Interview by Varsha Sreenivasan
[box]Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik is trained in medicine but is currently the Chief Belief Officer at Future Group. But that is not what most believe is his trump card. He has not only chosen a rare hobby but has also devoted his career to his hobby for the last 15 years. Meet Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik, Mythologist. In an interview to Varsha Sreenivasan, he talks about Indian culture, Hindu Mythology and Western mythic thinking.[/box] [box type = “bio”]Dr. Devdutt Pattanaik is a medical doctor by education. Mythology is his passion. He is the author of many popular books including, ‘Myth = Mithya: A Handbook of Indian Mythology’, ‘Book of Ram’, ‘Jaya : An Illustrated Retelling of the Mahabharata’, ’99 Thoughts on Ganesha’ and ‘7 Secrets from Hindu Calendar Art’. His columns also appear in different magazines and newspapers.[/box]1. How would you define Indian culture and what do you feel are the most crucial factors sustaining it?
Dr.Devdutt Pattanaik
Indian culture is a culture that values rebirth and subjective thinking, hence diversity. It is sustained by our diversity. And it sustains our diversity.
2. Mythology is ingrained into the very psyche of the Indian people. How do you think India differs in its cultural beliefs from countries like Greece and Egypt?
Mythology is ingrained in every human being’s psyche. Americans are as ingrained in Mythology as are Europeans and Africans. Indian thought is unique as it is governed by principles of rebirth. Rest of the world believes that we live only once; this is the only chance.
3. Do you believe India’s defining factor, ‘Indian-ness’, has undergone change since independence? If so, how do you think it has changed?
Yes, we are trying to get more and more westernised, by which I mean we are thinking one-life, and hence linear rather than rebirth and cyclical. We want all things to happen in one lifetime, before our eyes. This sense of urgency has created a missionary zeal that never existed in India.
4. Which mythological stories do you feel have defined the very foundation of Indian culture and beliefs and sustained it? Can you give some instances of how an Indian applies these beliefs sub-consciously in his everyday life?
Ramayana and Mahabharata are the key stories that have sustained Indian society. These two epics tell the story of the same God over two lifetimes. In one, God follows rules. In another, God breaks rules. So, as Indians, we are never sure when to follow rules and when to break rules. This doubt manifests in the famous Indian headshake from side to side. We think contextually and subjectively, unlike objective compliance driven cultures of the West and the East.
5. Like you pointed out, the Indian cultural context values subjective thinking and the rebirth philosophy. The West values objective goal-oriented thinking and believes in a linear one-life model. Do you believe that being rooted in such a cultural context helps Indians deal better with stress than their Western counterparts?
Every cultural system has cost and benefit so there is nothing better or worse about them. Indian cultural systems seek to teach faith and patience but it comes at the price of material obsession. The Western linear thinking took us to the moon and gave us world wars.
6. If you feel Indian values are getting eroded resulting in the increased susceptibility of Indians to stress, what do you feel we can change as a country or initiate to make a difference?
Values are not static. They keep changing over time. Practices of Vedic India are very different from practices of Buddhist India, which in turn were very different from practices of Mughal India. As a country, schools and colleges teach the educated class to be either embarrassed by India (left wing ideologies) or chauvinistic about India (right wing ideologies). Both these are driven by the quest to be ‘objective’ and ‘scientific’ which is the very opposite of traditional Indian thought that celebrates subjectivity, pluralism and diversity.
7. We are continually seeing the rise and fall of great economies in the Western world. Somehow, India stands robust in the face of different types of adversities. What do you feel Indian companies should do to bank on the strength and resilience of Indian-ness?
Western economies are based on material growth. Both capitalism and communism (even socialism) assume that wealth is the solution to life’s problems. They do not bother about intellectual and emotional growth. India is becoming increasingly the same. But as it always happens, Western wealth theories are being challenged and people are seeking answers elsewhere. Indian thought is poised to help the world rethink its civilisation strategy.
8. In the race for development along the lines of the West, many believe Indian corporates had turned a blind eye to the core factor called ‘Indian-ness,’ which mandates intellectual and emotional growth along with economic expansion, in its definition of development, as you have rightly highlighted. When you engage with other organisations during your workshops and seminars, are you seeing corporates working on re-examining their mode of operation and trying to consciously make provisions to accommodate the Indian subjective and inclusive definition of development?
This is not a matter of instruction. People do not change because you ‘tell’ them. Saraswati comes only in bust time, Lakshmi in boon time. But while Lakshmi comes to you upfront, you have to turn around and look at Saraswati. We are too busy chasing Lakshmi to turn around…..but there is no hurry, the gods have infinite patience as we have infinite lives.
9. Since it is becoming increasingly clear that the core strength and power source of the Indian people lies in their beliefs and the learning from their mythology, would you like to suggest a method to work it into the blueprint of our formal education system to inspire and sustain future generations?
Not just Indian, this is true for people all over the world. We have since the 17th century ignored subjective truth and focused on objective truth (science) and are paying the price for it. Indian mythology explicitly celebrates subjective truth. The others don’t. That is the only difference. I have no blueprint. Future generations are very much capable of surviving without my help. This ‘doom’ scenario is classical Western linear mythic thinking that seems to be afflicting many people who have lost touch with Indian mythic thinking.
10. Would you like to share any plans you have for the near future, or any activity you are currently involved in which will help readers identify with and give a perspective on your work?
I invite everyone to visit/share devdutt.com
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