Devdutt Pattanaik
@devduttmyth.bsky.social
Vi-vaad is a toolkit for the ego.
Sama-vaad is a toolkit for the soul.
Silence is a toolkit for sanity.
🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Sama-vaad is a toolkit for the soul.
Silence is a toolkit for sanity.
🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
Sanatan dharma is not bound to history or culture. It is the realisation that nothing is permanent. Seasons change. People die. Cultures rise and fall. Even death is not permanent. Hence, rebirth is integral to sanatan dharma.
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www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
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www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
July 10, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Sanatan dharma is not bound to history or culture. It is the realisation that nothing is permanent. Seasons change. People die. Cultures rise and fall. Even death is not permanent. Hence, rebirth is integral to sanatan dharma.
Read more ...
www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Read more ...
www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Very often historians are not aware of their prejudices, but it can be decoded from the tone, tilt and repetitive arguments of their narrations. Many also carry the burden of using history to right a historical wrong.
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Historian’s myth www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
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Historian’s myth www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
July 6, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Very often historians are not aware of their prejudices, but it can be decoded from the tone, tilt and repetitive arguments of their narrations. Many also carry the burden of using history to right a historical wrong.
Read More ...
Historian’s myth www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read More ...
Historian’s myth www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Along the Makran coast, sindoor is known as Hingula and was offered to Hinglaj Mata, whose oldest shrine is located in Balochistan. Even today, people travel from India to Balochistan to make offerings to her.
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Sindoor Goddesses of India:
ecoti.in/QJy-aZ
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Sindoor Goddesses of India:
ecoti.in/QJy-aZ
July 5, 2025 at 6:39 AM
Along the Makran coast, sindoor is known as Hingula and was offered to Hinglaj Mata, whose oldest shrine is located in Balochistan. Even today, people travel from India to Balochistan to make offerings to her.
Read more…
Sindoor Goddesses of India:
ecoti.in/QJy-aZ
Read more…
Sindoor Goddesses of India:
ecoti.in/QJy-aZ
Delulu is by far my favorite Gen Z slag. It means delusional, but in a cheeky, sometimes endearing way. Human beings are often delulu in how we construct our realities. We believe what we want to believe. Who bothers with fact check when truth seems so self-evident.
June 29, 2025 at 11:03 AM
Delulu is by far my favorite Gen Z slag. It means delusional, but in a cheeky, sometimes endearing way. Human beings are often delulu in how we construct our realities. We believe what we want to believe. Who bothers with fact check when truth seems so self-evident.
If one wishes to delve into etymology further, one could argue that India derives from Indu, meaning moon. Indumati was the name of Ram’s grandmother, the wife of King Aja of Ayodhya.
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Universe: Naming the land beyond Indus
www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
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Universe: Naming the land beyond Indus
www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
June 27, 2025 at 9:14 AM
If one wishes to delve into etymology further, one could argue that India derives from Indu, meaning moon. Indumati was the name of Ram’s grandmother, the wife of King Aja of Ayodhya.
Read more ...
Universe: Naming the land beyond Indus
www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
Read more ...
Universe: Naming the land beyond Indus
www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
Modern culture rewards the eternally ravenous, who yearn for more & more resources, power, attention, glamour & victory, like the demon Baka-asura of Indian myth, for whom everything & everyone is an opportunity to be consumed
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Why Kubera is not Ganesha
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ..
Why Kubera is not Ganesha
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
June 22, 2025 at 10:22 AM
Modern culture rewards the eternally ravenous, who yearn for more & more resources, power, attention, glamour & victory, like the demon Baka-asura of Indian myth, for whom everything & everyone is an opportunity to be consumed
Read more ..
Why Kubera is not Ganesha
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ..
Why Kubera is not Ganesha
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
The Bhavishya Purana, or the chronicle of the future, is the earliest Sanskrit work that reveals some familiarity with West Asian myths.
Read more about the Biblical tales in the Puranas ...
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
Read more about the Biblical tales in the Puranas ...
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
June 18, 2025 at 12:49 PM
The Bhavishya Purana, or the chronicle of the future, is the earliest Sanskrit work that reveals some familiarity with West Asian myths.
Read more about the Biblical tales in the Puranas ...
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
Read more about the Biblical tales in the Puranas ...
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
"When was the last time you went raw-dogging?
This Father’s Day, I launched my new column Gen Myth with Mumbai Mirror."
This Father’s Day, I launched my new column Gen Myth with Mumbai Mirror."
June 15, 2025 at 10:57 AM
"When was the last time you went raw-dogging?
This Father’s Day, I launched my new column Gen Myth with Mumbai Mirror."
This Father’s Day, I launched my new column Gen Myth with Mumbai Mirror."
China was always centralised with the Dragon throne seeking tributes from the rest of the world. India is based on the Mandala model, a set of intersecting spheres of power that are endlessly pulsating, contracting & expanding over time.
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economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/w...
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economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/w...
May 24, 2025 at 11:35 AM
China was always centralised with the Dragon throne seeking tributes from the rest of the world. India is based on the Mandala model, a set of intersecting spheres of power that are endlessly pulsating, contracting & expanding over time.
Read more ...
economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/w...
Read more ...
economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/w...
Buddhism and Jainism continue to thrive today as they did 1,200 years ago, under the Buddhist Pala kings of Bengal and Jain Rashtrakutas of Karnataka. They do so under the guise of vegetarian Hinduism that never existed in Vedic times.
Read more at: www.deccanherald.com/opinion/budd...
Read more at: www.deccanherald.com/opinion/budd...
May 5, 2025 at 11:36 AM
Buddhism and Jainism continue to thrive today as they did 1,200 years ago, under the Buddhist Pala kings of Bengal and Jain Rashtrakutas of Karnataka. They do so under the guise of vegetarian Hinduism that never existed in Vedic times.
Read more at: www.deccanherald.com/opinion/budd...
Read more at: www.deccanherald.com/opinion/budd...
In many parts of Maharashtra, Buddhist caves are referred to as Pandav Leni or caves. There, we find many goddesses who are worshipped locally as Hindu goddesses, but who are in all probability Tantrik Buddhist goddesses like Aparajita
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www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
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www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
April 27, 2025 at 9:19 AM
In many parts of Maharashtra, Buddhist caves are referred to as Pandav Leni or caves. There, we find many goddesses who are worshipped locally as Hindu goddesses, but who are in all probability Tantrik Buddhist goddesses like Aparajita
Read more ...
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ...
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
The reason Buddhism thrived from the Ashokan period in the 3rd century BC to the Pala period in the 8th century CE is deeply linked to mercantilism. Buddha was even described poetically as the leader of a trade caravan.
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www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Read more ...
www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
April 22, 2025 at 11:45 AM
The reason Buddhism thrived from the Ashokan period in the 3rd century BC to the Pala period in the 8th century CE is deeply linked to mercantilism. Buddha was even described poetically as the leader of a trade caravan.
Read more ...
www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Read more ...
www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Valmiki wanted Hanuman to communicate a profound idea — the idea of a person with power but without ambition, one who helps the helpless, and puts them in debt, and asks them to pay it forward, if they seek liberation.
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devdutt.com/hanuman-jaya...
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devdutt.com/hanuman-jaya...
April 12, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Valmiki wanted Hanuman to communicate a profound idea — the idea of a person with power but without ambition, one who helps the helpless, and puts them in debt, and asks them to pay it forward, if they seek liberation.
Read more...
devdutt.com/hanuman-jaya...
Read more...
devdutt.com/hanuman-jaya...
Punjab has a long history of egalitarian beliefs as it nurtured Sikh and Sufi thoughts. However, it also has a very high population of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (30 per cent), while Brahmins constitute a fraction of the population.
Read more... www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Read more... www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
April 6, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Punjab has a long history of egalitarian beliefs as it nurtured Sikh and Sufi thoughts. However, it also has a very high population of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (30 per cent), while Brahmins constitute a fraction of the population.
Read more... www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
Read more... www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/col...
ସାତ ଶତାବ୍ଦୀର କଥା
www.dharitri.com/seven-centur...
www.dharitri.com/seven-centur...
April 4, 2025 at 8:20 AM
ସାତ ଶତାବ୍ଦୀର କଥା
www.dharitri.com/seven-centur...
www.dharitri.com/seven-centur...
Is truth a function of faith or scepticism?
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Universe: Truth, myth, fact, fiction and the inherited conviction www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
Read more ...
Universe: Truth, myth, fact, fiction and the inherited conviction www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
April 1, 2025 at 8:28 AM
Is truth a function of faith or scepticism?
Read more ...
Universe: Truth, myth, fact, fiction and the inherited conviction www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
Read more ...
Universe: Truth, myth, fact, fiction and the inherited conviction www.tribuneindia.com/news/comment...
Muslims believe that all scriptures—Torah, Psalms, Gospel, Quran—were revealed in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, the Ramadan (Ramzan in Persian). Hence, during this month, people fast all day long and eat before sunrise and after sunset.
devdutt.com/eden-an-indi...
devdutt.com/eden-an-indi...
March 31, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Muslims believe that all scriptures—Torah, Psalms, Gospel, Quran—were revealed in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, the Ramadan (Ramzan in Persian). Hence, during this month, people fast all day long and eat before sunrise and after sunset.
devdutt.com/eden-an-indi...
devdutt.com/eden-an-indi...
The mercantile boom of India emerged 2,500 years ago, with caravans travelling from the Ganga river basin northwards towards Gandhara in the Indus river basin & southwards towards Ajanta & Ellora in the Godavari river basin
Read more about the forgotten legacy of trade & enterprise
ecoti.in/_OR-xb
Read more about the forgotten legacy of trade & enterprise
ecoti.in/_OR-xb
March 29, 2025 at 10:40 AM
The mercantile boom of India emerged 2,500 years ago, with caravans travelling from the Ganga river basin northwards towards Gandhara in the Indus river basin & southwards towards Ajanta & Ellora in the Godavari river basin
Read more about the forgotten legacy of trade & enterprise
ecoti.in/_OR-xb
Read more about the forgotten legacy of trade & enterprise
ecoti.in/_OR-xb
The oral traditions of warrior communities are often overlooked and not given the importance they deserve, but they play a key role in determining the origins of many Rajput clans.
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The fire-born Rajputs
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
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The fire-born Rajputs
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
March 23, 2025 at 8:27 AM
The oral traditions of warrior communities are often overlooked and not given the importance they deserve, but they play a key role in determining the origins of many Rajput clans.
Read more ...
The fire-born Rajputs
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ...
The fire-born Rajputs
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
No one knows when the pan-Indian practice of warrior widows burning themselves with (sahagamana) or without (anugamana) the corpse of their husband came to be known as ‘sati’ — a word that means the chaste wife.
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Fire, fidelity and an inhuman heritage
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
Read more...
Fire, fidelity and an inhuman heritage
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
March 19, 2025 at 1:14 PM
No one knows when the pan-Indian practice of warrior widows burning themselves with (sahagamana) or without (anugamana) the corpse of their husband came to be known as ‘sati’ — a word that means the chaste wife.
Read more...
Fire, fidelity and an inhuman heritage
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
Read more...
Fire, fidelity and an inhuman heritage
www.thehindu.com/opinion/colu...
In Nepal, when people stopped worshipping the snake gods, the rains stopped and the rivers refused to flow.
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So many types of Nagas
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
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So many types of Nagas
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
March 18, 2025 at 7:39 AM
In Nepal, when people stopped worshipping the snake gods, the rains stopped and the rivers refused to flow.
Read more ...
So many types of Nagas
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ...
So many types of Nagas
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
There are four reasons there is a bhakti boom. First, the realisation that science helps rich people get richer but does not resolve emotional issues or social problems. Second, the discovery of
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Stage-managed spirituality www.magzter.com/stories/news...
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Stage-managed spirituality www.magzter.com/stories/news...
March 15, 2025 at 11:11 AM
There are four reasons there is a bhakti boom. First, the realisation that science helps rich people get richer but does not resolve emotional issues or social problems. Second, the discovery of
Read more ...
Stage-managed spirituality www.magzter.com/stories/news...
Read more ...
Stage-managed spirituality www.magzter.com/stories/news...
In Mahabharata, Krishna asks Pandavas to choose between him and his army. HIM and HIS. He is Narayan. His army is Narayani. The Kauravas choose Narayani (his). The Pandavas are left with Narayan (him).
Read more at:
ecoti.in/JE_U3a
Read more at:
ecoti.in/JE_U3a
March 15, 2025 at 8:56 AM
In Mahabharata, Krishna asks Pandavas to choose between him and his army. HIM and HIS. He is Narayan. His army is Narayani. The Kauravas choose Narayani (his). The Pandavas are left with Narayan (him).
Read more at:
ecoti.in/JE_U3a
Read more at:
ecoti.in/JE_U3a
गृहस्थ जीवन को दर्शाने के लिए बनाए गए थे मंदिर dainik.bhaskar.com/y611kqRdxRb
March 12, 2025 at 7:17 AM
गृहस्थ जीवन को दर्शाने के लिए बनाए गए थे मंदिर dainik.bhaskar.com/y611kqRdxRb
Across India, the fish is a sacred symbol. Fish is linked with autonomy as it cannot be tamed, and with fertility and prosperity. Brahmins who ate fish referred to it as “water-plants” (jala-taru).
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Mythology of the fish
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
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Mythology of the fish
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
March 9, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Across India, the fish is a sacred symbol. Fish is linked with autonomy as it cannot be tamed, and with fertility and prosperity. Brahmins who ate fish referred to it as “water-plants” (jala-taru).
Read more ...
Mythology of the fish
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...
Read more ...
Mythology of the fish
www.mid-day.com/news/opinion...