How the World Was Born: Wondrous Indian Myths and Legends is a book of 108 glorious creation tales and myths from Jammu and Kashmir in the north to Kanyakumari in the south, from Rajasthan in the west to Manipur in the east, and all the other regions in between. These stories are about the origins of the sun, the moon, and why we have seasons. You will delight in the beloved tale of how the parijat tree came down to earth from the heavens; why the sun is hot, the wind is dry, and the moon is beautiful; the legend of the origin of the great hornbill; how eclipses began; the origin of the Karens of the Andamans; how the twelve months of the Lepcha calendar came into being; how the Santals learnt music and dancing from the gods; why poovan bananas are offered at Korattymuthy; how lightning and thunder were created; how the Khecheopalri Lake in Sikkim was formed; and much, much more. Imaginative, brilliant, and wise, the stories in the book will delight readers of all ages.
Lopamudra Maitra Bajpai is a visual anthropologist, author, and columnist. She works on history, popular culture, and the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) of India and South Asia. She was recently deputed as the Culture Specialist (Research) at the SAARC Cultural Centre, Colombo, Sri Lanka, and has also been a Research Grant Fellow of the Indian High Commission, Sri Lanka. A former Assistant Professor from Symbiosis International Deemed University, Pune, she continues to teach at universities in India and abroad.
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