Nikos Kazantzakis

Nikos Kazantzakis was a Greek writer, journalist, politician, poet and philosopher. Widely considered a giant of modern Greek literature, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in nine different years, and remains the most translated Greek author worldwide. His novels included Zorba the Greek (published in 1946 as Life and Times of Alexis Zorbas), Christ Recrucified (1948), Captain Michalis (1950, translated Freedom or Death), and The Last Temptation of Christ (1955). He also wrote plays, travel books, memoirs, and philosophical essays, such as The Saviors of God: Spiritual Exercises. His fame spread in the English-speaking world due to cinematic adaptations of Zorba the Greek (1964) and The Last Temptation of Christ (1988). He also translated a number of notable works into Modern Greek, such as the Divine Comedy, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, On the Origin of Species, and Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. Kazantzakis was born in 1883 in Heraklion, Crete, which was then under the rule of the Ottoman Empire. He studied law at the University of Athens and philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris. He was influenced by the works of Friedrich Nietzsche and Henri Bergson. He travelled extensively in Europe, Asia, and Africa, where he encountered different cultures and religions. He participated in the Greek political life as a member of the Liberal Party and a minister without portfolio. He also fought in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1922 and witnessed the Asia Minor Catastrophe. Kazantzakis developed his own philosophical system, which he called the "Cretan Glance". He believed that human life is a constant struggle between the material and the spiritual, the finite and the infinite. He saw God as an inner force that drives humans to transcend their limitations and create their own destiny. He rejected dogmatic religions and advocated for a personal relationship with God. He also embraced the values of freedom, courage, and passion. Kazantzakis died of leukemia on October 26th, 1957 in Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany. He was buried in Martinengo Bastion on the Venetian Walls of Heraklion, Crete. His grave bears the epitaph: "I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free." His works have been translated into more than 50 languages and have inspired generations of readers and writers around the world.