Quotes from Devdutt Pattanaik

My husbands will kill you,' screamed Draupadi. Jayadhrata

Only the truly enlightened know the world as it truly is; the rest construct a reality that comforts the ego. The

In the Ramayana, Rakshasas represent a way of life where all behaviour is instinctual and self-indulgent, governed by fear and insecurity. Rishis represent the opposite way of life, where all instincts, be they sexual or violent, are regulated for the benefit of the world. Ram

When the mind is knotted in fear, the problem is always outside, never inside.

both mythology and philosophy present the same idea: the former communicates through a story, along with symbols and rituals, while the latter uses precise language. Mythology creates a more visceral experience, and so appeals to everyone, not just the intellectual.

To do yagna is to recognize that we live in a sea of assumed expectations and obligations. You and I can hoard, grab, give in order to get, get before giving or simply withdraw from the exchange. We can act out of desire, duty or care. We can choose to expect or control outcome, or not.

Both travelling to holy spots and listening to sacred stories are believed to reduce the burden of karmic debts and increase the load of karmic equity.

There are many stories of Ganesha's birth besides the one in which Shiva beheads Vinayaka. In one story, Ganesha is born when Shiva and Shakti make love taking the form of elephants. In another, Shiva creates a child of his own image for the pleasure of Shakti but since he looks too much like the father, Shakti replaces his head with that of an elephant.

Ram and Ravana represent two ends of the human spectrum.

Empathy enables exchange

To build a business, we need decision-makers and decision-followers. He who takes decisions is the karta. He who follows decisions is called a karya-karta.

Thus, metaphysically, Kalki will destroy everything, even death. He will destroy all structures so that none exist. In other words, he will herald Pralaya.

Thus, showing does not guarantee seeing. Telling does not guarantee hearing. Gyana is not vi-gyana.

Tadaka subscribes to no rules, Ahalya breaks a rule while Sita follows all rules.

Serpents are symbols of change and renewal. Like the earth they renew their fertility by replacing old skin with new. Since they could slither above and below the earth, they were considered keepers of the earth's secrets and hence symbols of occult lore.

Thus a decision taken to please the ego turns out to be dear in the long run.

Sita is domestic and chaste because Ram pays her attention. Ahalya is unfaithful because Gautam neglects her. Tadaka is wild because her husband is dead and she is attached to no single man. Thus the onus of maintaining a field falls squarely on a farmer. In

We can never know everything and we can never be sure. All information is incomplete, and all readings distorted by personal prejudice. And yet we have to take decisions all the time and hope the results favour us.

At a symbolic level, the forest and field are metaphors for the mind. The forest is the untamed mind. The field is the domesticated mind. The consciousness is the farmer. If one is conscious like Ram, faithful and attentive, the mind will be like Sita. When one is conscious like Gautam, ignoring the mind, the mind will be seduced by temptation. In the absence of awareness, the mind will be wild with no direction.

When you make a tomb, make another tomb next to mine.' When asked why, he said, 'When my poet friend hears of my departure, he will come to me and want to die and be buried beside me.' 'But you have never met him. How do you know he will come?' 'I know him. And he knows me. He will come.' And the poet did come. And the two friends were buried next to each other.

Dharma must be valued over family or friends,' he

Control creates domesticated animals. The purpose of society is to inspire humanity, not tame them

All work has inadequacies; even fire is enveloped by smoke.—Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 18, verses 47 and 48 (paraphrased).

observers create observations!