The modern myth of progress and prosperity that is depicted in the life style of Kanthi and Sheetal, is contrasted with the lifestyle of Ravindra’s grandmother. Anoop is contrasted with Raveendra.
Right at the outset, the gargantuan novel ‘Tantu’, evokes the myth concerning the temple of Basavanapura. According to the local myth and historical legends, the temple was built by the great sculptor Jakkanachari himself. Many towns and villages in...
Mythological stories and their function
‘Daatu’ explores the multiple dimensions of myths, legends, stories and incidents from mythology, legends, folklore, historical and anthropological myths are used very effectively in the novel to elucidate the picture of the contemporary society and the degenerate state of man's mind, at present. The novel begins with the narration of the historical legend about the village of Tirumalapura. There is a...
Even today it is believed that if the ‘śrāddha’ rites for ancestors are performed once in Gaya, they need not be performed again every year thereafter. The ancestors would attain ‘Viṣṇu-pāda’ (Viṣṇu's feet) i.e., salvation through this. These rites may be performed here, not only for one’s parents, but for any of the person’s relatives or friends. Even childless people may perform their own śrāddhas here (page-186 ‘Saartha’). This myth regarding...
'Nele’ and ‘Saakshi’ unveil the myths, rites, rituals, and customs related to death, funerals, the world after death, against the realistic backdrop the life in this world. These two works explore the roots of existence, ethics and emotions and lay bare the inner psyche of man, by fusing our realistic world, which is comprehensible through the senses, with the incomprehensible, surrealistic world of myths and mythological characters and...
Legends, Stories from Mythologies - Religious Rites, Rituals
As legends, mythological stories, religious rites and rituals intertwine with each other in many instances, I would like to present these under one title.
In ‘Vamshavruksha’, where we come across many excerpts from the ‘Dharmashastra’, there are descriptions of the annual rituals that are performed in a Brahmin family in the memory of the dead (the shraaddha). This annual ceremony is...
Nature Myths: In novels like ‘Vamshavruksha’, Jalapatha’, ‘Grahana’, ‘Datu’, ‘Parva’, ‘Nirakarana’, ‘Nele’ and some other novels, nature myths, natural phenomena and natural features like rain, spring or change of seasons, rivers, floods, cataracts, eclipses, mountains have been used effectively to reveal the influence of nature on the human situation. The use of rain as a nature myth has been exploited to its maximum limit in Bhyrappa’s magnum...
The use of myth in ‘Saakshi’ also functions beautifully at another level by equating the mythical and magical power with the creative power of disinterested observation in an artist (novelist). This reminds me of what Coleridge says ‘’about the magical power of creativity, the power of an artist, in his poem ‘Kublakhan’:
‘That with music loud and long
I would build that dome in air,
That Sunny dome! Those caves of ice;
And all who heard should...