Devdutt Patnaik has impressed readers and listeners far and wide with his ability to not only unearth and bring to light mythology, but also to present them in a manner relevant to contemporary times. His prolific and powerful story has pushed many to try to analyze the myths about us and the society around us.
In an exclusive conversation with NW18, Patnaik talks about his recent audiobook, ‘Veda 360’, his earlier works, the inspiration behind them, his process of contextualising mythology, the relevance of myths, the perceptions around Indian mythology and much more. talked about something.
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The last few podcasts you worked on, Krishna 360 and Raavan 360 were well received by the audience. You have a brand new one named ‘Veda 360 Degrees’. The subjects you have worked on have varied widely from each other, as a storyteller how do you move from one story to the next?
This is an excellent question. It is said that when Vyasa composed, compiled and organized the Vedas, he was asked by Brahma to convert them into stories to make them accessible to the common man. This gave birth to the Ramayana, Mahabharata and other mythological stories. I’ve spent most of my life focused on these mythologies. However, now I am moving from fruit to seed. Veda, Krishna and Ravana were 360 degree fruit, and Veda is 360 degree seed. Therefore, being in the same worldview, it becomes much easier to move from one topic to another.
Can you give us an overview of your latest work and tell us what triggered it?
Audible has been fantastic in giving me a lot of freedom and it enables me to experiment with complex new ideas. As the title suggests, the podcast offers a 360 degree view of the Vedas. Ab is shorthand for 360 degree pradakshina, which is a traditional Hindu practice where we go around a deity or temple. We try to appreciate the deity as a whole and as a whole. I realize that nowadays many people use words like Veda very casually, without understanding what it means. There is no ordinary book. This podcast was designed to help people understand Vedas, Vedangas and Vedanta. So that they can understand concepts like Yagya. Also, there are stories related to sages, kings and different types of women. There are stories related to plants and animals. There are also stories related to what is called the Aryan Migration. There are questions and not much clarity in the media, so I decided to work on this project.
While working on the podcast, was there one story that really inspired you and one part that you’ll hold onto for a while?
I think working on the podcast, one of the things that impressed me was the stories of the women. We forget that there are 1000 verses in Rigveda which are composed mostly by men. They talk about rishis and women rishis, but their share is less than 5% of the entire collection. However, there are stories of women like Lopamudra, who vie for the attention of their husbands. It is the story of Urvashi, who gets tired of her husband and walks away from him, while her husband pleads with her to come back. Thus, in the oldest Hindu scriptures (the Vedas), we have stories of women vying for a husband’s attention, and of a woman who is bored with her husband’s attention. I think this tells us a lot about Indian society, which existed 3000 years ago. I also realized that no one wants to talk about these stories. They look at Indian women in a one-dimensional way, which is very sad.
For contemporary readers, how would you like to describe the importance and influence that the Vedas have today?
The Vedas talk about feeding the gods, ancestors and oneself. We often forget that life is all about food and eating. We use words like success and failure but what we really want is nurturing. I think this is the biggest lesson for us in the Vedas.
What do you want listeners to take away from Vedas 360 Degrees?
I think it’s great that Audible is helping me reach a larger and different audience because I want them to understand that Vedas are not something magical and mystical. They elaborate ideas that relate to their basic needs such as eating and nurturing themselves. Vedas also talk about nurturing others.
How do you, as a storyteller, ensure your narrative is impactful to young readers and listeners through your writing or audiobooks or anthology podcasts?
I try to make my writing as simple as possible. It deals with issues that contemporary people face. I do not believe that ancient literature is something magical or something that does not deal with the day to day issues of human life and human society. This is one of my core ideas. We are not much different from our ancestors in the face of our technology. Therefore, his stories will still contain information that sheds light on many of the issues we still face today. The stories of yesterday have the power to shine a light on the issues facing us today.
Do you face some difficulties while narrating a mythology? If yes, how do you overcome them?
The problem with the telling of mythology really lies not so much with the storyteller as it does with the listener. Audiences have certain assumptions about stories, based either on their own prejudices or on their limited reading. For example, they have a way in which Krishna or Ravana is seen. But when you really look through the vast scriptures, we find a wide variety of ideas in them. People are also confused by fantasy writers who try to present their own fiction as tradition, which is unfortunate. They try to use mythology for their own political agenda, which is even more unfortunate. My aim is to try to understand what the ancient scholars were trying to convey and make it accessible to the youth of today. I try very hard to keep my perspective away from these stories, and it’s a challenge.
How different is the creative process of making a podcast as opposed to audio as a medium and writing a book?
It is very different from writing, illustrating and lecturing in that it requires a different level of preparation. To create an audiobook or podcast, one has to work with sound engineers, sound studios, software, etc. However, the oral retelling of the story is a method of communication that is centuries old. For thousands of years, Indians preferred the oral transmission of stories and ideas. This is nothing new for me. It has its own advantages and disadvantages. When writing a book, I can move between ideas easily, because it is written material and can be easily referenced. This is the difference from an oral narrative. This proves to be a challenge.
In terms of Vedas, you had to get your facts right before working on the project. What process did you follow?
There is a huge amount of information, and many scholars have done a lot of research on the Vedas. You have a lot of books, and a lot of academic papers, and I’ve been studying these things for the last 20 years. So getting the facts is not that difficult. The problem is that some facts contradict each other. Some interpretations contradict each other, and sometimes the lines are unclear and I’m not sure what they mean, so it becomes a challenge.
What according to you is the significance of the various Vedic traditions that existed and some of which still exist? Do you personally believe that readers and listeners should be curious to know more about the prevailing social customs and beliefs in today’s times? What are some important lessons that one can take from them?
People are keen to understand what is Veda? What is Vedang? What is the difference between Veda and Shastra? What is Yajna? So these are the basic beliefs that people need to know. We also need to know that there will be some traditions that are conservative. I don’t usually associate myself with conservatives. I am more interested in the general reader. I am interested in the general reader’s curiosity about Vedic traditions. There are many practices of the past that can be valued today, but there are some practices of the past that do not need to be valued today. We must understand that the Vedas were composed at a time when we were a pastoral, agricultural society and today we live in a technological and digital world. Therefore, on a physical level, we cannot correlate the two worlds, but on an emotional level, we can.
Why is the mythological genre still so relevant to today’s youth?
The Mythology genre is not only relevant to the youth but also to humans everywhere. One of the reasons why fantasy, history and science fiction stories have such a huge fan following these days. I mean, Thor is now a very successful film franchise based on stories from Norse mythology. You see, science trumps fiction. But it is through imagination that humanity has created diverse societies. Imaginary ideas like God, reincarnation, justice and equality form our society.
What kind of perception do you wish Indians had about mythology?
Ever since humanity began to think they have been obsessed with existential questions. They tried to find answers by creating stories and myths. But they don’t realize that they don’t have to fully understand the complexities of life. Mythology is a medium through which we help people appreciate life. Even the most educated person on earth, a Nobel laureate in physics or chemistry, cannot fully understand the mysteries of life. The mysteries of life will last forever. When we sort out the stories of the past, we get closer to some clarity. Perhaps this clarity will bring us some peace.
What are some major differences between mythology and religion that one should pay attention to?
The religion focuses on monotheism. While the mythology is widespread; It deals with polytheism, monotheism and atheism. This applies not only to religion, but also to nationalism, secularism and other ideologies such as Marxism, Capitalism and Communism. Purana is basically someone’s truth or subjective truth or cultural truth. This is different from the objective truth that science follows.
What’s next for you, is there a new story playing on your mind at the moment?
Stories are always brewing in my mind. I just need time to figure out the framework in which I can put them. Currently, I am working with Audible to create a series on unknown stories of women and Indian mythology.
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