Norse myths of creation, various realms and a story which chills the bones and makes us ever so curious…

A journey from Atlantic Ocean to Greece to USA ! In this episode we take this extensive travel and dive deep into the Atlantic Ocean and find why this ocean was named so!

Today we dwell in one of the mystical places, a place which was called home by two of the world’s most mystic and powerful civilisations - The Aztecs and The Mayans.

And the place we discuss is Mexico!!!

And as in this season we are talking about the etymology of places, we today talk about the etymology of Mexico.

As Aztecs were the ones who had an empire so the naming can be majorly attributed to them but we will also look at certain interesting facts during our journey.

Legend has Huitzilopochtli,is the ruler of the south and the Lord of the Sun and Fire! Talk about being a Portfolio Manager and that would not even get close to this magnitude.

Huitzilopochtli being the war god is attributed with victories and defeats and it was believed that to appease him a sacrifices were offered.

So how did Huitzilopochtli help name Mexico? Let’s dig in.

Huitzilopochtli was the patron god of a faction of the Nahuatl speaking population from Aztlan, which is believed to be the mythical homeland of the Aztecs, and on his command to find a new settlement, this faction settled out on a long and tedious journey from Chicomoztoc.

It is believed that Huitzilopochtli also told them to settle in a location where they found the sign of an eagle on cactus Cactus. And off they went to find the place which they could settle in.

They finally found the eagle on a cactus in an island in Lake Texcoco. Having found the sign they set it up as their capital.

Now this group would later go on to be known as Aztecs to the world, but this group referred to themselves as Mexicas and Mexi is another name of their patron God Huitzilopochtli.

Ergo the name Mexico refers to being the land of Mexi or Huitzilopochtli.

Interestingly Mexi is portrayed yielding a flaming serpent and the serpent reference is considered to be a sacred symbol even in the Mayan civilisation, so much so that most of their origin stories revolve around a mystical serpent. Chichen Itza which is one of the most important sites for the Mayans abound in the symbolism of the serpent. And not only that serpent has a huge significance even in another mystical land, India, where it is considered to be one of the most major occupants of Narak - The Nagas! And the point of entry to Narak is in the South!

Let’s again come back to the beautiful country of Mexico, and this time around have a closer look at the flag which bears the reference to this very ancient story. The Center of the flag has an eagle over a cactus which is in turn positioned on a glyph of Stone and Water, just like the island in the middle of Lake Texcoco.

Now that you have learnt the fascinating tale of the land, does that add another dimension to the depiction of Mexico apart from the Sepia videos and the notorious Pablo Escobar? Let us know in the comment section.

The setting of the story is when a year had only 360 days and Thoth gambled 1/72 parts of lustige from moon to add the extra 5 days to the year!!!

A story of how Ireland got its name and how mythological beings & their invasions shaped the name of the country!

A story which tells you about the incredible mythological story behing the country #zambia and how a modern day construction stirred these beliefs up. Also an amazing and gruesome story of the disappearance of people and their sad fate and a few unexplained phenomenon!!

The sultry summers and the non existent Winter,

The rush everyone is in they neglect the moments to savour,

Mumbai I have hated you.

The waterlogged monsoons,

To the clayey aftermath,

I have hated you.

And now that the time has come to leave,

I know not why, my heart now sinks.

The good times all flash in front of my eyes;

From the happy sidewalks of Powai,

To the quiet and quaint weekends at Ballard Bunder,

To the picturesque roads of nearby ghats

To the dreamy night roads of Marine drive,

The late night bike rides through Aarey or the early morning for that perfect shot.

Somewhere amidst the hatred,

I have grown fond of you,

Have let you grow on me,

And the line between hatred and love is now bleak.

Mumbai you will be missed.

Why so much for Mumbai? Because the name in itself holds the key to a mythological story which deals with a demon named Mumb the protector goddess Ambadevi and an act of kindness following repentance!! Well but one story which goes around.

The other being reincarnation of Parvati to learn the virtue of perseverance and concentration from the fishermen, who have ample amounts of these virtues.

Well so let us delve into the stories!

As per legends, there was an ancient demon Mumb, who through persistent worship of Lord Brahma gained a boon through which he was rendered almost invincible! Now Mumb with this newfound power grew arrogant and ruthless and as he was next to invincible, he started harassing the people of Mumbai! The plight was taken to Lord Vishnu who then along with Lord Brahma went to Lord Shiva to find a solution to this problem. Shiva suggested that each of the Trinity should shed some divine lustrum from their bodies and then this was combined to create Goddess Amba who could defeat Mumb.

What followed were a series of devastating and extreme battles and in the end Mumb was defeated.

As she was about to send Mumb to Patal Loka, Mumb requested her to spare her life and that he will worship her as Mumb-aai, aai in Marathi means mother, so in essence the mother of Mumb or the one who defeated Mumb, and pledged to be a just and shed his arrogance!!

This the battlefield came to be known as Mumb-aai and finally in 1995 it regained its original name back from the Portuguese name of Bombaim (good bay).

The next time you travel to this extraordinary city, a city which literally never sleeps, remember this amazing story behind the name!!!

#mythology #introduction #cool #etymology #history. Hello there and welcome back after a break. Hope you all are doing great.

Hope that in this year, we will be finally able to move out of our confines and travel just like pre-pandemic times.

In the first season, Mythological Rainbow, we had talked about how various cultures have different names for the same concepts and how they are so similar despite being separated by thousands of miles.

In the second season, Mythological Medley, we had seen how many of the words and phrases commonly used in our language have a mythological connect. We saw how those stories which form the genesis of those words and phrases are relatable even to date.

And in this season, Season 3, we try to go one step further and make things more relatable.

We will take you through a journey to find the stories behind the names of some of the most well-known places in the world.

Frankly, while researching for this journey, even we were surprised by the fascinating tales behind the names. It was interesting to discover the incredible mythological stories that have contributed to the identity of these lands. We went to distant lands and oceans to scour these stories.

And for this very reason, we have named this season as Mythological Passport.

Just as a passport is necessary to cross international borders, similarly, knowledge of the local folklore and mythology is necessary to make sense of a place. And this season is your passport to the mythological stories that have shaped entire communities. It will help you to sneak peek into the past to make sense of the present.

Like the earlier seasons, this season too shall have 7 episodes, each focusing on some unique place. Through the 7 stories, we intend to wow you with the 7 precious stories which can rival the 7 wonders of the world!!

So, sit back, relax, and let the show begin..........oh not right now.....next week onward!!

Namo Dhyeyam, Eva Satyam

“To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction”

Why the third and in all likelihood the most famous and misinterpreted law of Newton to start the episode? Well because we treat a concept which sums this up exactly with respect to society.

Karma is a…..!!!

Well what follows next is purely based on your experience.

Do you now see why we started with the third law?

It can be an angel or a devil incarnate depending on your cause/deed.

And keeping in mind that we are not in the minds ape of Cristopher Nolan in Tenet, cause and effect are linear.

I keep telling myself to stop digressing but….

Anyway back the topic, did you know that the buzz word, “Karma” and the entire concept has its roots in India!!

And it is not only one idiom which exists but multiple idioms or should I say beliefs have tried to encompass this idea…

The English proverb “What you sow is what you reap” is just a disambiguation of the same!!

This exists even in the other Asian beliefs!!!

So now that we know it is so engrained in our culture or spoken language today, what is the actual root of the term?

Let’s find out!!

The symbol of Karma is basically an endless loop which signifies the never ending birth growth and death cycles of humans and that how each ending is a gateway to a new beginning.

In the concluding episode of the last season we have talked about how a person’s life is weighed basis the deeds when s/he was alive.

Based on this the next life is granted to the soul!

Now we can have endless debates on this topic, as endless as the infinite loop, but let us stick to the point.

It’s is a level up or down based on a cosmic scale and a level up is considered to be one step closer to freedom from the endless cycles of life and death. However if in any of the lives one decides to deviate and cause harm to anyone, then there is no promotion for the soul and it is either born at the same level or a lower level.

Does it sound familiar corporate slaves???

Jokes aside.

The ultimate aim of living multiple virtuous lives is to break free from the bonds of the infinite loop and achieve moksha where you are no more affected by rebirths or pain or suffering!!!

A heaven by all measures of it!!

Is it true, we don’t know but this bit is true that on a larger timescale, and sometimes even in the smaller ones, the phrase turns out to be true!!!

Well share with us what you think!!

Today we talk about the God of beginnings in Indian and Roman mythology and how they are so very similar!! Intrigued? Listen to find out more!!