Lit Visions

Book Discussion: SIDDHARTHA (Contains Spoilers) | Akhil Aryan | Lit Visions #6

My guest today is Akhil Aryan who is a technology entrepreneur and content creator. He has built and sold multiple businesses and is currently the co-founder and CEO of Altergo, a company whose software is helping accelerate Earth's transition to new energy. Akhil is also on a personal mission to 'enable everyone to do their life's best work'. He creates content on topics related to business, philosophy, decision making and financial freedom. We first met in 2014 on a startup accelerator program at Google Campus in London, where we bonded over entrepreneurship, spirituality and creative expression. In a recent catchup, our conversation turned to literature, specifically Hermann Hesse's novel Siddhartha - and we ended up discussing the book on this podcast. Siddhartha is a philosophical story that follows the journey of a young man who is on a quest for enlightenment. It's a novel that I first read as a teenager and have come back to, every few years. It has always offered me new perspective, meaning and even refuge during turbulent times. Now what I really love about this conversation with Akhil is that it takes places in parallel dimensions. In the first, we're talking about the book. And in the second, we are applying the lens of Siddhartha to everyday life and work situations. I've always felt that fiction and reality share a powerful bridge and episodes like this one only reinforce my belief. It was truly a pleasure speaking with Akhil. He is one of the most fascinating people I've ever met and I'm sure this won't be the last time he appears on this podcast. --- Say hi to Akhil on IG: www.instagram.com/akhilaryanofficial [www.instagram.com/akhilaryanofficial] Say hi to Dhru on IG: www.instagram.com/dhrupadkarwa [www.instagram.com/dhrupadkarwa] Say hi to Dhru of Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa [www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa] --- Mentioned: www.litvisions.substack.com [www.litvisions.substack.com] - for essays, podcasts and fiction Siddhartha by Herman Hesse Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul Sartre --- Show notes: 0:00 - Introduction 02:42 - What Siddhartha means to Akhil 03:31 - Akhil as Siddhartha 07:41 - On knowing yourself 10:35 - Subject-Object relationships 12:30 - Siddhartha’s different personas 14:50 - I can think. I can wait. I can fast. 19:55 - Thoughts are maps, Actions are vehicles 22:05 - What is essence? 29:05 - Why I am? Who I am? 32:57 - Siddhartha does not procrastinate 37:15 - The power of clarity 39:08 - Difference between truth and meaning 42:45 - The mystery of Siddhartha 44:14 - Akhil's sequence of sentences 48:15 - On Govinda 57:03 - Hermann Hesse’s depression 01:02:46 - Why should someone read Siddhartha

Procrastination, Dostoevsky and Infinite Novel Theory | Jordan Castro | Lit Visions #5

If you have ever procrastinated on the internet, then you'll probably relate to this conversation with Jordan Castro.  He is a novelist whose debut novel is actually called "The Novelist" and it is just fascinating. The story is set over the course of a single morning, where a writer is trying to pen an autobiographical novel in Google Docs. But just keeps getting distracted by Twitter, Instagram, daily rituals and his own mind. Each act of procrastination prompts an intriguing and often comedic psychic reflection on the nature of language, consciousness, technology and addiction.   Now in our conversation, we discuss Jordan's book and dive into a number of tangential topics such as: * The power of saying a lot, using little * Attention spans and whether they are actually on the decline * Social media and how as we build it, it is building us * Drug addiction and lessons from sobriety * Infinite universe theory and what it means for the novel * and lots more...   What struck me about Jordan was not just how he thinks but also his humility. He's a really chilled out guy and has a rare talent for traversing complex terrain in a way that's light and super fun. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.   ---   Say hi to Jordan on Twitter: twitter.com/jordan_castro2 [https://twitter.com/jordan_castro2] Say hi to Dhru on Twitter: twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa [https://twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa]   ---   Mentioned:   litvisions.substack.com [https://litvisions.substack.com/] - for essays, podcasts, speculative fiction and novel suggestions The Novelist by Jordan Castro Frost by Thomas Bernhard The works of Tao Lin Orthodoxy by G. K. Chesterton The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky Notes from Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky Cat Country by Lao She Omon Ra by Victor Pelevin The Courage to Be by Paul Tillich Dynamics of faith by Paul Tillich   ---   Show notes:   0:00 - Introduction 02:08 - What fiction means to Jordan 02:56 - His journey as a poet 05:30 - The art of distillation 07:15 - Time well spent 08:05 - Attention spans and social media 17:40 - The Novelist by Jordan Castro 25:30 - On machines and AI 34:24 - Animals, Objects and Animism 43:15 - Reality, Paradoxes and Individualism 48:09 - Infinite Novel Theory 51:30 - Drugs and lessons from getting sober 56:45 - Lightning round

Stoner, Seeking God and The Last Frontier Against Advertising | Vinamre Kasanaa | Lit Visions #4

Today, I have a wild and freewheeling conversation with Vinamre Kasanaa who is an old friend and the host of Dostcast, India's fastest growing podcast - that recently hit 300,000 subscribers.    I've been a two-time guest on his show, where we spoke a lot about fiction, technology, Royal Enfield motorcycles and meditation. And in this episode, we cover topics like:   * The tension between literature and social media * Poetry as a means of spiritual seeking * How paperback novels are the last frontier against advertising * Why books should be treated as wellness tools * and lots more - including discussing the works of Jack Kerouac and John Williams   What I love about this conversation is that we get unapologetically lost in some far-flung ideas, yet find our way back to the present. Vinamre is a fascinating guy and a purist at heart - it's always a pleasure jamming with him.   I should also mention that this episode was recorded in-person at Vinamre's makeshift Airbnb studio, on a rainy Mumbai night. And it happened pretty impromptu. We were meeting just to catchup, and then somehow ended up hitting the record button. I'd like to thank him and his team for setting up the space so cosily and for the delicious masala chai we sipped throughout. ---   Say hi to Vinamre on Twitter: www.twitter.com/vinamrekasanaa [//www.twitter.com/vinamrekasanaa] Say hi to Vinamre on Instagram: www.instagram.com/vinamrekasanaa [//www.instagram.com/vinamrekasanaa] Say hi to Dhru on Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa [//www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa] Say hi to Dhru on Instagram: www.instagram.com/dkarwa [//www.instagram.com/dkarwa]   ---   Mentioned:   litvisions.substack.com [https://litvisions.substack.com/] - for essays, novel suggestions and more   David And Suzanne picture books    Biff, Chip and Kipper books   An American Prayer by Jim Morrison (album)   Chuck Palahniuk and 'Dangerous Writing'   Stoner by John Williams   Red Dead Redemption (game)   Monument Valley (game)   The Journey (game)   Fantastic Mr. Fox (movie)   Indian Art Fair    The Little Price by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry    Deep Work by Cal Newport   Narcopolis by Jeet Thayil   Works of Khushwant Singh   ---   Show notes:   0:00 - Introduction 02:25 - What poetry and literature mean to him 06:13 - Tension between art and content 15:10 - Relationships and the soul 19:10 - Phones are attacking us 20:30 - Paperbacks as wellness tools 22:05 - Big Sur by Jack Kerouac 29:50 - Committing to empathy 32:10 - Chuck Palahniuk, Dangerous Writing and Nassim Nicholas Taleb 35:08 - Why we buy books 37:25 - Stoner by John Williams 41:35 - Video games: Red Dead Redemption, Monument Valley, The Journey 47:05 - Analogising Fantastic Mr. Fox 49:35 - Internet rabbit holes and novels as social contexts 55:50 - Being with an experience 59:20 - Cultures of reading and podcasting 01:10:45 - The future of fiction 01:17:30 - News2Novel and book discovery 01:26:43 - Novels by Jeet Thayil and Khushwant Singh 01:29:55 - Metaphors for podcast hosting

Teaching Verse to Robots, Poems as Data Storage and Being Transhuman | Sasha Stiles | Lit Visions #3

If topics like artificial intelligence or crypto literature have ever intrigued, excited, intimidated or even disgusted you, then please take out 90-minutes to listen to this episode with Sasha Stiles. I promise you it will be worth it.   Sasha is a poet, artist and AI researcher probing the intersection of text and technology. Her cross-media work is extremely experimental in nature and has been recognised on stages like the Future Art Awards, the Museum of Contemporary Digital Art and New York Fashion Week.    As well as being a writer, she is a poetry mentor to two AI robots. She is constantly pushing the frontiers of human-machine collaboration and challenging our assumptions about cognition and creativity.    In our conversation, Sasha shares her journey and also gives listeners a primer on complex topics such as AI and web3. We cover a lot of ground, applying a philosophical lens to everything we discuss.    It was a joy speaking with Sasha and she inspired me to dive deeper in my literary experiments. It's rare to meet someone working on the bleeding edge; and even rarer when that person does so with real sensitivity and empathy.    I feel there's something for everyone in this conversation and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.   ---   Say hi to Sasha on Twitter: www.twitter.com/sashastiles [//www.twitter.com/sashastiles] Say hi to Dhru on Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa [//www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa]   ---   Mentioned:   litvisions.substack.com [https://litvisions.substack.com/] - for essays, podcast summaries, novel suggestions and discussions on the future of literature Technelegy [https://blackspringpressgroup.com/products/technelegy] by Sasha Stiles   theVERSEverse.com [https://theverseverse.com/] - a poetry NFT gallery   ---   Show notes: 0:00 - Introduction 01:53 - What poetry means to her 05:55 - Poems as data storage 07:27 - Defining AI in literature 13:10: On fearing AI 20:03 - Teaching poetry to robots 29:29 - Interplay between humans and machines 55:26 - Are robots 'real'? 01:10:30 - AI poems about gardening 01:15:01 - web3, cryptopoetry and literary NFTs

Speculative Fiction, Paying Attention to a Weird Leaf and William Gibson | Eliot Peper | #02

Today, I speak with someone whom I discovered through my previous guest, James Yu, the co-founder of Sudowrite. Back in May, James tweeted about a new novel called Reap3r, which he described as "cerebral near future sci-fi grounded in reality". I was pretty intrigued so I bought the book and messaged the author, Eliot Peper - who was kind enough to reply and be present for this podcast. Eliot is based in Oakland, California and is the author of ten novels! His works have received amazing reviews from people and organisations like Seth Godin, The New York Times Book Review and Popular Science.  And his latest book, Reap3r has again captured imaginations around the world. The story follows a quantum computer scientist, virologist, podcaster, venture capitalist, and assassin - who all collide and change the course of future history. It's a gripping adventure that weaves a number of complex themes in wonderful tapestry - themes like ambition, secrecy, transgression,  the price of progress and how technology shapes our lives and world. Now in our conversation, Eliot shares his inspiration for Reap3r but we mainly discuss other topics such as: * How speculative fiction can be a tool for social change * The future's relationship with the present * What are the best ways to sell novels * And the role of place in storytelling, looking specifically at his home city, Oakland, in California We also reflect on Eliot's creative influences like William Gibson and towards the end, we even speculate on the future of fiction. This is a long conversation but I highly recommend listening to it in full. Eliot has a fascinating perspective - on almost everything - and it's a pleasure to see him think. I hope you enjoy it. --- Say hi to Eliot on Twitter: www.twitter.com/eliotpeper [https://www.twitter.com/eliotpeper] Say hi to Dhru on Twitter: www.twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa [https://twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa] --- Mentioned: Lit Visions Substack [https://litvisions.substack.com/] - for essays, podcast summaries, novel suggestions and discussions on the future of literature Reap3r [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60094074-reap3r] by Eliot Peper The Golden Gate [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/768496.The_Golden_Gate] by Vikram Seth 1984 [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40961427-1984] by George Orwell Star Wars [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Wars_original_trilogy] (Original Trilogy) The Martian [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18007564-the-martian] by Andy Weir Pattern Recognition [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22320.Pattern_Recognition] by William Gibson Parable of the Sower [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52397.Parable_of_the_Sower] by Octavia E. Butler