I recently read
a book called Shantaram written by Gregory David Roberts. The book is his
autobiography showing everyday struggles in India where he is trying to find
his own way of living and finding a purpose of life. The author at the age of
26 years old was convicted for a bank robbery and sentenced to 20 years in
prison. The book starts when he arrived in India hiding from the government using a different
name – Lindsay Ford, because he escaped from prison with this friend.
In the past Lin
was addicted to heroin and all he could think of was how to get the money for the next dose. He robbed
small shops and people what placed him in prison in the first place. In that
prison he was beaten and humiliated on many occasions. He couldn’t live like
that and knew that it would get him killed soon. He escaped to India where most
of the time he spent in a bar called Leopold where he met all new faces in the town.
As a foreigner who didn’t know the language
he was attacked once when he lost all his belongings and had no place to live.
His friends were able to rent a place in slums where he was a first aid doctor.
He loved living there as it was different from a normal life. Everyone knew
each other, the police didn’t come
there, so he was safe from the government and he felt like he was a part of a
big community where everyone felt like family. After a while, he started working for an Indian mafia whose boss
was an old guy called Kadirbaj. He was responsible for faking passports, money trafficking.
He found love of his life and settled down but after a while something
happened. He was asked to go on a different mission to another country to help Kadirbaj’s family. A lot of people from
mafia went there but only 3 of them came back. After that event everything changed.
Lin’s group was
slowly narrowing as others died or left trying to find a better life somewhere
else. Lin started to question his methods of living as he was earning money by
faking documents and it was still illegal and everyone in his surrounding was
disappearing. He felt like he should change something and he went to a place
called a mountain where he learnt from a philosopher. He tried to stop making
the same mistakes that got him into prison in Australia and find a purpose in
his life. When he was talking with a philosopher about god and what is good or
what is evil he realized that the only thing that could save him was to stop
fighting and use fear as the main weapon against everyone in his surroundings.
After a few years from writing this book he went to prison to spend the rest of
his sentence there and now he is a free man still living in India.
Source:
https://www.abercrombiekent.com/tours/wings-over-the-world/2019/private-charter-flights-india-luxury
I have tried
not to spoil the book for those who want to read it afterwards so it’s only
some facts that took place in it. After reading this book, I came to a
conclusion that as a fugitive we live in fear, always looking behind our
shoulder for anyone who might know who we are. That constant fear changes us. Having
read the book we can see what Lin was struggling with and what was important in
his life. This book is a perfect example showing that everyone who has a power
of will and desire to change their life can make it happen. I highly recommend
reading this book for everyone who is still trying to find their way in the
world or just is unhappy, it might really help you see a bigger picture.
Source:
https://www.amazon.com/
Questions:
1. Do you
think that every person can change?
2. Did
you hear about this book or read it yourself?
3. Do you
know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
4. Are
you planning to visit India?
Comments
2. No, I have never heard of this book before.
3. No, I have never met such person.
4. I am not planning to visit India in the near future, but I would really like to do so, and I’ll consider that while planning the vacation.
2. I never heard about this book and I didn't read it.
3. Unfortunately I don't know.
4. I would love it, but it will not happen soon
I believe that people can change but only under the influence of a very strong experience. We can also work on ourselfves, and keep trying to be better, and if someone really want to change, it can happen.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
I have never heard of this book until now. I put it on my list of books to read.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
No, I know one person who was in jail, but after getting out he was a normal person, who tried to live normally. Of course his demons were haunting him for some time, but he managed to break up with the dark past and tried to live normally.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Yes, I would love to go there, but I'm a little bit scared of the sanitary conditions there.
I think that we just should to have a point how other people can think and feel after our behaviour , very often we forgot to think abut others and its very easy to hurt someone . If we will be god to others, others will thank us in the same way.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
No I didn't, on each way. But it's look nice so , maybe some day if I will have some time I will read it.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
Unfortunately yes, I know some persons , which I can call like bad persons and spent a lot of their life in prison, but I don't need to have a contact with them, of course if someone changed and now is a good person , it's ok. Everybody deserve for a chance.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Yes, but for some years, now am planning to visit Columbia and Ethiopia
Of course, every person can change. In fact, each of us changes throughout our lives. Some for the better, others for worse. Everyone can work harder and harder to achieve their goals with more or less difficulty.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
Unfortunately, I have never found this book, but I am sure that I will be looking forward to this title as soon as I have a free moment. It's a little sad that people are less and less often reading books...
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
No I do not know. I suspect that if I meet someone like that on my way, I would try to have the least amount of contact with such a person. Familiarity with a person who does not want to change often brought more problems to life than good.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Sadly, not in the near future(masters degree D:), but later, surely! I have read many adventurous books in my chilhood and since I was 8 I have dreamed about travelling to foregin countries, especially in Asia or Africa!
I think everyone can change, someone more , someone less, but I think most often we are influenced by certain events, we do not notice that we are not what they were a year ago.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
I had heard the name once or even friends advised me.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
I don't know anyone like that. I think it's necessary to judge a man whether he's bad or not from the action that put him in prison. We can't say that the maniac who killed 15 people is a normal person.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Like most I want to visit all countries of the world.
2. Nope, but this book looks very interesting. Maybe I borrow one?
3. Nope.
4. Visiting India... Hmm very hard decision. I never thought about India. For now, I'd like visit other countries, like USA, Japan or South Korea.
It would be nice to visit India one day just for the sake of seeing their cities by my own eyes, i heard food is great and unique too (as we would expect from country famous for spice). Might even do it in the near future as my work might require me to go to India for a "business oriented trip" might stay a little longer there afterwards.
Person can change but nature of a person still remains the same. This is not a trivial question and can't be answered in a few sentences.
2.
No but it seems interesting.
3.
No. It depends who you are. When one's just a drug addict who made a mistake and end up in prison, it can change one forever in very bad way. If one's a criminal, one will remain criminal after being release. At least in Poland.
4.
Not sure. I'm not really fan of this culture
No, for some persons it's impossible. Like for example when they don't have any other option to gather something (food) they have to steal it.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
No, I have never heard of it.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
Yes i know such person, he isn't generally a stereotypical bad person. He was raised in a bad conditions. His father was sentenced,
so was his grandfather, and so he is walking the same path.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Mayby, but it's not generally a best place to visit. Especially those India's designated popping streets, where because
of lack of toilets people can do their best. India is the lead country in open defecation, with near half of
the population not using toilets in order to defecate.
I'm not sure about that. You would ask why? There are a lot of people having mindset that could not be changed. These are old people, for example, my granny. Sometimes she is so confident enough about some things that you can not change her opinion. But if we talk about young generation, i think, that every person can be changed.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
I have never heard about this book and i have never read it. I'm not interesting in that type of books, i find them useless, it is just a waste of time.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
I don't know anyone who spent time in prison and i hope, that i would not be surrounded by people, who were in prison.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
No, i don't like India. My friend told me a lot about this country and i know a lot about people who are from India, so i don't want to visit India.
In my opinion it is possible for anyone to change in some way. Like Nataliya said some people would change more and some less. Sometimes it depends on how
much effort we put into it and how much we want to change, but sometimes not
everything depends on us. However deep changes often require a long and difficult journey, connected with many abnegations and a lot of self-discipline. So the hardest part of changing is not giving up. Unfortunately in the real world scenarios very deep changes rarely take place.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
I haven’t heard about the book before but you made me really interested in it and I put it on my “to read” list. The fact that the book is based on facts makes it even more intriguing. A combination of an interesting plot with a possibility to learn something about other culture and it’s criminal world from firsthand makes this something I would definitely like to know.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
Actually two of my neighbors were in prison but fortunately they aren’t stereotypical bad people. After leaving a prison they are leading a normal life and they have never committed a crime anymore. For sure they had some problems afterwards especially with finding a job, but somehow they managed to do so. Anyway I think almost everybody deserve a second chance.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
As I said in some other comment I love travelling and India is definitely worth seeing, but it is not on the first place on my list.
2. No, I have not. In fact, I am not reading as much as I would like. Hope to fix this soon
3. I don't know how in the world, but in former USSR, Ukraine in particular, a person that got a sentence in prison also in fact gets a life sentence with a "Criminal" mark, as a person that was in prison cannot later find a job, sometimes even get married, buy property, in short -- live a normal life. The situation is so dreadful that those who were proven false convicted get their criminal histories reset. Like all mentions of their sues and charges get removed, so that this person can still find a job, etc, etc.
4. I would like to see the world at all. India included.
2. no, but I think I will read.
3. I met someone who was in prison but in my opinion he is not a bad person.
4. so far I do not have such a plan but maybe someday.
I think that every person can change, but they need a lot of help from other people. If someone realize that he/she totally messed up their lives and have an urge to change it, people around should help them. It’s more valuable to support change in someone then to deprecate them for life.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
Unfortunately, I didn’t, but it seems eye-opening.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
I don’t know anyone who spent time in prison. But I know my friend who for most of his life was involved in heavy drugs, alcohol, living day to day. He lost his eyesight in the motor accident – it was caused by him. Ironically, he said it was eye-opening for him, because he revaluated his life choices and became a new person. He became really inspiring person who is sharing with everyone with his experience.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
I’m not keen about India, so I’m not going to visit India.
I didnt read this book :(
I know a few people who were in prison, but I do not know anyone stereotyped. In my opinion, there is no such thing as a stereotypical man just as there is no statistical person. It is possible that cases are very similar, but not exactly as it is presented.
Who knows, maybe someday. At the moment I don't plan such a trip.
No, I’ve never heard about it before, I haven't read it.
No, I don’t know anyone who has spent time in prison.
I don’t have any plans but, I would love to visit India in the near future.
It seems to me that with regard to the situation with the main character, and if we project it into real life, I would say that a person has a tendency to change.
But here the question is different. This person was changing due to life circumstances and he was aware of the changes taking place. Either someone wanted to change it. I think the second option is the least successful. Since changes in a person should take place in a natural way.
Yes, I think people can change, but it depends on person. It could happen or it could not. Person should want to change and have solid willpower. Of course, everyone deserves the second chance, but not the third one, because if situation repeats again and again there is no sense to give more chances to change, because person does not want to change, maybe even does not need it.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
Unfortunately, I did not, but the plot is interesting, I think I will read it in the future.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
No, I do not know such people.
4. I have not planned to visit India yet, but once I hope to visit this country.
2. No I didn’t hear about this book and I didn’t read it’s just not my type of book
3. Nope
4. No I don’t. Yes it look nice in movies and photos but it’s far, overcrowded, smelly, if you eat something local you will can get diarrhea and you can also catch some funny sounding disease that will make you safer a lot and maybe even kill you and I like hamburgers…
We all change our behaviour, as we learn. That implies even an old fool can change. Does our personality ever change? I remain unconvinced.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
It’s on the list. I’ll get to it eventually.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
I now people who where incriminated but not for 20 years! Just what did he steal? Anyway, they made mistakes. Being a bad or good person is a sliding scale, mostly defined by how many mistakes you made and how often you took the effort to do what you know is right.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
No. Their theology is fascinating but I'm probably better of reading about it than taking a tourist trip. There are places farther up the list.
I have personal theory that only certain people under certain circumstances can changes, most of the people never change even when then claim that they are.
2. Did you hear about this book or read it yourself?
I heard a lot about this book, it's like bestseller in many countries. But I never wanted to read it.
3. Do you know anyone who spent time in prison and he is a stereotypical bad person?
No I didn't. I don't have such stereotype.
4. Are you planning to visit India?
Yes I do. But this is not top country from the list of countries I plan to visit.
2. I did not but it sounds interesting.
3. No, I never had an opportunity to meet anyone who had any kind of sentence.
4. I would love to visit India one day, their culture is very interesting.