The plot is complex, and is tightly structured. Marriage is hard. Culling common place characters and everyday situations from sprawling Andhra Pradesh Murthy weaves the story spicing it with social awareness, penetrating insight, irony, wit, humour and mysticism. 'Incantation, invoking and divination' is the sub-plot, which is mind-blowing and fantastic. It has levels. At the highest it bridges the east and west, and breathes spirituality. Sivam comes in contact with Girija, Madhavi and Margaret at different stages. Girija is beauty, Madhavi, intellect and Margaret, matter. He marries Girija first, and deserts her. She understands the futility of beauty, and develops unfading beauty of the soul, and attains telepathy. Her invisible force acts on Sivam. He seeks Satyam, who saves him from a critical illness, and reunites him and Girija. The three stand for the trinity-- truth, holiness and beauty. In holiness, marriage is truthful. Blazing the path of happy marriage in simple and lucid prose, the novel scripts a complete man, purna purusha, who conquers the body and mind with the spirit. The Sivam, proverbial, spiritual and divine, proves that Murthy is a great novelist of all ages