"Arthur C. Clarke. The fountains of paradise" - читать интересную книгу автора

Malgara were the closest of friends. They grew up together quite unconscious
of their rival destinies, and the intrigues that festered around them. The
first cause of trouble had nothing to do with the accident of birth; it was
only a well-intentioned, innocent gift."
"To the court of King Paravana came envoys bearing tribute from many
lands - silk from Cathay, gold from Hindustan, burnished armour from
Imperial Rome. And one day a simple hunter from the jungle ventured into the
great city, bearing a gift which he hoped would please the Royal family..."

All around him, Morgan heard a chorus of involuntary "Oohs" and "Aahs"
from his unseen companions. Although he had never been very fond of animals,
he had to admit that the tiny, snow-white monkey that nestled so trustingly
in the arms of young Prince Kalidasa was very endearing. Out of the wrinkled
little face two huge eyes stared across the centuries - and across the
mysterious, yet not wholly unbridgeable, gulf between man and beast.

"According to the Chronicles, nothing like it had ever been seen
before; its hair was white as milk, its eyes pink as rubies. Some thought it
a good omen others an evil one, because white is the colour of death and of
mourning. And their fears, alas, were well founded."
"Prince Kalidasa loved his little pet, and called it Hanuman after the
valiant monkey-god of the Ramayana. The King's jeweller constructed a small
golden cart, in which Hanuman would sit solemnly while he was drawn through
the court, to the amusement and delight of all who watched."
"For his part, Hanuman loved Kalidasa, and would allow no-one else to
handle him. He was especially jealous of Prince Malgara - almost as if he
sensed the rivalry to come. And then, one unlucky day, he bit the heir to
the throne."
"The bite was trifling - its consequences immense. A few days later
Hanuman was poisoned - doubtless by order of the Queen. That was the end of
Kalidasa's childhood; thereafter, it is said, he never loved or trusted
another human being. And his friendship towards Malgara turned to bitter
enmity."
"Nor was this the only trouble that stemmed from the death of one small
monkey. By command of the King, a special tomb was built for Hanuman, in the
shape of the traditional bell-shaped shrine or dagoba. Now this was an
extraordinary thing to do, for it aroused the instant hostility of the
monks. Dagobas were reserved for relics of the Buddha, and this act appeared
to be one of deliberate sacrilege."
"Indeed, that may well have been its intention, for King Paravana had
now come under the sway of a Hindu Swami, and was turning against the
Buddhist faith. Although Prince Kalidasa was too young to be involved in
this conflict, much of the monks' hatred was now directed against him. So
began a feud that in the years to come was to tear the kingdom apart."
"Like many of the other tales recorded in the ancient chronicles of
Taprobane, for almost two thousand years there was no proof that the story
of Hanuman and young Prince Kalidasa was anything but a charming legend.
Then, in 2015, a team of Harvard archaeologists discovered the foundations
of a small shrine in the grounds of the old Ranapura Palace. The shrine
appeared to have been deliberately destroyed, for all the brickwork of the