The Ascetic and The Householder

(Penguin Petit)

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Shiva is believed to be a tapasvin in Kailasa and a householder in Kashi. In Kailasa he is a distant ascetic, someone who has no desires, no feelings, no urges. But in Kashi, Shiva experiences emotions, he cares, he is man for a woman. In Kailasa he lives in severe isolation but in Kashi, he lives with his wife as Shankara.

As per Hindu mythology, the restlessness of matter—living an involved, emotionally fulfilling life—is believed to be necessary in the search for stillness, for transcendence. This intriguing back and forth between the two energies that feed each other is what makes the world go around.

Read on as Devdutt Pattanaik, the master of mythology, expertly examines and analyzes the relationship between restlessness and stillness of the mind in The Ascetic and The Householder.