of a particular symbol is lucidly brought out. This was very useful for me as a reader to recapitulate on what I had learnt in the chapter that I had just read (added to the fact that I wasn't making notes either!)

Inspiring lines from the book:-

"Freedom is like a house: you build it brick by brick. The first brick to be laid is willpower."
Mantra-"I am more than I appear to be, all the world's strength and power rests inside me."
"The Yogis knew that the past is water under the bridge and the future is a distant sun on the horizon your imagination."

WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT:-

It is very hard to point out loopholes in such a wonderfully written book. But, one observation was that at times, the conversation between Julian and John became a little predictable. For instance, for every logical explanation provided by Julian, John often responded with 'I completely agree with you', 'Wow', 'True', 'my cup is still half empty' or 'I can't understand...'
Could it have been any different? Maybe not. But, this is just an observation that could be considered.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK-

This book will surely propel you ahead in your journey towards success. Even though we all are aware about life lessons like 'Managing time effectively', 'Waking up early', 'Eating the right food' etc, this book will surely serve as a reality check. A small suggestion: as you read this book, try and reflect on your own life, and how the values mentioned in the book will propel  you towards your goal in life.


MY RATING-  4.5/5

It is a must-read, and I assure you that you will be left reflecting on your inner self once you finish reading this book.

Do give me suggestions for topics on which I can write blogs. That will indeed be a great help for me! You can send me your suggestions on my e-mail id- anirudh.naveen02@gmail.com

For more updates, follow me on-
Facebook- Anirudh Naveen
Instagram- anirudh.naveen.0305