THE MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN: SALEEM, SHIVA, AND PARVATI’S SIMILARITIES IN HINDU MYTHOLOGY

Abstract

Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, published in 1981, is one of the profound works that sheds light on the history of India and Pakistan. Through the body and narration of the main character Saleem Sinai, the reader witnesses the events that took place in the history of India. Saleem Sinai and other midnight children, born on the night of India’s declaration of independence, correspond to the multicultural nature and polyphony of India. The polyphony which is frequently emphasized in the work, are presented to the reader with various narrative strategies such as magical realism and historical metafiction. In an extraordinary expression of truth, Midnight’s Children also touches upon the mythology of Hindu culture. The most significant names of the Midnight children, Saleem, Shiva, and Parvati are equivalent to the three most peculiar deities of Hindu mythology, Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva. The existence of these deities is interdependent. In the absence of one, the others cannot exist. Just like Saleem’s wisdom, Shiva’s warrior personality and Parvati’s magic talent complement each other. Within this framework, the study aims to examine the similarity of Saleem, Shiva, and Parvati with Hindu gods and goddesses Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and Parvati.

Keywords

• Midnight’s Children
• Salman Rushdie
• Hindu Mythology
• Similarity
• Existence

GECEYARISI ÇOCUKLARI SALEEM, SHİVA VE PARVATİ'NİN HİNDU MİTOLOJİSİNDEKİ BENZERLİKLERİ

Abstract

Rushdie’nin 1981’de yayımlanan Geceyarısı Çocukları adlı eseri, Hindistan ve Pakistan’ın tarihine ışık tutan derin eserlerden biridir. Ana karakter Saleem Sinai’nin bedeni ve anlatımı aracılığıyla, okur Hindistan’ın tarihinde meydana gelen olaylara tanık olur. Hindistan’ın bağımsızlık ilan ettiği gecede doğan Saleem Sinai ve diğer geceyarısı çocukları, Hindistan’ın çok kültürlü yapısına ve çok sesliliğine denk gelmektedir. Eserde sıklıkla vurgulanan çokseslilik, büyülü gerçekçilik ve tarihsel üstkurmaca gibi çeşitli anlatı stratejileriyle okuyucuya sunulmaktadır. Gerçeğin olağandışı bir şekilde dışa vurulduğu Geceyarısı Çocukları, Hindu kültürünün mitolojisine de değinmektedir. Geceyarısı çocuklarının en önemli isimleri olan Saleem, Shiva ve Parvati, Hindu mitolojisinin en önemli ü. ilahı Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva’ya denktir. Bu ilahların varlığı birbirine bağlıdır. Birinin eksikliği durumunda, diğerleri varlıklarını sürdüremez. Tıpkı Saleem’in bilgeliği, Shiva’nın savaşçı kişiliği ve Parvati’nin büyü yeteneğinin birbirini tamamlaması gibi. Bu çerçevede çalışma, Saleem, Shiva ve Parvati’nin Hindu tanrı ve tanrıçaları olan Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva ve Parvati ile olan benzerliğini incelemeyi amaçlamaktadır.

Keywords

• Geceyarısı Çocukları
• Salman Rushdie
• Hindu Mitolojisi
• Benzerlik
• Varlık

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