Quotes from Devdutt Pattanaik

In Greek mythology, the hero wants to be great, but the very concept does not exist in the Indian vocabulary. Yet it has become the global template. And it's a template that won't fit in India.

that which deludes you to be unhappy can be overpowered by another delusion that causes greater unhappiness

If you don't have imagination, you stop being human; animals don't have imagination; Alzheimer's is the death of imagination.

I write on sacred stories, symbols and rituals of all cultures - European, American and Chinese - but my audiences, typically, like me to focus on India.

Mythology is a vast body of knowledge that has not been tapped.

Within infinite myths lies the eternal truth Who sees it all? Varuna has but a thousand eyes, Indra has a hundred, You and I, only two.

Refusal to accept the flow of the world is the root of all misery.

To be a woman is like becoming a prey, her every move watched by hungry predators. Every glance of man is a violation. No one is spared. No one. Not mother, not sister, not daughter. It is only fear of Dharma that keeps men in check.

is not about making the world a peaceful place; it is about us being at peace with the world.

Unlike Greek narratives, where achievement is celebrated, and biblical narratives, where submission and discipline are celebrated, in Indic thought understanding is celebrated.

What we possess is temporary, but what we become is permanent.

Be the best you can be, in the worst of circumstances, even when no one is watching.

Through Karna, Vyasa reiterates that our knowledge of the world is imperfect based on perceptions and false information. We are surrounded by Kuntis who hide the truth in fear. We are surrounded by Karnas, villains who are actually brothers.

Action focussed on intent is better than action focussed on outcome.

The Gita does not speak of changing the world. It speaks of appreciating the world that is always changing.

The dog is a loyal, lovable animal but Hindu scriptures do not treat it as an auspicious creature perhaps because loyalty feeds on fear and the purpose of Vedic scriptures is to outgrow fear by expanding the mind.

Everybody dies—some suddenly, some slowly, some painfully, some peacefully. No one can escape death. The point is to make the most of life—enjoy it, celebrate it, learn from it, make sense of it, share it with fellow human beings—so that when death finally comes, it will not be such a terrible thing.

human memory is short, and history always repeats itself.

Janaka told her to bring happiness into marriage, rather than seek happiness from it.

We are not rational creatures who feel; we are emotional creatures who rationalize.

Impatience is the enemy of wisdom; it propels us to jump conclusions, judge and condemn, rather than understand

Krishna replies that nothing is wasted or destroyed in the cosmos. All efforts are recorded and they impact future lives. Knowledge acquired in the past plays a role in the wisdom of future lives.

The female form lends itself best to represent matter because both create life within themselves. The male form lends itself best to represent soul because both create life outside themselves.

That's unnatural.' 'Some would call it a miracle. Careful of the word unnatural. It reeks of arrogance. You are assuming you know the boundaries of nature. You don't. There is more to life than your eyes can see. More than you can ever imagine. Nature comes from the mind of God. It is infinite. The finite human mind can never fathom it in totality.