Major Bakshi: The Dragon’s Nemesis, aptly described as “an explosive, mind blowing account of a single man’s unbounded initiative to checkmate the Dragon and win against all odds,” also explores the spiritual dimensions of the protagonist, in the larger context. The author attempts to answer some of the most perplexing, angst ridden questions bedevilling humankind. Accordingly, he takes the reader into the realms beyond; one which subsumes and shapes in subtle ways, our terrestrial world. The novel offers an original and refreshing new take on human potential, crossing the threshold of material universe into a twilight zone, challenging our dearly held beliefs. This spirituality also helps Major Bakshi evolve into an extraordinary, highly inspirational character, who finds his way around insurmountable problems, unlike any other in the annals of Indian fiction writing.
Even unrepentant generals of the enemy spy agency, the ISI, grudgingly concede that the maverick infantry officer is way beyond their league. “A single man has made us look like abject fools,” fumed Maj Gen Biyani, “when we who pride ourselves on being far ahead of our kaffir counterparts across the LoC. He is the Fiend personified. Gentlemen, is there no way of stopping this Rambo?”
“Did you mention Rambo,” interjected Maj Gen Barkatullah. “Major Bakshi makes Rambo seem like a bumbling idiot . . . he is altogether in a different category . . . always a dozen steps ahead of us, too!”
The author, drawing upon his own experiences, describes dreams as a portal that may open unbidden to convey some vital information from the world beyond or presage a warning of what is to come. Major Bakshi feels ‘intrigued by visions of a stark landscape, with towering cliffs thrown into relief by the twilight, amid a holiness and stillness so profound and overwhelming that it seems not of the earth. There could no mistaking the mystical nature of some of these visions. The stage is set for a meeting with a wise and ancient Native American shaman, Onacona, of the Sioux tribe. He appears in dreamlike visions and acts as DD’s mentor and guide, going back to a past life connect in the Americas. He exhorts the major as an instrument of the Divine and as one of the world’s top counter-terror experts, to challenge negative forces assailing Planet Earth.
“Bakshi dreamt of being high up on the mountains,” the author writes, as a prelude to his very first meeting with Onacona, “when he chanced upon a field of bright, multi-hued blooms stretching into infinity. Millions upon millions of these florets gently nodded in the breeze, as if in rhythm with the cosmic heartbeat, radiating joy and a heavenly fragrance, in a silence so fulfilling that one would have wished it to continue indefinitely. He found himself so thoroughly immersed in the sacred movement that he did not notice a weathered shaman, adorned with feathers, materialize by his side.”
“Addressing the Major as ‘Little Chief,’ the Shaman said: ‘Onacona is here to greet you with the blessings of the venerable elders of the Sioux tribe, from the world beyond. They are pleased with your work of protecting Mother Earth and Her children. Great good is coming your way. So do not despair.’ He raised a hand in benediction and vanished. . . . DD woke up with a start and sat on his bed, his head whirling with questions.”
“Dada,” responded his deputy Major Barindra Ghosh, “I do feel you have a deep connect with the tribe, however farfetched it might seem. Remember your sense of precognition and sensitivity to the slightest nuances of danger, besides the workings of faculty X, which gives you the upper hand in counter-terror operations and hazardous situations.”
One of these dreams conveys a distressing message about his close friend Abdul Bugti. He is gesticulating for help, as hordes of men in khaki descend on his village in the far-off Balochistan, firing in the air and dragging his family members towards a waiting lorry. “Please help me Bakshi Sahib,” he hears the piteous cry of a distraught man. “These monsters will execute my wife and children.” Somehow Major Bakshi contacts the Baloch leader with the help of the Net at the district headquarters and warns him of the dire threat, which his sharp sixth sense tells him will materialize within the next 48 hours. So he becomes instrumental in saving the life of a brother, thanks to the dream that connects the two worlds.
By and by Onacona becomes a valuable ally, in his undercover but deadly war against the Dragon and its ally, on behalf of Bharatvarsha, which gave birth to Sanatan Dharma, the noblest creed on earth.
The Shaman delivers an ominous warning: “The land that you hold most sacred and sworn to defend is under dire peril from Diabolical Forces. The venerable Chiefs, who deeply value your hallowed soil as the fount of greatest spiritual wisdom, are anxious about how events are unfolding on the high Himalayas. If the rulers of a country, which welcomed the persecuted of all faiths with open arms, refuse to act resolutely now, then it would not only undermine the entire civilized order, but also set back human evolution.”
“Yes I’m extremely dismayed by the Dragon’s muscle flexing on our Northern borders,” admits Major Bakshi, related to the family of Bhagat Singh, from his mother’s side. “The problem is a colossal one with many dimensions and complexities. At stake is our very survival.”
“You who exemplify exemplary valour on the battle-field,” reassures the Shaman, “have been programmed to checkmate forces undermining Indic values, so fundamental to the preservation of humankind. So fear not, Little Chief. You’re bound to succeed, in spite of so many odds.” Onacona, with his cosmic reach, identifies and locates enemy bases and munitions dumps for the major and his Detachment to destroy and imparts pinpoint intelligence about the movements of Pakistani and PLA soldiers.
“Like bits of jigsaw puzzle,” the author writes, “his mission began to fall into place, revealing the hidden yet incremental moves of the Divine Will,” through the Shaman’s intervention who is its inseparable part. He becomes instrumental in the destruction of the China-Pakistan nexus.”
“How did you manage this all by yourself,” asks his commander, “something so mindboggling and unbelievable,” asks his commander, pulling him aside, when they met after the accomplishment of the mission.
“I’ve faith in the spiritual powers residing within the self—and being in the present moment, Sir!”
It came to pass all because Major Bakshi took the trouble to convert a crippling personal setback and challenge into one of unprecedented opportunity and success.