Mythologist | Author | Speaker | Illustrator
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Articles
Karma’s Cosmic Order In Jain Manuscripts
In Jain thought, every action creates a transaction in the cosmic account. Consumption incurs debt. Fasting reduces debt. Charity generates credit. Liberation is achieved when there is no debit or credit left. Those who teach this path are the Tirthankaras, the spiritual fordsmen who help others cross the river of existence…
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Articles
The Two Faces Of Varuna
Varuna is one of the most ancient gods of the Vedic pantheon. In the Rig Veda, he is majestic, distant, and terrifying. He sits above the world, ruler of the sky and the ocean, guardian of the cosmic law called rta. He sees everything. Nothing escapes him. …
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Articles
Can There Be a Sanatani Missionary?
A missionary (pracharak, in Hindi) is a relentless salesman. He sells God. He sells God’s message. For centuries there have been Christian missionaries, Muslim missionaries, and Buddhist missionaries. The last century saw the rise of Hindu missionaries. Many of these call themselves sanatani today. But what exactly are these sanatani missionaries selling?…
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Articles
A Problematic Indra
In Purana, Indra is a luxury loving god who lives in paradise. Stories of this later Indra are not very flattering. He is always scared of losing all that he has…
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Articles
Increase upon Increase
The Sanskrit term for compound interest is chakra-vriddhi, literally ‘wheelgrowth’ or “increase upon increase”. This word occurs in classical Sanskrit lexicons and legal-economic literature, where it denotes interest that accrues on previously accumulated interest, i.e., compound interest…
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Articles
Is Buddha a historical or a mythological figure?
No one ever talks about the “300 Buddhas” or the many narratives that recount the story of the Buddha. The assumption is that the Buddha is a historical figure, even though every Buddhist scholar knows that the Buddha story we recognise today was constructed by 19th-century Europeans using a variety of texts and arbitrary principles…
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Articles
How Vasudeva Became Vishnu
At Malhar, a small town near Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, we find an image of a soldier with four arms, holding a conch shell, a wheel and a mace. It has been identified as the earliest image of Vishnu. The inscription on the stone has been dated to 200 BC…
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Articles
The Durga of Dalit Mythology
In recent years, there has been a growing clash between ‘Sanatani mythology’ and ‘Dalit mythology’. During the festival season last month, a well-known Dalit activist argued that the worship of Durga is nothing but the celebration of an Aryan invasion of Dravidian lands. In his retelling, Mahishasur, the buffalo demon, represents dark-skinned Dravidians while Durga…
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Articles
Is Zohran Mamdani Muslim, American or Gujarati?
With the victory of Zohran Mamdani as mayor of New York City, a man with a Muslim name, an African past and an Indian lineage, the American-Christian establishment suddenly feels threatened. …
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Articles
The Cannibal’s Victim
Kaisika Dwadashi, the 12th day of the waxing moon after Diwali, is celebrated in many Vishnu temples of South India. During this time, people are encouraged to visit the temple and hear the story from Varaha Purana of Nampaduvan, a “low” caste singer who was caught by a cannibalistic demon known as Brahma-Rakshasa…
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Articles
How Many Manus Do You know?
Most people assume that Manu is simply the stern lawgiver of the Manusmriti, son of Brahma, entrusted with the task of framing rules for humankind. But this Manu is only one among many, and a relatively late one at that — emerging around 200 AD. …
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Articles
What makes the idea of ‘sanatan dharma’ such a contentious issue
What is sanatan dharma? Sanatan dharma can mean: One, faith in eternal things; two, faith in soul and rebirth; three, faith in the caste system; four, faith in the doctrine of purity…
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Articles
Was Brahma ever Timeless?
The word Sanantan Dharma used by politicians tries to proclaim that Hinduism is unchanging and the only disruption came because of Muslims and British, and their political opponents. But that is not true. …
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Articles
Why no Diwali and Dussehra in Kerala and Kashmir
Religions are never homogeneous. Hinduism is no exception. A case in point is how Diwali and Dussehra are not celebrated in Kashmir or Kerala with the same gusto seen across North, West and East India…
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Articles
Pigeon Spirituality
Who funds these monks who promote non-violence and vegetarian food? Those who make money from industries that pollute rivers, seas, and air. India’s biggest industrialists are vegetarians. …