Introduction

Recently, on my page, I received a message from Mudassar (author of this book) who had traveled with me to one of Discover Pakistan day trips around Islamabad. We didn’t get a chance to talk much there but he messaged me and offered to send me a copy of his latest published book. When I saw his Urdu message on Facebook, it stood out. I accepted his offer and received the book by post. I was excited to read an Urdu book after the longest time.

I was touched by some of the stories and got goosebumps.

Others got me contemplating on more levels than I imagined.

The Book

Teesra Kinara is a thought-provoking collection of short stories which makes you ponder on the reality of life and after-life. This book takes its readers through a journey of sadness, hope and ultimately spiritualism. It is very handy book. It is divided into 31 chapters which makes it very easy to read. The author wrote these stories over the span of 10-12 years. The stories revolve around philosophy and Tasawwuf/Sufism.  Each story has a unique  source of inspiration. Psychology and parapsychology are two main aspects of this book.  The name ‘Teesra Kinara’ reflects the reality and existence of 5th dimension or the unknown path; the path which leads man to reach his destination – the Divine love.

The Author

The author’s name is Mudassar Malik who belongs to Quetta and is currently living in Islamabad with his wife and son. He works in United Nations and used to write for ‘Jang’ newspaper. From the age of 7, he was fond of reading. He read Ishfaq Ahmed, Bano Qudsia, Qudratullah Shuhab, Leo Tolstoy and Khalil Jibran. He has also read the Urdu translations of Mexum Gorkhi’s novel ‘Mother’ and ‘War & Peace’. Since childhood he has been involved in literature and a deep study of Sufism inspired him to explore this unknown path through writing.

About the Author

Mudassar’s father worked in the agriculture department in the government and Mudassar was born in a house in Quetta with 300 cherry trees in backyard. The terrain of Quetta inspired him to develop interest in trekking and hiking. He is a nature lover and I met him on Nilan Bhotu, a trek behind the Margalla hills of Islamabad. The peace and quiet at home motivated him to start reading books at an early age. He is interested in psychology, human psychology (face and body language) palmistry and exploring nature. He has traveled up-north many times. I am sharing an excerpt from his story ‘Zindagi aur Sheosar Jheel’ (Life and Sheosar Lake) written on an exotic lake in Deosai plains, Skardu, Pakistan.

Food for Thought

The following excerpt was translated into English for a competition held by Oxford University. This “food for thought” describes the theme of majority of his stories.

What is desire? Can you steal someone’s desire? If you can, what is the outcome of this theft? How do desires shadow your path to the unknown? The biggest quest of human life is to explore the unknown. The tales of love from east and west only hint that this path started from our heart but where does it lead to? Unknown! Your companion on this path will be desire, entity, reflection and reality. Yet your companion is unknown. Yes, unknown!

Subjects of Teesra Kinara

All 31 short stories in the book are on different subjects. A story ‘Full Stop’ has 4 parts. The rest of the stories are almost all independent covering a vast range of topics like:

Life –  Wishes – Dreams – Unknown realities of life – Creation – Empty hands  – Forgiveness – Discovery – Fear – The sea – Travels – Sadness – Crossroads – Tears – Love – The confession – The last memory

Summary of 3 Most Popular Stories from the Book

Maafi: This story has been published on several blogs and magazines and has had some great reviews. It has a Sufi touch to it. It is about a prisoner’s last night who has been sentenced to death. He is thinking about all the times he did wrong but wasn’t caught (stealing, robbing etc). But when he witnessed a rape and for once, he wanted to do something good, he killed the attacker. Now he was sentenced to death for it. The story is about his conversation with God. He says ‘God you always saved me when I was wrong but why did you leave me when I finally did something right?’ This story has a very touching end.

Silent Poison (Khamosh Zeher): This is a tragic love story revolving around the subject ‘hope’. A palmist falls in love with a girl that he hoped to get, but she turns him down.  He has conversation with hope and realizes that the concept of hope in this world is wrong. Hope is actually a poison which kills men from inside. One day he noticed on the girls hand that her life-line is very short and she will die soon. He can’t sleep and once again he hopes to get her and is determined. This story has an open end because it is followed by the second part ‘Khali Hath’.

Teesra Kinara: This story has been published on different platforms and has received a good feedback. It is a philosophical story of a man talking to his death. It is also the title story of the book. The man explores the best love story of the universe: the sun and earth. They belonged to a single entity but were separated after big bang. They think that the reason of their separation is human beings as it happened to accommodate them. The man asks death ‘what is the best way to spend life’. Death replies ‘The best and the worst way to spend your life is living in a dream’. This story reveals different forms of love by conversation between man and death. It also includes the theory of inclusion of opposite which means that the importance of everything in this universe is relying on its opposite e.g. day and night.

My Recommendation

I would suggest you all to get this book based on the following reasons:

  • It is vital for us to read Urdu Literature and improve our language skills.
  • We should always promote local writers, publishers and businesses.
  • This book is the ultimate source of curiosity and makes you ponder on different subjects.
  • It will make your mind question your beliefs.
  • The price of the book is extremely reasonable.
  • The book can be ordered from the comfort of your home through free COD.
  • It will give you a doze of philosophy and it’s stories will grab your attention.
  • Short stories are very easy to read even with a busy routine.

Price of the Book

The price of this book is Rs. 400 whether it is purchased from a book store or ordered online through COD. There are no delivery charges so you can order the book from the comfort of your home and it will be delivered within 2-3 days.

Book Availability

Book Stores

It is currently available in ‘Saeed Book Bank’ (F-7) and ‘Mr. Books’ (F-6) in Islamabad. Soon it will be available in major books store of Lahore and Quetta.

Cash on Delivery COD option

For all Pakistan, free cash on delivery option (COD) is available. You can place an order of the book ‘Teesra Kinara’ in any of the following ways:

Contacting Publisher directly

info@gufhtugu.com

0340-4455-990

Messaging on Publisher’s Facebook Page by clicking here. You can even message this Facebook page of the author to order your copy of the book.

Available at KIBF

This book is also being sold at the 13th Karachi International Book Fair at Expo Center, Karachi. This festival is taking place from December 7-11, 2017.

Limited availability of stock. Hurry up and order your copy now. Happy Reading. 🙂

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About Nadiya Najib

Hi guys! Subscribe to my blog to know about the drama that I am, my love for Pakistan and planet Jupiter and my general rambling on whats what! ? I have so much to talk about. I'm passionate about Tennis,? truck art, family trees, organizing, traveling, stamp collection, natural remedies, leaf art, social media, cats, blogging, chess and so much more! I'm always exploding with ideas. Come let's socialize. ?

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