Prince of Dharma

AUTHOR'S PREFACE TO THE INDIAN HARDCOVER EDITION 2007 Unlike people, a broken spine on a book is a good thing. So are battered covers, peeling lamination, torn corners, tea stains, and dog-eared pages. They’re signs that the book is loved and has been enjoyed often. In the four years since the first book of my Ramayana series was published, I’ve had the pleasure of seeing and signing many such copies of my books. It’s the best sight in the world to an author. It means you’ve written a book, or in this case, a series of books, that readers genuinely love. Some of those copies even had favourite passages underlined or highlighted. You can’t buy that kind of appreciation with a fat marketing budget or media hype; it has to be earned, word by word, page by page. As of this writing, each of the six books in the series have gone through multiple reprints. Rather than tapering off after the publication of the sixth and final book, sales have continued to increase steadily—despite my not having publicized the books nor given any media interviews, attended any book launches, signings or readings, for close to two years. If anything, the reader response has swelled overwhelmingly, with the online community showing extraordinary support for the series and for my humble attempt to retell this seminal epic. And so, four years after the first paperback edition of Prince of Ayodhya was released, the Indian publishers of my Ramayana series have decided that it’s time that this appreciative readership had an edition that was more durable and better designed to withstand such enthusiasm and affection. With the publication of this hardcover omnibus set, you finally get to see my Ramayana retelling exactly as I originally intended: as one long book split into three continuous parts, rather than six separate paperback novels. The text remains almost exactly the same, I’ve reinstated the original volume titles that I had wanted for the series and the story is now split at exactly the points at which I wanted it split. Prince of Dharma, the first volume, contains the complete, unabridged text of Prince of Ayodhya and Siege of Mithila. Prince in Exile, the second volume, contains Demons of Chitrakut and Armies of Hanuman. Prince at War, the third and final volume, contains Bridge of Rama and King of Ayodhya. If you’re new to the series, then turn the page and read the introduction reprinted from the paperback editions, which will answer many questions and hopefully help prepare you for perhaps the most unorthodox and unusual retelling of this classic tale ever attempted. And when you’re done with that, then I wish you happy reading. Scuff these shiny new covers, cause the laminate to peel off, spill tea or coffee or cola on the book, bend and crack the spine. Even published in this fancy hardcover edition, this isn’t a book