3 h 58 minAudiobook15 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 3 h 58 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when a prince sheltered by pleasure comes face to face with age, sickness and death?
In The Light of Asia, Edwin Arnold retells the Buddhist story of Siddhartha Gautama in a long poem of blank verse. King Suddhodana surrounds his son with palaces, music and gardens. But when Channa drives the prince into the city, Siddhartha meets truths that luxury cannot keep away.
Love and comfort pull him toward home; suffering draws him toward a search for answers. Yasodhara is part of the life he must leave behind. Arnold follows the prince from his sheltered youth into searching and struggle, then presents teachings on how suffering arises and how it can end.
What you’ll discover
- A sheltered palace world Enter gardens and palaces where a loving father tries to keep suffering beyond his son's sight.
- The city beyond comfort Follow Channa and Siddhartha through encounters that break the spell of a protected youth.
- Love and leaving Feel the pull of Yasodhara and home as the prince turns toward his search.
- The struggle beneath the tree Discover Arnold's portrayal of the seeker facing Mara's temptations of fear and desire.
- Teaching shaped into verse Explore Buddhist teachings on suffering through the stately movement of Arnold's Victorian blank verse.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy legends told in rich verse, the life of the Buddha as a story, or a clear first look at karma and the Eightfold Path.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A prince is born under signs and wonders
- Mercy and hidden pain mark the boy
- Love and a pleasure palace fence him in
- Four journeys outside the gates change him
- He leaves everything on a moonlit night
- Search brings harsh teachers and a lesson in mercy
- A bowl of milk and a night under the tree
- Compassion and law replace sacrifice and caste
- A story told in song, symbol and light
Who’s who
- SiddarthaA Sakya prince, kept from all sorrow by his father, who longs to find a way to free every living being from suffering.
- King SuddhodanaThe father, who wants his son to rule the world and builds walls, gates and pleasures to keep him from leaving.
- YasodharaThe bride the prince wins in a contest of skill, who loves him deeply and fears the dreams that foretell his leaving.
- ChannaThe faithful charioteer who drives the prince beyond the gates and explains the sights of age, sickness and death.
- DevadattaThe prince's proud cousin, a skilled archer, who shoots the swan and competes for Yasodhara.
- King BimbasaraA ruler of Rajagriha who admires the wandering prince and invites him to stay and teach his kingdom.
- KisagotamiA young mother who carries her dead child and searches for a mustard seed from a house untouched by death.
- SujataA landowner's wife who offers food to a weakened seeker beneath a tree and shares her simple faith in goodness.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 15 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook and the audiobook open when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
The Light of Asia
by Edwin Arnold · 1879
A prince who has never seen sickness, age or death rides out of his palace gates and meets all three.
Medium level2–5 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
- Read or listen
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
In short
What would you do if you had everything, and then saw what your wealth could not stop? A young prince lives behind three bronze gates, kept away from sickness, old age and death.
The Light of Asia at a glance
- Reading time
- About 2 h 30 min2 h fast, 2 h 55 min slow
- Length
- 35,300 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1879by Edwin Arnold
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A prince is born under signs and wonders
The poem opens in the heaven where the future Buddha waits. He sees the signs of a last birth and decides to go down among the Sakyas, where a just king rules. That night Queen Maya dreams that a six-rayed star enters her side, and a gentle light spreads over half the earth.
The child is born beneath a palsa tree. King Suddhodana names him Siddartha, which means all-prospering, and hopes for a world conqueror.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1879
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 2 h 35 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Arnold, Edwin. The Light of Asia. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-light-of-asia.
Arnold, E. (2026). The light of Asia. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-light-of-asia (Original work published 1879)
Arnold, Edwin. The Light of Asia. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-light-of-asia.
@book{arnold2026light,
author = {Arnold, Edwin},
title = {The Light of Asia},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-light-of-asia},
note = {First published 1879}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about The Light of Asia
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Light of Asia about?
It is a long poem that tells the life of Prince Siddartha, from his birth and sheltered youth to his search for truth and his teaching as the Buddha, and sets out the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold Path.
Who wrote The Light of Asia and when?
Sir Edwin Arnold, an English poet and journalist, wrote it in the nineteenth century. He drew on Buddhist legends and sacred books to tell the story in English verse for readers in the West.
Is The Light of Asia a true story?
It follows the traditional life of the Buddha as told in Buddhist books, mixing events remembered by tradition with legend and miracle. The poet says he writes what the ancient books have written.
The author
Edwin Arnold
1832–1904 · English poet and journalist
Sir Edwin Arnold (1832–1904) was an English poet and journalist. He was born in Gravesend and died in London. He lived in England, India and Japan, and worked for the Daily Telegraph. He published The Light of Asia in 1879 and The Song Celestial, a translation of the Bhagavad Gita, in 1885.
More by Edwin Arnold
See all their booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
