“
Only
a mile away from the shepherd and his flock was a goatherd and his
herd. The merest accident of microgeography had meant that the first
man to hear the voice of Om, and who gave Om
his view of humans, was a shepherd and not a goatherd. They have
quite different ways of looking at the world, and the whole of
history might have been different.
For sheep are stupid, and have to be driven. But goats are intelligent, and need to be led.”
-Terry
Pratchett, Small
gods
For
the most parts of my career as a reader, I have always been some sort
of a “proto-fan” for Terry Pratchett's Discworld
series. That is, I've heard of what Discworld
is about, I knew it exists, and without reading it, I already knew I
would like it. Discworld
is a comedic fantasy series, often poking fun at things in our
society using satires. The stories are set in a fantastic world, flat
as a disc, supported on the backs of four elephants standing on a
giant, space turtle who, swims across space. I thought this idea was
grand when I heard it for the first time, it was love at the first
sight! This sort of things are right up my alley, and immediately, I
knew that I was going to be a fan for it.
My
experience with Discworld
franchise is limited to the TV adaptations for “Going
Postal”,
and “Hogfather”,
and I liked both of them. However, I have never read any Discworld
novels, mainly because the amount of books in this series, add up to a jaw-dropping number of 40 books! I simply didn't know where or how to
start. But I always wanted to read these books. After doing some
extensive research, in collaboration with Dr. Google, I sheepily
acquired a handful of Discworld
novels, subsequently arrived at the decision that Small
gods,
would be my entry to the eccentric yet fantastic world of Discworld.
Small
gods
is a satirical portrayal of organized religion (in particular,
Christianity) and politics, and I love this book! While reading this
book, I laughed so hard and loud in a manner, that I suspect my
neighbors were probably wondering if it was time for them to call the men in white coats. Today, I would like to provide a review for
this book.
Synopsis:
Religion
is a serious business.
Even
on Discworld, a flat, circular world carried by the Star Turtle
A'tuin, religion is as serious a business as it is anywhere else in
the universe. On Discworld, many religions exist, competing against
each other to have its influence and presence felt. At this point in
time, our story takes us to an empire called Omnia, a theocratic
kingdom who believed in a monotheistic religion, worshiping the one
and true God, Om. The time has come again for Om to manifest himself
in the world. However, this time, Om found himself manifested in the
form of a small tortoise, stripped of all of his power. This is a
most unexpected result! Under these drastic circumstances, Om knew he
needed a disciple. This is when brother Brutha, a young novice from
the temple of Om, came into the play..
What
I think about this book:
I
love this book! This book is full of humors and satires, and very well written. This book was poking fun at a variety of aspects in the human
society; from religion, philosophy, to politics. Terry Pratchett made
sharp and crisp observations about these things, then dressed them up
in the colorful cloth of parodies, inviting his readers to unwrap and
think about these issues for themselves, in a light-hearted, humorous
manner. The characters in this book, from heroes to villains, are
vividly portrayed and unforgettable. I especially enjoyed reading the
interactions between Om and Brutha, and watched Brutha gradually
develop from an unthinking novice in a religious order, into a wise
and compassionate sage.
This
book explored some thought-provoking themes. For example, (without
spoiling the story), one aspect of the story questions religious
individuals, that between the actual God of their religion, and the
structure/theology/doctrine/worldview they established for their
religion, which one is the true basis for their belief? Hence, should
this God be surprised, when He found out, that just as silence stole into the heart of a moonless night, His followers has ceased to believe in Him, but are
now believing in the system that promotes the religion instead?
This
question touched me deeply, because my personal experience showed me
that, most times, organized religion is often busy playing the role
of a gatekeeper, separating the “true believers” from the
“non-believers” (or fake believers) by enforcing a narrow-minded certainty and division, based on a non-negotiable, systematic dictatorship over one's
theology/doctrine, or worldview.
This
book, also suggested an alternative perspective on how to look at
humanity. i.e. one of my favorite quotes from the book is this: “Just
because you can explain it doesn’t mean it’s not still a
miracle”.
I believe the book is suggesting that there is awesomeness, and
something miraculous about the things that occur in daily lives.
Allow me to explain: A lot of the times, some people (such as moi)
have the tendency to find amazement ONLY in things that we are unable
to understand. While taking for granted, failing to notice, that
miracles are in fact, all around us. For example, comparing to the
rest of the (known) universe, it is indeed miraculous for humans to
build street lamps and sewerage system on earth, while we could have
just sat around and did no such thing! I mean, where else in our
solar system, would you find a group of corporeal creatures,
transforming metals, glasses and concrete into street lamps and
sewerage system, to serve a purpose? Among the things in our dark and cold solar system,
humans can give meanings to things that don't necessarily have
meanings, isn't that miraculous and special? This book widened the
way I look at things, and broadened my perspective. It made me
appreciate humanity in a whole different, positive way that was
previously absent from my religious worldview.
Overall,
I deeply enjoyed Small
gods.
It has a thought-provoking and humorous story, set in a fantastic and
imaginative world, filled with eccentric and funny characters who are
absolutely unforgettable. Most importantly, I am so glad that I have
now, been initiated into the universe of Discworld.
I look forward to reading other Discworld
novels in the near future. In the meantime, I would recommend this
book to those who like comedy, fantasy, and satires, also to those
who like thinky books that explore religion, philosophy and politics
in humorous and creative ways.
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