Thunder God Indra – Hindu mythology regards Indra as the king of Devas, who always is insecure regarding his throne.
The god of thunder and lightning however has been seen from quite a different perspective, in the book by Rajiv G Menon. Thundergod: The Ascendance of Indra has reinterpreted the man as not only the king who was insecure about the throne, but his journey from a normal being to the king of Devas.
Thunder God Indra is the first part of the Vedic Trilogy that interprets the character of Indra combining history with mythology. The Deva tribe is one of many tribes that reside in different parts of Eurasia and shares its descent with Ikshvaaku, Yavana, Aditya and Asuara tribes. Indra, who is born from the union of, chief of Deava tribe, Daeyus and the earth goddess Gaia, is ripped off his parentage when he was a baby. Prophecy has it that a warrior born from the unusual union of a goddess and human is destined to unite the Devas and lead them in a battle against Asuras.
Mitra, a sage who was once a renowned warrior, having renounced the world, brings up Indra with four other orphans from the Aditya clan in his hermitage, keeping them safe from the dangers their life possesses. Five of them, Vayu, Agni, Varuna, Soma and Indra become close friends, more of brothers and develop supernatural abilities, when they kill a group of Pishachas, plundering humans and other beings since ages. The abilities, they develop however have to be strengthened periodically, with a potion prepared by Soma, which he masters in.
In the process of uniting all the clans and becoming the greatest warrior on Earth and the King of Devas, Indra ends up losing his lady love by killing her brother, which was demanded by the situation and her father, accidentally.
Agreed that as far as mythology is concerned, there has to be magic in the book. But the coming of Aryans to India, Vedic age and the developing of Harappan civilization are topics which the author has touched from the perspective of historical authenticity.
That apart, you’ll find the story gripping because though leadership was his birthright, the story revolves around a god who has to prove himself worthy of that leadership. And yet he loses nearly everything in his fight against the most endangered clan to others- the Asuras.
Thunder God Indra – A tale of struggle, treachery, hostility and vengeance, you can’t really wait for the second book in the trilogy.
