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Synopsis As his previous books, Understanding Marriage of Swami Paramananda further confirms that the ultimate purpose of human life is nothing less than enlightenment: union with the whole. Marriage in its true sense is a means to attain that ultimate union. However, marriages as they are today are very far from this noble objective, as evidenced by the increasing rate of divorces and conjugal problems. Most of those that are considered stable or successful are pacts of compromises and marriage vow undertaken amidst pomp and glamour have no depth as they are mere adherence to traditional, religious and social norms and exigencies. Indeed, the book, while being a rare and bold attempt to expose the hypocrisy and selfishness in society, leads us to discover the essence and sacred dimension of marriage, where the role of the outer man or woman is to help the partner to attain union with the inner one. However, all along, the reader is cautioned about the very high responsibilities that married life involves. "Man and woman are both very complex beings. Their bodies are made such that they can come into contact with each other, not only for the purpose of procreation but essentially for experimenting life to its deepest core." "When both the heart and the mind have reached a very high degree of inner silence, then all barriers break and there is no longer husband and wife. Then it is oneness. This is not an impossible achievement, but a tremendous and beautiful potential in each of us. This is the real meaning of marriage."