It’s always a delight to discover long lost friends who have become fascinating, talented and accomplished people, not just because they’re friends, but because others also see them that way. I’ve recently reconnected with a university chum from India who has made quite a name for himself as a writer and philosopher. I’m told his oil paintings have impressed more than a few critics as well.
Ashok Malhotra and I go way back. Vancouver, BC in the mid 70s was our stomping grounds where we spent many a pleasant hour walking the tree-lined paths of UBC, chatting about mystic spirituality, philosophy and religion. We also talked a lot about girls (what do you expect, we were a couple of single guys in our mid-twenties.)
Ashok has since traveled extensively and brings a mature and well-considered world view to his latest book Nude besides the Lake (the word besides is deliberate). His writing is effortless and thoughtful, bringing to mind classic books like Siddhartha that touch each reader in a personal way. I’ll let Ashok tell his own story on today’s blog page.
See The Philosopher in the Writings section of this blog, or check out Ashok’s first book Mystic and the Blossoms and his most recent Nude Besides the Lake on Amazon. For you blog-o-philes, Ashok also hosts his own blog Spiritual Thoughts for a Green World.
Words with Brad 
Thanks for those wonderful words Brad, I am flattered and frankly embarrassed too because I feel I am the same guy that wandered through the tree lined avenues of UBC, and then Ken joined in with a proposal to sneak into the pit 🙂
The philosopher bit is in a large proportion because of the numerous inspiring discussions with you and you have a hand in the fantasy/painting bit as well by having introduced me to wonderful works such as the “Lord of the Rings” at a time when less of the world knew of such works.