January 21
Oh! When I contemplate how I can die whenever I want, a wild joy floods my ego, I feel an omnipotence in my hands – and I smile.
September 6
Tell your soul to kneel beside me and tell it to open its lips with reverence and wait: The holy Grail of love is held in the hands of the Angel of Sorrow, running through the worlds and giving communion to the souls.
June 3
I have a fever. I suffer. Here, here in my chest. I feel a flame running and bubbling in my veins. It seems to me that if I open an artery and let a little blood flow, I will find peace.
The Serpent and the Lily is the first book by Nikos Kazantzakis and serves as a precursor to his universal literary creation. It was published in 1906 under the pseudonym Karma Nirvamí. It is an explosive erotic book in which, along with his teenage experiences, he articulates the seeds of his worldview and the idols of his mind and heart.
A companion in the adventure of the procession of love, body and soul, is an Irishwoman, a priest’s daughter, an English teacher, who was not unrelated to the Catholic questions concerning the destiny of man. A Cretan and an Irishwoman met, and the air caught fire between them, eventually wrapping around them both. The Serpent was he, the Lily was she, the Serpent and the Lily is the stunning encounter and narrative.
For the first time, we now learn the name of his then sweetheart: Kathleen Forde! From the outset, the book made a devastating impression. Renowned journalists and intellectuals, such as Vlasis Gavriilidis and Kostis Palamas, engaged with it. Their reviews are profound, humorous, and even prophetic regarding the future of the unknown author with the strange and striking name.
The Serpent and the Lily has been translated into foreign languages. P.S. The novels of his mature period are: Zorba the Greek, Captain Michalis, The Last Temptation, Christ Recrucified, Tonda Ramba, The Rocky Garden, God's Poor Man, Brothers. As well as his historical autobiographical work: Report to Greco. Additionally, the novels from the youthful period of Nikos Kazantzakis are available: The Serpent and the Lily, Broken Souls.
