by Amish
Nirvana: Enlightenment; freedom from the cycle of rebirths
Oxygen/anti-oxidants theory: Modern research backs this theory. Interested readers can read the article ‘Radical Proposal’ by Kathryn Brown in the Scientific American
Panchavati: The land of the five banyan trees
Pandit: Priest
Paradaeza: An ancient Persian word which means ‘the walled place of harmony’; the root of the English word, Paradise
Pariha: The land of fairies. Refers to modern Persia/Iran. I believe Lord Rudra came from this land
Parmatma: The ultimate soul or the sum of all souls
Parsee immigration to India: Groups of Zoroastrian refugees immigrated to India perhaps between the 8th and 10th century AD to escape religious persecution. They landed in Gujarat, and the local ruler Jadav Rana gave them refuge
Pashupatiastra: Literally, the weapon of the Lord of the Animals. The descriptions of the effects of the Pashupatiastra in Hindu scriptures are quite similar to that of nuclear weapons. In modern nuclear technology, weapons have been built primarily on the concept of nuclear fission. While fusion-boosted fission weapons have been invented, pure fusion weapons have not been invented as yet. Scientists hold that a pure nuclear fusion weapon has far less radioactive fallout and can theoretically serve as a more targeted weapon. In this trilogy, I have assumed that the Pashupatiastra is one such weapon
Patallok: The underworld
Pawan Dev: God of the winds
Pitratulya: The term for a man who is ‘like a father’
Prahar: Four slots of six hours each into which the day was divided by the ancient Hindus; the first prahar began at twelve midnight
Prithvi: Earth
Prakrati: Nature
Puja: Prayer
Puja thali: Prayer tray
Raj dharma: Literally, the royal duties of a king or ruler. In ancient India, this term embodied pious and just administration of the king’s royal duties
Raj guru: Royal sage
Rajat: Silver
Rajya Sabha: The royal council
Rakshabandhan: Raksha = Protection; Bandhan = thread/tie. An ancient Indian festival in which a sister ties a sacred thread on her brother’s wrist, seeking his protection
Ram Chandra: Ram = Face; Chandra = Moon. Hence Ram Chandra is ‘the face of the moon’
Ram Rajya: The rule of Ram
Rangbhoomi: Literally, the ground of colour. Stadia in ancient times where sports, performances and public functions would be staged
Rangoli: Traditional colourful and geometric designs made with coloured powders or flowers as a sign of welcome
Rishi: Man of knowledge
Sankat Mochan: Literally, reliever from troubles. One of the names of Lord Hanuman
Sangam: A confluence of two rivers
Sanyasi: A person who renounces all his worldly possessions and desires to retreat to remote locations and devote his time to the pursuit of god and spirituality. In ancient India, it was common for people to take sanyas at an old age, once they had completed all their life’s duties
Sapt Sindhu: Land of the seven rivers – Indus, Saraswati, Yamuna, Ganga, Sarayu, Brahmaputra and Narmada. This was the ancient name of North India
Saptrishi: One of the ‘Group of seven Rishis’
Saptrishi Uttradhikari: Successors of the Saptrishis
Shakti Devi: Mother Goddess; also Goddess of power and energy
Shamiana: Canopy
Shloka: Couplet
Shudhikaran: The purification ceremony
Sindhu: The first river
Somras: Drink of the gods
Sundarban: Sundar = beautiful; ban = forest. Hence, Sundarban means beautiful forest
Svarna: Gold
Swadweep: The Island of the individual. This is the land ruled by the Chandravanshi kings
Swadweepans: People of Swadweep
Swaha: Legend has it that Lord Agni’s wife is named Swaha. Hence it pleases Lord Agni, the God of Fire, if a disciple takes his wife’s name while worshipping the sacred fire. Another interpretation of Swaha is that it means offering of self
Tamra: Bronze
Thali: Plate
Varjish graha: The exercise hall
Varun: God of the water and the seas
Vijayibhav: May you be victorious
Vikarma: Carrier of bad fate
Vishnu: The protector of the world and propagator of good. I believe that it is an ancient Hindu title for the greatest of leaders who would be remembered as the mightiest of gods
Vishwanath: Literally, the Lord of the World. Usually refers to Lord Shiva, also known as Lord Rudra in his angry avatar. I believe Lord Rudra was a different individual from Lord Shiva. In this trilogy, I have used the term Vishwanath to refer to Lord Rudra
Yagna: Sacrificial fire ceremony
Amish is a 1974-born, IIM (Kolkata)-educated, boring banker turned happy author. The success of his debut book, The Immortals of Meluha (Book 1 of the Shiva Trilogy), encouraged him to give up a fourteen-year-old career in financial services to focus on writing. He is passionate about history, mythology and philosophy, finding beauty and meaning in all world religions.
Amish lives in Mumbai with his wife Preeti and son Neel.
www.authoramish.com
www.facebook.com/authoramish
www.twitter.com/amisht
Table of Contents
Praise for the Shiva Trilogy
Title page
Copyright
Dedication
Contents
The Shiva Trilogy
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: The Return of a Friend
Chapter 2: What is Evil?
Chapter 3: The Kings Have Chosen
Chapter 4: A Frog Homily
Chapter 5: The Shorter Route
Chapter 6: The City that Conquers Pride
Chapter 7: An Eternal Partnership
Chapter 8: Who is Shiva?
Chapter 9: The Love-struck Barbarian
Chapter 10: His Name Alone Strikes Fear
Chapter 11: The Branga Alliance
Chapter 12: Troubled Waters
Chapter 13: Escape of the Gunas
Chapter 14: The Reader of Minds
Chapter 15: The Magadhan Issue
Chapter 16: Secrets Revealed
Chapter 17: Honour Imprisoned
Chapter 18: Honour or Victory?
Chapter 19: Proclamation of the Blue Lord
Chapter 20: The Fire Song
Chapter 21: Siege of Ayodhya
Chapter 22: Magadh Mobilises
Chapter 23: Battle of Bal-Atibal Kund
Chapter 24: The Age of Violence
Chapter 25: God or Country?
Chapter 26: Battle of Mrittikavati
Chapter 27: The Neelkanth Speaks
Chapter 28: Meluha Stunned
Chapter 29: Every Army Has a Traitor
Chapter 30: Battle of Devagiri
Chapter 31: Stalemate
Chapter 32: The Last Resort
Chapter 33: The Conspiracy Deepens
Chapter 34: With the Help of Umbergaon
Chapter 35: Journey to Pariha
Chapter 36: The Land of Fairies
Chapter 37: Unexpected Help
Chapter 38: The Friend of God
Chapter 39: He is One of Us
Chapter 40: Ambush on the Narmada
Chapter 41: An Invitation for Peace
Chapter 42: Kanakhala’s Choice
Chapter 43: A Civil Revolt
Chapter 44: A Princess Returns
Chapter 45: The Final Kill
Chapter 46: Lament of the Blue Lord
Chapter 47: A Mother’s Message
Chapter 48: The Great Debate
Chapter 49: Debt to the Neelkanth
Chapter 50: Saving a Legacy
Chapter 51: Live On, Do Your Karma
Chapter 52: The Banyan Tree
Chapter 53: The Destroyer of Evil
&n
bsp; Chapter 54: By the Holy Lake
Glossary