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Excerpt

Exclusive Excerpt Reveal for Enlightened by Sachi Ediriweera

by

We’re excited to reveal an exclusive excerpt from graphic novel Enlightened by Sachi Ediriweera! The book was edited by Alyza Liu, designed by Greg Stadnyk, and will be released on September 26, 2023 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers. Preorder it here.

A spirited young prince longing to learn more about the world grows into a man on a quest to find the cause of human suffering in this first-of-its-kind graphic novel retelling of the life of Siddhartha, the founder of Buddhism.

Prince Siddhartha lives in a beautiful palace in the heart of Kapilavastu. His father, the king, ensures that he has the best of everything—he just can’t go outside. He is locked up away from the city, away from anything that might cause him pain. He knows nothing of illness, aging, sorrow, or death, yet Siddhartha feels the pain regardless, and it instills a burning curiosity to understand the world outside—and the nature of human suffering.

Based on the life of the real man who was known first as a prince, then as a monk, and now as the Gautama Buddha, Enlightened is about one boy’s quest to learn the truth that underpins our endless struggle against suffering—and in understanding, break the cyclic existence that perpetuates it.

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A word from the author:

With millions of followers around the world, the Buddha’s teachings are no doubt an integral part of human history. The teachings which originated approximately 2500 years ago in the regions of modern day India and Nepal have become the foundation of many cultures around the world and the way of life for many today. Creating Enlightened was a natural extension of my relationship to Buddhism. It was an apt way to strip down the mythos and to examine what made his character interesting to me. I began working on the book at the height of the pandemic and after almost two and a half years of work, I’m excited to share it with the world. — Sachi Ediriweera

Cover art for ENLIGHTENED by Sachi Ediriweera. A South Asian boy wearing ancient garb and wielding a boy and arrow stands with a foot on steps leading up to a large building. Behind him is an older version of himself wearing a cloak and holding a bowl while bowing his head with his eyes closed. In the back is the boy as an adult, now a monk wearing robes.

First page from ENLIGHTENED: A hand holding an orange clay marble is at the top of the page. The illustration moves to a young prince standing in an active pose among a group of guards. He says, "Ready? If I win this round, I take them all." A guard to his right says, "Ha! I know the rules, young prince! I taught you those." The prince says, "I'm just making sure." The orange marble clicks against a bunch of white marbles scattered on the ground with a KLIK! The prince looks slightly mischievous as he says, "Three out of three. Not bad for someone who learned to play last week, right?"

ENLIGHTENED page 2: A guard wielding a spear and standing to the prince's left says, "You were a worthy opponent, my prince." The prince replies, "What other games do they play outside? I want to learn more." From beyond the courtyard, someone calls, "SIDDHARTHA!" Clapping his hands to his face, the prince cries, "Oh no! Sword practice! I completely forgot!" before handing the bag of marbles to the nearest guard. "Here, keep these," the prince says. "But you won them!" replies the guard. "I know. I want to try winning them again!" says the prince. The guard takes the marbles and says, "Ha! Same time tomorrow, my prince?" As Siddhartha scampers away, he yells, "I won't keep you waiting!"

ENLIGHTENED page 3: The prince darts through the palace. When he reaches an antechamber, he selects a practice sword from a large pot before running outside to the sword practice arena. Through the doorway, his teacher calls, "Siddhartha! Where are you?" "I'm coming!" he calls back. When the prince arrives outside, his teacher, dressed in a tunic, pants, and a cloak, has a hand on his hip as he says, "You're late." The prince replies, "Sorry! I couldn't find my practice sword!"

ENLIGHTENED page 4: The teacher leans down to poke the prince in the chest with his pointer finger, saying, "Sword practice was yesterday. You missed that, too. Today is archery." Other boys stand some distance away with boys and arrows, all aiming at practice targets. A teacher's assistant takes the practice sword from the prince as the teacher says, "You've been distracted lately. Should your father learn this, it might cause him a great deal of—" He's cut off by the SWOOOOOSH! and THWAK! of an arrow sailing past and notching directly into the center of a practice target. Smirking, the young prince holds a bow as he says, "You worry too much, Channa."

ENLIGHTENED page 5: The teacher says, "I am the king's chief adviser. It's my duty to worry, young prince." The prince has a determined expression. In his hands, the bow in position again and he is aiming another arrow as he replies, "You know you don't have to call me that. You've known me since I was a baby." The teacher says, "If that's your wish, I'm happy to oblige." The prince says, "A wise choice." The arrow sails through the arrow and lands with a TWAK! exactly in the center of another practice target. Another bullseye. The prince, now looking mischievous, turns to gather another arrow and says to his teacher, "I was wondering, do you play clay marbles?" The teacher replies, "Clay marbles? You've been hanging out with the guards again, haven't you?" Suddenly, a fight breaks out among a group some distance away from the prince and the teacher. "You did it on purpose!" one person cries, while another retorts, "I did not!"

ENLIGHTENED page 6: The teacher says, "What's going on here?" A long-becked white bird lies on the ground, an arrow pierced through its wing. A boy says, "I was aiming at the tree and he pushed me. I didn't mean to hit the swan, I promise!" The other boy beside him adds, "It was an accident!" The teacher, looking fierce, says, "Enough! Harming the creatures in the royal court is an offense. I am putting you both on gardening duty for two weeks. You should consider yourselves lucky." The boys, chastened, bow their heads.

ENLIGHTENED page 7: The teacher instructs the other boys, "The rest of you, go home now. This had better not happen again, understood?" Together, the boys say. "Yes, teacher." The prince reaches for the swan as the teacher says, "Siddhartha, what are you—" and the prince replies, "Channa, why does the swan look sad?" The teacher replies, "She's in pain because her wing is wounded. Let's take her inside and see what we can do." Carrying the swan indoors, the prince says, "I didn't know that animals could feel pain." The teacher replies, "All creatures do, Siddhartha."

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Headshot of Sachi Ediriweera
Credit: The Photography Co.

Sachi Ediriweera (he/him/his) is an accomplished designer, filmmaker, and comic book artist. He is the writer and artist of the graphic novels Lionborn, which was the first English language graphic novel produced in Sri Lanka, and Enlightened. Apart from his design and illustration work, he has also built a career in filmmaking as a writer, producer, and director of acclaimed short films that have screened in numerous film festivals around the world. When he’s not drawing or writing his third-act plot twist, Sachi enjoys reading art books and comics, eating pizza, and overthinking cosplay ideas for comic cons. He divides his time between Colombo, Sri Lanka, and Dubai.