<P> In the form of a narrative poem, the book endeavours to describe the life and time of Prince Gautama Buddha, who after attaining enlightenment became The Buddha, The Awakened One . The book presents his life, character, and philosophy, in a series of verses . It is a free adaptation of the Lalitavistara . </P> <P> A few decades before the book's publication, very little was known outside Asia about the Buddha and Buddhism, the religion which he founded, and which had existed for about twenty - five centuries . Arnold's book was one of the first successful attempts to popularize Buddhism for a Western readership . </P> <P> The book has been highly acclaimed from the time it was first published and has been the subject of several reviews . It has been translated into several languages, including Hindi . </P> <P> A film adaptation of the poem directed by Franz Osten and Himansu Rai was made in 1928, titled Prem Sanyas (The Light of Asia in English). Dudley Buck used the book as the basis for an oratorio, The Light of Asia, first performed in 1887 . </P>

Who is known as light of asia answer