Top 91 Devdutt Pattanaik Quotes
#1. Every human creates his own imagined version of the world, and of himself. Every human is therefore Brahma, creator of his own aham.Aham Brahmasmi, I am Brahma. Tat tvam asi, so are you.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#2. God does not interfere with fate; he simply helps man cope with it.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#4. The Gita itself values subjectivity: after concluding his counsel, Krishna tells Arjuna to reflect on what has been said, and then do as he feels (yatha-ichasi-tatha-kuru). Even
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#5. If you don't have imagination, you stop being human; animals don't have imagination; Alzheimer's is the death of imagination.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#6. Within infinite myths lies an eternal truth Who sees it all? Varuna has but a thousand eyes Indra, a hundred You and I, only two.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#7. Through her, the Ramayan reminds us that even a victim can be a winner if he or she refuses to surrender to the circumstance.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#8. Accept that nothing happens without a reason. Accept that all experiences have a purpose. Accept
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#9. that which deludes you to be unhappy can be overpowered by another delusion that causes greater unhappiness
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#10. Shiva becomes the destroyer, acquiring strength and inspiration from his consort Shakti, who is both Gauri, radiant goddess of eroticism, and Kali, dark goddess of extermination.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#11. Indian sages avoided the written word as they realized ideas were never definitive; they were transformed depending on the intellectual and emotional abilities of the giver as well as the receiver.
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#12. Then be human. Let go and move on. They who hurt you cannot expand their mind. But surely you can.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#13. our actions have infinite consequences; we have limitless choices, if we open our mind to them. Thus, a shift in imagination brings about a dramatic shift in identity, meaning, value, assumptions and aspirations.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#16. Accept that infinite occurrences of the universe cannot be fathomed by the finite human mind.
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#17. What the person, who knows the truth, will speak, will not be understood by the person who does not know the truth.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#18. Nobody knows why we're alive; so we all create stories based on our imagination of the world; and as a community, we believe in the same story. In India, every person believes his/ her own mythosphere to be real. Indian thought is obsessed with subjectivity; Greek thought with objectivity.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#19. The notion of the measuring scale is critical in Hindu thought. The value of an object depends on the scale being followed. And since all scales are man-made, all values are artificial. Thus all opinions ultimately are delusions, based on man-made measuring scales.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#20. In humility, there is faith. When there is faith, there is no fear.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#21. Mythology is a subjective truth. Every culture imagines life a certain way.
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#22. Mythology is a vast body of knowledge that has not been tapped.
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#23. Surrender unconditionally, even in the absence of evidence, to the truth of the cosmos.
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#25. Prayer earns merit. Merit makes life predictable. Keeps away accidents and surprises.
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#26. Attainment of desirable states brings joy, failure to do so becomes sorrow.
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#27. We knot our imagination to fear to creat aham. Tapasya and yagna are two tools that can help us unknot the mind, outgrow fear and discover atma, our true self.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#28. There is great joy in satisfying oneself,' said Hanuman. 'But there is greater joy when we satisfy ourselves by satisfying others. Still greater joy when we do not need satisfaction. And even more joy, when despite not needing satisfaction, we provide satisfaction to others.
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#29. the law clearly stated that a man with a physical defect could not be king.
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#30. Life would continue, with joys and sorrows, triumphs and tragedies rising and falling like the waves of the sea. It was up to him to respond wisely, enjoy simple pleasures unshaken by the inevitable endless turmoil of the world.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#31. In the karmic worldview, you are queer because of karma, and it may be a boon or curse. In the one-life worldview, you are queer because you choose to be so, to express your individuality or to defy authority (Greek mythology) or God/Devil wills it so (biblical mythology).
Devdutt Pattanaik
#32. Rationalists believe Gandhari had only two sons, Duryodhana and Dusshasana, who are the only two of the hundred to play a significant role in the epic. They were probably twins, the 'two-year' pregnancy probably meaning 'twin' pregnancy.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#33. The Ramayana has never been a tale of Ram's life. It is a tale of how Ram lived for others. By retelling his tale, storytellers hope to inspire themselves and others to live as Ram did.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#34. These chants relieved vedana, the yearning of the restless human soul, hence became collectively known as the Veda. Those who heard them first came to be known as the Rishis.
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#35. Sometimes, you can see more than me, but you pretend to know less so that I don't feel intimidated by you. I do the same for you. We do not feel superior when the other is vulnerable; or inferior when we feel helpless. This is what sustains our relationship.
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#36. The world that is perceived through any measuring scale is called maya.
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#37. we believe our problems are the greatest and our misfortunes the worst, there is always someone out there who has suffered more.
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#38. Dharma must not only domesticate nature, it also needs to ensure there is harmony between nature and culture.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#39. What cannot be understood by the human intellect need not be feared because it ultimately comes from God
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#40. By associating Arjuna and Krishna to Nara and Narayana, Vyasa makes them creatures of destiny. Their birth is not random; they are born for a reason.
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#41. Lakshmi massages Vishnu's feet. Is this male domination? Kali stands on Shiva's chest. Is this female domination? Shiva is half a woman. Is this gender equality? Why then is Shakti never half a man?
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#42. It is easy to decide between right and wrong but it is difficult to decide between what is right and what is more right
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#43. It is difficult to establish where the effects of a boon end and the influence of a curse begins.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#44. In time, Radha became a goddess in her own right, the symbol of sacrifice, surrender and unconditional love.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#45. 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.
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#46. Kali is the forest. She is wild. Gauri is the garden. She is domestic. Kali stays outside the house. Gauri comes inside the house. That is why what is outside is scary and what is inside is not.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#47. with in a infinite myth their lies a eternal truth who sees it all. varuna has thousand eyes indra has hundred and you and i oly two.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#48. In India, the eldest has the most responsibility and the crown goes to him. The crown could go to a person with the most talent. But how could 'most talent' be determined? So Indian society settled on age.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#49. The ego is the product of imagination. It is how a human being sees himself or herself. It makes humans demand special status in nature and culture. Nature does not care for this self-image of human beings. Culture, which is a man-made creation, attempts to accommodate it.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#52. Arjuna, fair or unfair, the results of any action depend on five things: the body, the mind, the instruments, the method and divine grace (luck? fate?). Only the ignorant think they alone are responsible for any outcome. - Bhagavad Gita: Chapter 18, verses 13 to 16 (paraphrased).
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#53. I have been doodling since childhood. I have a passion for illustrating but cannot paint or colour for that matter. I illustrate what I am trying to communicate through my writing. My images are like drawings in a science text book.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#54. Janaka gave his daughters to the sons of Dashratha, saying, 'I give you Lakshmi, wealth, who will bring you pleasure and prosperity. Grant me Saraswati, wisdom. Let me learn the joy of letting go.' This ritual came to be known as kanya-daan,
Devdutt Pattanaik
#55. Myth is truth which is subjective, intuitive, cultural and grounded in faith.
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#56. 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.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#57. The events in your life are the result of your past deeds, performed in this lifetime or the ones before. You alone are responsible for it. Such is the law of karma.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#58. Though nobleman, he can never be king. Though cowherd, he can always lead.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#59. The people find great solace in the idea of a personal God whose grace, obtained through devotion, can overpower the shackles of karma and samsara. The
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#60. now I know the power of maya: that which deludes you to be unhappy can be overpowered by another delusion that causes greater unhappiness. Oh
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#61. The elephant goad represents Yama, the god of death and bondage. Ganesha thus acknowledges the life-giving aspect of nature as well as the life-taking aspect of nature.
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#62. but where does this nobility come from? Generosity or fear? Wisdom or ignorance?
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#63. Brahma splits Brahmanda into three parts: me, mine and what is not mine. This is Tripura, the three worlds.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#64. .. The point of human life is to travel from ignorance to wisdom. In ignorance there is fear. In wisdom there peace and tranquillity.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#65. Shiva's reluctance to marry is a consistent theme in Shaiva lore. In effect he opposes the birth of the cosmos, preferring the blissful state in which matter is in a state of entropy and the spirit is free of form. Not surprisingly, he is called the god of destruction.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#66. Krishna is wisdom. You are action. One without another is useless. All your battles you will win only when you are together.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#67. Such is the law of karma. Every action, howsoever innocent, has a reaction, that one has to experience if not in this life, then in the next,' said
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#68. In Hinduism, dharma means realizing our potential: changing ourselves into the best we theoretically can be. What is that? Humans
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#69. One can argue, why not simply give the solution; why go through the trouble of creating a puzzle? Ancient Hindus believed, wisdom must never be given. It has to be taken. And
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#70. If they became possessive and demanded exclusive attention, he disappeared completely, filling them with great misery and longing. They realized that bliss comes when love is shared with all.
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#71. Only the ignorant think they alone are responsible for an outcome
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#72. Lakshmi is Vishnu's bhoga-patni, connecting him with the earthly needs of man. Saraswati is Vishnu's moksha-patni, connecting him with the spiritual needs of man.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#73. The intellectual approach to Ganesha is called gyan yoga. The emotional approach to Ganesha is called bhakti yoga. And a mechanical, ritualistic, approach to Ganesha is called karma yoga. Different
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#74. Animal fight to defend their bodies. Humans curse to defend their imagination of themselves.
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#77. My deha is different from yours. My hungers are different from yours. My assumptions are different from yours. My capabilities are different from yours. My experiences are diferent from yours. My expressions are different from yours.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#78. If you can empathize with the fears that make people heroes, villains and victims, then you are doing darshan. For then you look beyond the boundaries that separate you from the rest.
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#79. The war is not for you, Arjuna, but for civilized human conduct. Remember,
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#80. Neither death nor wisdom has a full stop. There are only commas-no destinations, only waiting rooms.
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#81. business is neither a burden to bear nor a battle to win, but a chance to outgrow fear by helping others outgrow theirs. This
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#82. Realization occurs only when samsara is witnessed, not reacted to. This is moksha.
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#83. The aim is to get as close to nature as possible, shattering the tyranny of cultural values and judgements. In the Vedic approach, self-realization has to be achieved by detached adherence to cultural values and judgements, social roles
Devdutt Pattanaik
#84. Often in business we take decisions based on how we interpret the situation, not being sure of whether the call we have taken will work or not. When it works, we are often taken by surprise. But the world at large demands an explanation.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#85. Refusal to accept the flow of the world is the root of all misery.
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#86. This is complete, that is complete, from completeness comes completeness, when completeness is added or subtracted, it still remains complete.' This
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#87. The aim of his narrative is to remind all not to judge people without knowing their story. Even the worst of villains has a story that perhaps explains their actions, without condoning them.
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#88. All will be well if we repent of our sins, accept God's love and demonstrate it by following His law. This
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#89. Within infinite myths lies the Eternal Truth Who sees it all? Varuna has but a thousand eyes Indra, a hundred And I, only two
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#90. Humans alone of all living creatures can reject the law of the jungle and create a code of conduct based on empathy and directed at discovering the meaning of life.
Devdutt Pattanaik
#91. Fear is a constant, and faith is a choice. Fear comes from karma, from faith arises dharma.
Devdutt Pattanaik
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