Myths and Legends from India- How and Why tales

Great book. Simple language. Charming stories that explain everyday rituals and practices in Hindu culture and the mythological beliefs behind them. Written from the perspective of a grandmother , the author, Rama Srinivas, committed to paper those oral folklores that gets passed down from one generation to another. Which is why not only they make a great read but are a valued contribution to the existing  repository of mythological Hindu tales. Also, 'Greystroke' a regular on the illustrator circuit has contributed to it. ( Bangalore peeps would probably have met him in the Bangalore Children's literature groups)











I like the stories  because they explain  the why and how of simple rituals practiced in our everyday life. For example, the origin of the practice of knocking on one's head while visiting a temple; or explaining why touching the ears or prostrating before God is common amongst some worshippers. Here is a nice story whose snapshot I attach about the 'One Eyed Crow'.  


Here is a nice note from the author explaining the origins of her book.




The copy I have is from my daughter's school library. It was published by MacMillan India Limited in 1997 and priced at Rs. 18/- However I find no internet trail and am wondering if it was reproduced. What a pity if it is not. 

 P.s. Sorry about the bad quality pictures on this post- taken from my mobile phone and shaky hand.

Holy Cow and Other Divine Beasts

Indian Mythological tales are to me the best form of story telling. Full of imagination, excitement, vividity, they contain a special appeal to children. They are also quite amenable to vivd illustrations so when I picked up this book and saw how its author and artist , Shiela Dhir has interpreted the stories in traditional Mithila style of art form, I was hooked.


And this Scholastic book written and illustrated by Shiela Dhir does such a wonderful job. The illustrations are also done by the author (since she is a NID graduate- this makes sense!)  in the Mihila art style making this book come alive with its colour and form. The simple narrative are like short stories describing mythical Hindu  figures ranging from Surabhi, Hanuman, Airavata, Manasa, Varaha, Narsimha, Ananta, Matsya , Garuda.Kurma. Very educative for parents like me who are very sketchy  with their mythological knowledge with a  kid  who wants to be very up to date!
Here is a sample page I clicked from my phone to give you an idea, my crude version of Look Inside"!



And here's some interesting Trivia about the author:http://scholastic.co.in/en/authors/sheila-dhir