How Story-Telling Became a Vedic Tool

Stories appeal more to emotions than actions

- Devdutt Pattanaik

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are presented in the synagogue, church, and mosque as God's instructions to humanity on how to live life. In recent times, a new group of Hindu missionaries, who first appeared during India's national movement, is following the same path of instruction-based 'Satsangs; but it is hardly institutional, for Hinduism is not commandment-based. It is story-based; and stories, unlike instructions, appeal more to emotions than actions.

Animals do not tell each other stories. Humans do - for entertainment, for propaganda, for memory and history transmission, and, most importantly, for meaning. Stories transmitted over generations serve as the glue of a community.

This is why Christianity is established by two stories that are repeated twice a year: in springtime, the story of the crucifixion of Jesus and his resurrection; and in winter, the story of his birth. In Shia Islam, the story that glues the people together is the martyrdom of the Prophet's family. The ritual of Ramazan is a reminder of a story of when the angel of God communicated God's will to Muhammad, the final prophet for Muslims.