Mythologist | Author | Speaker | Illustrator
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Articles
How Bindumati, a Courtesan, Made Ganga Flow in Reverse
Published on 8th January, 2022, in Economic Times. The story of Bindumati comes from the Buddhist text known as Milinda Panha, or questions of Milinda (Menander) which is a conversation between the Indo-Greek king Menander and the Buddhist monk Nagasena. The scripture is about 2000 years old and continues to be venerated in Burma. The…
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Articles
Hindutva’s Caste Masterstroke
Published on 1st January, 2022, in The Hindu. Ever since erstwhile champions of secular values have begun differentiating between Hindu and Hindutvawadi, a whole lot of intellectuals are bristling. They are arguing how these nuanced metaphysical differentiations hold no relevance on the street. Mostly from the Hindu elite, these are the same scholars who will…
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Articles
Is Celibacy Unnatural or Supernatural?
Published on 18th December, 2021, in Times of India. Celibacy is an unnatural act in nature. All living organisms are meant to reproduce. The sexual act is critical for the survival of the species. Thus, nature does not endorse celibacy. But human culture has endorsed it. Culture has not only endorsed celibacy, but sees it…
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Articles
Why Does Hindutva Not Like Historians?
Published on 4th December, 2021, in Times of India. The subject that we know as history emerged only in the 19th century. Before that, memory, legends and evidence-based history were all combined as a single unit. They were stories from the past, communicated by bards to make communities feel good about the past or to…
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Articles
‘Dharma’ Always Comes With ‘Dharma-sankat’
Published on 4th December, 2021, in The Hindu. In a crime, the victim accuses the villain. But when the villain counter-accuses the victim, and insists the victim is villain too, we call it ‘whataboutery.’ This word is a neologism, first used in the 1970s in the context of violence in Northern Ireland. Whataboutery creates a…
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Articles
How Did Hinduism Come to Dominate India?
Published on 20th November, 2021, in Times of India. Nearly 2,000 years ago, there were Buddhist stupas across India. Nearly 1,500 years ago, there were Buddhist caves in the Deccan. But 1,000 years ago, Buddhist structures were overshadowed by Hindu temples. Jain art, which was as popular as Buddhist art, became a relatively minor force.…
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Articles
Brief History of Hindu Mythology
Published on 31st October, 2021, in Mid-day. Hindu mythology is not static. It has changed over history. In the Rig Veda (1,500 BCE), we are introduced to Indra. He is a powerful celestial being who rides chariots and who defeats enemies like Vritra, Pani and Vala to secure stolen cows and release water. We don’t…
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Articles
Four Phases of Buddhist Art
Published on 24th October, 2021, in Mid-day. Buddhist art has a history of over 2,000 years. During this time, it goes through many phases, revealing the transformations in Buddhist thought. In the earliest Buddhist art, Buddha is not represented. In fact, his presence is indicated by his absence, using various symbols such as a turban,…
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Articles
Collaborators Succeed in History
Published on 16th October, 2021, in Economic Times. In Hindutva’s political history, the Mughals were dacoits, who came from the North-West. A peer-reviewed history of India, of course, says that is not true. Foreign tribes have been entering through the North-West for a very long time. They all established their rule. The successful ones collaborated…
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Articles
Should a Deity Have Two Arms or More?
Published on 9th October, 2021, in The Hindu. In Kushan coins, minted over 1,800 years ago, we come across images of a woman holding the horn of plenty. She is identified with the Roman Goddess Fortuna, the Greek goddess Tyche, the Central Asian Ardochsho, the Buddhist Hariti, and the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. Images of Lakshmi…
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Articles
When Does Krishna Justify War?
Published on 2nd October, 2021, in Economic Times. Mahatma Gandhi famously argued that Bhagavad Gita needs to be seen as a metaphor of internal war, and has nothing to do with violence. Western scholars argue that the book does the very opposite – it actually promotes violence, and is therefore favoured by Hindutva. To understand…
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Articles
Tombs of Holy Men
Published on 19th September, 2021, in Mid-day. Since the time of the Buddha, when a holy man would die, he would be buried. His burial site would become a shrine, or a memorial. This shrine would be visited by people, with the hope that his spiritual energy would bring them various benefits. So people visit…
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Articles
Festival Of Women, By Women, For Women
Published on 12th September, 2021, in Mid-day. The word ‘teej’ refers to the third day of the lunar cycle when women fast, stay awake in all night vigils, hoping to find good husbands if not married, and praying for the health of husbands if married. Hariyali Teej is celebrated during the waxing moon of Shravan,…
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Articles
Taoism and Tantra
Published on 5th September, 2021, in Mid-day. There is much in common between the Chinese path of Taoism and the Indian path of Tantra. Both value the body and the material world. Both see all power coming from nature. They seek the balance of forces. What is yin in China, is called ida in Tantra,…
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Articles
Why Is Secret Love So Important In Gita Govinda?
Published on 28th August,2021, in Times of India. Krishna on television appears in bright light, with fair complexion and light eyes. No one is outraged or offended, even though Krishna means someone with a dark complexion, a fact reiterated by other names of Krishna such as Ghanashyam, which means one who is as dark as…
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Articles
Privileging Political Independence
Published on 15th August, 2021, in The Hindu. The story of the eagle Garuda stealing the nectar of immortality from Indra’s paradise to liberate his mother from slavery reminds us of Greek heroes who go on quests to fight monsters to liberate damsels in distress. In Biblical tales, the role of the Greek hero is…