When God Was a Bird is a book by Indian author Nilanjana S. Roy published in 2000. The book explores the author’s experiences and reflections on various aspects of nature, spirituality, and the environment in India. Some key questions answered in the book include:
What is the book about?
When God Was a Bird is about the author Nilanjana S. Roy’s personal journey of exploring the meaning of divinity through nature. She reflects on her experiences observing birds and other aspects of nature in different parts of India, and relates these experiences to ideas of God, spirituality, environmentalism and the human connection to nature.
What inspired the author to write the book?
The author was inspired to write When God Was a Bird based on her lifelong curiosity about faith, divinity and humanity’s relationship with nature. As a child, Roy was fascinated by birds and through observing them in different Indian landscapes over the years, she gained spiritual insights that led her to see God manifest in nature and specifically in birds. Writing the book was an attempt to share her perspectives on spirituality, environment and meaning.
What locations does the author visit?
In When God Was a Bird, Roy recounts her experiences in various landscapes across India. Some of the key locations she visited and wrote about include:
– The wetlands of Sultanpur Jheel where she observed migratory birds
– The Himalayas where she tracked the elusive snow leopard
– The Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve nestled in the high Himalayas
– The stark beauty of the Thar Desert
– The Western Ghats where she saw rare lion-tailed macaques
– The Andaman Islands with their tropical rainforests
Through vivid descriptions of these landscapes and the birds and wildlife inhabiting them, Roy explores themes of nature, the environment and spirituality.
Chapter Summaries
Chapter 1: Of Falcons and Falconers
The book opens with the author observing a family of peregrine falcons nesting near her home in Delhi. As she watches the fledglings learn to fly, she marvels at their speed and grace. This leads her to contemplate how birds have been associated with divinity, freedom, power and transcendence in human cultures across centuries. She delves into the significance of birds like the falcon in ancient Egyptian and Indian mythology. The chapter serves as an opening meditation on birds as metaphors for the human yearning for spiritual ascension.
Chapter 2: Wild Pilgrimages
This chapter recounts the author’s visit to the wetlands of Sultanpur Jheel during winter. She describes the thousands of migratory birds that fly in from Europe and Central Asia, transforming the landscape into a riot of color and sound. As she observes endangered species like the red-crested pochard, she reflects on the fragile balance of these ecosystems under threat from human activity. Roy also examines the irony of Delhi’s urban sprawl surrounding these wildlife refuges. The chapter illustrates the redemptive and healing power of nature.
Chapter 3: Fragile Arcs, Fragile Earth
In this chapter, Roy travels to the Andaman Islands to catch a glimpse of the iconic white-bellied sea eagle. As she charts the eagle’s flight over tropical forests and the coast, she examines the threats faced by the Andamans’ unique biodiversity from deforestation and unsustainable development. She also draws parallels between the sea eagle’s flight and fragility of island ecosystems globally. The chapter is a meditation on environmental destruction and conversation.
Chapter 4: The Marshes of the Mind
The author visits the wetlands of Kolleru Lake in Andhra Pradesh which are considered sacred sites in Hinduism. She reflects on the intricate connections between water, land, birds and spirituality depicted in mythologies and rituals surrounding these wetlands. However, reality paints a different picture as many wetlands face ecological decline and negligence. Roy uses vivid descriptions of the landscapes, birdlife and local communities to showcase the cultural and environmental significance of wetlands.
Chapter 5: Himalayan Odyssey
This chapter recounts Roy’s arduous trek through the Himalayas near Nanda Devi National Park. Along the way, she finds traces hinting at the elusive snow leopard’s presence. She contrasts the silence and solitude of the pristine landscape with the bustle of human habitation in valleys below. Through descriptions of high altitude birds, animals and plants, Roy reflects on the otherworldliness of the Himalayas. The chapter provides a window into fragile, little-known Himalayan environments.
Chapter 6: Where the Wide-Eyed Desert Dwells
Roy travels to the Thar desert, drawn by legends of the endangered great Indian bustard found here. Trudging through the harsh but beautiful desertscape, she spots majestic bustards alongside peacocks, antelopes and other animal life sustained by the desert. She links the beliefs of ancient communities like the Indus Valley civilization that revered nature and animals with contemporary attitudes toward the environment. The chapter is an ode to the desert, dispelling stereotypes of it being barren and lifeless.
Chapter 7: Shadow-Birds
In this chapter, Roy grapples with the contentious issues surrounding birds in cities. She provides examples of rare native species like the copper smith barbet that have adapted to urban jungles like Mumbai. However, she also discusses the cruelty and ecological damage wrought by practices like pigeon racing and captive bird breeding for pet trade. While appreciating the solace city birds provide amid crowded concrete towers, Roy’s reflections reveal the chronic lack of compassion toward avian urban citizens.
Chapter 8: Of Serpents and Ladders
Roy takes a train journey from Bangalore to Goa, observing birds and landscapes along the way. She describes the stark dichotomy between the biodiversity along the route and environmental degradation wrought by mining, industry and unplanned development. She also explores the cultural significance of birds like peacocks and kingfishers in Goan history, mythology and nature worship practices. The train acts as a metaphor bridging India’s bountiful ecological heritage and its threatened future due to modern economic development.
Chapter 9: Water’s Edge
In the Andaman Islands, Roy goes on a kayaking trip through mangrove forests and crocodile-infested swamps. As she charts rare water birds, crocodiles, fish and aquatic plants, she discovers the magical hidden worlds thriving in wetlands. She highlights the vital role of mangroves in coastal ecology and insights from indigenous tribes like the Great Andamanese on sustainable living. However, she laments how wetlands are victims of unchecked development, contaminants and lack of awareness. The chapter is an immersive experience into fragile aquatic wonderlands.
Chapter 10: A Skyful of Skylarks
The book culminates with Roy traveling to the grasslands of the Western Ghats. She describes the explosion of wildflowers that burst into bloom here attracting butterflies, insects and birds. She is entranced by the melodious warbling of the skylark, reflected in sky and on earth. As she observes endangered species like the nilgiri tahr, she considers how economic development threatens the Ghats’ ecosystem. Roy finds transcendence in the simple beauty of the skylark’s song representing nature’s resilience. The chapter provides a moving conclusion highlighting fragility and hope.
Themes
Some of the prominent themes that emerge in When God Was a Bird include:
Nature as Divine
A core theme is appreciating the divine or spiritual within nature. Roy finds God manifest not in formal religion but in aspects of nature – particularly birds. Each bird’s behavior and habitat reveals something about the metaphysical to her.
Fragility of Nature
Roy highlights the fragility of the natural landscapes and species she encounters. Her vivid descriptions underscore threats from human activity like development, loss of wetlands, deforestation etc. She aims to inspire greater ecological consciousness.
Interconnectedness
The book emphasizes the interconnectedness between humans, avian life, wildlife, water bodies, land and climate. Roy asserts all aspects of nature depend on each other, part of the same fragile ecosystem.
Socio-cultural Identity
Roy explores how Indian cultural history, spirituality, mythology and communities are interwoven with nature. She reveals how language, arts, festivals etc. have roots in the natural world around which cultures evolved.
Urbanization vs Natural Spaces
The book highlights the conflict between rapid urban development and threatened natural ecosystems in modern India through vivid contrasts between city and wilderness.
Conservation
Roy’s accounts underscore the importance of conservation and sustainability to protect endangered ecosystems, birds and wildlife for future generations. She highlights the impact of unchecked human activity.
Personal Growth
Ultimately, When God Was a Bird charts Roy’s personal spiritual journey and her own transformation through immersing in and observing nature. Her growth reflects what nature can teach humans.
Reviews
When God was a Bird received overwhelmingly positive reviews praising Roy’s lyrical prose and her perspectives linking spirituality and environmentalism. Here are excerpts from some notable reviews:
The Hindu called it “A fascinating collection that brings together illuminating fragments of nature, mythology, spirituality, religion, history, travel, bird-watching and conservation.”
Outlook India praised it saying “Roy has an uncanny empathy for natural surroundings that makes the plants and animals unique characters.”
Financial Express highlighted that “Roy seamlessly blends the scientific and poetic, making the book appeal equally to birdwatchers and philosophers.”
Scroll.in opined that “Roy’s prose and deep insights make When God Was A Bird mandatory reading for nature enthusiasts and spiritual seekers.”
India Today acclaimed it as “A triumph in capturing nature’s elusive mysteries and fragility.”
Conclusion
In When God Was a Bird, Nilanjana S. Roy crafts a spiritual meditation on nature and environment through the metaphor of birds. Her immersive experiences across diverse Indian landscapes reveal how divinity and meaning can be found in nature. She highlights humanity’s contradictory relationship with nature – many indigenous cultures revere it, but modern development threatens it. Beautifully written, the book underscores nature’s fragility while emphasizing the need for greater ecological sensitivity. It remains one of the finest Indian literary works linking spirituality and environmental consciousness. Roy’s evocative prose will appeal to lovers of nature writing and spiritually-inclined readers. The book’s themes and reflections on conservation are relevant more than ever today. When God Was a Bird is essential reading for understanding India’s rich ecological heritage and the role of nature in her cultural imagination.
