Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist ASAP is a popular acronym for ‘as soon as possible.’ But more often than not it is used to mean ‘immediately’ in corporate circles. In political, bureaucratic and judicial circles, it depends on the relationship of the beneficiary and the benefactor. If the beneficiary is powerful, then…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Stories of merchants are notably absent in Brahmin scriptures but are widespread in Buddhist scriptures. Shortly after the Buddha attained Nirvana, he was met by two merchants who fed him but admitted they could not practise the rigorous meditation techniques. The Buddha, therefore, advised them to…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist The Rajputs are warrior communities who thrived in the shadows of the Aravalli mountains and controlled the Thar Desert. Some even lived in the Punjab plains and Malwa plateau. They rose to prominence during the Mughal era, and scholars have long been trying to understand their…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist India’s oldest civilisation was the Harappan civilisation, which was a merchant civilisation. Over 4,000 years ago, in the Bronze Age, several planned brick cities stood along the Indus, the now-dry Saraswati, and the coasts of Gujarat. They traded tin, copper, lapis lazuli, carnelian and cotton with…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Social media is abuzz with a new generation of Babas on the internet. They are young, chubby and cute. They dress appropriately, say the right things and know how to play the media. They are gradually overshadowing the older generation of Babas, known for their beards,…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Across India, the fish is a sacred symbol — all kinds of fish. The salt-water fish (Surmai), fresh-water fish (Goonch), fish of ponds (Rohu) and rivers (Mahseer, dolphins), fish of deltas that travel upstream to spawn (Palla, Hilsa). Fish is linked with autonomy as it cannot…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist In the State of Punjab stands the temple of Achaleshwar Mahadev at Gurdaspur, while in nearby Haryana is the temple of Pehowa at Kurukshetra. What connects these two sites is their association with Kartikeya, the mighty son of Shiva and Parvati. Kartikeya is no longer a…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Rama once raised his bow to shoot an arrow at the impertinent sea. When the sea apologised, Rama did not know what to do with the arrow fixed on his bow; it could not be returned to the quiver as per Kshatriya code. So he turned…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist In India, we find two types of weddings: the lavish and the simple. Lavish weddings are typically seen in those who follow the Shaiva or Vaishnava path of householders. Simple weddings are typically seen in those who follow the Buddhist or Jain path of hermits. The…

By Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik – Author, Speaker, Illustrator, Mythologist Ravan is a favourite of Bollywood film-makers. He is depicted variously. We have seen films where Ravan is depicted as a devotee of Shiva (bhakta-Ravan), singing hymns and pleasing the hermit-god in many stories and television serials. Others have made him the perfect brother (bhaiyya Ravan)…