SteveG23
Kalki
editPlease provide a citation for the book reference on the Kalki page. You can't use another wikipedia article as support. (Ghostexorcist 21:37, 18 March 2007 (UTC))
What kind of citation are you are looking for, a book about the book?
I gather you haven't read Lord of Light. The main character's name is Kalkin, popularly known as "mahasamatman," translated as "great-souled Sam." His avatar (or at least his disembodied consciousness) had been (technologically) dispatched to an analog of Nirvana in a past age, in which he had conquered the demons and tried to establish an enlightened civilization, but was thwarted by others bearing the "attributes" of various Hindu gods who preferred to rule as dictators. He is summoned back by Yama and Ratri from the analog of Nirvana, to overthrow the self-appointed "Lords of Karma" who have corrupted the way of Dharma. He combats Kali and Agni, rides to war on a white horse brandishing a sword that has never been defeated, again (single-handedly) conquers the demons, re-enacts the life and teachings of the Buddha, and explicitly brings an end to an age of darkness and corruption.
In an interview in 1973, Zelazny spoke of doing considerable research in Hindu history and beliefs in preparation for writing this book, but does not cite specific texts. (He describes it as the book on which he had to do the most research of all of his works.) You can download the interview at http://zelazny.corrupt.net/audio/WritersVoice.html; select track 17. I would write to him for a confirmation, but he died in 1995.
In any event, the connections are quite as obvious as the Vidal book. Does that one require a citation to some other book too? If you like I could change "is directly based on" to "extremely closely tracks," but the change would be meaningless. --SteveG23 00:51, 19 March 2007 (UTC)
- No I've never read it. You can just cite the book itself (author, Name, publisher, etc.). Yes, the Vidal book needs one as well. I assume the Kali in the book is the demon and not the Goddess? The Demon Kali is Kalki’s nemesis in the Kalki Purana. I wrote the article on Kali. (Ghostexorcist 07:24, 19 March 2007 (UTC))