Mudita Chauhan-Mubayi - Mythonama: The Big Book of Indian Mythologies

A story can be so many things. A joke that makes you giggle till your sides hurt or a tragic tale that makes you weep. It can stump you with an unanswered question or enlighten you with a life lesson. A heroic ballad or a pithy parable, it can entertain you, mystify you, irritate you or, well, bore you! As long as there have been people, as long as there will be people, as long as there are thoughts, there will be stories. And thats what myths are. Stories of old, very old times and people and events, told and retold by people like you and us, generation after generation, civilization after civilization.

Like a fairy tale, a myth may begin with Once upon a time..., but may not always end with And they lived happily ever after. Often, it is a mystery how a myth began. Then, there are multiple versions of the same myth. Siblings from one legend may be friends in another or spouses in a third! This is because myths are narrated or written by different people in different circumstances to explain different situations, perhaps to different audiences. Whether factual or fictional, myths are clearly persistent. From legendary stories of epics like the Avesta, Quran or Mahabharata to brand icons like Medusa of Versace or Hanuman of Maruti, myths are all around us. And, like stories, myths are many things.

It is said that Krishna spoke the entire Gita (yes, hundreds and hundreds of verses!) on the battlefield of Kurukshetra to inspire Arjuna. You may believe this, or not, but if you read it, you will find many tips that will guide you in school, at home, in an inter-school match, in dealing with your siblings, in an examination, in how you speak with people and how you use social media! The trick is to see through the myth and find its core idea: friendship or loyalty, business and sportsmanship, good versus evil, caring for animals or perhaps even sustainability and conservation of resources.

Be it the Bible, the Torah or the Guru Granth Sahib; shlokas in the Vedas or Hadith in the Quran; agamas and sutras of Jainism and Buddhism; or the countless stories in cults, clans and communities, treasure troves of tales are waiting to be heard, dissected, interpreted, reimagined, retold... to perpetuate the process of myth-making, of which we are all a part.

So, lets dive right into the ocean of legends from Indias many mythologies. Remember, mythology does not equal religion. Characters, places and events in myths are as sacred as they are secular; they represent ideas that transcend ideologies. Let us time-travel with them, let us learn about fantastic beasts and mind-boggling weapons, but let us also open our minds and hearts to the gems of knowledge in these myths.

Through anecdotes, fables, quizzes, crosswords, illustrations and other activities, this book brings to you but a fraction of the fathomless mythology of this land. We hope you enjoy reading and learning this book, and that it sets you off on a wonderful journey of discovery.

How did our universe begin? When did it come into existence? Who made it?

Every civilization has creation myths to answer these questions and tell us about the beginnings of Earth, life and nature. Most start in similar wayswith stories or theories on nothingness or chaos, often in a liquid state, from which emerged gods, lands, humans, animals and more. Sometimes such stories make it seem like it all came into being via primal 3D printing. You may find these tales funny, fantastical, even incredible. You may relate them to theories like the big bang. And you may even discover deeper meanings. And so we begin our bookright from the startby delving into creation myths.

Then even nothingness was not, nor existence,

There was no air then, nor the heavens beyond it.

What covered it? Where was it? In whose keeping?

Was there then cosmic water, in depths unfathomed?

Then there was neither death nor immortality

nor was there then the torch of night and day.

The One breathed windlessly and self-sustaining.

There was that One then, and there was no other.

At first there was only darkness wrapped in darkness.

All this was only unillumined cosmic water.

That One which came to be, enclosed in nothing,

arose at last, born of the power of heat.