Understanding the Hindu Mythology in Modern World.
Don’t we all comprehend our logic and put reasoning behind what really happened in Brahma Loka or why it’s been said that Lord Krishna was a perfect incarnation of Lord Vishnu? Are Mythological tales more than just folklore?
While it is said to be that there is no one mythology for the world today or for the future, different people have their own understanding of mythology, re-framing old ones or creating new ones, so as is the case with Hinduism too. Though it is believed to be the oldest religion on earth, like others it has its own theory of birth too. So, let’s understand how stories, symbols, and rituals construct the subjective truth (myths) of ancient and modern cultures around the world and what is the science behind the creation of all the Gods every Hindu worships today.
It was the time when time itself was unborn and nothing literally existed when it’s been believed that an Energy of Creation was born out of a golden egg representing the Hindu four Vedas (Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda). Later, got its offsprings of two more energies that were Energy of Sustainability and Energy of Destruction, and these three energies later became the key to understand the formation and base of Hinduism. In today’s world, we know these energies as BRAHMA-VISHNU-MAHESH.
During the formative period when the basic foundations of Indian civilization were laid down, Hinduism was born too. Scholars are not sure if ideas came first or language. Did we first communicate using gestures that became rituals, then symbols which became art, or words that eventually we put down in texts? On the contrary, when the rest of the tribe looked on the cosmic energies as the supreme power of their existence, it became even more vital to explain the importance of its occurrence hence a great deal in storytelling and worshiping an idol or image took place.
Hinduism being a hybrid religion has always followed idol worship at the bottom level, but at the top level of Vedanta philosophy, there is a formless God. There is a story in Hinduism to show why.
A guru was teaching his students about a particular star. The students wanted to know where it appears in the sky. The guru just lifted his arm and asked the students to follow his finger. Once the students sighted the star, the guru put his fingers down. But, the students were still able to see the star. That is the role of idol worship in Hinduism.
Since then Crippled down to millions of years now, people have invented different ways to keep Hindu traditions alive. From Fasting to Teerth Yatra to introducing cultural education in High school people adapted all forms of stories, resulting in a remarkable strength of followers to Hindu religion. So, the stories became even more powerful.
Just like how, from a very tender age we push a child to indulge in various stories to understand the nature of the character, emotion, situation, history, or perhaps what is more allied to his imagination; the seed gets plotted in his mind which later grows into a carrier of strong faith, opinion, judgment or a very strong voice for change. Similarly, during the Vedic period, it became easy to characterize the three cosmic energies by giving them a name and face; which further made it relatively relatable for people to follow and get a sense to have some faith in the religion. And this is how it all started, giving voice to the thoughts, idolizing visual energy, and emerging into our own beliefs.
While ancient myths are products of their time they evolved too, crossing every culture and language the Vedic Age of Ancient India gave way to a more complex social civilization that got caught up with choosing sides. Since science is about measurement and experimentation and evidence, myth is about faith. They are two very different worlds. Science is best when dealing with the matter. Myth is best when dealing with the mind, especially emotions and imagination. So, as a country, India has its equal share in the fight between Science and Myths.
Retelling Stories from the Vedic Age in Today’s World!
Some so many modern authors are putting fantastic efforts into retelling the Hindu Mythology in times like these, where people like a herd follow rituals, traditions without understanding its depth of origin, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni an award-winning and best-selling author did a great job in narrating two beautiful and gripping stories from Indian Vedic age “The Forest of Enchantments” and “The Illusion of Palace” made a fantasy come true moment for all the worldly people who are still strangled in their thoughts on Hindu mythology being a myth or a part of ancient history. She beautifully did justice on retelling “Ramayana” and “Mahabharata” from a female point of view where both Sita and Draupadi were portrayed as a very meek, wronged character and was humiliated and harassed in a distinctly gendered manner.
However, being a part of this contemporary world where every story is being passed over generations and perfectly presented in a new layer of opinion, belief, and judgment; history has lost its true identity. With all the fabricated thoughts been associated with our religion, it has become difficult to choose sides. So, when the cultures and traditions are being questioned and judged by the young generation it is inevitable that lines will get blurred. You’ll find festivals like Diwali and Holi being celebrated by everyone- not just Hindus. Where Hindu brides wear Red Chuda and a Mangalsutra around their necks, Christian women have nobly adopted this tradition too now. A red color Saree or Lehenga was traditionally worn by Hindu brides to reflect the image of Durga who is the inner strength of every Indian woman, and also to signify the symbol of prosperity and fertility; the youth today has a mind of their own. They choose to see ancient history as a tool to produce a meek of a gender hence you can see brides flaunting their pink, yellow, blue Lehenga’s in accord to voice out their opposition against religion. And in a way, this was bound to happen too.
With this drastic shift of ideologies and an influx of new definitions given to the religions, people have found their escape to understand the logic behind worshiping the cosmic energies. In modern times when digital competency has become the most important skill, more so than the understandings of right and wrong, ethical and non-ethical actions, mythology has taken a backseat. Perhaps, this whole human existence has become a mere institution that practices idolatry without looking into the inner layers of its belief. Books, stories allow us to see the truth from all perspectives, but, are we doing justice with the wings they provide us? Are we doing a fair analysis of this subject? Prayers will be sung, films will be made, authors will continue writing stories, society will keep giving birth to new god-man and they will keep forming new institutes of faith, beliefs, and understanding any religion from a whole new angle, however:
- We the Sapiens need to know the truth.
- Generate better ways to deal with the connectivity problem we face to understand our mythology which is by far available in abstruse forms of books which is difficult for a commoner to read.
- Get a better grip on the cultural roots.
As much as these thoughts have intrigued generations after generations, let them not just cultivate within us as folklore but also understand them with all logical angles too. We need this in accord to sustain our Hindu cosmic history for millions of years ahead while not forgetting to present it in a much better way rather just leaving it for a political and religious debate.
