A myth about male arrogance and how the goddess Durga was invoked to defeat demons who never conceived a female could best them.
Category: Hindu Mythology
Indra’s Ants and the Fall of the House of Musk
All things come to pass, and ego, while it can drive big things bigly (to borrow from King Donald), ego has a way of upending itself. No… Read more “Indra’s Ants and the Fall of the House of Musk”
Don’t tell Icarus: Hanuman Tries to Eat the Sun
Cast of Characters: Indra: God of the Storms and Kings of the Gods (Devas), though he serves more as a first among equals rather than a Celestial… Read more “Don’t tell Icarus: Hanuman Tries to Eat the Sun”
Neelakantha: Why Shiva’s Neck Is Blue
The Story of How Shiva’s Neck Turned Blue; Neelakantha and the Churning of the Cosmic Ocean (Samudra Manthan)
Shiva’s Other Child: Batara Kala, Lord of the Underworld
Before getting into the origin(s) and function(s) of Batara Kala, the Javanese/Balinese God of the Underworld, a little back story is necessary. Hinduism enjoyed a brief but… Read more “Shiva’s Other Child: Batara Kala, Lord of the Underworld”
Who Wants To Live Forever? Markendaya and the End of the World
There’s an old adage about death and taxes being the only two certainties in life. Now, taxation is a function of government – death is a function… Read more “Who Wants To Live Forever? Markendaya and the End of the World”
Punished for Beauty: Shurpanakha
India has two great epic poems, comparable to the Iliad and the Odyssey. Both are tied into Avatars of Vishnu; Rama has the starring role in the… Read more “Punished for Beauty: Shurpanakha”
Kalki, the Tenth Avatar of Vishnu, Hindu Cycles of Time, and the End of World as We Know It…
Hindu calculations of time are tricky business; they reckon units of time that are measured against a day of Brahma, the creator God. How long does a… Read more “Kalki, the Tenth Avatar of Vishnu, Hindu Cycles of Time, and the End of World as We Know It…”
B_, the Ambiguous Ninth Avatar of Vishnu
As we’ve seen earlier, there are two competing theories as to why mythic motifs keep recurring through the world; one is that they are archetypal, and therefore… Read more “B_, the Ambiguous Ninth Avatar of Vishnu”
Krishna, the Eight Avatar of Vishnu
It was tricky putting together a narrative for Rama, the seventh Avatar of Vishnu. While there are definitely strains of Hinduism (mostly Shiva/Shakti lineages) that ignore the… Read more “Krishna, the Eight Avatar of Vishnu”