The Blue Throated Hero

Here is someone, whose magnificence cannot be described in mere words. However this is my feeble attempt to do so. Mine is a character review on Amish Tripathi's Shiva Trilogy; of which 'The Immortals of Meluha' and 'The Secret of The Nagas' has been released and 'The Oath of The Vayuputras' will be in no time. For someone who hasn't read them yet, there are spoilers in my review. So do read the book before reading this post. 

The title is obvious to any Hindu grown up listening to various stories about an endless list of Gods and heroes. I grew up on Amar Chitra Kathas and stories by my grandmother. She would always tell me stories of Krishna, Murugan, Ganapati and many others, which intrigued me and born within me was a fascination for Indian mythology. Though I went from a God-worshipping childhood, to an agnostic adolescence and ended up starting my adulthood as an atheist, my interest in these heroes never faded. If anything, I became more curious about them.

I belong to a Vaishnavite family; I was particularly inspired by Lord Shiva. His character is one of immense passion, valour and beauty. He has a focus of a Hawk, strength of a Bull, courage of a Lion, glamour of a Peacock and the grace of a Swan. He can be calm as the sea; furious as the fire and excited as a butterfly. His name by itself means pure. He plays the role of the destroyer in the holy trinity. He destroys all things, evil and good to make place for new. While Brahma is white and Vishnu is shades of grey, Shiva is black. He observes all the evil hence cleansing the universe.

Amish Tripathi illustrates the Neelkanth in a more humane form in his Shiva Trilogy. His portrayal has added a touch of charm and elegance to our beloved Lord. He shows him as an ordinary human with an extraordinary journey of life. ‘Har Har Mahadev’ or ‘Har Ek Hai Mahadev’ is used often in the story, implying that in each one of us, there is a God. With the right amount of courage, enthusiasm and determination, we can accomplish great feats in life. The Shiva Trilogy is a story of the expedition of the Lord, passed on from generations, seen by a contemporary eye.

Shiva is shown as a tribal Lord, born in an environment so raw and innocent to civilized way of life. He has grown up on the mountains, which makes him closer to the skies as well as Mother Earth, and hence the universe. This is the reason he is always down to Earth and in one with the nature. The needs and rules were basic on the Himalayas and all people cared about was survival. As he takes his subjects to Meluha, he mixes his raw intelligence with their established system to further improve the picture perfect kingdom. We often forget the creative side of Shiva. He blends creativity and logic in a perfect way to make himself one of the most efficiently intelligent personalities. He stands for raw and untamed energy.

Shiva is someone who cares for all his loved ones. He will sacrifice his own life for the safety of theirs. Anyone who harms the one he loves shall face his wrath. He does not give up on Sati, even when she virtually lives under the shadows of death. On losing Brihaspati, he gets enraged on the Nagas. He also holds Nandi and Veerbadra as important people and trusts their advice. Shiva’s love for Sati is intense; he does not give up on the hope of marrying her. She is his strength and his weakness.

Another attribute to the Neelkanth is his passion. He is ardent about dancing. He prays before his dance, a tribute to Lord Nataraja and a way to absorb all the energy around. While he dances, he gets lost in the art. The steps come to him effortlessly. He doesn’t do dance, he feels it. His entire body is synchronized to the rhythm of the universe. His hands and legs find their own movements. His mudras are perfect and posture is balanced. Being a Bharatnatyam dancer, I have always visualized him doing the Anand Tandav and Rudra Tandav. Whenever we were taught a dance based on Shiva and Parvati, it’s a total class act, upbeat, energetic and graceful. This is the reason I started admiring Shiva before Amish Tripathi decided to reveal him in a different light.

He is a person of strong morals and principles and anyone with the same attracts him. He thinks high of Parvateshwar who shuns him at first, for his loyalty to Lord Ram. Sati’s strong character and headstrong virtue attracts him. He also loses admiration for Daksha, who is shown to be timid and of weak mind. He gets angry with Daksha and Nandi when they feed him and his folks the Som, without their consent. He is against lying and someone who will not entertain cowardice.

The trait that earned my absolute respect is something else though. It was the way he treated everyone, as an equal. His eyes were the most just. He is against the vikarma law. He touches the feet of a certain vikarma and takes his blessing, creating a bit of blasphemy in Meluha. However, he uses his power and influence over the king to remove the law. He believes in fair play and equality. He shows confidence in Sati, Ayurvati and other women; something which men often fail to do. Rather than discouraging Sati from fighting, he admires her for standing up to herself and her principles. As the first book ends, he comes in terms with the fact that the Chandravanshi way of living is as fair and right as the Suryavanshi way. He sees feminity as a force complementary to masculinity, neither inferior nor superior. He is open to a new perspective, and opens up the public’s mind to a new way of thinking. He is ready to listen to the other side of the story before passing a judgment on a person. Despite of all people said about Parshurama, he listened to his reasons of acting the way he did, and sympathized with him. His open mind is the reason he can communicate with the Vasudevs as well.

We all have fictional characters who have inspired and shaped our own thoughts and beliefs. Reading about the Neelkanth found me a role model. I aspire to be like him. If I can even be a percent like him, I will be have consider my life well lived and worth. Also a cue to all the boys, I would love to find a soul mate with qualities possessed by the Blue Throated Hero.