EXTRA READING: Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part E (Rama)

Rama's secret is to outgrow the beast to discover the divine. The battle between the Devas and the Asuras is aligned vertically, while the battle between the Manavas and the Rakshasas is aligned horizontally. Humans who uphold dharma (good) are called manavas while the humans who uphold adharma (bad) are called rakshasas who are described as demons. Rama is the only avatar of Vishnu to be worshipped as king. Rama is a man who upheld dharma as he upheld the code of civilization and refused to succumb to animal instincts despite temptation. Rama's role is to stay alert and ensure everybody behaves as they are expected to and if things go wrong, he has to rush to help as Vishnu would to set things to right. Rama has to remind people of their obligations to outgrow animal instincts and make sure things keep moving. In addition, Rama as the king has to punish law-breakers and reward law-abiders as Vishnu would do as well.

There are different accounts that state the different number of Vishnu avatars. Some say there are 10, some say 12, while other accounts state that there are 22 avatars of Vishnu. However, no matter how many avatars there are, it often has been commented that the order of Vishnu's descents follows the evolution of the man and the human avatars follow the varna system. An avatar redefines dharma for a particular age in time. Avatars are sent to this earth to balance human demands with nature's needs for as long as possible.

Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Rama) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Rama. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part D (Trivikrama)

Ignorance breeds insecurity and arrogance. Lakshmi and Saraswati are usually never seen together. The Devas and the Asuras focus on either Lakshmi or Saraswati only one at a time. Vishnu, however, focuses on both goddesses simultaneously. Lakshmi is Vishnu's connection to the earthly needs of humans. Saraswati is Vishnu's connection to the spiritual needs of man. He knows that the two goddesses do not get along so he keeps Lakshmi at his feet and Saraswati in his mouth. The journey to Sarawati, the goddess representing peace, goes from finite to infinite, which is a journey of "what I have" to "what I am." From Brahma's nostrils, Vishnu is incarnated as a boar with long tusks which is Vahara. From that day, Vishnu is the guardian of the earth, which is why he is the color blue.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Trivikrama) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Trivikrama. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part C (Kurma)

Wealth eludes the insecure. Lakshmi is a goddess who people worship because she provides our food, clothes, and homes. The Devas and Asuras are half siblings who are trying to save Lakshmi. The Devas and Asuras do not get along but work together to churn. Lakshmi rises from the ocean because of the Devas and Asuras. Lakshmi and Vishnu get together. Lakshmi has a sister named Alakshmi who represents conflict, the opposite of Lakshmi. They cannot live without each other.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Kurma) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Kurma. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part B (Matsya)

The overall secret of Matsya is that only humans can both empathize and exploit one another. The larger brain of humans allows humans to imagine, which inspires and makes us curious. The brain of humans allows the physical manifestation of spiritual reality which is born of Vishnu so we can realize Vishnu. Matsya is the fish avatar of the ten avatars of Vishnu. Manu is a man that represents all of humanity and here is his story. Manu's water pot that contains the fish is Manu's property which is quite different from the way animals mark their territory by their urine. In Manu's notion of property, one's territory is not inherited but instead, it is fought for. No rules and law protect one's existing territory. Without territory, animals will not survive. Now, Manu's fish has grown in size so it is transferred to a bigger water pot. As the fish continually grows, Manu takes care of it by providing bigger and bigger water bowls for the fish to live in. Manu takes care of that one fish but never considers the other fishes outside the bowl. The fish gets bigger and bigger, and it does not occur to Manu that the fish is strong enough to fend for itself as to throw it back into the ocean.The fish itself also never asks Manu if he can be let back into the ocean as he himself does not know if he can fend for himself to the point that the fish becomes dependent on Manu. Manu ends up having to put his fish into a lake because the fish is too big. Manu wonders why he is sad and suffering when he has spent all this time taking care of the fish. He blames a storm and curses the sea. However, he soon realizes that his obsession with the one fish made him become insensitive to the fish and to himself. Manu exclusively took care of that one fish but became insensitive when he did not take care of the rest of the fishes. The law of karma is that every action has a reaction that we experience. Manu understands his lesson and the fish he took care of comes back with a horn on his head which symbolizes Vishnu's sign.

Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Matsya) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Matsya. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part A (Mohini)

Mohini is the female version of Vishnu. Material reality is represented by females while spiritual reality is represented by males but both realities are interdependent on each other. Mohini is female in form but male in essence. Mohini is spiritual reality wrapped in material reality. However, this does NOT mean that men are only spiritual and women are only spiritualistic. Vishnu is a god who celebrates infinite growth spiritually and materialistically. Vishnu is worshipped because people inspire to be like him.

Maya is the measuring scale, Brahma is doing the measuring, and Prakriti is that which Brahma measures. Maya continually changes as Brahma's experiences and expectations changes. Therefore, what was right in the past may be wrong in the future; what was good in one part of the world may be bad in another part of the world; what one person considers beautiful another may consider ugly. This conflicts people and makes people question life.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Mohini) by Devdutt Pattanaik's (link)

Mohini. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part E

Subhadra wins over Draupadi and Abhimanya is born to Arjuna. Jarasandha is killed which makes Yudhisthir the next king.  Duryodhan is humiliated and Shakuni comes up with an evil plan. Yudhisthir puts on a gambling match to which Draupadi is at stake. 



Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Abhimanyu, son of Arjuna. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part F

Dushasan was pulling on the garments of Draupadi to humiliate her just as he did to her five husbands, the Pandavas. Draupadi looked to her husbands for help but none did. Therefore, Draupadi prayed to Krishna and he answered her prayer as to there was no end to her garments that Dushasan was pulling at. The Pandavas left Hastinapur with rage in their eyes. They wanted revenge on their cousins. The Kauravas sent the Pandavas an invitation to gamble and the Pandavas agreed to it even though they knew what was at stake. The Pandavas lost and were sent into exile for 13 years. While in the forest, Krishna visited them and saw the terrible condition that they were in to which he blamed himself for this happening. Krishna promised his support when the time came for revenge against the Kauravas. The brothers face many difficulties in the forest like fighting Kirmira and barely not having enough food and resources to survive. A wise sage came and visited them in the forest and told Arjun that he has to acquire Indra and Shiva's celestial weapons to win the war. In order to do so, Arjun paid his respect to Shiva to gain grace from him. As Arjun is paying his respect, he encounters and even fights Shiva to which Shiva grants him his mighty weapon. Next, Arjun meets Indra who invites him to Indralok. Arjun was not happy in Indralok because he missed his brothers and wife. In Indralok, there is a beautiful woman named Urvashi. Urvashi was attracted to Arjun and confessed her love for him. He did not feel the same way so she put a curse on him saying that he would not desire any women. While Arjun was in Indralok, his brothers were paying respect to the gods to which Bhim meets Hanuman.

Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Krishna visits the Pandavas and Draupadi in the forest. Source: Wikimedia Commons.