Ashok Sharma
Reading is, indeed,a good hobby and lucky is the person who has cultivated the hobby of reading for pleasure for he has found an eternal companion who will never betray him and who will always stand by him in his moments of joy and sorrow.Books are the perrenial source of knowledge, information and wisdom as they have been written by the best and enlightened minds that have ever lived on the earth since the dawn of civilization.They contain their profound knowledge, ideas and experiences about the world, life and how to live in a better way. The books such as Bhagwadgita, the Ramayana, the Bible, the Quran etc are rich in content and thought and contain profound knowledge and truths of life.Then there are books on history, travelogues, memoirs etc written by great historians, travellers, philosphers etc which take us to different lands and times and give us a picture of the life and beliefs of those times.The motivational books guide us to an ideal way of life, boost our morale in distress and help us to live a better life.The classic plays, novels, stories, poems etc deal with various aspects of our life and provide solace to our troubled minds when we are in a pensive mood.The books for children have interesting stories and comics which take them to wonderland and ignite their young minds to explore new ideas.Then there are books written by great statesmen and thinkers, which helped them to realise the cherished dream of building a prosperous and strong nation.Thus, there are books to cater to the need and taste of people of different tastes, background, professions and age groups.Besides all these advantages, books help us in expanding our knowledge,vocabulary and communication skills.They broadaen our outlook, help us in passing our leisure in a profitable manner and free us from the superstitions and orthodox and obsolete rituals and dogmas and thus, help us to lead a fuller and meaningful life.So we should cultivate the useful hobby of reading for pleasure and enrich our minds with truth and knowledge.
At the same time, we should switch over to gifting books on joyous occasions such as marriage ceremony, wedding anniversaries, retirement functions, birthday parties and the like because books are long lasting and an autographed book is a gift more valuable than lacs of rupees because everytime the recipient reads the book, he/she remembers the giver though the one who gifted the book may have have left this mortal world.
(The author is Lecturer in English, Govt.HSS Thial)
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