Though I was moving swiftly—through life, ambitions, books, and goals—I was constantly forgetting to slow down and look around. I’d developed the compulsive behaviour of purchasing each new work of non-fiction that was published. It felt like productivity. It felt like expansion. But was it truly?

Each unread book stacked on my bookshelf was a weight that was silent—not of information, but of distraction.

I came across a quote by Naval Ravikant that stopped me in my tracks recently: “I don’t want to read everything. I simply want to keep re-reading the 100 greatest books.” 

It resonated. For the first time, I found myself acknowledging I was pursuing novelty instead of depth, information in place of insight. Like someone climbing to the top of a mountain and not taking the time to glance out, I was turning pages and not turning within. That sentence compelled me to pause and reflect. Not merely on what I was reading—but why I was reading.

I’ve slowed down since. I’ve gone back to books that influenced me—books that are not only worthy of a read, but of a relationship. Books that are different, yet familiar, with each visit. Because now I know: it’s not how many books you’ve read. It’s how many of them have altered you.

In such a quantity-obsessed world—pages consumed, books completed, challenges overcome—Naval Ravikant’s words resonate like a soft bell of insight.

I don’t want to read them all. I simply want to be able to reread the 100 greatest books.
On the surface, it might appear to be the opposite. Isn’t mental expansion about reading more books, more writers, more subjects, more points of view? But Naval’s observation contains within it some deeper wisdom, not only reflected in ancient Indian philosophy and the lives of some of the greatest thinkers in history, but in the way that increasing our understanding is more important than increasing our reading.

The Illusion of More

We are in the era of “infobesity.” More is published and consumed than ever before. There is always another bestseller, another listicle and set of book recommendations each new week. Yet how many of what we read actually changes us?

A parable in Indian tradition provides insight.  A young man came to visit a guru and said, “I want to be wise. I shall study all the Vedas and Upanishads. I shall study all scriptures.” The guru grinned and responded, “You can gulp down the whole river and yet be thirsty if you don’t know how to quench your thirst with one cup.”

The lesson is obvious: more books don’t make us wise. Real insight results from internalizing the ideas, not simply from consuming them.

Repetition as Reflection

Indian philosopher and Sanskrit scholar Dr. Radhakrishnan famously said, “The aim of education is not to collect knowledge, but to transform character.”   This does not occur with one reading. India’s sacred spiritual classic, the Bhagavad Gita, has been translated and read by millions, yet the wise among them re-read it time and time again—each time finding new interpretations as their own understanding grows.

Consider Mahatma Gandhi. Every day, he read the Gita, sometimes coming back to the same lines in times of uncertainty. It wasn’t new content he was drawn to—it was the increasing richness of his relationship with the text.

Likewise in the West, Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations—a personal notebook of Stoic thoughts—is now, and has always been, a source of ageless wisdom. Naval himself includes it on his list of books to reread. Which is why? Because its importance is not static. With our lives changing, the same sentence reveals previously locked-away levels of insight.

The 100 Great Books

So what makes a book “great”?

Great books are not merely fun to read or educational. Great books transform you. Great books challenge your assumptions, frame your thoughts, and reflect your soul. Great books are rich in multileveled wisdom, not merely-readable-once books, but books that require lifetime involvement.

Internationally, writers such as Charlie Munger recommend creating a “latticework of mental models,” which is not constructed from hundreds of isolated notions, but from several compelling principles well grasped and regularly visited.  “Spend every day attempting to be slightly smarter than you were the day you woke up,”  Munger replied. “Don’t simply read new stuff, but read the right stuff.”

In India, Chanakya (Kautilya), who was the author of Arthashastra, focused on strategic thinking and not on information overload. He didn’t write books on ethics or economics. He wrote only one book—but it’s been studied and read more than two millennia.

The compound effect of rereading

Naval’s method is reflective of a natural law: compounding.

Just like compound interest accumulates enormous wealth from modest, regular investments, re-reading excellent books compounds understanding. The second time you read, you know what the author is saying. The third time, you are connecting the dots. The fourth time, you question and hone them. And before you know it, you are living them.

Philosopher Nassim Nicholas Taleb cautions us about the “sucker’s choice” of novelty versus depth:  “Read books older than 20 years. Preferably, by 2000 years. If they’ve survived, they have some timelessness to share with us.”

Make It Personal: Curate Your Canone

Forming your own “100 Great Books” list is not about replicating someone else’s. It’s about finding those books that resonate with you, the books that give more than they take.

Here is an example of what such a list might be like:

Bhagavad Gita – Moral Guidance and Spiritual Anchoring.
Think and Grow Rich – Self Help Book.  
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius – calm leadership
Antifragile by Nassim Talek – resilience in turbulent times
THE TAO TE CHING – of surrender and balance
Letters from a Stoic by Seneca – for actionable wisdom
Paramahansa Yogananda’s Autobiography of a Yogi – to understand the inner path
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie – social grace
Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman is excellent for mental clarity.

There’s no requirement to read 1,000 books to live well. Several great books need to be absorbed and lived out.

Closing Thought

In Mahabharata, Yudhishthira is asked, “What is the greatest wonder?” He responds, “People witness others die, yet live as though they are immortal.” Consequently, we observe individuals devour information ceaselessly yet are not altered. Let us avoid falling into that trap. Let us follow the advice of Naval. Read less but live more. Prefer quality to quantity. Read your 100 greatest books—and get them to read you.

Quotable Reminder!

“Don’t merely read. Read again. That’s where learning happens.” — Naval Ravikant

A man learns in two ways, either by reading or by associating with more intelligent individuals. — Will Rogers.

Thus Spake, Prahlada: 

“It is more advisable to reread ten times a volume that is excellent than ten mediocre books.”

“Let’s not count how many books we’ve read. Let’s measure how many books have read us.”

Dr. Prahlada N.B
MBBS (JJMMC), MS (PGIMER, Chandigarh). 
MBA in Healthcare & Hospital Management (BITS, Pilani), 
Postgraduate Certificate in Technology Leadership and Innovation (MIT, USA)
Executive Programme in Strategic Management (IIM, Lucknow)
Senior Management Programme in Healthcare Management (IIM, Kozhikode)
Advanced Certificate in AI for Digital Health and Imaging Program (IISc, Bengaluru). 

Senior Professor and former Head, 
Department of ENT-Head & Neck Surgery, Skull Base Surgery, Cochlear Implant Surgery. 
Basaveshwara Medical College & Hospital, Chitradurga, Karnataka, India. 

My Vision: I don’t want to be a genius.  I want to be a person with a bundle of experience. 

My Mission: Help others achieve their life’s objectives in my presence or absence!

My Values:  Creating value for others. 

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