Har Har Mahadev

This is perhaps the first time I am doing a book review. So it may not be in the traditional way how any review is done. Hell, it may not even be a review in any sense. It is more of the reflections that I derived out of reading this book; well, this trilogy, to be precise.

With the first novel - The Immortals of Meluha, Amish painted a really beautiful picture of ancient Indian way of living - right from the cities and its sanitation system, right on to the righteous lives led by the citizens of Meluha. Fast forward, we reach Tibet where the tribals lead their so called barbaric uncouth lifestyle and it is from such a setup that the Neelkanth emerges. The reader is also introduced to the Somras, the elixir of life to the ancient Indians. Detailed narration of how it is made (at Mount Mandar), its powers and its importance etc. are presented and the reader is made to wonder how it would be if he can lay hands on this amazing tonic. Here, Shiva meets his to-be-friend Brahaspathi. Later the Mandar is destroyed and Shiva believes this is the work of the Meluhan archrivals, the Chandravanshis and declares war on them. Meluha wins the war, but only then Shiva realizes his mistake (for, the Chandravanshis had their own tale where Shiva would save them against the evil Suryavanshis - the Meluhans). Confusion reigns, but the book concludes with Shiva charging towards saving his wife, Sati.

The second novel - The Secret of the Nagas, in my opinion was the most interesting read of all the three books. For one, it picked up beautifully from where the first book left off. For another, it introduced two major characters - Kali and Ganesh, and the story woven behind their history was portrayed in the most obvious manner possible. That Kali and Sati are twins and Ganesh is Sati's long lost child angers Shiva, but he later forgives Ganesh, and also tries to emphatize with the sort of life his son had previously led, being banished by his own grand father for being born with deformities and hence being branded a Naga. The book brought out the moral fiber of the elephant god. This book is also significant, for it brings in most of Shiva's future associates, when he took on the fight against evil. At the fag end of the book, Shiva's entourage is attacked by unknown daivi astras. The book also reveals that Brahaspathi is indeed alive and not dead, as was thought of, after the attack on Mount Mandar (in the first book)

The third book starts off with Shiva seeking to understand why Brahaspathi had lied to him and faked his own death. As the scientist proceeds to explain this, truth about who tried to attack them enroute Panchavati gradually dawns upon them. It also reveals later that the true adversary was not Emperor Daksha of Meluha, nor was it Emperor Dilipa of Ayodhya. It turns out to be Maharishi Brighu. Eventually, Daksha, without the knowledge of Brighu Maharishi, gets an Egyptian group to kill Shiva during a fake peace deal. However, Shiva is out elsewhere, so Sati leads their camp to the peace mission. When she realizes the folly her father had committed, Sati is enraged and rushes back to save her group of soldiers. But the Egyptian killers mistake Nandi for Shiva and tries to attack him. Sati deflects him and duels his men. In the process, she dies a warrior's death, severely wounded by the duels. Shiva seeks revenge for this and uses the Pashupathiastra to destroy Meluha. Fast forward some thirty years, Shiva and the rest of his clan live on the Kailash-Mansarovar stretch and the trilogy ends here.

The trilogy is unique in a lot of aspects. For one, it introduces a lot of mythological characters in the most simplest forms as humans. That such characters walk on the face of the Earth, in itself is something we would all be thrilled of. Imagine the bull headed Nandi as actually a living human character. Same goes for Veerbhadra, another such character. To me, the best of all this would naturally be Brahaspathi, the scientist. For, in reality, we use the term Brahaspathi to describe someone who is really stupid. Stark contrast. Likewise, characters like Daksha or Surapadhman, who we associate with evil in the real world, are given their due share in this book. Their side of reasoning is explained so well that the reader is left to wonder if the Evil is actually not so evil.

But the best of all would be the choice of words and the language. We all look upon Shiva as someone supreme, but what Amish tried to portray was Shiva as someone just like you and me; someone who may well be right next to us. And it is ok for Shiva to use swear words (or for that matter, any of the mythological beings). For a reader like me, that is something unique, something I would never have imagined. But Amish did it. And I must admit, it was fine later. Also, this is one key aspect where Amish wins the reader over - all through the trilogy.

Also, Amish beautifully brings about the portrayal of modern day scientific inventions/discoveries as something very common back then. The sewage system, the customs at ports, the ship building and most importantly, the existence of nuclear warfare etc. are brought about in the most obvious sense. That is something which makes us wonder if such technological expertise did exist back then, and further makes us somewhat ashamed that we Indians could not sustain such priced knowledge.

Now, onto the third and the final part.

It has been quite sometime since the first two books released. Both books brought about war in the most realistic fashion. Gory bloodshed and warfare was narrated really wonderful. With the second book, expectations over wartime narration rose. With the third book, this reached its peak. Most of us expected this to reach an all time high. We wanted Shiva to fight Evil in the most crudest form possible, and destroy his enemies in a very nasty war. Well, we are in for a surprise. That part never happens. Except for subplot fights, there was no major war at all in the big. This, in my opinion, was a big time let down. Much of the expectation just got cremated then and there.

Also, the first two books built up the plot in a very gradual way, intertwining different events in the most natural way possible. The third book rushed off at such a pace that we lose track of what happens earlier. The plot, in many places, was just too quick and too shallow. There was nothing strong to it. There was something missing, in essence. I seriously wonder why Amish chose to write this third book with much expectation, to just let the reader know that nuclear weapons existed back then. Well, that may not have been his intention, but it eventually came down to that. In this sense, I would say that the third book was a really big let down, at least in most parts. What Amish started off with the first two books and built it to such a grandeur, he did not finish off with the same grandeur in his third and final book.

Yet, all said and done, Amish did attempt something brave, something unique. To portray the life of a God who is as diverse as Lord Shiva, in the most simplest and readable way, intertwining fact and fiction in the right amounts (such that the reader would never guess which was fact and which was fiction), is something remarkable. In an age where we have sleazy writers like CB and Ravinder Singh, who make it their life's mission to bring out a book that is just downright crappy in its covers, it is really heartening to have writers in the likes of Amish, who know what they want and who certainly know what they right. For that, Amish must definitely be lauded.

Overall : The Shiva Trilogy - 8/10

-Prashanth Ashok