A writer who is reviving mythology for the modern time

Many people love mythology and many are inclined spiritually towards it. But very few people get a chance to stay connected with their passion for mythology along with their profession. Rarely amongst these categories there are people who are able to inspire the love for mythology in others. Voguemonk Team got a chance to connect with this rarest of Gem. In this post we are presenting an insightful interview of Dr. Vineet Aggarwal who is renowned author and is working to keep that legacy of mythology alive. Before heading on to his interview we are presenting his short introduction to you.

Dr. Vineet Aggarwal is a doctor by qualification, a manager by profession and author by passion. His literary repertoire extends from politics to poetry, and travel to terrorism, but his favorite genre remains the amalgamation of science and mythology. His widely-read blog Decode Hindu Mythology has clocked more than two million views from all over the globe. It is a blog to decipher the myths and legends of ancient Hindu/Indian belief systems, and connecting them with various scientific principles. He is also the author of three successful books on mytho-fiction published by Penguin Random House – ‘Vishwamitra – the Man who dared to challenge the Gods’, ‘The Legend of Parshu-Raam’ and ‘Bharat – The man who built a Nation’.

His books recreate the stories of the past and make them relatable for the modern urban audience. They also hold an important message for humanity, for they bring to life the stories of ordinary humans, who rose above the confines of physical and mental boundaries to fight the fates and take charge of their destiny. You can visit his Amazon author page here.

Interview

Dr. Vineet Aggarwal was sent a series of questions in an e-mail questionnaire format. His reply to the questions is so much inspiring and encouraging that it reflects his simplicity and explains the cause of the success he has achieved in his life. So below is our e-mail conversation with him.

I would say that my literary journey actually began with reading. I was so much in love with books that story telling became a subconscious part of my own personality and that’s what probably led to me starting my first blog while doing MBA. While this was of a more personal nature I gradually began writing two others one of which was titled ‘Decode Hindu Mythology’. It was through the blog that I got noticed and was approached by Penguin to publish mytho-fiction books that ultimately came out as a trilogy of sorts.

Mythology has always been a passion for me right from childhood be it the Amar Chitra Kathas that I read as a kid or the mythological shows I watched on the telly. But after growing up I started looking at the so called myths from a logical angle and that’s how the blog – Decode Hindu  Mythology – was born. It became a big success and to my surprise was clocking more than a 1000 views every day. The popularity of the blog made me realize the need to connect more with audiences that wanted to know about their history and heritage & that’s how the journey of writing stories from the scriptures continued.

I am not a very ritualistic person so whatever I do to feel closer to God tends to change with my mood. Sometimes I do that through sketching and at other times I prefer listening to the mantras and chants but it’s not a fixed routine. I love reading scriptures though and love every opportunity to talk about them. So I guess expressing my thoughts on the Vedic and Puranic legends through different media, coupled with occasional visits to any nearby temple, kind of sums up my spiritual routine.

First and foremost I would advise doing a thorough research on the character you are writing on. Too many people nowadays are writing without any sense of the original story or character and I find that a grave disrespect to the original authors whose work we are taking as inspiration. I believe one should not add subplots or malign the characters just for sensationalism and treat the subject with a little more respect than writing any other fiction book.

To be honest no one and everyone – I don’t really idolize any single person in particular but every single person who folows their passions and struggles to find their true purpose in life is an inspiration for me.

Not one but many instances of my grandmother (who was named Yashoda) telling me stories of Krishna that made the baby me think of myself as Krishna Himself! She sowed the seeds of love for mythology right there in my childhood through those stories & that was probably the most fundamental connect I had with the scriptural legends.