The story of Rishyasringa Muni is found in the Ramayana. Dashratha had three wives, but no children. So, he called a sage to perform the ritual that would get him children. The rishi selected was Rishyasringa Muni. In Odia miniature paintings, Rishyasringa is depicted as having two horns. His father Vibhandaka was a rishi. Vibhandaka…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Of the thousand songs in the Rig Veda, we find 200 songs praising Agni. In fact, the first song of the Rig Veda is a praise to Agni, who is called the priest and messenger of the Gods. Agni must be placed in the eastern direction…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Many people asked me what is the significance of Chhat Puja. They want to know a story. For example, there is a story of Ram’s return to Ayodhya on Diwali and Lakshmi entering the house on Diwali. So there must be a story associated with Chhat…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist In Hindu, Jain and Buddhist mythology, paradise or Swarga, is described as a place where the wish-fulfilling tree, Kalpataru, grows; where the wish-fulfilling cow, Kamadhenu, lives; and where Chintamani, the wish-fulfilling jewel is found. In other words, it is a place of infinite plant, animal and…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist In folklore, Age of Mandhata refers to an ancient time, even before Krishna and Ram lived on earth. As per the Mahabharata, Mandhata was the son of Ram’s ancestor, Yuvanashva. Yuvanashva wanted a child. But he consumed the magic potion that was meant to make his…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Vedic Rishis are imagined with long hair, tied in a topknot. But Adi Shankara, the Vedanta philosopher, is depicted in popular artworks with a shaved head, covered with a drape. An enquiry into how the Hindu sage and monk treated his hair reveals how it has…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist About a thousand years ago, we are told that the Chola king was drawn to a Jain epic called Jivaka Chintamani. It tells the story of a young man’s erotic and valiant adventures, who eventually becomes a Jain monk. To prevent local kings from becoming monks,…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist People often ask, if Aryabhatta invented zero, how did people count Ravana’s ten heads and Gandhari’s hundred heads before that. It is one of those foolish WhatsApp “mysteries” for people who do not realise number systems pre-dated the invention of the number zero. For example, ten…

Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist To be king, a man has to establish himself as belonging to a royal family. But what about the founder? How does he distinguish himself from the men he is supposed to rule over? How does he become a special man, a super human, with the power…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist In Indian mythology, two metaphors are used to explain the origin of things and the cause of things. These are womb (yoni, in Sanskrit) and seed (bija). Related to bija is the concept of fruit or phala. From the yoni comes the phala that contains the…