Week 11: Reading Diary B

sita's in flames from Bill Benzon on Flickr

This week I chose to finish up Nine Ideal Indian Women, by Sunity Devee.

Every time I reread Sita's story, I know exactly what's coming at the end, and yet it gets me every time. Rama insists Sita prove herself virtuous, so she throws herself on a fire and doesn't get burned. Pretty sure that's proof enough, but a while later, Rama tells Lakshmana that while Rama totally 100% believes that Sita is innocent, she's gotta go back to the forest. Because of his duty to his subjects, or something. Really? It's like every time I read it his reasoning gets worse.

Plus, this time, Rama gets mad that she leaves and starts shooting arrows at the earth, and then promises that he'll never ask to test her again, which is interesting, because he's already asked her twice.

At least Rama is appropriately unhappy at the end of Sita's story.

Enjoying Promila's story so far, but Birbahoo is a ridiculous name and I love it.

I think the exact way most of the women's tales can be summed up is in the passage in Promila's story that follows, quoted from page 164 of Nine Ideal Indian Women:

"Husband and lord! I know your duty to King, country, and parents comes before all else, and I shall not hinder you, but may I not accompany you to the Capital?"
     "Promila! Beloved wife, music of my life!" and Indrajit caught her in a mighty clasp of farewell love. "Is it possible I could forget you for a single moment? You are my higher soul, my sunshine of life! Wait here awhile for me."  

And Promila is thrilled! The whole passage just seems so characteristic of how the husband and wife interactions go. Showered with praise, and then "but also don't come with me."

Never mind. I am thrilled with Promila's decision to go anyway dressed as a soldier.

Lakshmana got some surprising depth in the end of that story as well.

I might have to write about Promila this week.

Week 11: Reading Diary A

Sita, peacing out, and Rama, being super confused by that fact (also known as Sita returning to Mother Earth and her sons and husband looking on) from the Wikipedia article on Sita

This week I chose to finish out the Nine Ideal Indian Women book by reading Sita's section. Since I've read about Sita a fair few times before, I did my reading diary in a stream-of-consciousness style to see how that worked for me. It's a little sarcastic, so I apologize in advance.

Sita was named Sita because she was found in the furrows, which are also sitas. Did not know that!

Ravan makes the holiest and hermit-est of people praise him with gifts even if they're poor. Lame.

The moonis retaliate by giving Ravan a drop of blood from each of them, and let Ravan know that he's "so yesterday" and "we're the cool ones now," and Ravan freaks out so he gets his messenger to bury the blood in the ground. Enter Sita.

All of the princesses are pretty, but Sita's prettiness is noteworthy. All the sisters love each other though, so it's all good.

I think the mileage varies with parents openly picking favorite children, but not having that experience myself, I wouldn't know.

When Rama is getting ready to break the bow, Sita is very reminiscent of a Disney Princess in that she first saw him 0.02 seconds ago, but is asking God to help him because she loves him. Fortunately, this behavior is looked upon as normal at this point in time.

Oooooh, Rama didn't tell Dad-King he was going to woo a lady and can't very well marry without his permission.

I think I'll start using the word "bride-elect" when I'm referring to bride-to-be's. Much more democratic. Far more politically correct.

Is it just me or does it seem sort of terrible that once Sita gets married her parents are just not going to see her again? That's just a thing that happens and is accepted. "Alright, ring's on your finger, now get out and don't come back."

In every new version of the Ramayana there seems to be another detail as to why Sita's life is just not a quality one. In this version, it's because her intended takes a really, really long time to come back from taking a powder, and so when he encounters them on the road, he starts to pick a fight with Rama. Not cool, man, you set the deal up yourself.

Ooooh, Rama is sassy in this edition!

Rama: "I love you so much! I'll never leave you! Except if you get forcibly taken from me. That's not my fault, that's just logistics. And don't expect a warm welcome if you ever get back from kidnapping."

Keykaya is still the worst.

No, Sita, really, just chill in the palace. It'll make life easier for everyone and--nope, still going in to exile with your man. That's admirable, just know that loyalty in this relationship is not in fact a two way street.

Monthara is also the worst.

Sita still has a good time in the forest.

----

I think the stream of consciousness made me pay more attention to how I was reacting to the story, but I might have gotten lost in myself? I'm not sure. Will experiment further.

Week 10: Reading Diary B

"Shaibya With Her Dead Child" from Wikimedia Commons

Shaibya, like most women in the Indian Epics I've read so far, has a hard life. She and her husband are in love and have a wonderful existence until Harischandra dares to help some of the fairy-humans he found, and then for the entire rest of the story right up until the end, Bishwamitra is the worst. Just the worst. He ousts Harischandra from his throne and takes over, and demands 1000 gold pieces to be paid to him, but won't let Harischandra use his own money for it. 

Shaibya looks at this as an opportunity to show just how much she loves her husband, and promptly sells herself to be a slave. She takes her son, and Harischandra leaves to go be a slave himself.

Continuing to be awful, Bishwamitra refuses to take the money from Harischandra because of the caste system. 

To add to their sorrows, Shaibya's son apparently dies, and she has no money for cremation. She and Harischandra are reunited, and it is revealed that all of their sorrows have been a test for Harischandra to prove that he's... Sad enough? Willing to kill himself if his son dies? I don't really get it. 

The main point that I got from this story is that the ideal wife has super, super pure love for her husband, and forgives him always. Shaibya's defining characteristic here is her love for her husband and her son. I think the reason I find Draupadi so interesting as a character is that she's much more complex than a lot of the 'ideal' women I've been reading about. Although Savitri was also pretty cool. They're all good, but they definitely all have a very common theme between them.

Week 10: Reading Diary A

"Śakuntalā Looking Back to Glimpse Dushyanta" from the Wikipedia article about Shakuntala

This week I chose to continue reading Nine Ideal Indian Women by Sunity Devee.

The first section of the reading, focused on Sakuntala, was probably one of my favorite stories I've read so far. The first part of the story was interesting, where Sakuntala's father was becoming too powerful because he was so good at abstaining from all human needs. When people noticed this, they immediately tried to figure out how to trip him up. This is not one of those times where people are revered for being awesome, it's a time when people who are awesome are constantly tripped up by people who are less awesome. I get that.

The main storyline was about Sakuntala and her lover, Dushmanta. Finally, finally, there's a story where the woman has the higher moral ground, and I love it. Sakuntala and Dushmanta fall madly in love, but he heads back to the kingdom and says he'll send someone back for her. Unfortunately, before that can happen, Sakuntala accidentally ignores a hermit and he curses her by making Dushmanta forget who she is. General chaos ensues, but the main point is that Sakuntala gets the moral high ground and Dushmanta has to come beg for her forgiveness. Unlike every time a wife has done something mildly wrong and then gets banished for it, Sakuntala takes Dushmanta back in a heartbeat. I approve of her being a generally good person, and then she turns into the greatest queen India ever saw, which is also pretty great.

Week 9: Reading Diary B (A)

Image of Savitri and Satyavan courtesy Wikipedia

Savitri: Savitri is a young princess who grows up in a time where women are educated and seen as wise, and so she is taken to ashrams and other places as a child, where she learns much, because she is meant to be the heir to her father's throne. She pulls a classic Disney Princess when she sees her literal 'Prince Charming' and falls immediately in love. I find it really interesting that all of the Indian stories I've read so far, there's at some point a couple (or four) falling in love and being exiled, or sent to the forest for some reason. I'm not sure if this is a common theme because it shows patience and generally good values from the rulers, or if it just happens a lot. Either way, Savitri is our protagonist, and eventually her pure love for her prince makes Death let go of him, and Death promises that she will never be a widow.

Damayanti: Alright, I've just about had it with these men doing something ridiculous like gambling their life and wife away and then wondering if she's been pure the whole time. It's a double standard, and I'm not a fan. It's showed up in almost everything I've read so far--the husband and wife get separated, usually due to something silly the husband does, and then when he finally manages to crawl back to her it's suddenly on her! Terrible.

Past that, Damayanti is a solid character. She's pretty lovey-dovey, but I appreciate that she has a brain and is willing to get out of the forest, and to take care of herself, and devise a plot to get her husband back to her. Still, too often are these wives throwing themselves on a funeral pyre or asking gods to take their lives in exchange for proving to the man that they're pure.

Still bitter.

Week 7: Reading Diary B

Bhishma laying on a bed of arrows. 

Today I finished up reading the Five Tall Sons of Pandu by Wilson, which was a pretty quick and easy read. However, first we need to talk about how it wasn't until I saw this image did I get that Bhishma was laying on a bed of horizontal arrows, not vertical ones. This confused me for a long time. But now I get it. Horizontal arrows. Not... Not like a bed of spikes. Got it. That would have been pretty painful. Honestly wasn't sure how he was still alive after that long besides the fact that he was essentially immortal. Fortunately, we're clear now.

What mostly struck me about this week was how bitter Duryodhana was towards the sons of Pandu. Multiple times he had quotes about how he had hated them all this time, and would continue to hate them... It ended up being a really interesting perspective on how hatred can turn someone into a shell of a person. 

I also really, really enjoyed how it was much more political this time instead of battlefield-strategic. In Narayan's edition, a lot of time was spent on how this commander did this formation, and how that worked, etc, and he even mentioned that he cut a lot of that out. This time, Wilson focused far more on the decision making process. I really liked to see how Krishna left it open to the brothers to decide if they should send a message of peace or go straight to war, with the opinion that a better answer will come from the crowd of wise princes, instead of just one. Krishna's smart enough to know that he doesn't know everything, and that he should let the princes figure this one out for themselves. 

I've got a couple things in mind to write about this week, and I'm excited to get to it tomorrow!

Week 7: Reading Diary A

Drona Trains the Princes, from the reading guide for this week

     I chose to read Wilson's Mahabharata this week, since the idea of the characters being stripped down to their bare human tendencies instead of their godly ones was really interesting to me.

It ended up reading quite a bit easier than Narayan's did. There was a lot less time spent, thus far, on explaining who was related to who and who went behind who's back, and while those are things that did eventually add to the story, I enjoyed this one far more. I think it's the difference between reading something like the Bible, which is fairly lineage focused, and reading something for plot and character development. I was much more in tune with the five princes this time around. Instead of feeling like the princes weren't entirely in the right, it made much more sense that the public rallied around them because they accepted their position and made the best of it.

The story overall was really focused on the characters and their motivations, which, as a former theatre person, is exactly what I like to think about. When I rewrite stories, more often than not it's about the characters and what's happening inside their minds as opposed to what's happening around them. This was much more moment focused, little happenings that turned the tide of things one way or another. 

One thing I noticed is the Draupadi-five husbands thing was really downplayed. I'm not sure it existed at all. Instead, Draupadi took her place beside Yudhisthir and that was that. Draupadi, in this, is the embodiment of fire. When someone comes to take her during the gambling game, she yells at them with the utmost dignity, and gets them to leave without doing anything. I love it. 

Week 6 Reading Diary B

Merciless killing of Abhimanyu, from Wikipedia

Today, I finished up the last quarter of Narayan's Mahabharata. This reading really, really reminded me of the Lord of the Rings series, as well as Game of Thrones, though a little less of the latter. A solid chunk of the reading today was edited out because it was too battle and strategy heavy, as noted in a footnote, and yet it was still very much focused on the battle. A lot of the text came from who was fighting who, if they had died yet, when they died, why they died, the long journey to their current standpoint...

That said, there was still a lot of good material there. Yudhisthira continually makes me question his ability to be king, but it makes a lot more sense as we're dealing with half-god, half-men, instead of in the last epic, where Rama was flawless. It's interesting to see the parallels between the stories, both heir apparents ousted from their place of being into exile for a long time, and then fighting a battle and resuming their throne.

It's also really interesting that the wives consistently get treated incredibly poorly. Sita was also a goddess incarnate, and therefore flawless, and Rama was fairly terrible to her after they left exile. Similarly, Draupadi does nothing but sticks her neck out for her men, and gets absolutely nothing in return. Like, she yells at them every now and then. And that's it.

I feel like every week this just turns more and more towards me being entirely indignant for the women in the epics. They're awesome, awesome characters, and yet they're treated like cardboard cutouts for the men to enjoy but not worry about past that.

Week 6 Reading Diary A

Draupadi and the Pandavas, from Wikipedia

This week, I continued reading Narayan's Mahabharata. I found this week's reading more interesting than the last two sections--I think this was mostly because last week, I took the time to make a character chart and write out who everyone was, so I had a better idea of who was interacting with each other. 

So far, Duryodhana has been acting increasingly like a B-movie villian. When offered Krishna or a million soldiers, he is THRILLED that Arjuna asks for Krisha. Textbook. When everyone around him is telling him that the war is pointless and they're all going to die, he gets mad and throws himself further on the stake.

I really liked the story where Yudhisthira was tested for hours, and for me it redeemed his earlier actions of losing the entire kingdom, his brothers, and his wife because he enjoys gambling. I think he's learned, or at least is wiser now, and my confidence in him to run a kingdom has been restored. He also tends to be a little ahead of the rest of the brothers, except for Arjuna, who really shone in this section. Given the chance to get out and drive a chariot for the prince, Arjuna takes it and does well, until the Prince starts freaking out on him. I think this could make for a pretty good comedic story, though I'm not sure how I would change the setting.

I also liked how Draupadi was just too pretty for her not to go unnoticed during her time in exile. Everyone else went incognito just fine, but men were throwing themselves at her constantly, and in turn, said men died. 

Overall, I'm excited for this week's storytelling, because I think there's a lot to work from in this section! 

Week 5: Reading Diary B

Draupadi, presumably thinking 'I am far too pretty to be putting up with this', from Wikimedia.

Today I continued my reading of Narayan's Mahabharata. 

This time Draupadi played a much more major character, mostly by telling the five brothers that she was too good to be just one of their wives, and so she'd take all five instead. This works generally well, and they work out a pretty fair time-share system, but the brothers are very sternly warned to be the purest of the pure (hello, Sita) when they aren't her designated husband. 

Sort of a side note, time seems to pass really strangely here. Arjuna definitely thought about Draupadi when she wasn't with him, and so he was exiled. This seems to have worked out alright for Arjuna, since his exile is mostly noted by how he takes a couple more wives. Granted, neither are the prettiest woman that ever existed, but... Two wives are better than one?

Props to Dhritarashtra for not being able to hate the Pandavas like everyone else except the Pandavas seem to. I really need to go back and reread the earlier section, because between the similar names and the multitude of characters I cannot keep track of who hates who and who allies with anyone else. 

The eldest Pandava son is crowned, and immediately shows his with as a leader by gambling literally everything and everyone he loves away. He actually loses himself, and then keeps going by waging Draupadi. Fortunately, what I look for in a leader is the specific quality of not knowing when to stop. 

In accordance with the theme of awesome women who absolutely do not deserve what they are put through, Draupadi gets dragged to the hall by her hair, and then they try to disrobe her. Because the gods seem to be the only sane ones, she is protected and layers and layers of fabric come off of her, but never the final one. 

Reading Diary A: Narayan's Mahabharata

Draupadi and Bhimsena Conversation, from Wikimedia

For this week I chose to read Narayan's Mahabharata, for very similar reasons to why I chose to read Narayan's Ramayana. I really like print books over reading online. Reading print, there's a small chance I'll fall asleep, is better than reading on the computer, where I'll definitely fall asleep. Above, the picture shows Draupadi conversing with her five husbands. You go, girl.

Regardless, the Mahabharata is already pretty different from the Ramayana, in that there's quite a bit more in the way of politicking in the reading for tonight. The stories that really stood out were Ganga's story, where she gave birth to and then drowned her children, and then the beginning of Draupadi's story, and her previous life.

It just really seems like a lot of what I read (granted, it's late) entailed who would be king and taking vows and relations passing away to make room for new characters. This is fine, but it definitely didn't grip me as fast as the Ramayana did. I'm interested to read more, especially about Draupadi.

I found it pretty interesting that when the first rakshasa showed up, instead of immediately being killed by Rama, as I had pretty much gotten used to, she stuck around and had a kid with Bhima. That sounds... strange? 

Draupadi choosing her husband was great, because she outright denies the first guy who accomplishes the task. She doesn't like how he looks, so she says 'try again' and then she gets someone she wants. That's a really strong move for a women in this context, so I'm just waiting to read more about her. 

Week 4: Reading Diary B: Sita: Daughter of the Earth

For the second half of the reading this week, I continued to read Sita: Daughter of the Earth. It was a quick read, but truly excellent. I love reading the rest of the story from Sita's perspective, and her wisdom and compassion in all things was so much more evident in this edition.

Not quite golden, but a deer all the same. Image from Wikimedia

Sita: Real Life Disney Princess: When Sita first gets to where she, Rama, and Lakshmana will be staying during their exile, one of the first things mentioned is how quickly all the animals take to her. She's a regular Snow White during her time there, and it's actually what ends up getting them all in trouble, unfortunately. Sita completely loses her head here, which is unfortunate, because she's incredibly wise later on, and even before that. Just in this specific instance, she happens to freak out and knows she just has to have the deer for herself. This part has confused me consistently within the readings of the Ramayana--why is it that all of a sudden everyone freaks out and goes after the dear, and gets tricked by Ravana? Up to this point, Rama's been fair, kind, smart, merciful, and just about everything you could want in a husband, except indulgent. He doesn't stand for Sita or Lakshmana being anything but the best, but when Sita wants the deer, by gosh she's going to have it.

I'm not bitter.

Sita: Rama, What Gives?: So after Sita spends a year with Ravana, being fairly consistently tortured mentally and emotionally, sitting under the same tree and presumably not moving, Rama saves her and does not immediately take her back. Because he would look bad. Because she probably didn't have the willpower to not immediately succumb to Ravana, because she's a woman. Let's not talk about the fact that Rama spent who knows how long equally distanced from her, because he's the golden (blue?) child and can do no wrong. Sita, who we can't forget is of equal divine heritage, is the one who messed up though. Nicely done, everyone. So Sita decides she's done with this, and tries to throw herself in the fire, but because of her innocence and purity, is saved by Agni. And everything's happy.

Sita: Rama, What Gives? Part II: Until it's not. A few years go by, and everyone's pretty content to accept that Sita was pure, but then some particularly jaded villagers decide that, no, the word of their beloved king really isn't enough, and that Sita's probably been a harlot the whole time. Rama's on edge, because he doesn't have the respect of the citizens. So she leaves again, this time pregnant with twins. It surprises me not that when the boys go back, and Rama decides to accept her back (again) and Sita decides she's pretty much done. I love this. I much prefer Narayan's ending, because Rama has an ounce of sense and the people of the kingdom trust him, but after Rama being a twit, Sita throws up her hands and asks for her mother to take her back. As moms do best, she opened her own arms and said "You're absolutely right you've been through hell, let's get you out of here." Go Bhudevi.

Week 4: Reading Diary A, Sita: Daughter of the Earth

This week I chose to read Sita: Daughter of the Earth, as I really enjoy reading graphic novels, and wanted to read a story written from Sita's point of view.  

I chose the image of a modern day camping area with a campfire because much of this section can be classified as "Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana Go On an Extended Camping Adventure", and I think I'd like to do something with that for my story this week.

Bonfire stock photo from Pixabay

Sita: The Literal Daughter of the Earth: First, I'm really enjoying rereading another point of view of the Ramayana, because I know I missed things the first time around. I loved that Sita was actually born from the earth. As her father plowed the field, they hit a gold box, and there she was. Sita grows up to be a strong woman, and I think that's a neat parallel because she draws strength from Bhudevi. The term Mother Earth gets used all the time, so it's an interesting reversal to think of a true Daughter of the Earth. 

Sita: Warrior Princess: Sita discovers her divine parentage by accidentally moving Shiva's bow. I think it's interesting that in this edition, it's made clear that not only Rama can move it, but Sita as well. She's just as strong as Rama, but in a much more feminine way. I was a little disappointed when she was discouraged to be a warrior, and then admits that her place was definitely off the battlefield later in the forest. I think as much as Sita loves to read, she could be a great strategist. That said, it is completely within Sita's character to embody femininity. I don't think the two are mutually exclusive, though.

Sita: Master of Her Own Fate: These titles are meant to be a little humorous, but I thought it was a change of pace when Sita suggested that there be a competition for her hand in marriage--not her father's idea, but Sita recognizing her own worth and saying that she would accept nothing less than the best. I think it doesn't always come through that Sita was exactly as much of a catch as Rama was, even though she was treated poorly time and time again, so I'm glad that was emphasized here. 

Week 3 Reading Diary B: Narayan's Ramayana

Image of Ravana and Sita from Wikimedia

This week I continued my reading of Narayan's Ramayana, and finished the epic. I've listed and explained some things that intrigued me below.

Sita, Period: Sita, again and again, proves her strength throughout this portion of the epic. She's been cooped up with Ravana for ages as a prisoner while Rama's been hanging out in the forest. Women as well as Ravana come and torture her to give up information about Rama, or to sacrifice her purity, of which she does neither. Sita gets points because of that. After all of this, Rama (albeit somewhat guided by cultural expectations) has the gall to not immediately welcome her back into his arms. Sita, you deserve better.

The Battle: The entire battle is interesting, with each side taking wins and losses, though it's definitely more weighted towards Rama. Rama is constantly looking for ways to save Ravana, to not have to kill him, which is in Rama's nature. He's always trying to do the right thing, but often has to kill the enemy in order to complete his task. A scar on Ravana's back that Rama notices as he is dying worries Rama as to whether he did the noble thing--surely, fatally wounding an enemy from the back while he was running isn't noble. He's reassured that this is an old wound, and everyone's happy.

Maya:  This is a fairly trivial point, but it was interesting that there were two sides of this brought out. Ravana fights with Maya, illusionary tactics, but after he does that, Rama fights back with wisdom, which could be said to be the exact opposite of Maya. Only a fool would be taken in by these illusions, but Rama is no fool. Just an interesting point I liked seeing.

Week 3 Reading Diary A: Narayan Ramayana

Rama Chastises the Dying Vali from Wikimedia

This week I continued reading Narayan's Ramayana and really enjoyed it. Some points I found particularly interesting follow below.

Jatayu's Death : Jatayu is very confident going into this battle, and it's interesting to me that he tells Sita to not worry, because he's going to save her from Ravana. The battle is intense, but in the end Jatayu is killed, and cannot even tell Rama where Ravana took Sita. This isn't a martyrdom, so I wonder what purpose Jatayu's death has, besides the appearance that his older brother makes later. The Ramayana hasn't had many 'senseless' deaths that I've noticed, so the fact that Ravana beats Jatayu ends up being a testament to Ravana's power. It's a good reminder of why Rama is going through the world and purging it of evil, and really shows the reader how terrible Ravana is.

Vali's Death: Narayan begins this story with an interesting sort of aside, saying that this is a strange chapter morally in the Ramayana, and I have to agree. Rama kills Vali, while hiding, and ultimately takes sides in a familial argument because of this. Granted, Vali seems pretty terrible, especially since the whole thing was a misunderstanding, but for Rama to take part in his death was odd. It really reminded me of a Shakespearean death scene, where a character is fatally wounded but still manages to deliver a wonderful monologue before actual death sets in. Rama and Vali have a whole conversation. Not even a conversation, but an actual debate for several pages before death actually sets in. Things that make you go 'hmm'...

Hanuman Mistaking Almost Every Woman He Finds For Sita: Alright, it only happens twice, but really Hanuman? One of the women he meets isn't even named, it's just said that she's being punished until someone finds her. Maybe the individual elements of beauty in these women are also a part of Sita, but more pure in her, and that's why he keeps mistaking her. I know he's just eager to find her, but with a description like Rama gave, how could he not tell immediately that these other women weren't her? I might be biased towards Sita.

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.