The Mythologist and Author was speaking at the second edition of ABP Network’s ‘Ideas of India’ summit
Mumbai, 24 February 2023: “People do not differentiate between Mythology and Mythological Fiction, science and scientific fiction, history and historical fiction”, said Devdutt Patnaik, a Mythologist, Author, Illustrator and Speaker. Speaking at ABP Network’s second edition of the ‘Ideas of India’ summit, he said mythology is a belief system, therefore, equality, justice and human rights are all mythology.
Speaking on the topic, ‘The Epic Stories – Why our Myths are still alive’, he talked about democracy also being a belief system. “Like autocracy, democracy is also a belief system, a cultural phenomenon. It is an idea where everybody’s truth is valid, and where everyone can have a fruitful conversation,” he added.
Diversity by definition is inefficient, believes Devdutt Patnaik. India is a diverse nation that comprises of various languages, cultures and traditions, and thus there is no uniformity. Commenting on this, the mythologist said, “The West, which has uniformity can’t handle diversity. India which is diverse and therefore inefficient, can handle complexity much more.” He further added that India is polytheistic and will fight against monotheism, which is where the democracy is heading.
The summit promises an invigorating line-up of speakers with prominent figures from the world of business, politics, artists from the Hindi Film Industry, authors and other eminent sectors. The two-day conference confluences diverse ideas from various industries to promote India in becoming a burgeoning leader in the world.
