Reading Notes Week 6: The Mahabharata- Maya's Palace

• Here, Maya, the architect of the demons and the son of a rishi, builds a palace for the Pandavas as a repayment to Arjuna for saving his life from the burning of the Khandava forest. Being the architect of the demons, Maya had great stores of gold and gems. The palace took 14 months to built, but it was like no other palace on earth. The story described it as so brilliant with gems that it appeared to be on fire. Maya brought 8 rakshasas to guard the castle. The next part is where it gets humorous. The story then goes to describe King Duryodhana mistaking things in the castle for other things (basically a series of illusion). He got so embarrassed. This story honestly confused me a little. I never really new what was going on and why the house was playing tricks on the king. Is that the way Maya designed it? Was it intended to be an illusion all along? I want to expand on some of these ideas and maybe give some background info on the house. I think it would be interesting to put it in Maya's perspective. Maybe we can learn why he built the castle this way. Was he just pure evil? Did he have a feud against the king? Another thing I want to do is describe the palace more. This was done very briefly in the beginning, but for someone to compare it to that of the gods, I feel like it was not described in enough detail.
• Bibliography: "Maya's Palace" from The Mahabharata, A Summary by John Mandeville Macfie.

  

  Duryodhana falls into water
  Source: Wikipedia

Reading Notes Week 6: Amba

Drawing of Amba
Source: Wikipedia

Notes:

• This story is about Amba. Amba is the daughter of the king of Benares. Amba was captured by Bhishma along with her two sisters to become wives of Bhishma's half brother Vichitravirya. Before Amba was captured, she was already secretly betrothed to king of the Shalwas. On the wedding day, when the three sisters were supposed to we King Vichitravirya, Amba wanted to speak to Bhishma. She told him how she was betrothed to another and that it wouldn't be fair for her to not love his brother. She asked for permission to leave Hastinapura  and go to the capital of the King of Shalwas. When she arrived, she went before the king and told him she was there, but she was rejected by the king for unknown reasons, perhaps from his defeat. Before she was captured, Amba had prepared the King to win her, but things didn't go as planned. The King rejected Amba and when she decided there was no changing his mind, she was filled with grief and anger. Amba feeling rejected was too prideful to return to Hastinapura and too ashamed to return home, she decided to take refuge in the great-forest hermitages.As time went on and her mind began to settle, Amba shifted her anger toward Bhishma for capturing her. She began fasting and undergoing penances. She let her appearance go and would often stand in stillness, as if she was stone for hours. Eventually the God Shiva appeared, drawn by Amba's prayers and penances. Amba rejoiced saying, The defeat of Bhishma. Amba was then concerned about  how she would do it since she was a woman. Shiva told her that if she died, she would be reincarnated into a man, but not only a man, but a fierce warrior. Amba then proceeded into the woods and made her own funeral pyre, set it on fire and entered it. The whole time she said, "I do this for the destruction of Bhishma! To obtain a new body for the destruction of Bhishma do I enter this fire!"
• For this, I want to put the story directly in Amba's perspective or in the King of Shalwas. I  could make the King be deploying an act, claiming he didn't want to be shamed since he didn't win her fair and square. He could have secretly been watching Amba for all this time, and when she went into the funeral pyre, he could have either saved her or also killed himself out of grief. This could be sort of a Romeo and Juliet types story. The King could have held his word that he could not take her, or maybe in the time Amba was gone he could have taken another wife since Amba was unattainable. If I put this in Amba's perspective, I think it will just allow for more insight on her feelings.
• Bibliography: "Amba" from Myths of Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita.

Week 5 Planning: Why Ravana Captured Sita

Sita Sings the Blues:

Story  Notes:
***I watched the video, Sita Sings the Blues this week. The video was very vague in regard to the actual story, so I used the summary of the Part A video. My research consisted of looking into Ravana deeper, since my idea for this story is to put it into his perspective. I started by looking up the original story of Sita's capture and focused my attention on Ravana. I wanted to know more about, to try and get a picture of him personally before making changes to his character.

• This is basically a shortened, way less detailed version of the Ramayana mainly focusing on Sita. In the original story, I always liked Sita and wanted to change it up a little bit this week so I decided to go with the video. The part that I want to focus on for a story this week is the part where Ravana captured Sita. Last week, I retold the story of Sita while she was in captivity and I told it in her perspective. This week, I think it would be neat to use the part when she was captured by Ravana and put it in his perspective. The video itself is very vague on why Ravana wants to capture Sita, so I think this would allow me to get very creative when writing the story in his perspective. The video says that Ravana was a good King and it seems like the only bad thing he did was capture Sita. I did not get this vibe from the book. This part confused me because I got the impression that Ravana was a god of demons, but the video made it sound like he was a good guy. I want to change this part of the story, put it in Ravana's perspective and maybe answer some of the blanks that the book left me with about Ravana. I think by putting this story in Ravana's perspective I will be able to be creative and explain why he decided to take Sita. Where Sita and Ravana childhood friends and Ravana was secretly in love with her? Was there some old rivalry between Ravana and Rama that would make him want to steal his wife? I feel like there is a lot of options when it come to retelling this story.
• Princess Sita's Kidnap:
• Since the video was vague on the actual details of Sita's capturing, I decided to start with the whole story. In this version of the story, it describes Ravana as the King of Demons, who had 10 heads and 20 arms. This is where the video confused me. It said that other than capturing Sita, Ravana was a good King who praised Shiva. I figured this was just a creative discrepancy. The story continues and says that Ravana spied Sita in the forest and instantly fell in love with her. Ravana then ordered a servant to disguise themself as a golden deer in ordered to draw Rama and Lakshman away from Sita. During this time, Lakshman drew a circle around Sita to protect her and told her not to leave the circle. To draw Sita out of the circle, Ravana disguised himself as a beggar and went to Sita and begged. Sita with a big heart took pity on the "Ravana" and that is when he swept her away. In the video it said that Sita threw her necklace to the ground so Rama could save her
• I really think this would be a cool story to retell in Ravana's perspective. Since there is a discrepancy in his actual identity and personality, I feel like this would be the best way to define him. Having this background refreshed, I feel like it would make an interesting story.
• Ravana- The Great Scholar
• In this article, it discusses the identity of Ravana. I feel like in all the stories, I never really got a clear picture of who Ravana was, so that is what lead me here. This source says that Ravana was a scholar and believed in the hindu gods Lord Shiva and Lord Brahma. 
• This source says that since birth Ravana was a follower of Lord Vishnu, (Rama was Lord Vishnu's avatara). At sometime during his life, Ravana has upset Lord VIshnu and the only way to earn salvation was to get killed by his avatara, Rama. It also said that he was a good king, so he did something that he knew would get him killed by Rama, which was kidnapping his wife.
• Bibliography: "Sita Sings the Blues," a film by Nina Paley

Picture of Ravana.
Source: Ancient History Encyclopedia

Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues Reading B

Sita Sings the Blues Part 2:

• This is essentially the second half of the Ramayana with a strong focus on Sita and her struggles. In this part, Sita has been returned out of captivity. She passes her "test" of purity and shows Rama that she is pure and faithful to him. Later, she goes to Rama about her pregnancy. At the same time, Rama is also hearing rumors about his people shaming their wives and he says he cannot let people think that he keeps an un-pure wife, even though she past the test and is now pregnant. Rama Exiles Sita into the forest. Sita wishes to die, and said she would kill herself if it was not for the pregnancy. Sita makes a friend, Valmiki, who helps her give birth and teaches Sita's sons to praise Rama. Sita still loves Rama, hints their "unconditional" love. One day, Rama was walking in the forest and overheard songs of his praise, and he followed it. That is where he found his sons and Sita. He told them to come back and rule with him, and told Sita she must pass another purity test. Sita at this point wishes to live no more and says that if she is pure let mother earth take her back into her womb, and so she does. Rama is saddened by losing her, know now that she has proved her purity to him twice. I want to write about the whole second half, with emphasis on Sita as the movie did. I want to completely change what happens. I want Rama to keep Sita, make her pass a purity test for the whole kingdom to see, letting them know she is pure and the only reason she lived in another man's home was because she was captured. From the begining, it was said that Sita and Rama's love was unconditonal, but I have never got that vibe from Rama. He has made poor Sita take multiple purity test, and I think this is wrong. I either want to put the story in Rama's perspective or just leave it in third person. Another good idea could be couple's therapy, since it seems Rama has trust issues. Again, this movie leaves a lot of whole so I can really be creative. 
• Bibliography:  "Sita Sings the Blues," a film by Nina Paley

  

  Movie cover of Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley
  Source: Alchetron

Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues Part A

Sita Sings the Blues:

• This is basically a shortened, way less detailed version of the Ramayana mainly focusing on Sita. In the original story, I always liked Sita and wanted to change it up a little bit this week so I decided to go with the video. The part that I want to focus on for a story this week is the part where Ravana captured Sita. Last week, I retold the story of Sita while she was in captivity and I told it in her perspective. This week, I think it would be neat to use the part when she was captured by Ravana and put it in his perspective. The video itself is very vague on why Ravana wants to capture Sita, so I think this would allow me to get very creative when writing the story in his perspective. The video says that Ravana was a good King and it seems like the only bad thing he did was capture Sita. I did not get this vibe from the book. This part confused me because I got the impression that Ravana was friends with the rakshas. I want to change this part of the story, put it in Ravana's perspective and maybe answer some of the blanks that the book left me with about Ravana. I think by putting this story in Ravana's perspective I will be able to be creative and explain why he decided to take Sita. Where Sita and Ravana childhood friends and Ravana was secretly in love with her? Was there some old rivalry between Ravana and Rama that would make him want to steal his wife? I feel like there is a lot of options when it come to retelling this story.
• Bibliography: "Sita Sings the Blues," a film by Nina Paley

  

  Movie cover of Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley
  Source: Alchetron

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Link to my Portfolio: Epics of India Portfolio

Map of India.
Source: Encyclopedia Britannica

Week 4 Story: Sita in Captivity

***This story's most recent version is on my portfolio site.

I was alone, tired, and hungry. I know I looked a mess, but it had been days since I had been captured. I was losing track of how long I had been in captivity, days were just running together. The only company I had was the tormenting rakshasas guarding my cage. I knew Ravana would return soon, and I knew what he would ask. He said all he wanted was me, but I love Rama and no matter the pain or suffering it might cause, I cannot betray him.  Ravana had been keeping me locked away in his palace. It truly was a place of beauty, built of solid marble with floors of gold and stairs of coral, it was a sight to be seen, but the wicked that went on in that place soiled it's beauty for me.

Ravana talking to Sita.
Source: British Library

All the sudden, I was woken out of my deep thought by the sound of the jingle of bangles around women's feet, I knew Ravana was coming back with his swarm of wives surrounding him. I shook in fear. Ravana approached my cage and tried to woo me. Ravana said, "Sita, you could end your suffering now. I will take you as my wife and you can live in pure bliss with us here." I could tell he was being genuine, but I could not betray Rama. A life without him, and seeing him so hurt would be enough to torture me for the rest of my life. I replied sternly to Ravana, "You know my heart belongs to Rama, our love is pure and eternal. I should not betray him by accepting your offer." Ravana furiously replied, "Woman I give you two months to accept my offer of I will torture you to your death. I will let the rakshasas have you and dispose of you as they please." I shook with fear, but knew in my heart that I would accept my fate before accepting Ravana. I replied, "You shall do no such thing. Rama will be here to rescue me soon and he will slay you with his own two hands." Ravana laughed and walked away. I cowered back into my corner hoping that what I said was true. Where was Rama? Why had he not rescued me yet?

Author's Note: "Sita and Ravana" In this story, Hanuman had finally finds Sita. He saw her surrounded in Ravana's home by rakshasas. During this whole episode, he was hidden a tree near, where he could witness this whole scene unfolding. I kept the episode details the same and I just changed the story to Sita's perspective. I thought hearing what Sita was going through first hand would allow the reader to connect with her better. I like the idea of having her tell her story so we could feel what she felt. I added the detail of Sita being in a cage and of her being hungry and tried. In the original story, when Hanuman found her he said he recognized her by her fair flawless look and her jewels, so I took the idea and wanted it to make her seem that she was almost unrecognizable because of her state. I liked the original story line, so I did not want to make any changes. I rephrased the conversation between Ravana and Sita to make it less confusing and in my own words, but other than that and the perspective change my story is similar to the original.
Bibliography: Sita and Ravana from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita.

Reading Notes: Reading B- Sita and Rama

Sita and Rama:

Rama and Sita talking after their reunion.
Source: British Library

Rama and Sita:

• In this story, Rama fetches Sita. Sita is thrilled to see her husband as she misses him dearly, but to her dismay, things are not as she wishes when she returns to Rama. Instead of embracing her warmly, as a loving husband would, Rama basically says that he cannot accept back a wife who had lived in another's home. Here I was confused, because did Ravana not capture Sita and hold her captive? Why was Rama saying these means and hurtful things to Sita? He had just gotten his wife back, was he not glad to see her? I cannot imagine what  Sita was thinking. She had basically been held prisoner and this is how she was repaid by her own husband. I would change this story and make Rama take Sita back immediately, with no second guessing. Another idea would be to put this in Sita's perspective, add dialogue and make it more modern, because at times, it can get confusing. This is yet another story that could fit into the definition of Dharma. As we can see, Rama does not do the right or justice thing to his wife, instead, he looks at what people will think about her being in the home of another. This was not fair to Sita. She did not ask to be captured or for her husband to act ashamed of her. It was not her fault and Rama had right to treat her this way. You can tell that Rama loves Sita, but I just do not understand why he would act like this to her. I understand things were different, but still, a wife being in another home due to her being captured, is no excuse. Another way to retell this story could be in the perspective of Hanuman. Hanuman was the one who found Sita, so it could interesting to hear things from his perspective and especially toward Rama's actions against Sita.
• Bibliography: Sita and Rama from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita

Reading Notes: Reading A- Sita and Ravana

Sita and Ravana:

• This story is in the perspective of Hanuman, a Lord of Rama. He finally finds Sita. Throughout this story, Hanuman is hidden in a tree watching. He finds Sita in the Ashoka grove, guarded by rakshasis. He sees Sita and she was weak and thin, and it made it seem like she was almost unrecognizable, except for her fair, spotless skin and her jewels. He then saw Ravana, who he depicted as a rakshasa. In the story it was said that he came to Sita with a train of women, the next line went to say that they followed their heroic husband, so I am assuming that the train of women were Ravana's wives. When Sita saw Ravana, she trembled in fear. Ravana tried to woo Sita in every way possible, but Sita rejected him and forehold his death by the hands of Rama. Ravana then told her that is she did not yield to him within two months, she would be tortured and slain, leaving her to the rakshasa guards with orders to break her will. Ravana and his wives then returned to their apartment, leaving Sita with the guards who threatened her with death and torture. She then crept to the foot of the Ashoka tree where Hanuman was hidden.
• Idea: I would like to retell this story in Sita's perspective. I cannot imagine what Sita was feeling and the willpower she must have had to overcome the temptations that Ravana threw at her. She obviously loved Rama a lot and had faith that he would find her. I believe that this message would be conveyed stronger if the story was directly told by Sita. In this story, there is also Dharma. Sita knew what a wife was supposed to do. She knew that she must love and protect her husband no matter what. She upheld the ideals of marriage and through pain held up her end of the vow.



Ravana talking to Sita.
Source: British Library

• Bibliography: Sita and Ravana from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita.

Topic Research: Dharma

Dharma Meme. Source: Img Flip

Dharma:

I really liked the idea of Dharma, and actually found a story that would go great with this topic in my reading this week. I liked the idea suggested that I could incorporate love stories into Dharma. So maybe I could also do a dharma story about love (i.e. what should/shouldn't a husband do).

•  Bharata Returns from "Indian Myth and Legend" by Donald A. Mackenzie.
• I read the story this week, and at the end of the story, I could not help but think of the term Dharam. Bharata showed Dharma in more than one way. "Bharata shows justice, custom, and duty in the fact of not wanting to take what was his brothers, but he also shows order and model in not allowing his mother to be killed for her wrong doings" (Reading B notes post).
• The Saint and the Scorpion. Source: Sanatan Society
• This story directly mentioned the word Dharma and actually gave a little insight to the meaning of the word. This would be a good story for an introduction post to a story book. You could retell it in the perspective of the disciple on the bank and he could define the meaning of the word to the end. This would help introduce the reader to the concept of Dharma. You could even make the disciple the narrator through the whole storybook, since he would be introducing it.
• Shakuntala-Dushyant tale. Source: The Holiday Spot
• This story appears in  Mahabharata, and I know I will read it in a couple of weeks, so I did not read the story yet. From the website, I thought this story would be good to incorporate the love dharma and I also saw that it had a curse in it, which would be a really cool to retell. I am not sure of the curse, but is causes Dushyant to acknowledge his wife. This would be a good story to retell in SHakuntala's perspective and describe how she felt. I could even make this a sort of couples therapy were Dushyant has to learn what he did wrong and how that applies in the concept of dharma.

Overall, I am leaning toward doing a storybook about Dharma. I still like the idea of showing each meaning with a different story. I feel like this topic would allow for the largest variety of stories. You can include or twist a story to include dharma, so this also allows for the greatest creativity.

Tech Tip: Blogger Template

I decided to change up my blog template because my original one was definitely basic. I changed the fonts, color scheme, and background image of my blog just to make it fit my personality better. I chose the silver sparkly background image because that is the one that stood out the most to me. I chose the color scheme based on what I thought looked best. If you have not personalized your blog, you definitely should because you and other people in the class will visit it frequently.

Meme about personalization.
Source: Technology Advice