The Light of Asia
Sir Edwin Arnold · 1879
4.8 · 5 ratings
About the book
The life of the Buddha as a Victorian epic poem — the sheltered prince, the four sights, the great renunciation, the tree and the awakening. It sold like a novel, scandalised the missionaries, and introduced more Westerners to Buddhism than any book before or since.
Try the short course
Part 1 · Two futures for one baby. The first six slides, free.
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Before the child is born, Queen Maya dreams that a star bearing the sign of a six-tusked white elephant shoots down from heaven and enters her side. In the morning the grey dream-readers give their verdict. The boy will be holy and wise, one who will free men from ignorance, "or rule the world, if he will deign to rule."
Read that line twice. It holds two futures joined by an "or": a deliverer or an emperor. And the emperor half comes with its own condition attached, if he will deign.
So the first prophecy in the poem is a fork, not a fate. It names two roads and leaves the choosing to the boy. Book One takes place in the space that one small word opens.
Inside the course
12 parts- A prince born, and a prophecy his father fearsFree above
- The sheltered palace: pleasure as a cage
- The four sights: age, sickness, death, and a monk
- The great renunciation — leaving at midnight
Questions
Is The Light of Asia free to read in Astra Trainer?
Yes. The full book opens free in the app’s reader, in English, Spanish, German, French, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, and Russian.
What is the short course?
12 short parts that walk through the book’s key ideas in slides, each with a quick quiz. The first six slides are free to try on this page.
Where do I get the app?
Astra Trainer is free on the App Store and Google Play. The Light of Asia is waiting in the app’s library.
