Mythologist | Author | Speaker | Illustrator
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Articles
Greek Gods, English Words
In the Devanagari script, there is no upper and lowercase. So, the name of God can become a proper noun and a common noun…
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Articles
Flood Myths
Many mythologies around the world have a flood myth. But not all flood myths are the same…
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Articles
Do Not Travel to Non-Human Worlds
There is a Japanese tale of a fisherman who saves a turtle from a fishing net. …
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Articles
Sons Who Kill Their Fathers
A recurring theme in Greek mythology is of sons killing their fathers…
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Hill Fairies Who Abduct Men
The idea of enchanting magical women abducting men is a recurring idea around the world. …
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Articles
The Goddess Came Later
We can argue that goddesses have been integral to Hinduism since Vedic times. But of the 1,000 hymns of the Rig Veda only the maximum number of hymns dedicated to a goddess as the 21 hymns for Usha, the dawn-goddess…
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Origins of the Rice Goddess
The oldest Indian mythology of rice can be found among the Bonda tribal people, who live in Odisha, who are linked to the Munda and Austroasiatic communities who entered India from the Southeast, and brought rice growing technology with them over 4,000 years ago…
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Reframing Hindu Gods As Saviour Gods
Published on 9th April, 2023, in Mid-day. As per Christianity mythology, Jesus was crucified on Friday and he resurrected himself on Sunday. By defying death, he declares his status as Son of God. He is the saviour. Why do humans need a saviour? The answer is found in the Old Testament of the Bible. Humans…
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Articles
Again and Again and Again
Published on 6th November, 2022, in Mid-day. In Greek mythology, we hear the story of Sisyphus. The gods condemn him to roll a rock up the mountain all day, only to find the rock rolling down at night. Thus, he is doomed for all eternity, to repeat the task again and again and again. This…
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Articles
Why Do We Sacrifice Humans to a God, Ideology or Nation?
Published on 16th October, 2022, in Times of India. There are two types of gods in this world. The singular god of monotheists and the many gods of polytheists. The one god of monotheists demands obedience to the law he communicates through messengers. The many gods of polytheists offer all sorts of help, and solve…
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Articles
Two Gods In Our Brain
Published on 26th June, 2022, in Mid-day. We are familiar with that false idea that the left brain grants us logical thinking and mathematics and the right brain grants us creativity and abstract thinking, and that students of science and commerce have left brain orientation while students of the arts have right brain orientation. In…
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Articles
Claiming the Earth as Nation
Published on 22nd May, 2022, in Mid-day. In prehistoric times, people captured a hunting ground or agricultural land or pastures by claiming that is where the ancestor was buried. Burial was an important ritual invented by ancient people to claim rights over lands. Later, they invented stories to claim land. The Maori say that their…
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Articles
Creepy-Crawly Lore
Published on 1st May, 2022, in Mid-day. The story of Bhramari Devi comes to us from Andhra Pradesh’s Mallikarjuna temple. It is said that there was an asura called Arunasura. He had asked for protection from all creatures that have no legs, two legs or four legs. This meant he was protected from every fish,…
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Articles
What Genghis Khan Can Teach Us About Secular Values
Published on 23rd April, 2022, in the Times of India. China today has a very problematic relationship with two provinces on its west. To the Northwest is Xinjiang, home of Uighur Muslims. To its Southwest is Tibet, home of Vajrayana Buddhism. In both these provinces, there are beliefs in forces that are greater than the…
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Articles
Seven Holes of Hundun
Published on 13th March, 2022, in Mid-day. Hundun gave food to two beings, one who came from the north and the other who came from the south. Grateful, the two decided to help Hundun. Hundun had no eyes, nose, ears or mouth. He did not have the seven holes to appreciate the world around. So…
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Articles
In China, Gods, Spirits and Ancestors Thrive, But Leave the Affairs of Humans to Humans
Published on 29th January, 2022, in The Hindu. China today seems mysterious with its very own version of Communism, Capitalism and Democracy. But the mystery vanishes when we see it through a mythic lens and realise that China functions as it always has, magnificence from behind an expressionless face — the wall. Chinese culture does…