Famous Last Words

This week was the busiest week of the year for me. I have two weeks this semester that will be just awful for me and this was the first. The next week will be in October. Since I had my first test and the career fair this week, it was very hectic and busy, so I had less time to spend on Indian Epics assignments than usual. However, I believe that I wrote one of my best storytelling posts so far this week. Somehow, the creative juices just seemed to be flowing and I felt inventive and clever. I wrote about "The Succession" from The Divine Archer Ramayana. It helped that I had recently started watching a show on Netflix that I could apply to the creativity of the story.

I also serve as the treasurer of my sorority and this week, the chapter's dues were due. This is a huge part of my job as treasurer so a lot of my focus was also spent here. I did not get very much sleep throughout the week and I had a couple mental breakdowns, but I feel much better after this weekend and getting to have time to rest and restore. I feel like this upcoming week will be much better for me as far as school goes. I will get to spend more time on Indian Epics assignments, which will hopefully lead to better writing. I also have a personal goal to work ahead in Indian Epics this week as I have fallen behind in the last two weeks and have not had time to complete a few extra credit assignments.

The stories that I read for this week on other people's blogs were incredible! I am always inspired by the creativity of my peers! The stories were both original and inspirational which led me to believe maybe my writing is slacking a little in comparison. I am going to try my best this week to match my stories with the same caliber of my classmates' stories!

("The Office" from The Office-isms: Memes)

Tech Tip: Pinterest Board

For my tech tip this week, I created a Pinterest board in order to collect all of my thoughts and ideas for this class! Since I have used Pinterest before, I figured it would not be that difficult to start a new board for the class. This board is my first Pinterest board to use for a class while I have used Pinterest previously for ideas such as cooking recipes and clothing choices.

Indian Epics Pinterest Board

Storytelling for Week 4: "The Succession" (The Divine Archer Ramayana)

There once was a queen. She was no ordinary queen, but the queen to a king who ruled over many lands and who was revered by all. Unfortunately, she could not provide an heir for the king. He was not upset with her for their lack of offspring, but he was disheartened. Was his line not meant to continue in the kingdom? The king saw the queen's disappointment as well and promised to make her the happiest woman in the world, child or not. He promised to grant her three wishes and he would have to see through to them no matter what they were.

The queen saw how the king was disappointed and she was eager to do something about it. She asked to use one of her wishes from the king in order to leave the castle one day in search of some peace. He happily granted her the freedom she so desired. She went to the forest and approached an old hermit living in a small hut. She had heard rumors about the hermit living in the woods. The rumors claimed that he was more than just a mere hermit, he was actually a sorcerer. She asked the hermit what could be done about her childbearing abilities and he seemed very confident that he could find a solution for her.

"Take these berries twice a day for three months, but do not miss a day or you will surely have consequences," the hermit warned her.

The queen was faithful to take her berries twice a day just like she was told. However, one day, a servant in the castle was cleaning the queen's room. When he was cleaning the drawer in the nightstand, he stumbled upon the berries. Now he was an evil servant, very cruel to all. He took a few of the berries wondering about their power and laughing at his small trick on the queen. After all, how important could a few berries be to the queen of all the lands?

The day came where the queen came to the last berry. She took it slowly, promising herself that she would be with child before long just as the hermit had promised. Little did she know of the servant's trick...

Before long, the queen was pregnant. She was overjoyed and celebrated the news with her husband! A few weeks later, though, she learned that she was not the only woman with child in the castle. Her husband's other three wives were also pregnant with heirs to the kingdom. This news infuriated the queen. Had she not done everything she was asked? She sought out the hermit in the woods and demanded he explain his error. The hermit calmly told her, "Madam, you did not follow my instructions accordingly and because of this, you will suffer for relying on dark magic to do your bidding."

Years later, when the queen's son had grown up to be older and wiser, he was of age to control the kingdom. However, he would never have his chance because his brother, Rama, was the favorite of everyone who met him. The queen schemed once again. This time, she planned to ensure her happiness by seeing her son on the throne. Because of the king's previous promises to her, he was obliged to obey whatever she commanded him. She forced him to make her son the true heir of the kingdom and to banish Rama for fourteen years before he could return. This time would ensure his brother's long reign over the kingdom, so Rama could not come back to claim everything once again.

The queen felt sorry for her actions because she truly had good intentions once upon a time, but her son must be protected at all costs.

("Rama and Sita in Exile" Image Source: Wikipedia "Rama")

Author's Note: I have just recently started watching the show Reign on Netflix. Since that show has been on my mind, it had a point of influence in my version of the story this week. The way that the queen manipulates people and situations in order to ensure her own son's crown and title is almost exactly the same in both Reign and "The Succession". The mother is willing to do whatever it takes to see her son on the throne, including banishing the other son of her husband. Anyways, this definitely had a part in my take on the story! I created this story with the idea that the queen actually did not want to hurt or punish Rama from the beginning, but you get the idea that she felt like she had no other options. I did not want readers to hate the queen, but instead to feel pity for her in the midst of the situation because that makes her a much more dynamic character and thus, more interesting to the storyline overall. If I had more time and more words to share, I would have created a whole other part of the story about the evil servant and I would have covered his role in more detail. I hope you enjoyed the story that I had to tell about the queen who made a strong choice!

Bibliography: "The Succession" by Frederick James Gould, from The Divine Archer (1911). Web Source: Sacred Texts Archive

Reading Diary B: A Divine Archer by Gould

1. The Search for Sita

Rama kills Vali with an arrow after Sugriva struggles fighting with Vali. Hanuman leads a search party for Sita and Rama gives Hanuman his ring to present as a token of his love for Sita. Awe, how romantic! This version really skips over the part where Hanuman jumps over the monster in order to get to Lanka. However, it does give us the monster's name, Surasa.

2. Lanka on Fire

Ravana wants to put Hanuman to death, but due to protesting, he settles for setting Hanuman's tail on fire. Remember that Hanuman is a monkey, so he has a tail. Hanuman forces his tail to grow as large as possible, which causes the whole city of Lanka to get caught on fire. Hanuman goes back to Sita and she presents him with a jewel to take to Rama as a token of her love. Awe, how romantic again!

("Hanuman and Sita in the Ashtonga Grove" Image Source: Wikipedia Commons)

3. The Battle Begins

After the fire, everyone in Lanka fears Rama for his power. The queen attempts to persuade Ravana out of going to war, but Ravana is a prideful man. Rama heads to Lanka in order to end this once and for all. Rama attacks the entire first day, but grows tired, so Lakshamana takes over the battle the next day. Indrajit, Ravana's son, wounds Lakshamana and Hanuman is sent to find an herb to heal him in the Himalayas. 

4. The War Ends

The gods are watching the battle and Indra wants to aid Rama, so he sends his chariot to help Rama win the last battle. Rama uses Indra's weapons that were sent down with the chariot to kill Ravana and put an end to the chaos. Rama insists on testing Sita's loyalty when he sees her and places her in a fire. She emerges from the fire unharmed and Rama gratefully accepts her once again? Why did he stick her in the fire to begin with? He loves her?! 

5. Sita and the Twins

Rama banishes Sita when they return home because the people continue to gossip about her loyalty even after the grand fire test. Again, what?! A hermit finds Sita and has her stay with him. She gives birth to two twin boys while in his care and she raises them. Years later, a horse sacrifice, hosted by Rama, draws attention from all over the country. Sita's boys go into town and they recite the story of Rama and Rama hears them. Valmiki, the hermit, reveals to Rama that they are in fact, his sons (they even look like him) and Rama arranges for Sita to come and visit him.

Divine Archer Ramayana

Reading Diary A: Divine Archer by Gould

1. Birth of Dasharatha's Sons

I liked reading about the birth of Dasharatha's sons again because it is the main starting point of the Ramayana. However, I liked the Public Domain Ramayana's version more because that book did not start out with telling the story of Dasharatha's sons. Instead, it built up the suspense and drama a little by explaining that Dasharatha had no heirs to the kingdom, but had several wives. Out of the four brothers, Rama is declared the favorite.

("Birth of Dasharatha's Sons" Image Source: Wikipedia Commons)

I liked this picture of the birth of Dasharatha's sons because it is a great mental image to have. All of Dasharatha's wives are in different rooms of the palace, all giving birth to different sons at the same time. A weird though, but interesting nonetheless.

2. Rama and Sita

The story of Rama and Sita is one of the favorites of the Ramayana. Again, I wished that this story had been in a little more detail because it is such an epic love story. However, I liked the short and sweet thought of Rama dreaming about Sita at night. Also, I appreciated how it talked about how Rama had to bend the bow of the god Shiva, in order to win Sita's hand in marriage.

3. The Succession

I felt like in this version of the Ramayana, it gave more background as to how Queen Kaikeyi manipulated the line of Dasharatha so her son, Bharata, would be eligible for the crown instead of the favorite son, Rama. Since Dasharatha had given the queen two wishes earlier, she now had the king right where she wanted him. The evil servant convinced the queen to do all of this.

4. The Exile

Rama is exiled for the next fourteen years because of what Bharata's mother did to him. Sita and Lakshmana are very loyal to Rama, so they insist upon being exiled alongside him. They wander out into the forest together, where a hermit advises them to rest upon a hill.

5. The Demon Woman

A very scary version in this version of the Ramayana to be sure, "The Demon Woman" offers a lot of interesting ideas. A woman approaches Rama and proposes to be wed because she is in love with him. Rama is shocked and obviously refuses because of his love for Sita. However, this angers the demon woman and she forces her efforts on Lakshmana. Lakshmana mutilates the demon woman for her unwanted advances toward him. She summons a demon army? Rama and Lakshmana then take down the demon army together. Strange, strange story.

Divine Archer Ramayana

Storybook Styles

Topic: My storybook will be about the Himalayas. Not only the Himalayas, but the temples and villages surrounding the Himalayas. I will also write about the people walking through the Himalayas looking for adventure or the ones who are just passing through and find themselves in danger. I think that the Himalayas are a really cool subject to write about because of their dramatic effect and awe-inspiring beauty. A story that I really want to include in my storybook is the story of Hanuman in the Himalayas and the life-restoring herb. Another story that I want to include is the tale of Hanuman and the Mountain. This is the most epic story of Hanuman in the Himalayas and I feel as if Hanuman is a very important character to include all throughout the storybook.

Bibliography:

1. The Life-restoring Herb, from Hanuman's Tale: Messages from a Divine Monkey, by Philip Lutgendorf (2007).

2. Hanuman and the Mountain, from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists, by Sister Nivedita (1914).

(Himalayas from Nepal's Wikipedia page)

Possible Styles:

• Journey- I think it would be a neat idea to have a group of a couple friends, hiking through the Himalayas in order to find adventure. Along the way, they can pass along stories to each other to keep the trip entertaining and humorous with a little bit of drama thrown in. They can tell the stories when they make camp at night or when they are wandering through the dangerous parts of the mountain range at day. The suspense of the stories will also grow with the actual suspense happening along the journey.
• Mother reading to children- I think it could also be a really neat idea to include a mother reading bedtime stories to her children. Each night, she reads/tells them a different story as they go to sleep. The part that I like about this style is it will be super easy to find a different story for her to read every night to her children. 
• A mix between mother reading and the journey- Another idea of a style that I had was to mix the mother reading to her children and the journey of the Himalayas together. It could be set up as if the mother was reading a series of stories to her children and they were about the group of friends hiking in the Himalayas. Each adventure the hikers had would be like a new chapter in the book for the children to hear. The stories that the hikers would tell throughout the book would have to be very significant because these would be the Indian Epics that the mother is sharing with her children.
• Villagers in the mountains- Another way to go would be to focus on a young girl/boy living in a small village in the mountains and his or her parents or close relatives tell them the stories on a special birthday of theirs. The child learns all about the culture, religion, and history of their family and this also teaches the readers along the way the unique stories that will be shared.

Storytelling Week 3: Ravana's Death

There once was a boy named Jerry who was in love with a gorgeous girl named Beatrice. Beatrice was kidnapped one day by an evil professional wrestler, whose name was Henry. Henry took Beatrice from Jerry because Jerry was only trying to help his friend, Gary, earn the right to professionally wrestle again. Henry refused to let Gary wrestle because they were brothers and because he secretly knew that Gary was a much better athlete than he ever could be.

Jerry was absolutely distraught when Beatrice was taken and he forged a plan with Gary to get her back from the evil Henry. If Jerry could help Gary beat Henry in a wrestling match, he would be able to win Beatrice back again. So they set on a journey to reclaim Gary’s professional wrestling title.

Jerry was very superstitious and did weird things like throw salt over his shoulder and knock on wood before they crossed any path that looked remotely dangerous. For instance, in the middle of their long journey, they came to a rickety bridge with a ravine underneath. Jerry took the salt and through it over his shoulder, mumbled a couple of words, and hoped to cross safely. Once they were across, Jerry and Gary both took large breaths, finding comfort on the other side.

"Building the bridge to Lanka" (Image Source: PDE Ramayana)

As they reached the wrestling gym, where Henry was keeping Beatrice, they made a plan outside. Jerry would take Henry down by distracting him, while Gary would then come and wrestle him one last time. They shot into action. Jerry grabbed Henry from behind, which allowed Gary to catch Henry by surprise. Henry was furious and he challenged Gary to a wrestle-off in order to settle the whole ordeal.

As Gary prepared for the wrestle-off, he realized he had twisted his ankle. He said to Jerry, “Jerry, I can’t wrestle! You have to take my place in order for me to become a professional wrestler again and for you to win Beatrice back!”

Jerry felt uneasy about the whole thing, but he knew that he had to have Beatrice back with him, so he wrestled. Henry came at him from all sides, but Jerry fought him off like a true champion. In the end, Jerry won because he ran into a piece of wood on the side of the arena. His superstition believed this was the knocking on wood that came to his aid. When Henry was knocked out, they called the police to haul him away. Jerry was once again reunited with Beatrice. As he held her in his arms, he promised to never let go again.

One year later, Gary was headlining as the main professional wrestler for the state and people were coming from all over in order to see him. Jerry and Beatrice were married and they went to go and see Gary wrestle one evening. As they watched him doing the sport he loved, they gazed deeply into each other’s eyes, knowing what it took to get to that moment.

Author's Note: I am not sure how it came about for me to write this story, but it was fun after I started. I chose to tell my story in a modern interpretation this time because I had seen other people's stories written this way and I thought they were so creative! This story did not take me long at all because the modern interpretation made it fun! The idea of the professional wrestlers came to me just in a whirlwind of brainstorming for the storytelling assignment this week. As soon as I thought of it, I knew that I could make it both humorous and inspirational to the readers. Another aspect that I enjoyed about this story was the superstitions. Instead of praying to the gods for certain things, I created the idea of superstitions. The character of Jerry would be very superstitious and would have to perform some sort of action in order to counter the bad luck that would happen along the journey. I think that one way I could have improved this story would have been to spend more time on the actual “final wrestling match” because I did not describe it very well. For those of you who were curious, I picked the names on sheer will. I had no idea what I wanted to name the characters, but I just wrote down the first names that popped in my head and voila! The characters were born!

Bibliography: "Ravana's Death" by Donald A. Mackenzie, from Indian Myth and Legend (1913). Web Source: PDE Ramayana: "Ravana's Death