Identify Books Concering Lord of Light
| Original Title: | Lord of Light |
| ISBN: | 0060567236 (ISBN13: 9780060567231) |
| Edition Language: | English |
| Characters: | Mahasamatman, Yama, Ratri |
| Literary Awards: | Hugo Award for Best Novel (1968), Nebula Award Nominee for Best Novel (1967) |
Roger Zelazny
Paperback | Pages: 296 pages Rating: 4.1 | 26200 Users | 1466 Reviews
Mention About Books Lord of Light
| Title | : | Lord of Light |
| Author | : | Roger Zelazny |
| Book Format | : | Paperback |
| Book Edition | : | Anniversary Edition |
| Pages | : | Pages: 296 pages |
| Published | : | March 30th 2010 by Harper Voyager (first published 1967) |
| Categories | : | Science Fiction. Fantasy. Fiction |
Interpretation To Books Lord of Light
Prince Siddhartha attained enlightenment at the foot of the Bodhi tree and became the Buddha: his teachings swept across India, striking at the roots of decadent Brahmanism. The Hindu priests were understandably alarmed, but were helpless against the doctrine of the eightfold path as the stale air inside a room against the tempest raging outside. So they did the clever thing: after the Buddha's passing, they assimilated him and made him an avatar of Vishnu (in fact, they licked him by joining him). Perhaps this is the fate of all reformers!This much is history. Roger Zelazny takes the bare bones of this story, adds the exotic ingredients of Indian myth and legend haphazardly, seasons it with the spirit of Prometheus who moved against heaven, and serves it up as a science fiction novel. For people who have not tasted exotic and spicy Indian dishes (at least not regularly), this is extraordinary fare indeed: alas, for my jaded palate, this is quite ordinary.
Zelazny writes superbly. The novel is structured imaginatively-as Adam Roberts says in the introduction, the author deliberately wrong foots us with the flashback. The language is rich and lush and a bit cloying, like India at its exotic best (or worst), seen from an “Orientalist” perspective. In an age when characterization was almost nonexistent in SF, Zelazny gives us rounded characters who behave consistently. The SF elements are also well developed and consistent with a technology so far advanced that it is “indistinguishable from magic” (to borrow from Arthur C. Clarke).
That the author is well acquainted with India is obvious. He knows the names of a lot of Indian gods (not only the Vedic pantheon – Murugan is a Tamil god). From the way the Kathakali performance is described in detail, I am almost sure that Zelazny has travelled in Kerala (my native place). The way each god’s “Attribute” defines him or her is more or less consistent with Hindu mythology – and it has been translated into scientific terms quite convincingly. And the way the “Rakasha” (the Rakshasa s and Asuras of Indian myth) have been described as elemental spirits of the planet, subdued and imprisoned by the human colonisers, closely parallels the real origin of these demons in folklore.
But once all the bells and whistles were removed, I found the story of a renegade god moving against the celestial dictators quite ordinary. If the whole Indian pantheon were not in the story, if it was just the tale of a plain “Sam”‘s rebellion, I do not think this book would have merited a second glance at the awards. It was sold under the label of exotic India, like many other orientalist offerings. One might argue that this was Zeazny’s intention, and that there is nothing wrong in it: I would tend to agree. His vision of using Indian myth to flavor a science fiction novel was (at the time of its publication) a bold, path-breaking move. Only thing is, I am not one of the intended audience!
I have one more caveat: Zelazny mixes and matches the gods and their attributes with a free hand (especially towards the end). Since these are not true gods but human beings who have taken on these attributes, this is technically OK, but it soon becomes a pot-pourri very difficult to follow. Also, in the process, he saw many of the gods only single dimensionally (this is most notable in the case of Krishna, who is seen only as a lecher).
I would recommend this book for people unfamiliar with Indian mythology. I am afraid those who are well-read in the same may feel disappointed.
Rating About Books Lord of Light
Ratings: 4.1 From 26200 Users | 1466 ReviewsAssessment About Books Lord of Light
If you're into stuff like this, you can read the full review.The Special Art of SF: Lord of Light by Roger ZelaznyLord of Light takes place maybe 100 or 200 years after the landing of humans on the planet where it takes place. A bottle of wine brought from Earth is still drinkable (though to be sure a precious relic); there is one survivor-in-the-flesh of the native entities who resisted human incursion. Also, the godhood of the "crew" arose informally - the "passengers" saw them wielding30Apr2014(ebook): I'm reading this with Sci-fi & Heroic Fantasy grouphttps://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...& I like it better each time I read it. It makes far more sense after the first read, like so many of Zelazny's books, so I can concentrate more on the variety of flavors. Even knowing the ending doesn't hurt. Super ending, too.Several have mentioned that the story is confusing. If it's your first time reading it, be aware that he intended to publish it as a serial & wrote it
(Original review date: 17 March 2009)On page one of Lord of Light, Zelazny drops the reader smack into the middle of an epic and eternal struggle, taking place on a distant planet in the distant future. It's an incredibly disorienting way to enter a story, especially one as bizarre and complicated as this one is. The structure of the novel is no help, either - it's divided into seven long and loosely-connected chapters, presented out of chronological order with no way for the reader to know, at
I don't even know where to start on this one. Roger Zelazny solidified his position on my favorite authors list with Lord of Light. It's the best writing of his that I've come across so far. The Plot: Long story short, immortals from Earth set up shop on another world and assumed the guise of Hindu gods. Sam, aka Buddha, Siddhartha, Kalkin, etc., opposes them in each of his lifetimes, reviving Buddhism as a tool in his quest. The final confrontation doesn't disappoint.As other reviewers have
In my opinion, Lord of Light (LOL) called as science fiction because the author set the setting as far future, and using technology as the magic system. But the story itself mainly influenced by Indian mythology. But it was not a retelling of Indian myths. The author had done the researched well, based on my very-limited knowledge of Indian myth. The author mixed the myths with his own story. OK, in much harsher words: the author was using Indian mythology for the story. So please don't use LOL
People left the dying Earth and found a habitable planet. Thanks to their advanced technology they conquered or subdued local life forms and established themselves as dominant race. The highly advanced technology allowed some of them literally play gods using Hindu mythology as the basis. We all know the power corrupts, so the whole system became very corrupted very fast. Enter a guy who decided to change the way things work. His name is Mahasamatman, or Sam for short - this is how he prefers to
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