In a world that seems to be hurtling from one crisis to another, many people are talking about the Shambala prophecy. This appeared in the early 11th century in a Buddhist Tantric text called the Kalacakratantra. …
Marble has never been a traditional material in Hindu sacred architecture. In Tamil Nadu, the great storied temples were built in granite. In Odisha, the material was khondalite. In Karnataka, soapstone. Across North India, red and yellow sandstone. Marble was, in fact, long associated with animal bones and was deliberately shunned by traditional artisans…
Ask any Indian schoolchild who invented zero, and the answer will usually be: India did. This is one of the most common beliefs taught in schools and repeated in public discussions…
‘Sanatan Dharma’ (common noun) as a phrase is very old. It appears in Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain traditions as a common noun meaning ‘eternal order’ or ‘timeless law’. However, ‘Sanatan Dharma’ (proper noun) as the name of an organised conservative Hindu movement emerged only in the 19th century under British colonial rule…
Punjab, watered by the tributaries of the Indus, was the original Vedic land. Yet today, the Veda is more closely associated with the Yamuna-Ganga doab, while Punjab is better known as the fountainhead of Sikhism. The western part of historic Punjab is now in Pakistan and is overwhelmingly Muslim. The eastern part, in India, is…
Ekalavya’s story is that of a low-born forest boy, rejected by the Brahmin teacher Drona, and who then trains alone before a clay idol, masters archery, and surrenders his thumb when Drona discovers that his own prize student Arjuna has acquired an unwanted rival. The student’s thumb-offering is presented as devotion. The violence embedded in…
Watch this space for more information on the release of Pattanaik’s new book: Itihasa : A History of Hindu Mythology!…
In Flower of India, bestselling author and renowned mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik examines the lotus as one of the most pervasive and resonant symbols of the Indian subcontinent. Through its many avatars—as plant, resource, metaphor, design, and sacred form—he traces how the lotus has shaped India’s cultural imagination across history, religion, art, and everyday life. Concise…
Well-known mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik introduces young readers to the wonderful weapons of Hindu gods with his unique art and easy-to-read text…
This book re-discovers this path, first revealed by Hanuman in the Mahabharata. Insightful and inspiring, Escape the Bakasura Trap is another classic from one of our great mythologists and thinkers…
Devdutt Pattanaik writes and speaks on the relevance of mythology in modern times, especially in areas of management, governance, and leadership.
