Week 2 Curation

Alright, here's the top three breakdown of things I found and loved this week.

First up, we have a Hindu Gods and Goddesses quick reference chart I found while browsing on Pinterest. I've included a link to the chart below. I pinned it because I'm fairly terrible at remembering who's who whilst reading, so it's nice to have a handy reference guide in case I get lost. The chart is a fairly large image (so it's tiny here!), but it's got lots of little tidbits and good information to remember.

Image from worldhistorycharts.com

Number two is an interesting craft for kids I found, also on Pinterest. It's a dual arts and history/learning craft, and I love it when the arts can bring cultural awareness to children. The idea is to have hands cut out of craft paper and glued onto construction paper for some fun color, and then have children draw henna style designs on the hands while also learning about an ancient Indian tradition! This would be my most favorite thing I found this week, if the chart hadn't already come in at that spot. 

Image from Kid World Citizen, a website that I'm definitely going to have to frequent from now on.

I've also been using Pinterest to find and store images that I might like to use in the future for a Storybook or stories in general. One image I found was from Atlas Obscura, called the Root Bridges of Cherrapunji. The people in the region noticed that a type of tree, called the rubber fig, had roots that were particularly strong, and they began to guide the roots of the tree into bridges. The bridges are living, how cool is that? That's an insane feat of truly organic engineering.

Image of the root bridges from Atlas Obscura

If it wasn't apparent, I used Pinterest for all my finds. During one of my study breaks this past week, I actually did this as a fun and destressing type of activity instead of doing something completely unproductive, like browsing Facebook. I'm most familiar with the Pinterest platform, and being able to use it in conjunction with school is great!

Storybook Topics Brainstorming

Possible Topic 1: Gurus, Yogis, Rishis

I've recently started going to yoga after having a couple semesters of being incredibly stressed out and realizing I need to do something about it. I've also been looking at trying meditation, so it's easier to focus my mind for longer periods of time, and because of this, I'm interested in the Gurus, Yogis, and Rishis topic. I'm also a fan of the sage trope in books and movies, a la Gandalf, Obi Wan, Dumbledore... The list goes on.

Research:

The Wikipedia article for Yogis mentions that a yogi patel "as someone who knows that the entire cosmos is situated within his own body". I think it would inspire some interesting stories based on that concept, especially since I've been rewatching Doctor Who lately. Wikipedia also lists Shiva as a historical yogi, and I hadn't made that connection yet in my readings. It was interesting to read that the Divine Mother Devi, which is the female manifestation of the trinity, and her/their connection to yogis. I also like the idea of a guru, which Wikipedia describes as a someone who's more than a teacher. These kinds of guides often have great storytelling potential as well. 

Possible Topic 2: Maya

Illusion is a great storytelling device, and as a fan of most things fantasy and science fiction, I think I'd be interested in retelling stories that deal with this. 

Research:

Reading about Lila, the closest thing I can compare it to is divine intervention, but on a smaller scale. Maya is described on Wikipedia as "that which exists, but is constantly changing and thus is spiritually unreal". It's also described as power, which I find interesting. I read the Maya Sita story, and was interested in how easily the topic came up. I like that there's such an acceptance of magic within that story--when Rama's presented with the idea of having a clone of Sita as a decoy for Ravana, he goes for it almost without question.

Possible Topic 3: Animal Characters

I love animals. I especially love animal presences in stories, and when looking at the animal characters, I was particularly intrigued by the idea of vahanas, and how stories could be told that way. Elephants in particular are one of my favorite animals, and their presence in Indian epics and mythology is something I've always wanted to explore.

Research:

When looking at the animal stories, I looked at Airavata, and first found a picture on the Wikipedia article that further interested me, so I've inserted it in the post below. Airavata is Indra's vahana, and is an elephant with four trunks and seven tusks. Airavata is also the king of all elephants (including, I assume, the tiny ceramic elephant I bought to paint because of this class) and is connected, through Indra, with the water and rain.

Image of Indra riding Airavata, from Wikipedia

Possible Topic 4: Women Characters

I love how many women there are in the Epics, and I'm especially excited at what large parts the women have to play within the epics. Sita already has had a huge part to play in the Ramayana, and many of the other important characters have been women as well. 

Research: 

For my research, I started by reading about Draupadi on Wikipedia and was immediately intrigued. Not only is she the "fire born" daughter of Drupada, but she was the most beautiful woman of her time. I'm currently reading The Princess Bride, and that reminded me of how Buttercup is described in the book. Reading further on the article, it's evident that Draupadi goes through some hardships, none the least being made as a bet in a game and then being dragged to court by her hair. I think Draupadi could have some really great stories, and right now she's the one I'm most excited about reading about soon.

Storytelling Week Two: Ends of the Earth

Étretat: Sunset, by Claude Monet

The first thing anyone has to understand about Rama? He's in love with his lady. Sita's a work of art, with eyes like dusk and wild hair the color of the night sky. She's been with him long as anyone can remember, if anyone remembers, and if there ever was a couple in love, they were it. The second thing? He's never stayed in the same place long. It's been said he had a home, once; a home in a breathtaking place, skies clear and blue like the good lord hadn't ever heard of a cloud to put there, waters crystal clear to match the sky, mountains tall and strong and proud--and weathered. It was a place where everyone knew there was history in every flurry of dust kicked up by their feet, knew the land would outlast them. Time passed slower there. So it's said, at least.

There wasn't ever a name to accompany the place. Just descriptions of beauty, simplicity, things anybody would describe when they thought about where they'd like to end up some day. Rama was lucky enough to start there. Broken homes don't account for perfection in setting, though, and sooner than later Rama got the boot from his stepmother. His father didn't have much to do with it; seeing as he wasn't around enough to help make a decision. It wasn't his fault, truly. Living a dream isn't cheap, never was. By the time he got home after working a couple, three, jobs, he barely had the energy to muster getting along with his second wife, much less fighting with her. 

Rama's a legend to many. Most of us haven't ever laid eyes on the boy (a man now, accounting for time), and those who have can only describe him as handsome, wonderful, kind, fair--and the same is always said of Sita. He comes quietly through towns, does a few odd jobs, and goes on his way. He's one of the last few gentlemen there are, and a jack of all trades too. There's a few who compare him to Robin Hood, preferring to live in the forest with his Maid Marion. The comparison isn't so far fetched, though he's a better hunter than Robin Hood could have ever hoped to be. Seems like every town who's been blessed by his presence is a little better off. If there's a bad apple in the ruling party, they're gone in a fortnight. An abusive family gets run out of town. When we get news like this, his name is never said... But we all know.

I remember when he came to our town. I was already an old man then, and had trouble sleeping nights. Up late one clear evening, I glanced outside and saw him. Tall, strong, proud... Weathered. He swept in on a whisper, left quieter than the rustle of leaves in the summer wind. His company followed, just two others, his lady and another young man. His brother? They listened to the cries of the town, heard our hurts, listened to how we were besieged constantly by a pack of thieves, scoundrels, who had lead in their hearts and steel in their hands. It didn't take so much as a week before an incident became altogether unheard of.

Thing is, there's a storm brewing. Rumors say the band of thieves aren't gone, just left for reinforcements. It's been years since anyone's seen Rama, though there are sightings of Sita. Nothing much, but here and there a child will tear out of the forest, yelling about strange men holding a woman captive. It's not long before the child will forget all about the men in favor of the woman's beauty. That's how we know it's Sita. That's how we know Rama's looking for her. 

We all worry for Rama. The people hear of his actions, his adventures, they know he's impossibly good at combat, strategy, persuasion, but is he good enough for those who stole Sita from under his nose?

I think so. 

I hope, someday, someday soon, that at the end of a long day, with his lady at his side, he'll get to go home.

Author's Note:

I'm really intrigued by the idea of pairing music and stories. This story in particular was inspired by a couple things, the first being a song by Lord Huron, from which the title is taken. I also really wanted to create a fuzzy picture of Rama, something that wasn't particularly attached to a time period or place. That's why I chose an impressionist painting for my image. Can you tell I like Monet? The story I worked from was more of the overarching story of the second reading diary. I thought it was important to try and evoke the good Rama's done so far, as well as Sita and Rama's passion for each other. His 'home' is Ayodhya, and I thought making him a Robin Hood-esque character would allow me to explore what Rama's interactions with others while in exile might be.

Narayan, R. K. The Ramayana. New Delhi: Vision, 1987. Print.

Week 2 Reading Diary B: Narayan Ramayana

One of the things I noticed particularly in this section of Narayan's Ramayana was how much of the characters' actions were driven by passion. Generally, everyone around Rama acts out of passion for him. The people he's meant to rule over follow him until he goes into true exile, Sita and Rama fell in love beginning with passion, and half of the reading today was driven by Soorpanaka's passionate love for Rama.

Rama Spurns the Demon Lover, from Wikipedia

I chose this particular image because most of the artistic renderings of Soorpanaka have Rama and Sita sitting beautifully off to the side, but she looks like a toad. Here, at least, she is also portrayed as a beauty who could be compared to Sita. It's interesting that Soorpanaka is dressed in red, which is traditionally interpreted as a 'passionate' color, while Sita is in more subdued, though royal, golds and greens.

Lakshmana acted pretty strongly as the voice of reason through this section--he was the only one to keep his head on when Mareecha lured Rama away, and tried to calm Sita while Mareecha was trying to lure Lakshmana away as well. One wonders what would happen if everyone listened to Lakshmana, but if everyone did, the epic would probably end up much less... Epic.

A last note--Jatayu swooping in at the end of the section, trying to save Sita, very strongly reminded me of when the Eagles show up to save the day in the Lord of the Rings. The difference here, of course, is that while the Eagles in Tolkein's universe escape essentially unscathed, Jatayu is not so lucky. I was glad to find that the section didn't end with a deus ex machina, and am excited to read what happens next!

Week 2 Reading Diary A: Narayan Ramayana

For the reading this week I chose Narayan's Ramayana, and I'm glad I did. The overall story was horribly sad in the end- Rama accepting his fate to be banished, after all the pomp and circumstance that was promised. To have such promise be dashed so quickly; I felt frustrated for Rama, but as he's proven to be perfect in every way thus far, he handled it nobly.

Personally, I found more interest in two of the story-within-a-storys that were told, the first being about Thataka. She was a very intriguing character, beautiful and wild, and I see a lot of potential in a retelling of her story. I've placed a picture of her below- this depiction of her definitely kept the wild aspect of her in her demon form.

Thataka the demoness, from Wikipedia

I wonder what Thataka's story would be like from her point of view, or retold with a twist. Some of the battle descriptions also seem to weigh heavily on Rama's side, an example being when she began to pulverize the three with stones, but Rama's arrows shielded them. Thataka gets the short end of the stick for the story- granted, she's fairly terrible to begin with, but to receive the punishment she did and then to be slayed by Rama seems a little excessive.

The second story that caught my interest was Ganga's story. The back and forth between Ganga and Shiva near the end almost seemed like flirting, especially with Bhagiratha's messages going back and forth. Ganga warns Bhagiratha that if she comes to the Earth, she'll destroy it, but Shiva saves the day by taking the brunt of the force. I'm really interested to learn more about their relationship, if it goes any further, and more about Ganga in general. There seem to be few women in the story, but to have one as powerful and good as Ganga makes for an interesting read.