Book Review

Immortals Of Meluha

Title Page

About AuthorAmish Tripathi(born on 18 October 1974) is an Indian author. He is known for his novels The Immortals of Meluha, The Secret of the Nagas and The Oath of the Vayuputras.Amish Tripathi is an alumnus ofIndian Institute of Management Calcutta. Although he originally wanted to be a historian, Tripathi initially chose a career in finance because he couldn't afford the former.He worked for 14 years in the financial services industry, in companies such as Standard Chartered, DBS Bank and IDBI Federal Life Insurance, before starting his writing career.

Writing Style Of AuthorThe author has used our Classical legends to provide impetus of his story. The characters are not new, but the tales, told in the third person omniscient narrative, are totally a creation of unifying imagination. The legends like Shiva, Sati, Nandi, Birbhadra, Daksha - all roam around a certain topography as true human beings of flesh and blood. The objectivity of the author over the pivotal question of Virtue/Vice also allows the readers to form their opinion independently.The god like character is seen from a kindly perspective where Karma or Achievements are the only yardstick for such lofty baptization.

Theme Of The BookThough the story tries to redefine the nomenclatures like Virtue and Vice, from the very beginning of the story, the web of legends, Puranas and folktales seem to mingle into a cohesive pattern to give us a glimpse of a time when the earth was ruled by old values and battles were fought for pride. That was the time when oracles used to turn the wheel of fortune and kingship was seen as an order of divinity, a time which we believe never existed in reality but only in epics and mythologies. And herein lies the greatness of our Classical super-past that always allows us a window to look through it only to find ourselves little insignificant beings in front of such a stupendous cultural cosmos. We also come to know about certain cultural rites beliefs and the logic behind such Dos and Donts. The story truly has captured the spirit of those bygone ages in their true color.

Characters In BookShiva-The BarbarianSati-A Meluhan Princess(Considered as Vikrama)Nandi-Captain Of Meluhan ArmyVeerbhadra-Captain Of Shiva's ArmyBrihaspati-Chief Scientist of MeluhaDaksha-King Of MeluhaKanakhala-Chief Minister of Daksha's courtParvateshwar-Head of Meluhan ArmyAyurvati-Chief of medicine

Characters Of Book ContinuedSurya Vanshis-Followers of solar calendarChandravanshis- Followers Of lunar CalendarNaga-Cursed Tribe with physical deformitiesMeluhas-Empire of SuryavanshisSwadweep-Empire of ChandravanshisDandaka Forest-Where Nagas Stay

Book SummaryThe Immortals of Meluha opens with Shiva watching the sun set and smoking marijuana. While Shiva debates in his mind the offer by a foreign visitor to leave Mount Kailash and relocate to Meluha we think all is well. A stage is set where Shiva, the leader of the Guna tribe, is tired of fighting the Pakratis for survival each day and he is considering moving to Meluha with his tribe to lead a new life. Chasing the dream of a life devoid of warfare sounds so damn good to Shiva. As he is mulling over the Meluhans proposal, the Pakratis strike. A short assault follows where the Meluhans help Shiva and his tribe drive off the Pakratis, and Shiva decides to move to Meluha.

Book SummaryWhen Shiva arrives at Meluha with his tribe he is awestruck by the near-perfect system of living and governance. Meluha is a place where no one is poor, everyone has food, everyone lives in identical homes, the society has excellent drainage and all the Meluhans are in the pink of health. Meluha is a land of dreams; a place where everyone would want to live. Its the great escape. To fold mythology into this cacophony of a story, Amish explains the caste system in Meluha. Shiva is told stories of how the caste system was established by Lord Ram and it is based only on merit. It allows every individual to pursue their natural talent rather than pursue a vocation based on their inherited caste. To achieve this kind of equality, a Maika system was put into place. Now, if we read this in one go without pausing to think, it seems like a really good way to work in a society. However, once we zoom out and do some reflection, we wonder how it could ever be out into practice. While I read this, I made a mental note to look this up.

Book SummaryAs Shiva is shown around Meluha, Amish has described a place one wishes new India could be. Shiva and his tribes are give the typical Indian treatment for a guest, where the guest is considered God. Among other things, Shiva and his tribe are given somras.Somras is an elixir of life and the reason why all Meluhans are immortal. Legend says that a man from a foreign land will arrive and when he drinks the somras it will reveal his blue throat; this is the man who will save the Meluhans from evil. On drinking the somras, Shivas blue throat reveals itself and he is, therefore, established as the Neelkanth Meluhans have been looking for. While Shiva is coming to terms with his new-found identity, Shiva bumps into Sati. He pursues her in a style.Incidentally Sati turns out to be the daughter of the King of Meluha! When the King of Meluha learns of Shivas fondness of Sati, he slyly nudges Shiva to pursue his daughter Sati in the hope that Shiva would save Meluha to impress Sati.

Book SummaryHe lets Shiva and Sati travel together too. This is the point where Amish goes Bollywood with his so-called book and he doesnt stop there.This part was, frankly, the most ridiculous of the lot. A love-struck Shiva then marries Sati, but not before he abolishes the vikarma system of penance. Under the vikarma system, a person had to bear fruits of the evils in his previous birth. Amish has explained how Lord Ram established this as a logical system to maintain balance in society. Shiva abolishes this system for all of Meluha and then marries the once-vikarma Sati. The married and happy Shiva then goes on to search for what he thinks is his destinyto destroy the evil that Meluhans face. During the course of the story, Shiva learns of the Suryavanshis and Chandravanshis. He is educated of the teachings of Lord Ram. He weighs his own beliefs against what is told to him. He doubts himself and finds courage when the Vasudevs proffer him much needed advice. And finally, Shiva goes to war to destroy evil.

Outstanding Quotes

A person's ethics and character are not tested in good times. It is only in bad times that a person shows how steadfast he is to his dharma.Whether a man is a legend or not is decided by history, not fortune tellers.A man becomes a Mahadev, only when he fights for good. A Mahadev is not born from his mother's womb. He is forged in the heat of battle, when he wages a war to destroy evil. Har Har Mahadev - All of us are Mahadev.his burden didn't feel any lighter. but he felt strong enough to carry it.

Outstanding QuotesI don't believe in symbolic gods.I believe that god exists all around us.In the flow of the river,in the rustle of the trees,in the whisper of the winds. He speaks to us all the time.all we need to do is listen.Hate is not the opposite of Love. It is apathy.Don't turn blue all over now.There are many realities. There are many versions of what may appear obvious. Whatever appears as the unshakeable truth, its exact opposite may also be true in another context. After all, one's reality is but perception, viewed through various prisms of context.

EvaluationFirst of all kudos to the author for trying to deal with Hindu mythology and giving it the shape that would be interesting to the modern reader. Hindu mythology is a subject that very few Indian authors have tried to use in their story telling,much less to base their story on it. The fact that Amish has,goes a long way to say how our rich heritage could be used in the modern day and age. It is a very noble beginning, and I really hope we have many authors who would use this historical background to base their stories upon.

EvaluationSure, as a work of pure fiction, it is indeed good, but there are certain facts misrepresented as history of our land. It would be very unfair on my part as a reader, if I do not put out an unbiased view of the book, because even I really enjoyed how the story unfolds.Lastly it is a book, one should read as purely a work of fiction. Please do note that there are grossly misrepresented facts but yes, the storyline is good, some of the concepts given in it are extremely interesting and overall a good read, though I would not rate it as a "must read".

Learning Objectives Of the BookReading is an integral part of our life. Those who do not read everyday, become obsolete and lack of creativity. More we read, more we feed our mind with the information. Our thinking, our decision making ability, our communication, the way we put things forward, the way we speak and our behaviour are guided by the kind of materials we read.In this book one can learn in from of Shova and in form of Brihaspati how to lead people , what quality a leader should possess, how a leader should communicate and how a leader shoud take a decision.This is not just a fiction novel , actually it is a teaching.

Thank YouAny Questions?