Tag: Vedic

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Mythologium 2023 welcomes Dr. Sunil Parab

Dr. Parab’s presentation is called “Stories of Love & Lust in Indian Mythology”

Love and Lust are two closely associated emotions of heart. Even today it is very difficult for an individual to rightly classify his / her emotion either as Love or Lust. This quest of understanding and differentiating Love from Lust and to put it in social context of morality has continued for thousands of years. How then has India being one of the most ancient civilizations and a rich storehouse of literature stay aloof from this quest? Also, what can be a better way to narrate these complicated human emotions with social moral context other than the mythical stories? Thus we find the stories of Love and Lust in Indian Mythology from Vedic Literature to Puranic Literature. Though these are human emotions; Gods also get entangled in them and thus face the consequences. This narration is so humane to understand that since even Gods can get entangled in Love and Lust; so can humans, and since even Gods have to face the consequences, so do humans.

About Dr. Parab

Dr. Sunil Parab is an Ayurveda Doctor and an Indologist by qualification. He is working as Associate Professor in Doon Institute of Medical Sciences; Dehradun. His research in Indology mainly revolves around Comparative Mythology and Folklore in regions of Maharashtra and Uttarakhand. He is associated with Sindhu Veda Research Institute as Indology Academician and Researcher. His expertise is in Classical Texts of Ayurveda, Sanskrit Language, Indian Mythology, Indian Philosophy and Indian Folk Deities.

2023 Mythologium program
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Mythologium 2022 welcomes Dr. Sunil R. Parab

Sunil’s talk is called “Myth and Ecological Consciousness with Reference to Indian Mythology and Rituals”

Ecological consciousness has always been a core topic in Indian mythology. Indian mythology can be broadly classified into Vedic and Puranic myth. Vedic myth worships various elements of nature as the deities, so the ancient seers of the Vedic era recognize ecological consciousness through mythical symbols, characters, and stories.

In Puranic mythology, we do not see ecological consciousness worshipped directly, but we do see ecological continuity from Vedic myth in the form of symbols and rituals. As proposed by Frazer, the myths serve as charters for the rituals. As proposed by Joseph Campbell, participating in a ritual enables us to participate in the myth. Thus, Indian mythology as whole serves as a foundation for rituals that help us maintain relationships between humans and the environment. This presentation surveys the theme through symbolism and rituals and questions its continuity for the current Indian population’s struggles with urbanization, migration, globalization, and changes in political leadership.

About Sunil

Dr. Sunil R. Parab is Associate Professor at the Doon Institute of Medical Sciences in Dehradun, and a consultant at the Sindhu Veda Research Institute in Sindhudurga. He is a post-graduate practitioner of Ayurveda with an executive degree in healthcare management. He has studied manuscriptology and comparative mythology at the University of Mumbai and is currently studying for a Masters in Indology from Tilak Maharashtra University in Pune. He is a member of the International Association of Comparative Mythology and has been presenting his research in Indian mythology over the past seven years through national and international platforms. He also teaches Ayurveda, Indian philosophy, and Indian mythology through online courses.

2022 Mythologium program
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The Mythologium welcomes Dr. Elizabeth Wolterink

Elizabeth’s presentation is called, “Beyond the Binary: Trans-sacrality in Vedic and Indigenous American Cultures”


We in the West often think of religion and transgender issues as being at odds. However, there are many religions in which trans-imagery and being is not only accepted, but seen as a sacred aspect of the Divine. This paper examines two examples of this phenomenon: Native American and Vedic traditions. The act of seeing oneself and of being seen, of perceiving one’s own being in the images of myth and belief, connects us to history and culture and is one way in which we construct identity. Reclamation of religious transgender imagery and history not only furthers dialogue between religious and transgender communities, but helps affirm trans modes of being. These mythological images and roles also illuminate ancient wisdom in modern day trans people’s questioning of gender assumptions and of the concretization of binary modes of being.

About Elizabeth:

Elizabeth Wolterink earned her Ph.D. in Mythological Studies with an Emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute in 2017. Her dissertation, Cloaked in Darkness: Feminine Katabasis in Myth and Culture, explored the differences between male and female mythological descents to the underworld and found that female katabatic figures not only have far more agency than is traditionally granted to them, but that they hold important psychological and cultural insights into female identity. Elizabeth has presented at the Western and Midwestern American Academy of Religion as well as at the Parliament of World Religions. She has also worked with youth for over twelve years using myth, depth psychology, philosophy, martial arts, and wilderness skills as means to psychological and spiritual development. Elizabeth guest lectures on mythology and gender for high schools and community organizations and on gender identity and welcoming in churches.