Religions
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Above many realms of desire
Buddhist stupas crowned with special umbrellas indicate Sumeru, the central world axis and the heavens above it, above which sits the Buddha in a formless state after he attained nirvana.
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About Indigenous People, Invaders and Immigrants
Published on 13th July, 2018, in The Economic Times. In Canada the indigenous people reject the scientific study that says that Asians entered America via the Bering Straight over 10,000 years ago and populated the land because by this account…
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Who is a Hindu? How Hinduism was enriched by rivalry
Every religion is an outcome of many historical and geographical forces. Every religion has a past and transforms over time.
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8 stories about Lord Krishna you have never heard before
In his new book, Shyam, mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik finally puts together the whole story of Krishna. What you will read below is not an excerpt from the book, but eight things that Devdutt himself learned about one of Hinduism’s most…
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Othering the Asuras
Published on 8th July, 2018, in Mid-day. In Hindu mythological stories narrated in the Puranas, Brahma’s son Kashyapa has two wives. One called Aditi, the other called Diti. Aditi’s children are called Adityas or Devas, and they reside in the…
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Aggregation of Buddhist atoms
They clarify that there is a soul within every individual living (jiva-atma) being and there is a cosmic soul that encompasses the universe (param-atma)
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Fever from Shiva’s rage
Those who see mythology as proto-history believe that as Vedic practices waned, and temple-based Agama traditions rose, followers of Vedas became closely associated with Vishnu worshippers
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Who is a Hindu? Forgotten tales of folk-hero gods
Fascinating stories are not being told because of our fixation with Western concept of religion and pan-India narratives.
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The rise of Durga
Amongst the earliest images we know today are one from Ajanta and Ellora caves in Maharashtra, and from Mammalapuram dated before 7th century
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Queer Gaze for the Indian Tourist
A manifestation of thought, temples like the hidden verses of epics, have unseen images on their walls. What you understand depends on what you want to see.
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The forgotten Buffalo King
Not much is known about him, but the shrine is clearly not a Brahminical one and there is nothing about him found in Sanskrit literature
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How Brahmins helped create temple-states and kingdoms in South India and Southeast Asia
It is fashionable nowadays to use the word ‘Brahmin’ with contempt … But this outrage (real and imagined) must not blind us to the contribution of Brahmins …
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The goddess of sailors
Most images of boats in Indian art are related to ponds and rivers, and not the sea, such as images of Ram and Sita crossing the Ganga, or Krishna and Radha on Yamuna.
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Trishanku in America or those betwixt and between
Trishanku is a famous character in Hindu mythology who hangs upside down between heaven and earth, belonging nowhere.
