Soul Talk With Devdutt Pattanaik: Rajdharm Is Out, Dharmyudh Is On

The focus is on winning the election and not on what should be done once you win the election.

Devdutt Pattanaik decodes that politicians only focus on the ‘seat’ and not on its people.

(Photo: Mehul Tyagi/The Quint) 

Video Editor: Puneet Bhatia
Producer: Prabuddha Jain
Illustrator: Mehul Tyagi

In our country’s politics why is there more noise on ‘dharmyudh’ than ‘rajdharma’?

This is one question everybody in India wants to know but doesn’t get an answer to. In the latest episode of Soul Khol, Devdutt Pattanaik, mythologist and best-seller writer spills the beans on the game.

The question is, “The political leaders are looking for an opportunity to blame someone else for their mistakes. Why don’t they ever talk about relevant issues like my employment, my happiness and my future?

The precision of Devdutt’s answer helps you understand the present political scenario better.

Saving the World is An Addiction

Pattanaik says when you keep talking about saving the world it becomes an addiction, because of which you feel that you have to save the world from devils and villains. You venture out on the streets to look for a villain, failing to realise that the villain is inside you. People avoid looking at the mirror as they fear that the moment they do , they will stand face to face with their inner monster.

Also Watch: Soul Talk With Devdutt Patnaik: Decoding Blame-Game in Politics

It’s Not About ‘Rajdharm’ But ‘Dharmyudh’

In a similar way, political leaders concentrate more on the ‘seat’ than its people. They talk more about ‘dharmyudh’ than ‘rajdharm’ . In such a scenario their focus is only on winning and not on good governance. Why you should win the election? What should you do after the election? All these questions don’t strike them at all.

Pattanaik says that we the people often don’t think about a political leader’s role. Because we never look within and introspect, if the body is our state, whether we ruling it from within or are looking for a devil to trade blame.

(This story was originally published on Quint Hindi)