I had thought of a topic some time ago on which I wanted to write a lot. But this book happened in between. So now , that topic has to wait. Because I need more time now!
Coming back to this book now, the first thing that interested me was Shiva. I am a Shiva fan. Don't know why, but I have always liked his mix of odd and extreme characters. When pleased (and they say its very easy to please Him :)...) He gives liberally and when angered (again this also because He is hot tempered) He troubles a lot too. I know that my brother is little apprehensive with this character of Shiva and he would just say a Hi and keep moving if we visit His temple. but myself and my sister are His fans. I would say my sis is a little more than a fan of His :) She adores him so much that it tires us all at times.
So being a fan of Shiva, and having known the mythology a little , this book, which is a mix of mythology, philosophy and fiction made for an interesting combination, was very hard to resist. So I ordered it and got it on Monday and within Thursday I completed it too. Now you know how interesting it was. Among the troubling Hot bugs being filed @ work and patching and testing, the story kept crawling @ the back of my mind all through the day and I would rush home to start the rest of the chapters.
I think this might be a little long post :) not only for matters related to the book but with the thoughts it provoked too.
With respect to the book, it has a winning combination, as I said already. Anyone who believes in God and especially Hindus will like this book, because Shiva is followed all over India and is known by the same name. Isnt that strange. For e.g. Shiva's son Karthikeyan / Murugan is primarily known only to the South Indian people , and more predominantly the Tamilians. Hence they call him the Tamizh Kadavul. Shiva's first son, Vinayaka is known all over India but they have their variations in him , like in some places, they consider him Brahmachari and in some they believe that he has two wives (Siddhi and Buddhi) etc.. Vishnu is treated differently in different parts and there are some sects who follow Vishnu very religiously and pray no one else. There are lot of such variations with other Gods. But with Shiva , there is no difference between sects or castes. He is worshipped in the same form irrespective of the place, caste or creed. We can say that he represents "The Hindu" God as a whole.
Since He is already known to all of Indian people, His character is also understood. Now to take pieces of the mythology and fabricate an interesting fiction around it, is like walking a fine line. If it goes wrong, it goes wrong horribly. If it succeeds, then it becomes like this book, a Bestseller. The key ingredients of this book were the humane touch to the Lord (which makes Him cry, laugh, love, joke, everything that we do and do not get things done just because He is the Lord..He works hard for it), the interesting twists and turns in the story to keep the readers engrossed, the authors take on a few issues of our society (like the caste system, the sin and karma etc) , a few philosophical details , a very simple language to cater to a wider audience and a hollywood climax for the sequel.
The only issue I felt was that in some places, it was difficult to imagine what the author wanted to convey. Particularly the war scenes. I felt a few places to be too quick to grasp but that is a trivial issue.
There were a few things which struck me. The caste system for one. It felt to me that the author had done quite a study on our caste system, its evolution, its progress and attempted to find a balance in it to not totally eradicate it but how well to live with it. It was quite interesting. The use of the Indus valley civilization and its terms and places. I am not sure if Mohanjadaro literally mean Lord Mohan's platform, in real life..but why not. I am ready to accept that because it would make some sense. The use of Sangam Tamil and Pandya king Manu to go to Himalayas for a dynasty (I am not sure of this one..but again ready to accept this :D)
I have heard the word "Har Har Mahadev" in the Mahabharat serials and other war stories but never thought it might also be interpreted the way this author has interpreted it. "Har Har Mahadev" means "Every one is Mahadev". Mahadev is a person who stands for the right and fights for it. In this Shiva is considered to be the next Mahadev. The take on Vikarma and the reasoning behind it was also nice. I like Brahaspathi's character a lot. Humorous and intelligent. Brahaspati (is one of the Navagraha Gods - Jupiter) is known for his intellect. That is why we use his name for scolding anyone who does stupid things (e.g. sariyaana Brahaspatiyaa irupaan poala...).
I used to wonder why people who follow Shiva in North India, use opium or weed and/or madhurbaan during his festivals. Why is it associated with Shiva ? Now I feel that it might be because Himalayas was Shiva's abode and to survive that cold, you obviously need something like opium/weed or madhurbaan to give you enough heat to beat the outside cold. Hmm.... Strange!!! Now wonder it found a place in this story too :)
The last few chapters were very inspiring. Particularly the Vasudev's chit chat with Shiva on the balance of life. It was nice. Also the other Vasudev's dreamy sequence with Shiva on the Good and the bad (Remember I had written it some time back that its relative.. you find it here in this novel too ).....The reason why the leaf is green.. these are nice captive thoughts.
Having said so much, I am now a fan of this book and am sincerely waiting for the next one to find out how Nagas come into Shiva's life and how a snake got wound up his throat !!! Does Naga has anything to do with that ???
Oh! I left out two more things. The romantic part of it. The relationship between Shiva and Sati was very .... Divine..that would be right word. Important but subtle.
The friendship between Shiva and Bhadra... very touching. I always like it when people are humorous, especially in tough situations. That is when you need to have your sense of humor the most. This novel has it in the required quantity.
Nice book and a very interesting read. For me, personally, it was like knowing more about your best friend, which makes you appreciate them a lot more... Thank you Amish.
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