Отправлено: 21.08.11 22:37. Заголовок: A writer from the Transcarpathian region developed formula of civilization’s downfall

A writer from the Transcarpathian region developed formula of civilization’s downfall
I woke up in the morning with a distinct feeling that there was someone in my room. When I opened my eyes I saw Chikana the sorceress sitting in my armchair. There was no mistake. She held a staff in her old hand and there was a kalis named Khru next to her right shoe. She was scrutinizing me with her intent little violet eyes. «It’s clear as day, those are the character from the fantasy novel “Gardens of Chaos”. It means that the author wasn’t joking when he claimed that heroes came to him themselves …»
“Hello,” uttered Chikana and her rodent nodded its furry little head as an expression of greeting.
“Hm. Hello there. By what chance?” I answered still lying in my bed. Nothing as absurd as this has happened to me in my whole life.
“You can ask me any question and I shall answer,” said the sorceress and kalis seemed to be sniffing something.
Later on the furry ball slipped towards the door. I asked a question which seemed impossible to answer. Chikana gave an answer (in a few days the prophecy literally came true. But I made a digression).
“And one more prophecy. You’ll be interviewing an author after the third book of “Gardens of Chaos” is published”… The sorceress made a pause.
At that moment Khru came back and started washing its muzzle sitting on its hind.
“Great! I’ll be interviewing the author?”
The sorceress really cheered me up. “Now I know how it feels when you read fantasy before going to bed. It’s fraught with consequences.”
“Swear to me that you’ll describe our meeting in the interview,” the wooden staff was passed from the left wrinkled palm into the right one.
“If the interview takes place, then I’ll describe it,” I answered gravely and thought to myself, “What can I loose in a dream?”
“You’ll be given a sign.” The sorceress stood up leaning on her staff and Khru started to nod so persuasively as if it was that same secret sign…
The alarm clock started ringing at that very moment. The armchair opposite my bed was, of course, empty. The dream was completely forgotten because of the morning business. But when I looked into the pantry to check the mouse trap it turned out to be empty, someone carefully took off the cheese from the hook …
And soon I met Mihail Jurevich and the interview, which was prophesied by Chikana in my dream, took place. I invite you to read it, dear readers …
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Mihail Jurevich! If a person who knows Sanskrit and Old Greek reads the phrase “Gardens of Chaos”, s/he will understand it as “Divine origin” or “Initial unity-integrity.” Which of the two variants do you prefer?
Mihail Temnov: Life is flowing through the present and the future and at any point in time we can start perceiving the world or ourselves in a different way. That is the moment when a new life begins. That’s why I accept both interpretations at the same time.”
Olga Tchaikovskaja: What kind of readers is your novel “Gardens of Chaos” aimed at?”
Mihail Temnov: The trilogy is aimed at people who haven’t lost their ability to think, compare and make conclusions.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: What can you say about the main ideas of the trilogy?
Mihail Temnov: The world came into being through the word. And there are many words in the book … We are all creators who have the freedom of will and the right to choose. We just don’t want to learn how to create and creation is our main purpose on the Earth. A classic of science fiction Arthur Clark presented people with the following phrase a year before his death: “Whom the Gods would destroy, they first give TV. And from creators people turned into spectators.” That’s why there’s a scene in my book where a tribe of aborigines from a planet in our galaxy dance around a fire and using the stream of thought create and plant grass and flowers, shrubs and trees on other planets. They are the gardeners of the galaxy! They are the creators! Because they were created in the One’s image …
Concerning ideas, it’s quite impossible to throw light upon them in one interview. In short, the trilogy is about life. It’s about the causes of downfall of a technocratic civilization and about eternal values which Phaets, Martians and people reject. The trilogy is the conclusion I made about the existence of Earth civilization by means of science fiction and fantasy. That’s why I have two story lines which are interlaced with each other by the plot. One of them is ancient, with kings, warrior priests, sorcerers and devoted animal friends. Everything there is like in good old times. The second storyline is technocratic, with clones, biorobots, cyborgs, starships and galactic ships with mutational weapon and a formula of civilization’s downfall which was discovered by the great master of the Dark Tutuanti.
Probably that’s why in the last days of Phaethon’s technocratic civilization handmade puppets come to life to show the simple truths about the things which are eternal, good and radiant. It’s up to the read to judge whether I succeed in it from the outset.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Do you think that there is too little creativity in Ukraine and on the Earth on the whole?
Mihail Temnov: If Ukraine had lived by ideas of creation and creativity, our children wouldn’t study abroad. To be more specific, if it were so, the Earth would be a bright and clean place. But nowadays people think only about money. Some think how to get richer, other how to survive. As a result, forests and jungles are cut down, deserts keep appearing, subterranean waters keep disappearing and there’s a big island in the Pacific made of waste that floats between the USA and Japan and is the size of Ukraine… But at the same time we hear people claiming that we need a piloted expedition on Mars and building a base for robots on the Moon. A question arises: What for?
In its essence all material wealth and our so called victories in the name of human “progress” are meaningless. We need to learn to see, think and hear in a different way. Only by changing ourselves we can change and save this dying world while it’s still possible …
Olga Tchaikovskaja: What about the prototypes of the heroes?
Mihail Temnov: All characters are collective. I’m not going to hide that one of my favourite heroes, king Artes, is the little prince (who has grown up a little) from my favourite piece of literature by Antoine de Saint Exupéry. Maybe that’s why the readers liked him very much and asked for a sequel.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: In the past you were a KGB-SSU officer. Also I learnt from your biography that you graduated from the divinity school at the University of Preshov in the Slovak Republic. Isn’t that a big contrast, from intelligence service into theology?
Mihail Temnov: It would be even more suspicious if it were the other way around: first theology and then intelligence service …
Olga Tchaikovskaja: There are several story lines in the novel. One of them is about Khabirungs. Although at the beginning they are presented as soul eaters, later they become soul cleaners. Some of the readers are at a loss because of that paradox. So, who are those mysterious Khabirungs?
Mihail Temnov: It all depends on what soul a person associates him/herself with and how much dirt s/he collected in the life process. Some people think that if they get rid of vices then they’ll lose the better part of their personality.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: The priest named Paino fights the Martian legionnaires, who invaded Phaethon by breaking the interplanetary space with, his eyes closed. What did you want to say with this?
Mihail Temnov: I wanted to show that you can look and fail to see. But some people see more with their eyes closed than others with their eyes open.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Clones, are they good or evil?
Mihail Temnov: It depends on how you look at them. On the whole, it’s a disputable question. This is just how I aimed at this problem.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Another hero in the novel, Ad Shan, always wins the gladiatorial combats, he’s “a fearless and perfect knight”. Is his name connected with mythological Aides (Hades)?
Mihail Temnov: Not at all. It’s a collective image of a fantasy Phaet spy who, together with his friends, in the name of his homeland consciously goes to one of the interplanetary gladiator school so that he could get to the Mars on the Conqueror’s Day, win all the combats, get freedom, become a citizen of the great Martial empire, become one of the emperor’s guards and make himself a military career. And only then he helps the kingdoms of Phaethon in the days of the twelfth invasion of their homeland. Also he helps at the battlefield.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: The main hero of the trilogy, Ki Locki, goes to collect fairy tales. Is politics, in your opinion, a fairy tale?
Mihail Temnov: Essentially, in the agonizing technocratic world even a fairy tale can turn into big politics. Everything depends on what values this tale has and what it guards. This is the very reason why one of my heroes was punished; he saved the last fairy tale on the planet from the rotting archives.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: There is an episode in third book where a ritual of fortune telling is described (it is performed on a brain). And by the way, all the prediction came true. Is this episode evoked by your past, like your work experience in the intelligence services?
Mihail Temnov: As I see it, this question is a joke …
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Ki Locki flies away on his dragon lagazar. The question is, where can you buy a lagazar and how much does it cost? One more thing, can you order it on the internet? Thank you.
Mihail Temnov: You can order a lagazar on the internet from Paino. Maybe he’ll allow his friend to give you a ride through the galactic worlds. You just need strong faith and great desire.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Do you have children?
Mihail Temnov: I have two children. The eldest son is Alexej. He’s a composer, a student at the academy of arts in Bratislava. Also he teaches composition and improvisation in a private elementary music school in Bratislava.
My daughter Natalia is 4 year a student at the university of Koshice. She studies at the faculty of economics.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Why are you children studying abroad? Why aren’t they satisfied with education in Ukraine?
Mihail Temnov: Education is free in Slovakia. Besides, there is no corruption there. The children get thorough knowledge and they’ll become true professionals.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: I have this feeling that the story of Ki Locki is not over yet. Should the readers expect the continuation of the “Gardens of Chaos” trilogy?
Mihail Temnov: Thanks to my readers, now I’m finishing working on the plot about the golden epoch of Phaethon, the period of King Artes’ reign. It’ll be the fourth novel about Phaethon. I’ve recorder the story-lines of fairy tales and adventure stories with Ki Locki as the main hero and they will be included into the fifth novel of “Gardens of Chaos”. There is a continuation about the Atlantis but it’s too early to speak about it.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: What would you like to wish our readers?
Mihail Temnov: I wish them to love everything around selflessly, to overcome fears, value their and someone else’s time. Time is not money! You can’t borrow it or earn it. I wish them to be creative at least in something and to grasp their inner universe.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Each book in the trilogy has dedications to different people? Who are they?
Mihail Temnov: Emilija Dvoroznakova, to whom I dedicated my first book, is a friend of mine. She is a parasitologist from Kosice in Slovakia. Jurij Naboka is a copy editor with a God-given talent, who tought me the basics of literature and story writing. Ljudmila Kozinec is a fantasy writer, who introduced me to the vast world of fantasy. Natalija Naboka and Vladimir Gusev are my friends from Kiev. They are fantasy writers, who applied much effort and patience to my formation as a writer. Of course my wife, Elena Temnova, is included in the dedication section. She patiently supported this difficult process of book birth. The third novel is dedicated to memory of my close friend Anatolij Komarov, who was a human rights activist. He lived for people and in the name of people. I’ve never met people like him.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Where can readers buy your books?
Mihail Temnov: Unfortunately, my books can be bought only in Uzhgorod bookstores, “Lira” publishing house and a few more places in the Transcarpathian region. It’s a lot easier to order the books from me via the Internet. Just write an email to the following address: our_time@list.ru. I send the books cash on delivery. I hope that in two year’s time my books will be available for sale in Russia.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Your hobby is winter swimming and walking on coals. Is it somehow related to your literary work?
Mihail Temnov: Partly it is. I learnt poems that way. Mostly, it’s a desire to be healthy. I never catch a cold, flu and I never get depressed. Also weekly Russian baths help my health. From time to time I go on a starvation diet. It can be either a classical starvation diet or a dry one.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: I’ve read on the Internet that you intend to quit journalism and dedicate yourself to literature. Is it true?
Mihail Temnov: Partly it is. Everything will be determined by the success in the literary work on the field of fantasy. Literature is a very difficult profession.
Olga Tchaikovskaja: Thank you for the answers. The countryside in the Transcarpathian Region is very beautiful. And the mountains are like in fairy tales!
Olga Tchaikovskaja, St. Petersburg.