DEVI FOR MILLENNIALS

by Bibek Debroy

‘Devi’s constant presence motivated the book. She is the one who made me write it. She is the one who will make you read it or ignore it. Ya Devi sarvagrantheshu. Nothing more remains to be said.’
Who is Devi? What are her mantras? What are her stories? What are her rituals? The roots of Devi worship are deeply embedded in Indian society. Archaeological excavations, going back a few thousand years, show traces of Devi worship. Devi’s stories feature in the Puranas and Devi Gita (part of Devi Bhagavata Purana), which is a beautiful amalgamation of Vedanta and tantra.
Directed at young readers, Devi for Millennials demystifies Devi’s mantras, tantra, yantras and worship, often perceived to be esoteric. It narrates the stories of Devi and describes in a simple manner the Shakti Peethas and their significance. It also includes translations of verses both familiar and obscure across a wide spectrum of texts, one of them being the Devi Gita.
Remaining close and faithful to original Sanskrit texts and without any distortion or interpretation, it is a primer, an introduction to worshipping Devi, who is always with us.

Genres: Nonfiction

206 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 5, 2022

About the author

Bibek Debroy was an Indian economist, who served as the chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India. He was also the Chairman of the Finance Ministry's 'Expert Committee for Infrastructure Classification and Financing Framework for Amrit Kaal'. Debroy has made significant contributions to game theory, economic theory, income and social inequalities, poverty, law reforms, railway reforms and Indology among others. From its inception in January 2015 until June 2019, Mr. Debroy was a member of the NITI Aayog, the think tank of the Indian Government. He was awarded the Padma Shri (the fourth-highest civilian honour in India) in 2015.
Bibek Debroy's recent co-authored magnum opus, Inked in India, stands distinguished as the premier comprehensive documentation, capturing the entirety of recognized fountain pen, nib, and ink manufacturers in India.
In 2016, he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the US-India Business Summit. In 2022, he was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement Award by The Australia India Chamber of Commerce (AICC). In February 2024, Debroy was conferred Insolvency Law Academy Emeritus Fellowship, in recognition of his distinguished leadership, public service, work and contributions in the field of insolvency.
Bibek Debroy died on 1 November 2024, at the age of 69. He had been admitted to All India Institutes of Medical Sciences in New Delhi one month prior.

Reviews

[Srivalli (Semi-Hiatus) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

One Liner: The first step to understanding Devi (meant for young readers)

It’s hard to review a book like this one. Devi for Millennials is exactly what the title says. It is a book about Devi for contemporary readers with little or no knowledge about Hindu scriptures. It deals with the history of Devi worship in Puranas and Devi Gita. It also has slokas from tantra worship.

The book simplifies the content without diluting its essence. The author clearly states that the translations of the Samskritam slokas are his own interpretations. Though the language is simple, it has a soft melody that makes the translations sound beautiful in some places. There are clear tables that describe how Devi was formed (which parts belonged to which devas) and the Shakti Peethas.

The author also provides interesting insights into language and its limitations. For example, Durgaa is feminine, but Durga is masculine. Imagine how difficult it would have to correctly translate the slokas into other languages without confusing the gender dynamics.

Small stories from the Puranas are also shared to provide the backstory or context for different avatars of Devi. The book is divided into neat sections, with some information and explanation, followed by the translations of a selected few stanzas from the suktams and stotrams. (There is also a short explanation of the difference between the two).

The book deals with Sati Kanda from Shiva Purana and lists the 108 Shakti Peethas mentioned in various texts. The author also highlights the variations in the texts and how some of them tend to contradict each other. However, the bottom line remains the same- the places mentioned have a strong history of Devi worship.

An entire chapter explains Navaratri, the pooja, and the nava durgaas worshipped during this period. He describes the avatar of each durgaa while emphasizing the importance of iconography. The topic is not explored in detail but provides enough material to get a basic idea.

The next chapter deals with the thousand names of Devi mentioned in Lalitaa Sharasranama and ends with three versions of how Sankaracharya composed Soundaryalahari. The final section is dedicated to Devi Gita. Here, the author reminds us that he has merely translated the slokas and not interpreted them.

There is a recurring mention of nature’s elements (fire, water, air, earth, and spirit) and their role in Devi worship. There are also references to triple elements (we can find parallels with other pagan cultures that worship triple goddesses in different forms). In fact, the yantra designs are similar to the symbolism in ancient pagan cultures (the triangle being the most prominent and common symbol). However, don’t expect a detailed analysis of symbols in this book. This work is the first step to understanding Devi and becoming comfortable with her iconography.

To summarize, Devi for Millennials isn’t a book we display on the shelf or read and move on. It is to be treasured and referred to each time you want to know about Devi and her presence in this universe.

I won a copy of the book in the giveaway contest organized by Indica. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

#IndicReads

[Raxesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Devi for Millennials by Bibek Debroy as the name suggest is the book about Goddess. Hindu or Sanatan Dharam is unique and quite different when compared to other faith and religions. Hindus worship god in different forms and through different ways. One of the most important part of our Indian culture is worship of Almighty in the form of Devi or Goddess. This book will introduce the readers to the varied form of Devi, their origin stories, interesting anecdotes, and of course various beautiful verses - stotram and suktams which are used in praise of and in worship of Devi.

Some of these stories and mantras would be familiar still their origin and source would not be so familiar. The Author is an expert in this field and has written a lot of books which revolve around ancient texts including the Puranas and Mahabharata. The author has made a great amount of research and presented this compact book which will kindle the curiosity to know more about various form of Devi. This book is a treasure trove about various stories and verses related to the worship of Devi.

The book is divided into various chapters and each chapter will take us to various places and tales. We will learn about different form of Devi and how she is worshipped by chanting of various lyrical verses. Devi Gita forms a major part of this book, which is enlightening to read.

What is more appealing is that Bibekji has given us the meaning, as per his understanding, of various popular sholakas. We would have recited them or heard them but very few of us know their meaning and their source. Reading their meaning was a fascinating experience. Sanskrit is a very beautiful language which was meant for singing and reading this poetic verses written in one of the most ancient languages was an added pleasure.

This book is a must read for those who wants to learn about worship of Devi and stories which revolve around Devi worship. It will motivate you to explore the literature further and may be in the process will make you more humble as it made me. Bibekji has so rightly concluded the book with a sentence that worshipping Devi can be as simple as chanting of simple verses which are found in the form of Adi Shankaracharya’s Bhavani Ashtakam. We surrender to Devi!

[Harsh Agrawal]

Devi For Millennials
Author: Bibek Debroy
Published by Rupa Publications
Genre: Non-Fiction
No of Pages: 192
MRP: Rs. 595/-

Copy of Inked In India Purchased from @padhegaindia . Thank you for the great service!
Media Copy of Devi for Millennials, thanks to @rupa_publications

I have the utmost respect for Mr Bibek Debroy’s work. I read his book Bhagavad Gita for Millennials earlier this year and have been wanting to read his translations of the Mahabharata since forever. For those who are unaware, Mr Bibek Debroy is the chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India. Debroy has made significant contributions to game theory, economic theory, income and social inequalities, poverty, law reforms, railway reforms and Indology among others. He is also an anchor for the fortnightly show Itihasa on Sansad TV.
Sovan Roy works for the Government of West Bengal and writes on science, history of science, Indology, technology, environment, and ecology. He has published in the popular media, as well as in scientific journals.

Devi for Millennials. Honestly speaking, I expected the book to start with a general description of Devi(Durgaa), but the first chapter goes through a brief description of the 5 strotas. Subtle differences are pointed out between the strotam and mantra. Then the book moves on to the Markandeya Purana (on which, the author has written a whole book about). The feminine dieties and some of their stories are explored such as Daksha’s Yajna, the significance of the Number 64, the auspisious days of the Navaratri.
Continue reading the full review here: https://www.keetabikeeda.in/post/inke...

[Savita Ramsumair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful

This beautiful book has helped me to understand the Divine Mother and to want to sing Her glories day and night.

[Darshit Patel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into reading this book with high expectations, and I was... disappointed? But that's probably on me.

I wanted something which inspires me to explore the rich Indian culture that I know only sparsely about, at the same time holding my hand over the things I don't know. It does do the former very well, but the latter, not so much. A lot of questions are answered, but it raises even more questions the more you read.

My biggest gripe with this book is, it doesn't explain things sufficiently well (to me). The author assumes that the reader would already probably know of it because they're clearly clever enough to pick up this book to read. But even as a person already knowing the general concepts - a lot of it was assumed to be already known by the reader. This leads me to probably miss a lot of context and the references that I should be seeing, but in the author's defence, there's just too many references in Indian literature. However, I still would have wanted to have things slow, and in a bit of an ELI5 form. Web links would also have worked. But I'm not 5, nor am I a millennial (or am I? I always forget where the line lies. Google answers - yes, I'm a millennial).

Anyway, if you're a millennial like me, you're probably not understanding a lot of it in this book. Perhaps you have an exceptional family who know and already follow the scriptures, but for someone like me whose family is moderately religious, and only follows certain traditional rituals, you'll be scratching your heads, just like I did. Not your fault, though. Honestly, I probably disappointed Bibek Debroy ji, and I really admire him as an author and as a person who is probably the one who lit the fire in me for Indian culture.

To Bibek ji's credit, he admits that the book is more of something that inspires exploration, and deliberately misses answering the questions that might arise in our minds. As a person of an honest scientific temperament, he refuses to opine on things in this book, and strictly sticks to facts and literal translations, as like his other books. He does open us up to a world unknown, the shlokas from Vedas, the Devi Bhagvata Purana, shlokas from Adi Shankaracharya, the numerous and always changing Shaktipeethas, the ways of worship, the forms of Devi, the descriptions of Devi, the characteristics, and how it ties into the worship of the Brahman. And it's beautiful. To think that people wrote all of this, in praise of the divine femininity, is an eye-opener to the rich culture and thinking that India has had. And this text is not even touching the surface!

When I started to read the book, I decided that I'd probably read each Sanskrit shloka mentioned by myself. However, my skill as a reader of Sanskrit/Devanagari was questioned, and admittedly, I didn't satisfy that very well, so much so that I questioned if I even knew it in the first place! If I did try to read all the shlokas, I would have been much more likely to mess it up with a different meaning altogether. Not to mention the additional 3-5 months it would take me to complete this book, by the time I probably would have abandoned it. With this respect, it is good to know what Shloka's are just words. Shlokas aren't magical words, which, if spoken, will grant you your desires. Well, they will, but not if you don't understand what you're speaking/reading. Remember the power of manifestation? Or quotes like "You are as you think". It's true. And it always has been. And we've lost touch with enough Sanskrit to just repeat the shlokas verbatim without thought. I thought it'd be a better idea, practically, and for easier comprehension to just read the English meaning of the shlokas.

Would I recommend this book to be read by everyone? No, not really. Casual readers would just zone out. Non readers would probably keep it as a show-piece. Should you read it, though? Yes, at least once. It will probably ignite the fire that you had always been dreaming of, or at least let you know that you have to still learn a lot.

To put it in Bibek ji's words:

[Devi] is the one who made me write it. She is the one who will make you read it or ignore it. Ya Devi sarvagrantheshu! Nothing more needs to be said

Just after I wrote the review, I found this tweet by Nassim Nicholas Taleb: https://twitter.com/nntaleb/status/18...

A convincing argument of the role of language is the existence of surviving holy languages, uncorrupted by the no-nonsense tests of daily use. Semitic religions, that is Judaism, Islam, and original Christianity understood the point; keep a language away from the rationalization of daily use and avoid the corruption of the vernacular. Four decades ago, the Catholic church translated the services and liturgies from Latin to the local vernaculars; it can be argued that this caused a drop in religious beliefs. Suddenly religion subjected itself to being judged by intellectual and scientific, without the aesthetic, standards.

How relevant do you think would this be for Sanskrit?

[Debabrata Mishra · Rating 5 out of 5]

👉𝐀𝐁𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊:-
📚ⓉⒾⓉⓁⒺ:- Devi for Millennials
🖋️ⒶⓊⓉⒽⓄⓇ:- Bibek Debroy
🗞️ⓅⓊⒷⓁⒾⓈⒽⒺⓇ:- Rupa Publication
🔤ⓁⒶⓃⒼⓊⒶⒼⒺ:- English
📖ⒻⓄⓇⓂⒶⓉ:- Ebook
👉𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒:-
The book began with Mahabharata following by Sanskrit poetry. Devi maa can be the saviour of human beings in any avatars
.
The book further moving forward talking about Krishna ji & Bhagvad Gita.
.
But for me the show stopper is smriti background. The way author wrote down this chapter is just magnificent.
.
The the chapters like who am I? What am I not? Are make you connect with yourself.
.
Then the author focused on Jivatman & paramatman that's just make the clock stop for a bit & let you enjoy it.
.
The last two chapters are just the cherry on the cake. I am not reviling the chapters. You have to grab the book & give it a try.
👉𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐄𝐒 :-
🙂 Cover of the book is just beautiful it's eye catching & I will give full marks to the illustration on the cover page.
🙂 Writing style of the book is good with a complete focus on Devi maa.
🙂 Language used in the book is simple & easy to understand.
🙂 All the chapters are perfect you never going to put it down once you start reading it.
🙂 The amount of research author did before penning down the book can be easily marked with the ease & detailed writing of the author.
🙂 There will be a feel good factor that's you are going to experience after the end of the book.
🙂 Book is nicely paced & a free flowing read which you can finish in one go but it's essence of Devi maa will lasts long for the rest of the life.
𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑:-🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Solitude and books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now a days our new generation is forgetting our culture. Passing the knowledge to new generations is the only way to keep a culture alive. But sanskrit is slowly becoming an outdated language so it becomes an arduous task for us to interpret the meanings of the ancient texts.

Devi for Millennials by Bibek Debroy published by @rupa_publications is a unique book that takes up the beauty of existence of the feminine energy described in our ancient books and mythological stories and discusses their meanings and importance around it in easy English language! 

Devi, the one who is known by many names who portrays in those many superpowers and mystic glories! 

Who is she? What's her mantras? Her stories ? And her rituals? 

Her worships are deeply embedded in Indian society. 

This book in its lucid way makes a possibility for youngsters like us to go through the facts and witness the history and Mythology existing around it through stories, mantras and philosophy around it from ancient texts like Puranas and Devi Gita. 

I definitely like reading this book. It demystifies the ancient knowledge captured in ancient pages in understandable english language. 

Do check and give it a read if you want to dive more into your culture. 

[Neelanjali । booksmakemewhole · Rating 5 out of 5]

We've all heard stories of the various forms of "Devi" as we grew up. I particularly used to be and still am fascinated by these stories that my Grandfather fondly tells me even to this day. Devi worship is an integral and deeply embedded part of the Indian society.

In this book you'll get answers to the questions - Who is Devi? What are her mantras? What are her stories? What are her rituals? The author has been a devotee of Devi right from his childhood and he recollects his various experiences working on the sacred texts and translations.

This book aims to demistify Devi's Mantras, Tantras, Yantras and Worship as simply as possible. It contains various stories of Devi while explaining the Shakti Peeths and their significance. It also includes translations of verses that are both familiar and obscure across the various texts, one of them is the Devi Gita.

This book is a brilliant effort to spread the message of Devi amongst Millennials and to enlighten them of her teachings. It is well-researched, well-articulated, concise and very interesting to read!

[Enakshi J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sole reason why I opted for this book was the half-baked information I have on Devi worship. The idea of Devi Pujan and the powers with which this goddess can help one conquer all battles has been perpetuated in every Indian household. Therefore, it would be only right to read this book and understand the 'saar' of the shlokas that form the crux of any chanting.

Devi for Millennials is concise and provides translations that are easy to understand. Right from the rituals, their significance and their relevance in present times, this book entails a narrative that will help young readers understand why and how the goddess is worshipped. Emphasizing the omnipresence of this deity, the author has beautifully brought out the importance of Shakti Peethas too.

Overall, it's an interesting book for those who believe in the power of this goddess and for those who prefer having a radical mindset than following anything blindly.

[Swapna Peri ( Book Reviews Cafe ) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is a combination of ancient spirituality compared to the present times. The intertwining is well presented. As the title goes, Devi for millennials, author Bibek Debroy tried explaining the importance of Devi and her worship. I happened to read author Bibek Debroy’s recent book – Inked in India, which explained the advent and history of ink pens in India. His research and presentation are absolutely engaging. Even in this book, without going into religion, the concepts are explained on a superior level of spirituality that help humans attain peace of mind through worship. A good read!

[Shaily Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a treasure of knowledge & information about Devi Maa that I will have to read repeatedly to retain all of it. It’s excellence is indescribable. I learnt about things that I wasn’t even aware of. Cleared a few misunderstandings & presented with numerous thoughts to ponder upon. This book has ignited my zeal to know more and more about Devi and read related ancient texts. I am so grateful that I can’t thank Devi Maa enough! From the moment I ordered this book to the coincidence of reading and finishing it during the auspicious Navratri days, feels like Devi Maa herself wanted me to read this, as rightly suggested by the prestigious author Bibek Ji.
Extremely overwhelmed 🥹🙏

[Kidliomag · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has all the shloks that we read in Durga saptsati but this book translated the meaning and saar of shlokas in English that is very easy to learn for new generation. So it's a good book for those who wants to read more about Maa Durga, navaratri and Shakti Perthshire.

[Bestbookhunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has all the shloks that we read in Durga saptsati but this book translated the meaning and saar of shlokas in English that is very easy to learn for new generation. So it's a good book for those who wants to read more about Maa Durga, navaratri and Shakti Perthshire.

[Rupa]

Not for me. I was hoping to find Devi related stories from puranas and upapuranas. But 80% of this book was pure translation of slokas.