2024
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Tracking the Tale of Padmasambhava from Odisha to Tibet
mages of Padmasambhava are found across Tibet. He appears very Shiva-like, with a trident and a string of human heads, and is linked with powerful female figures said to have come from various parts of Tibet, Nepal, India, and China.
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When Was the Buddha Born?
In writings, people assume that the Buddha lived about 2,500 years ago. But is that really so? Is that fact or belief?
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What Sculptures Tell Us About Indian Culture
Sculptures typically show human, animal and plant figures or supernatural beings standing in isolation or emerging from walls. The most ancient sculptures we have come from the Harappan Civilization (2500-1900 BC) — the clay figurines, usually female, bejewelled, perhaps of…
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My books on Ram
This Ram Navmi, to read Devdutts books about various aspects of The Ramayana, click the links below
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When Harappans Had Unicorns
Harappans used seal-based administrative technology like the Mesopotamians. The most common seal — almost 80% of the 2,000-odd ones found till date in the wide area — has the image of a one-horned bull-like creature, the unicorn.
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Ahimsa : 100 Reflections on the Harappan Civilization
Devdutt Pattanaik uses the lens of mythology to reflect on this most mysterious of ‘peaceful’ civilizations, now spread across geographies in India and Pakistan. A medley of text and illustrations, Ahimsa draws attention to how much Harappan memory persists in…
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Recognising Hanuman
Stories use metaphors. Concepts become plots. Ideas become characters, even landscapes.
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Vedic and Tamil Poets
Much like modern poets, the ancient poets survived because of patronage. If gods received poems, and patrons received fortune, the poet received payment.
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The Reality of Impermanence
Ancient Vedic ritual halls were set aflame to remind everyone that nothing is permanent. Buddha said the same thing. So did the Tirthankaras. Even today Hindu rituals involve building images of gods using perishable materials like straw, clay and flowers.…
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How to Look At Manusmriti and the Caste System
Everybody talks about the Manusmriti nowadays and links it to the caste system. But what exactly is it? To understand this, we must understand a little bit of Indian history.
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Must We Refer to Caste, or Gurus, When Discussing Indian Knowledge Systems?
Currently, gurus are seen as greater than even gods. Once you accept that the guru knows everything, there never will be growth.
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Himanta, Muslims & a Liberal Fallacy
Today ‘inclusion’ has become a great ideology. If you oppose it, you are branded ‘fascist’. This totalitarian idea emerges from the usual suspects: the West, European and American academies.
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Uniting India with Itihasa-Purana
In India, the phrase ‘itihasa-puranaʼ has been used for 2,500 years to refer to transmitted memories. Many assume that this is an ancient division between history and mythology. However, the split between history and mythology happened only in the 19th…
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Overestimating Science and Rationality
Most religious folk are envious of science. Science toppled religion by delivering results.
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The Arrival Of Southern Women
In “Sangam Literature”, the oldest Tamil poetry between 300 BCE and 300 CE, the same period where the Mahabharata, Ramayana, and the Dharmashastras were compiled in North India, women are ever-present, as wives and queens and heroines.
