January 11, 2021

NEW BOOK BY FR. FELIX RAJ
- Aritra Das

Waves - Story Bank is Father Felix Raj's tenth book, published by the SXUK Alumni Association. The book contains 75 inspirational stories. The foreword to the book has been written by Prof. Suranjan Das, the Vice-Chancellor of Jadvapur University, Kolkata. Felix Raj has authored and co-authored nine books and has written numerous articles in journals, magazines and newspapers.
In his foreword Prof. Suranjan Das has said, "What is striking about Fr. Felix Raj is his ability to strike a balance between administrative and social responsibilities and academic interests. Surely his collection of stories will enable us to gain new strength in confronting the current challenges plaguing the human society."
The book was formally launched by Prof. (Dr.) Dhrubojyoti Chattopadhyay, Vice-Chancellor of Sister Nivedita University at St. Xavier's University, Kolkata on December 3, feast of St. Francis Xavier. In his speech, Chattapadhyay remarked on the relevance of the book in the context of the paradigm shift in the perception of education today.
He ruled the fact that today's youth is more interested in the prospective value of their education rather than the humanistic. They enroll for courses keeping in mind what their takeaways will be after completion of their course of studies. For them, the value of the spiritual and moral education has taken a backseat. But, Father Felix Raj's book tries to instill in the learners some of those lost or rapidly receding values in the form of interesting stories that communicate some spiritual message. He made special mention of some of the stories in which these emotions have been expressed.
Introducing his book, Fr. Felix Raj said, "Every story that I have compiled in this book is a wave from the sea of my heart to embrace every reader so that they are touched and transformed. The stories can be used in lectures, in sermons, articles and even for recollections and retreats. You can read one story a day as food for thought."
No matter whether we are writing a biography or a novel, delivering a lecture or preaching a sermon, our lives revolve around the stories we have heard, read and narrated. Stories are moods; they are powerful vehicles; they matter. When you tell a story you spark a connection. That is how our ancestors have passed on their priceless heritage from generation to generation.
From the days of simple pictures inscribed on cave walls to today's multimillion dollar movie blockbusters, our drive for telling stories has been encoded in our DNA. We connect quite powerfully through stories. Our lives are filled with stories that we all are part of. We, as human beings, irresistibly and instantly connect with one another through the magical power of stories.
We are drawn to stories, because they are the index of our mind. They are universal in meaning and purpose. They help us to share our varied emotions - joys and sorrows that design the bouquet of life. They each come with a message and influence our thought processes and decisions. They make us human and teach us wisdom. They shape our perspectives. Everyone is a story and every story belongs to someone. Stories take us on a journey of self-discovery and transformation. As Justine Musk says, "Whoever shares the greatest stories rules the world."
"Have you ever stood or sat on a sea shore? If you have, you will certainly understand what I intend to share with you through the pages of this book. If you haven't, then read this book, it will take you to the shore to watch the mighty ocean and its army of waves embrace the land incessantly," Fr. Felix Raj said.
Waves are caused by the winds blowing on the surface of the ocean or even lakes. This happens all the time. The wind has no effect on a perfectly calm sea. But, as it begins to slide over the surface of the water, it causes eddies. Small ripples are formed and they find their way to the shore and then break on the shore.
Waves, tall and short, keep on marching like an army of stories towards the shore. As the waves embrace the shore, the sea incessantly kisses the land. Caught in the tight intoxicating embrace of the waves, the sands of the shore submissively erode and drift away with the waves.

For copies you may contact:
vcoffice@sxuk.edu.in or sxukaa@sxuk.edu.in - or Call 9674187772 or 6624 9812 / 6624 9813.