R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar

R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)

@rrvirdi.bsky.social

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USA Today Bestseller | Nebula Award & 2x Dragon Award-finalist | Worst Indian Ever | Philosoraptor | Hair Whisperer |

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Here it is, the official unveiling of the special edition of The Doors of Midnight by The Broken Binding!

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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For those in the UK and abroad, yes, special editions are happening. I just saw the mock ups and signing the tip ins now.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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For those in the US wanting signed hardcovers - Loyalty Books in Washington D.C. is doing the US pre order campaign. Pop over to:

www.loyaltybookstores.com/preorderdoor...

Sequel to the book called the, "Best fantasy debut ever." By author Brian Lee Durfee

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Here it is. The official Doors of Midnight virtual tour, and I'll be updating with all the in person events too like book signings and conventions. All of this culminates with a wonderful live stream launch with Michael Mammay and Jim Butcher of the Dresden Files on August 13th

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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www.loyaltybookstores.com/preorderdoor...

You can pre order signed hardcovers from Loyalty Books in Washington D.C.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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If you like this thread, consider supporting my upcoming novel, The Doors of Midnight, book two of tales of tremaine.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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It's said the art of all this came from Urvashi, an Apsara (celestial being of dance, song, seduction/temptation, art, music).only speak of them as prostitutes and not knowing their full, complex, and impactful history.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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to help fund rebellions against the British Raj - enough so that the British passed laws to strip them of their ability to work as courtesans and left them only with sex work, which is sadly why some stories today

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Tawaifs were so successful and sought after, that records show they were consistently among the highest tax payers. Records also show that their wealth was used (by their consent/given)

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A place of academies. Something I've talked about, like places like Nalanda, the world's oldest residential university that attracted people from far as Greece to Japan anyways,

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Many young girls would leave or were taken to be taught these skills, and yes, there were schools for this too as well as private tutelage. People don't often realize this, but Ancient India was a place of extreme learning with all kinds of schools for different disciplines.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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often performed from public settings up to royal private ones - and would compete to become Nagarvadhu - the most beautiful woman and most highly talented in forms of art (dance mostly).

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are a public dancing girl (very common in cities from the Vedic period upward) who received classical arts training (most obviously dancing) and

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Al-Biruni, often regarded as the father of Comparative Religion studies, an Iranian polymath and scholar, regarded on their skill and larger numbers during the 11th century CE upon a visit Ganikas, another entertainer,

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a Chinese pilgrim, notable traveling Buddhist Monk and scholar who frequented India, remarking on the Tawaifs skill, beauty, and performances during once such visit to the Sun Temple in Multan.

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The Tawaifs of India were regarded as some of the greatest performing artists of their time with documented praise and examples from travelers such as Xuanzang,

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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They were trained to the upmost of artistic forms. They were not there to perform sex acts - that was often incidental and not contractual. And the women had the power to rebuff men's advances.

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During the British Occupation, they were simply called, Nautch girls or dance girls. But this is far from all they did or were capable of. The name itself, Tawaif, is the term for a HIGHLY SKILLED courtesan.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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And, shairi, another Arab/Persian kind of poetry that is built on monorhymed quatrains or four sixteen syllable lines (keeping to the same rhyme scheme) with a caesura used between lines 8//9 to break up the first half from the second.

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It occurred, but the primary function was entertainment. Most commonly romantic poetry like Ghazals -a form of Arabic poetry that made its way over to South Asia: odes of long lost lovers, tragedy, separation, stuff to pull at your heart strings.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Tawaif - a highly skilled courtesan (skilled in: music, dance, poetry, and singing) who catered to nobility in South Asia. Similar in respects to Geisha in many ways, including that sex was NOT obligatory.

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Fantasy Book Critic's avatar Fantasy Book Critic @fantasybookcritic.bsky.social
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This year I’ve had two ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ reads so far. The first one was @rrvirdi.bsky.social’s THE DOORS OF MIDNIGHT

Here’s why: “The Doors Of Midnight is the Dark Knight of sequels, elegant in its sophistication, epic in its storytelling and enigmatic about its secrets”

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"Virdi is a true master of magic, myth, and wonder! I wish there were more stories like this, but there are so few authors who can pull it off. Virdi can, and does! The Doors of Midnight is amazing & wonderful!" ~Dyrk Ashton, author of Paternus Pre-order your copy--

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Fantasy Book Critic's avatar Fantasy Book Critic @fantasybookcritic.bsky.social
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The Doors Of Midnight is the Dark Knight of sequels, elegant in its sophistication, epic in its storytelling & enigmatic about its secrets via @torbooks.bsky.social @rrvirdi.bsky.social has given us a sequel that takes the positives from the 1st book & builds an engrossing story on its shoulders.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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birth of cradle civilizations and continued through time in culture, and permeated fiction (old and new).

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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cosmic force that can't be named or descriebd and is of the natural harmony of all living things and the way they move. Seeking and being in tune with this harmony is the goal of Taoism. This is just a short primer on shared concepts like this and how they've existed since the

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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declarations based on truth, and adherence to divine order. Think 10 commandments but less catchy and more of them. In Chinese philosophy we have Tao or Dao - the metaphysical concept found in Confucianism and Taoism and often translates to: the way, the path, the route - the

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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and in the case of Stephen King's brilliant Dark Tower series, Ka or Ka-tet In ancient Egypt, this was seen through Ma'at, the goddess of divine order, law, morality, and the concept existed beyond her as a principle because of/from her. Ma'at became a set of laws including 38

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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divine truth, right, sacred order, or truth. This concept exists in many ancient cultures and has continued through time today to be found as divine will - destiny/destined in popular fiction like The Wheel of Time with the Pattern and the Wheel's Will, the idea of the Ta'veren

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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life/universe/time/and the world/people around you. The macro can affect the micro, and the micro's choices ripple through/resonate through the macro - eventually giving way to the concept of Karma. In the Avestan (ancient Iranian - Zoroastrian) it is known as asa -

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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right thing - path, development, society, and the natural order of things. It's not always clear cut and defined as it's both broad and granular and applies to one's individual destiny shaped and guided by their actions in life and adhering (or not) to the various laws of

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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of natural, moral, and sacrificial order - and isn't something prescriptive or forced on you, but a concept life, people, and the universe is supposed to uphold. The idea of the individual, their (your) actions in relation to Rta and fulfilling yours - your duty to yourself, the

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Rta - pronounced as Rih-tha (Sanskrit) and first originated as a concept in the Vedic religion during the period of 1500–1100 BCE. It stands for: Order, rule, truth. It is the principle of natural order in which the universe and everything in it flows and operates. It consists

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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the beginnings of Bollywood. Not now, and not during it's golden age, of course, but at the very beginning, being an actor - making that art, was viewed in a light akin to prostitution, especially for actresses at the time.

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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occupations were hereditary) were seen as among some of the lowest of castes, outsiders. Musicians, and some classes of artists, sadly, for a very long time, were always seen as: undesirable, untouchable, if coming from a certain class/caste -- this was seen similarly at --

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Pariah: 1: an outcast 2: member of a low caste in Southern India Origin - 17th century as the word Pariah Derived from: Tamil - paṛaiyan Malayalam - paṟayan Tamil - parai and Malayalam para - both mean drum. Hindi - paraaya The drummer caste (yes, even some musical--

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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So are you, Peter! Thanks!

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Reposted by R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)

Ernie Chiara's avatar Ernie Chiara @erniechiara.com
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Hey, it’s time for a new client announcement!

I couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome @rrvirdi.bsky.social, USA Today Bestselling author of The First Binding, as a new client at Fuse Literary!

I can’t wait for you all to see what he has in store for the future. Stay tuned!

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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Still super cool when authors you love - your peers -- say stuff like this :)

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R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR)'s avatar R.R. Virdi | Buy The First Binding (from TOR) @rrvirdi.bsky.social
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These are just some very light tidbits of comparative mythology today cuz I'm sick, I have work work, and remaining tax crap. But, yeah. Heckin' fascinating.

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