Nikos Kazantzakis
Greek writer, poet and philosopher (1883-1957) · Greece · On the map · Writers · Died at 74
He chased the Nobel nine times and never caught it, yet became the most translated Greek writer in history - a philosopher-novelist who gave the world Zorba and scandalized it with a Christ who doubted.
Nikos Kazantzakis is read about 620 times a day, in 62 languages.
A typical day, 30 days to 12 November 2026
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In their own words 6
, The rosy mountain peaks laughed like high lustrous thoughts, / and Helen, speechless, raised her pale hands toward the sun
A woman's body is a dark and monstrous mystery; / between her supple thighs a heavy whirlpool swirls, / two rivers crash, and woe to him who slips and falls!
I said to the almond tree: "Speak to me of God." / And the almond tree blossomed.
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About this person
Born in Crete in 1883, Kazantzakis moved through journalism, politics, poetry, and philosophy before the novels arrived. Zorba the Greek appeared in 1946, then Christ Recrucified, Captain Michalis, and in 1955 The Last Temptation of Christ - a vision of divinity wrestling with flesh that would ignite controversy for decades. Between novels he translated the Divine Comedy, Nietzsche, Darwin, and Homer into modern Greek. Hollywood made Zorba in 1964 and Scorsese made Last Temptation in 1988, carrying his name beyond the Greek-speaking world. He died in 1957, nominated for the Nobel in nine different years, never awarded, now towering over modern Greek letters.
