Mythologist | Author | Speaker | Illustrator
-
Articles
Solitary Buddha
Buddhism has the concept of pacceka-buddha, which is derived from the Sanskrit pratyeka-buddha…
-
Articles
Is Krishna’s Sanatan Dharma Different From the One Of Today?
Sanatan means timeless. What is timeless?…
-
Articles
Hindu Gods Are Singers, Dancers and Artists
But, in Hindu mythology, gods also sing, dance and make music and this is what makes Hinduism stand out from most other religions…
-
Articles
How Hinduism Took Roots in the Telugu Lands
Telugu emerged from the larger Proto-Dravidian language over 2000 years ago, but was formalised only during the reign of the Kakatiyas about 1000 years ago, who carved out a Telugu speaking kingdom from the erstwhile Chalukyan empire…
-
Articles
Feudal Buddha: The spread of Buddhism to Southeast Asia, Central & East Asia, had a lot to do with politics & economics
Images of Buddha are popular in modern homes and health spas. It evokes peace, tranquillity and freedom from stress…
-
Articles
Decoding Ganesha’s Parenthood
Ganesha’s arrival, in the latter half of the monsoon, marks the transformation of Shiva, the hermit, into Shankara, the householder. …
-
Articles
Caste Tales They Don’t Tell Us
Caste is a word introduced by Europeans about 300 years ago for what Indians have referred to as jati for at least 2,000 years…
-
Articles
Does India Link Us to Our British Rulers or Ramayana?
Unless we accept the story of Indumati, India is effectively a name by which the outsider saw India…
-
Articles
How Maharashtra Became a Stronghold of Hinduism
Today, we see Maharashtra as a land defined by political boundaries. But traditionally it has been the land of the Marathi-speaking people, who speak a set of multiple dialects that emerged from Maharashtri Prakrit and was deeply influenced by Sanskrit (which Brahmins encouraged) and even Persian (which Brahmins hated)…
-
Articles
We Are No Different Than Our Vedic Ancestors
Hymns of the Rig Veda were composed in the Punjab-Haryana region around 1500 BCE…
-
Articles
Why Hindu and Muslim Attacks on Temples Differed
While we want to reduce communal tensions created using history, we should not try to overstretch a point to make it seem like Muslim invasions did not bring about a major cultural shift in India’s past. …
-
Articles
From Shiva’s Knot to Ram’s Chanda Mama – Our Stories of the Moon
As Chandrayaan-3 lands on the moon, it just so happens that the name of the current Chief Justice of India, D Y Chandrachud, means “on whose brow the moon takes refuge” – a title for Shiva…
-
BooksFeatured Books
Bahubali: 63 Insights Into Jainism
In Bahubali, Devdutt Pattanaik explores the stories, symbols, rituals and ideas associated with one of India’s most ancient but lesser-known faiths, and shows us why the tenets of Jainism are still very relevant to all of us even today…
-
Articles
From Fortune’s Favourite to Mother’s Son
Indians have visualised India in many different ways. Often through the lens of outsiders. About …
-
Articles
Raiders and Traders of the Desert
What turned Muhammad, the trader, into Muhammad, the raider? It was the lack of empathy. …
-
Articles
Rashtra-Devta Inside a Tree
A king’s dream about a god in a tree connects Manipur and Sri Lanka with Odisha…
-
Articles
When the Rising Sun in the South Was Auspicious
The South has been the home of Sugriva, king of monkeys (vanara) and Ravana, king of demons (rakshasa). …
