'Hindu Mythology'List of Related Articles with Summaries |
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First Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, 11 July 2008
With ten heads, twenty arms, a flying chariot and a city of gold, Ravan is one of the most flamboyant villains in Hindu mythology. He abducted Sita, the wife of Ram, and was struck down for that. Ravan is the demon-king of the Ramayan, the lord […]
First Published in Sunday Mid-day 'Devlok' on 27 July 2008
It is said that the Mahabharata should not be read inside the house because it is the tale of a household divided. But incredible as it sounds, Mahabharata is not the tale of war or violence – it is the tale of the futility of war […]
First Published in Sunday Mid-day 'Devlok' on 20 July 2008
The Hindu cosmos or Brahmanda is visualized as a skyscraper. In the centre stands Bhu-lok, earth. Above are realms of increasing happiness, the topmost floor being Dev-lok, where all day people do nothing but enjoy the song and dance of Apsaras, qualifying it to be Swarga, […]
Published as One Man Army in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, on June 27 2008
Duryodhan, the Kaurava, went to the city of Dwaraka seeking Krishna’s support in the battle that was to be fought against the Pandavas. But he found Krishna asleep. So he sat close to the head of Krishna’s bed, waiting for Krishna to wake […]
Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, 13 June 2008
In Vedic times, life was divided into four stages: the first quarter was Brahmacharya-ashram, the stage when one is a student; the second was Grihastha-ashram, the stage when one is a householder; the third was Vanaprastha-ashram, the stage when one retires from active household duty; the fourth […]
Published on 6 June 2008, in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times
According to the Shiva Puran, Daksha-Prajapati sought worthy grooms for his many daughters, men of substance, gods who helped life on earth, like Indra, the rain-god or Agni, the fire-god. He was quite horrified therefore when his youngest daughter, Sati, of her own free will, chose […]
Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, 29 May 2008
If there was no Mahish-asura, the gods would not have invoked the warrior-goddess, Durga. If there was no Tarak-asura, there would have been no need for the divine warlord, Kartikeya. If there was no Ravana or Kansa, Ram or Krishna would not walk the earth. Demons and […]
Published on 16 May 2008 in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, as 'We are the World'
Vishwaroopa is the form taken by Krishna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra when Arjuna asked him to reveal his true form. In this form, Krishna no longer looks familiar. He is neither cowherd nor charioteer. He is a magnificent being with […]
Published on 9 May 2008 in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, as 'The Cursed Gossip Monger'
Randhir was very happy with his bonus until someone told him that his colleague, Sukant, had been given a higher bonus. “Its not fair,” he said and stormed to meet his boss. Despite every attempt of his boss to explain his […]
Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times on 2 May 2008 as 'Work it Out'
In the forest, Ram met an old lady called Shabari who invited him to a meal in her house and offered him her meager fare: berries she had collected in the forest. Lakshman who followed his brother was horrified to see the […]
Published in Deccan Herald, Bangalore, 20 April 2008
What is the purpose of life? What happens after death? Ask these questions to a young person and he is as clueless as an old person. When it comes to such profound questions the youth today are no different from their ancestors. Yes, they have cell phones, and […]
Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times supplement, 4 April 2008
Hanuman plays an important role in the Ramayan, yet in the epic itself, he does not hold any great position. He is just one of the many monkeys Ram encounters in the forest. He is not Sugriva, leader of the monkey troop. He is not Angad, […]
First Published in Corporate Dossier, Economic Times, March 21, 2008
In the Ramayan, Ram is asked to string a bow – a feat that will win him the hand of Sita in marriage. Ram, however, bends the bow with such force that it breaks. Since no one until then had even been able to pick up […]
11 Jan, 2008, 0548 hrs IST,TNN
When a family business breaks down, one is reminded of an old Indian tradition: never read the Mahabharata inside the house, always the Ramayan. For the Mahabharata is the tale of a household divided while the latter is the story of a household united.
The Ramayan speaks of three sets […]
18 Jan, 2008, 0608 hrs IST
Two childhood friends, one the son of a warrior, the other the son of a priest, promised to share all they possessed even in adulthood. Fortune, however, favoured only the warrior’s son. In desperation , with hesitation, the priest’s son, reduced to abject poverty, decided to approach his rich friend. […]
First City, Mythos, October 2007
As one reads the Upanishads, ancient Hindu scriptures dated to 500 BC, one realizes they are constantly referring to two truths: a truth which changes and a truth which does not change. The existence of the one points to the existence of the other. In change we seek permanence. In restlessness […]
First City, Mythos, Dec 2007
It is impossible to think of Krishna without thinking of Radha. Theirs is an eternal love story The stuff of romantic songs. And yet, some of the biggest Krishna temples in India do not enshrine the image of Radha. In Puri, Orissa, Krishna is enshrined with his sister, Subhadra, and his […]
November 9, Indian Express (Editorial page)
Diwali is without doubt India’s answer to America’s Christmas, where the religious aspect takes a backseat and secular shopping comes to the fore.
It all began as a post-monsoon harvest festival. But what distinguishes it from other harvest festivals like Pongal (Tamil Nadu) or Bihu (Assam) is that it is […]
26 Oct, 2007, 0530 hrs IST,Devdutt Pattanaik, TNN
One day, Drona summoned two of his students, Yudhishtira and Duryodhana. “Spend a day in Hastinapur and find me a really bad man,” he told the always-nice Yudhishtira. Then turning to the ever-angry Duryodhan, he said, “Spend a day in Hastinapur and find me a really good man.” […]
First City, New Delhi, Novemeber 2003
Yama, is the Hindu god of the dead. The story goes that he was the first man on earth. His twin sister Yami was the first woman. According to the Rig Veda, she approached him to make a child. He refused this incestuous union on moral grounds. So he died […]
First City, New Delhi, Feb 2006
They humiliated his wife. Dragged and disrobed her in full view of the court. He avenged her humiliation. Killed them all. Drank their blood. Abandoning dharma in the process. His name was Bhima, the powerful one, the second Pandava. Yudhishtira’s muscle man of a brother, as simple as he was strong. […]
First published in First City, New Delhi, July 2007
Typically, Indians are considered a fatalistic people. We believe in karma, that life is pre-determined. And yet, we find the following story in the vana parva of the Mahabharata, narrated by the sage Markandeya to the Pandavas. Once upon a time, there was a princess called Savitri, […]
When Ramanand Sagar made his Ramayan, he had loud music to mask a particular dialogue between Sita and Laxman, perhaps because he did not want to court controversy. The episode is fairly well known yet few people like to talk about it. It happens in the forest in the final year of Ram’s 14-year exile. […]
She dreamt of an elephant entering her womb, and the next day the queen declared she was pregnant. The child grew up to become the Buddha. In his previous lifetime, so says the Jatakas, the Buddha was Vessantara, prince of Sivi, who had in his stables a magical elephant that drew rain clouds wherever it […]
Most people know that Hindus do not worship the god known as Brahma even though he is created the world. The story goes (one of the less controversial ones though) that he lied about finding the tip of an endless fire pillar. The pillar represented the infinite power of Shiva. Enraged, Shiva cursed Brahma that […]
From the 6th to the 16th century AD, ritual manuals known as “Tantras” were being produced with detailed instructions on the use of mystical chants, magical charms, and sexual rites. The following passage comes from Brihad Nila Tantra:
“Have there a young and beautiful girl, adorned with various jewels. After combing her hair, give her tambula […]
Published in First city, Delhi, October 2003
All of us are told that Hindu gods are the manifestations of the same divine principle. Shiva, Vishnu and Durga are different forms of God (spelt with upper case). And yet, the rituals adoring each of these manifestations of the divine are quite different. Especially intriguing is the fact […]
It is not difficult to fall in love with Karna. He has all the elements of a hero but is not allowed to be one – by his mother, his brothers, his teacher, even God. Our heart goes out to him. It all starts with a princess called Kunti letting her curiosity getting the better […]
The story of Drona and his obsessive love for his son, Ashwatthama
First Published in First City, New Delhi, June 2006
The story of the Talking Head is not found in Peter Brooke’s retelling of the Mahabharata. It is not even found in Vyasa’s original. Yet is a very popular folklore. Stories of the Talking Head can be found as far afield as Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu […]
First published in First City, New Delhi, Mythos in April 2006
I have often been asked if the war at Kurukshetra actually took place a few thousand years ago. History is real. Is the Mahabharata a document of facts? Historical? Real? I say: no. No, it is not real. It is not historical.
To call Mahabharata […]
First City Magazine, New Delhi, December 2005
In Peter Brook’s play whenever Krishna appears on stage one can hear the flute in the background reminding you that this Krishna of the Mahabharata has a past: he was once Krishna of the Bhagavata. Krishna appears in the Mahabharata as the wise, some might say cunning, counsellor […]
Published in First City magazine, Delhi, February, 2005
Change. It is a constant. But the rate of change is not. Nor is the direction of change. Sometimes things can change for the better. But when we talk of change we often think of change for the worse. Change is often slow. Giving us time to […]
Published in First City, Delhi, March 2005
Why? O why? O lord of Mathura…
Why do you want to go back to Gokul?
These lines are repeated in a soulful song sung by Shubha Mudgal in the film ‘Raincoat’. I it heard at a friend’s house. The tune was fantastic. The voice rich and earthy. But it was […]
Published in Times of India on Ganesh Chaturthi, 7th September 2005
Imagine walking into your house and finding a rat scurrying across your sofa. Or imagine opening your kitchen cabinet and a rat leaping right at you. Sharp teeth, red eyes. A painful bite. Open your desk and there are the gnawed remains of your text […]
Published in Bombay Times 31st October 2006 Walk along Marine Drive. Sit on Juhu beach. Watch the sea. That vast expanse of water. The limitless horizon. The tide rising and ebbing with the phases of the moon. The waves flirting with shore. This tide saw you as a child, searching for shells in the sand. […]
Published in First City, Delhi, August 2005
Most Indians believe that one should not read the Mahabharata inside one’s house. But one can read the Ramayana. Reading the former invites strife, the latter brings harmony. This belief is a kind of ‘imitative magic’: the ability of stories, symbols and rituals to influence the surroundings. Like creates […]
Compared to the images, stories of Ardhanareshwara are relatively rare. Below are a few retellings:
· In the beginning, a lotus bloomed. In it sat Brahma. On becoming conscious, he realized he was alone. Lonely, frightened, he wondered how he could create another being to give him company. Suddenly a vision flashed before his eyes. He […]
Speaking Tree, Time of India, 15th February, 1999
Why is Shiva-ratri one of the few Hindu festivals to be celebrated in the not-so-auspicious dark half of the lunar cycle? Why is it celebrated just as winter draws to a close? These are questions to which “real” answers may never be known. However, one can always […]
Speaking Tree, Times of India, 24th October 1998 "How do you worship the lord?" asked the master. "By renouncing the world and fixing my mind on Him," replied the first student. "By appreciating worldly beauty and bounty," replied the second. The master smiled and embraced the second student for he had understood the […]
