The book titled ‘Philosophers Crystal’ – The Treacherous Terrain of Tassatarius is a fiction written by Marcin Dolecki – philosopher, chemist and historian of chemistry (PhD) and lives in Poland. The fiction is of interest to Hindus because it is a time traveling journey and the main characters in the novel interact with Adi Shankaracharya.
About the novel by the author
Twenty-year-old Philip lives alone in an authoritarian country, his parents arrested arrested after the imperial police find a secret notebook in their apartment. Then one evening Philip meets an uncommon girl, her name Julia, possibly on the run from the police, or sent to him as a secret agent by the state. Despite his concerns, he offers to put her up for the night. In the morning a mysterious person knocks on his door and advises him to escape immediately. This is how the couple’s strange, paradoxical and hazardous journey begins, leading Philip and Julia in a quest through time to the collapsing Roman empire, the 17th century Amsterdam and the medieval Indian jungle. During their travel they meet famous philosophers who confront the couple with existential questions – only to find that the answers Philip and Julia discover will help them face the ultimate danger.
The conversation between the characters and Adi Shankaracharya revolves around Advaita Vedanta.
Here are a few examples
“Before you found out that the object lying next to your foot was only a piece of old rope, you saw a real snake in it. The same is true of the entire world. We look at it through a veil of illusion – Maya. However, if we manage to tear that veil off, we realize that multiplicity and variability are only relatively real. Then we obtain the knowledge of what really exists.”
Basically the entire episode involving Adi Shankaracharya revolves around the teachings from the Upanishads.
‘Philosophers Crystal’ – The Treacherous Terrain of Tassatarius is available in most online stores.
Please note that this is not a review of the book. It is just an introduction.
Update: An updated (2017) and edited second version of the book is currently available.
Update: An updated (2017) and edited second version of the book is currently available.
