Book Review - 7 Secrets of the Goddess

 

Book Review – 7 Secrets of the Goddess

7 Secrets of the Goddess is the fourth book in the 7 Secrets series by medical doctor-turned-mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik. In this book he tells seven tales, of Hindu goddesses, discussing narratives of feminism, gender relationship, symbolism, influences and others. As in his previous work Dr Pattanaik brings mythology to the common reader in his lucid language. He delves into discussions of traditional interpretations and questions them too. From Kali to Durga to Saraswati their origin, various stories of divergent versions, transitions in imagery and contemporary views are described. Apart than the text, the book scores a major vantage point for the relevant pictures with description which constitutes half of the book, literally.

The first chapter is on Gaia, the point of origin, the source of life and the author by virtue of his meticulous research gives us different versions of the origin. Gaia in greek, Sedna in Arctic, Adya in Tantrik traditions, Atum in Egypt are all the source of life who belonged to a female dominated culture. The chapter on Kali is exhaustive perhaps because of her finding mention in the beginning of the four thousand year old Hindu culture and the transitions that image of Kali has undertaken beginning from Tantrik traditions to neo-colonial era, from being linked to death to worshipped as Radha or affectionate mother to being associated with feminist movement.

Gauri, Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Vitthai are the other chapters in the book. One does find a flow in the chapters as mentioned above and which is a welcome change in style when one compares few of the authors other books which have more number of short stories loosely bound together. In these chapters apart than describing the stories associated with the goddess in focus, Dr Pattanaik raises more relevant issues like advent of Sati tradition, bhakti phase of Hinduism, symbolic readings of mythology, Indian philosophy, relationship with wealth and numerous other narratives.

A lot of space is allotted to description of Goddess vis-à-vis Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Numerous stories of how Brahma’s control-seeking and incestuous behavior makes him outcast and has no temples dedicated to him, Vishnu who is intimately associated with Goddesses and Shiva who both withdraws from her and is domesticated by her are present throughout the seven chapters. Though the repeated mentions across chapters may confuse a reader, on careful reading it could be seen as an underlying theme common to all origins of deities. Also a recurring theme has been that of grama-devis, an important institution when it comes to the large swathes of villages, and which perhaps not many mythologists have given due importance.

7 Secrets of the Goddess becomes an important reading in contemporary gender debates. The shift from Vedic to Puranic culture, the role of emergence of Buddhism and its effect on Hinduism, the invasion of Islam and then the influence of another monotheistic religion Christianity had a bearing on how Goddess was perceived in those times. It could safely be said that domestication of Goddess and thereby females increased over the time. Could it then be termed unwarranted or evil or only a natural progression; 7 Secrets of the Goddess will help you raise these questions and seek their answers.

Shikhandi - Book Review

 

Dr Devdutt Pattanaik has talked about mythology in a manner that has both drawn more people to read and at the same time provided interpretations that has been thought provoking. In his book ‘Shikhandi – and other tales they don’t tell you’ he dwells upon a contentious issue present widely in mythology, that of queerness. Such topics of sexuality needs to be viewed with ‘cultural filters’ to understand, which the author has provided in his interpretations at the end of each story.

Dr Pattanaik begins with describing an important fact of how ideas and interpretations of Indian mythology changed after monastic orders of Buddhism and Jainism established in 500 BC. Monasticism is a religious way in which one renounces worldly pursuits to achieve god. And such an order pleasure was frowned upon; the Hindu matha traditions favored yoga (restraint) over bhoga (indulgence). Thus queerness which is replete in mythology began being portrayed as abnormal.

The book begins with instances of queerness not just in Hindu mythology but in Persian, Chinese, Egyptian, Viking and other mythologies. In part II, which is the body of the book the author tells the stories of Shikhandi, Mahadev, Vishnu, Mandhata, Skanda and 30 such found in Indian mythology. A byline for all the titles has been provided like ‘who became a man to satisfy her wife’ for Shikhandi, which drives home the underlying idea of the story.

The story of Shikhandi, by virtue of it being part of Mahabharat is well known. How Bhishma was pinned to the ground by Shikhandi, a girl born to Drupada but trained as a son, on 10^th day of the battle was a landmark moment. There are plenty of references to Krishna and Shiva, who have cross dressed, turned into women, turned other men into women on curse or request. Krishna perhaps in turning into Mohini to marry Aravan (Tamil folklore), in dressing as a female for the Gopis or with Arjuna or in dancing with Gopeshwara (Shiva himself), exhibit widest range of queer behavior. The idea perhaps as the author suggests is to portray that ‘purna-purusha’ has various other facets as well.

The diversity of the book is good with stories from Tamil Ramayana, folklores of Bengal, and various other areas of the country present. Oral traditions of hijras, Puranas, Valmiki Ramayana, Bengali Rampachali, Bhagavata Purana, Skanda Purana Tamil Purananuru are few of the sources of the stories. It serves to drive home the point that examples of queerness and not-so-watertight gender classifications are found in all mythologies. Even though the bulleted point pattern of description might make reading easier or difficult for some, the book finds great relevance in modern times where queerness is looked down upon and is uncomfortable to be discussed about.