Reading Notes: Epified Mahabharata Part C

• Poor Karna :( I feel so bad for him because he can never claim his birthright.  He doesn't want to betray his "parents" but he could have so much more.
• I'm glad that Duryodhana recognizes Karna's potential!  He's more "progressive" than the Pandavas in that sense.  I wonder if this attitude is frowned upon actually because of the idea that Karna should have stuck to his assumed class.
• I feel so bad for Drona too!  You'd think that one of the best archers in the world would have found some employment, but I can't believe that his friend wouldn't help him!  Or that he would be so condescending to him.
• What an elaborate scheme to kill the Pandavas.  I get that they don't want people to know that they killed them but sheesh they could have just hired some assassins or something.
• They glossed over this in these videos too!  In the original version, they invite some lower class people in and leave them to die so that people will think that they are dead.  It's just awful that they would do that, so I'm glad in other versions they remove that.
• Narayan's version didn't really emphasize Bhima all that much.  It's cool to hear some of what he did while Arjuna and the others were doing stuff.  It seemed like Arjuna was the "hero" of the Pandavas in Narayan's retelling, but this version makes it seem like Bhima's no slouch either.
• Draupadi's birth seems so strange.  She's almost an afterthought in the birth of her brother, but then it ends up being her brother that isn't mentioned much later.  Although maybe that's just the selective focus and not being able to include everything in the story.

Birth of Draupadi.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Epified Mahabharata.  Reading Guide.

Story Planning: Dharma

• Reading the Bhagavad Gita made me very intrigued about Hindu value systems and what they regard as a "good person"
• I really want to write a story somehow examining this?  I'm having a very hard time trying to put this into a story context though.  I feel like I'm thinking of it more as an essay describing my thoughts rather than a story, but I'm not sure how to make it more into a story.
• Some possibilities I was thinking of was examining Arjuna's actions through this and seeing how and when he violates or follows the principles of dharma, but that also seems kind of boring.  I want something a little more creative.
• Another idea I had was moving these principles into a more modern environment and examining people's actions through there, but this is also rather difficult because I'm not sure whose actions I should examine.  Arjuna's again but just modern?  Not sure how that would work.
• Really I just want to write a story about what a good person according to these principles is but I don't know how to do that.
• I want to maybe talk something about the caste system as well because Krishna says that somebody who does his duty poorly is better than someone who does an exceptional job that isn't his duty.  Kind of plays into Ekalavya and why he's beaten back down rather than praised, but I don't really want to write another story about Ekalavya.
• I could move that principle into a modern context and maybe talk about somebody who wants to do something else but his parents want him to keep up the family business?  So this conflict between what he wants and what he should do?
• Basically I have lots of half formed ideas but no concrete thing I want to write about :( if anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear it.

Arjuna and Krishna.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Bhagavad Gita:  The Song Celestial translated by Edwin Arnold.  Reading Guide.

Reading Notes: Arnold's Bhagavad Gita Part B

• Thanks to Dr. Gibbs pointing it out I found Arnold's version of J. Robert Oppenheimer's famous quote!  It is much more different in this version, but I like how poetic it is.  Would have been much harder for him to quote though.
• This half of the Bhagavad Gita intrigued me a lot more than the first half.  I liked how it delved deeper into the differences between a good person and a bad person and the different types of qualities.
• I was especially interested in the difference between sattva, rajas, and tamas.  I think it's rather interesting that Hinduism regards doing things for pleasure and passion to be worse than doing things without attachment or emotion.  In Christian and Western culture, people typically prefer doing things with passion and for their happiness.  Tamas seems to be more similar to the Christian idea of a "bad person."
• I also think it's interesting that Hindus regard people trying to get material wealth to be one of the worst kinds of people while most Americans and Westerners wholeheartedly believe in this path; it's even the American Dream.
• The justification for the caste system was very interesting.  Krishna says that it's better to do the job that you were assigned poorly than to do something that you shouldn't do well.  That is very against most Western ideals, and my own opinions too, but it's a very interesting viewpoint either way.
• I kind of just flipped through most of the pictures when I was reading, but at the end I discovered that they had an appendix that went through each of the pictures in detail and described the symbolism in each one.  It was so helpful!  I had no idea of all of the nuances present in the positioning of the people or the borders and it helped me understand the Bhagavad Gita a lot more.

First frontispiece in the book.  It is Dhritarashtra asking Sanjaya to tell him what happens in the battle.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Bhagavad Gita:  The Song Celestial translated by Edwin Arnold.  Reading Guide.

Reading Notes: Arnold's Bhagavad Gita Part A

• I love how the book is presented!  I checked out the copy from the Bizzell library and it is gorgeous!  It comes in a cute red box and it has very pretty illustrations in it!  It also has Sanskrit next to the English, which is cool to look at even though I don't understand a word.
• The style of this is so different from Narayan's version.  Obviously, Narayan's was a narrative so he didn't really have a lot of room for the preaching (for lack of a better term) that is in Arnold's version, but besides that the poetry of this version is so nice.  It's a really good translation!  I don't know what it sounded like in the original Sanskrit, but if it's anything like the translation, it must have been beautiful.
• This style of back-and-forth conversation helping to demonstrate the principles of the religion really reminds me of the Bible.  Some of the Bible verses are similar to this with the apostles questioning Jesus, so it's really interesting to see how the same idea holds in Hinduism.
• I was really intrigued by Krishna's argument that life is life and cannot be destroyed.  It is kind of an interesting view, but it makes some sense, I guess, since even with the death of one person, there is still life in general.
• I keep waiting for the infamous line quoted by J. Robert Oppenheimer about "I am become death, destroyer of worlds" but it looks like I'll be waiting a little longer!  Either that or it's not in this translation.

Arjuna questioning Krishna.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Bhagavad Gita:  The Song Celestial translated by Edwin Arnold.  Reading Guide.

Storytelling: One Last Day

“This is the best day of my life,” Radha sighed, smiling happily.  There were flowers draped all over her hair and body, and in her red and gold dress, she looked as radiant as the sun.

He smiled tightly.  If only you knew what I did.

Closing his eyes, he saw what would happen, followed the same thread he had so many times, and watched her as she grew old.

He watched as she waited and pined and remained loyal to only him.

Watched as she sat and prayed.

And wished for him to come back.

But he never did.

And that’s how she died, waiting and waiting for a love that would never return.

He hated watching her future.

“Krishna?” she asked, shyly, tapping his shoulder, jolting his attention back to the present.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” he murmured.  “I’m glad you’re happy, that’s all.”  It was true; he’d worked so hard to make this day perfect for her.  He’d arranged for the weather to be breezy and warm, begged the flowers to bloom early, coaxed the cows into behaving on the field, and persuaded all of the gopis to come down to the meadow.

Now, in this gorgeous day, she threw her head back and laughed, full of joy and sparkle and hope, and Krishna fixed the memory in his heart.  He never wanted to forget this day.

“Play the flute!” she said.  “I want to dance!”

And dance she did, as he wove golden melodies and every note glittered and twirled with her.  Nobody could take their eyes off her, least of all Krishna.  He savored every spin and every step.

The future danced with her in Krishna’s eyes, and he saw the armies clashing, the spears twirling with her arms, the shields glinting like her bangles, the screams mixed with his flute.

He saw the destruction of the warriors in the soft grass and fragrant flowers and saw the blood splashed on the mountainside.

He saw a rain of arrows perfectly placed, a figure wheeling a chariot, the flash of a silver sword, and the savage blow of a mace.

He saw kings and princes humbling themselves before him, begging for his help.

He saw his future queens laughing and talking before him, each gazing at him adoringly.

He saw the sage before him, admonishing him, reminding him of his duty.

“You are the savior of Dharma!  You know this is your destiny!”

Yes, he wanted to yell, yes, but I hadn’t met her yet.

He saw himself leaving the next day, shifting the universe and going down the right path.

But he also saw the other path, the one where he stayed, where he refused his destiny, and he saw their short but happy lives, saw a beautiful son and a wonderful daughter.

He saw all this and more, the entire universe, all pasts, presents, and futures, in his eyes, but most of all he saw her lonely figure waiting for him through eternity.

Because he could never pick the other path.

“Dance with me?” she asked, holding her hand out to him.  Her flushed face looked like heaven and he knew that he would come back to this moment every day for the rest of his life.

Tomorrow I will be gone, he thought, and he held her hand for the last time.

Radha and Krishna.  Web Source.

Author's Note:  Radha and Krishna's love story is so sad to me because they love each other so much, but they can never be together.  They lived in the same village together as children, but Krishna was actually divine and related to a princess while Radha was merely the daughter of a villager.  It was impossible for their destinies to be together.  Radha's devotion touched me especially because she is willing to do so much for Krishna, but he can't be with her because his destiny is with the Pandavas.  I wanted to express how hard of a choice it was for him to give her up, and how what he knows of his destiny moves him and influences his decisions.

Bibliography:  Epified Krishna.  Web Source.

Reading Notes: Epified Krishna Part B

• Why do all these gods feel the need to test Krishna's divinity?  They already know he's Vishnu reincarnated.
• Poor Radha :(.  She was so devoted to Krishna!  They were one soul!  Why couldn't they be together???
• I hope Krishna can come back to his village someday but I think it looks like he's just going to forget about them forever.
• I really like how they keep the representations of Krishna so consistent with the little peacock? feather everytime.  It really helps build a picture of who he is.
• Poor elephant :( he probably didn't want to have to kill people.
• Why did no one kill Kamsa before if everyone hated him so much?  I guess he was a good warrior but still if enough people fight him then it won't matter.
• Haha, I love Krishna's logic.  Well we keep getting attacked here so why don't we just move somewhere else?
• Why can't he kill him now?  This is such a strange fate paradox.  He will be killed by Bhima later because Krishna spares him now, but if Krishna hadn't spared him now, but he did so oh god this is too much.

Krishna.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Epified Krishna.  Web Source.

Reading Note: Epified Krishna Part A

• I love the music and drawing style for these even better than the Mahabharata ones actually.  I really like the way the music matches the mood and seems more integrated with the story than the other ones.  I also like the way each picture is framed and is more a snapshot of one particular story.
• I hadn't really thought much about Krishna in the Mahabharata but I really like learning more about his past!  I had no idea he went through so much in the beginning of his life
• The part when Maya turns out to be Durka (sp?) was so great!  Especially when she chastised him for thinking that women were weak.  You go girl!
• The way he killed the first demoness was so strange, haha.  Also the way she decided to kill him was a little strange too.  She couldn't just have dashed his head against a rock?
• How does Kunce (sp?) have access to all these weird monsters?  What did he have to do to get control of all of them?
• I hope Krishna's birth parents are eventually freed!  It's so sad that all of their children except for him died and that they have to be locked up for so long.
• Seeing the universe in your son must have been terrifying.  I'm glad she was able to make it out of that without becoming insane.
• So glad that his friends didn't die permanently because of the snake!  This is why kids shouldn't play in the forest, haha.
• I wonder why he wanted them to worship that hill specifically?  I mean it was a nice demonstration of his power later but why?
• Radha sounds like a great person.  Krishna better treat her nice.
• I can't believe all of this happened already and he still hasn't met the Pandavas!  He led an exciting life.

Vasudeva escaping with Krishna.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Epified Krishna.  Web Source.

Week 8 Growth Mindset

If this post feels a bit gloomy to you, it may be because I just got a pretty bad grade in one of my classes.  I'm working on bringing it up and talking to the TA and teacher more, but it is still rather disheartening.  I'd hoped that this semester would be slightly easier than my last one, but I am feeling even more stressed and frustrated than last year.  I may have overreached myself, but I don't want to back down from any of my commitments either.  So, even before this post, I've been worrying a lot about where I'm at in terms of time management and classes and how I can handle everything I signed up for.

Thinking through all of the continuums, I am worried that I am faltering in a few of them, especially the ones about time management and attitude.  I want to choose what's hard and challenge myself and try new things and work on improving myself, but it's just so difficult.  That's pretty much a horrible and defeatist thing to say, but I'm so tired and exhausted all the time that I don't really want to.  More and more I just want to slide into the easier path and put off my homework and do fun and relaxing things.  I know that's going to make things worse on myself in the future, but I just want to do something that will make me less stressed out.

I'm not going to give up though.  Things will get better, and starting this week I'm trying to implement more effective time management strategies and get things done earlier.  I'm trying to segregate myself from my friends when doing intensive homework and making sure to get enough sleep so I don't fall asleep in class.  This class is definitely helping me with time management strategies because I can always plan for this class so I'm trying to implement plans for all of my other classes too.  I hope by the end of the semester I can look back and be proud of myself for accomplishing everything and improving myself.

I'm trying at least.  Web Source.

Week 8 Reflections

I used to want to be a writer when I grew up.  Then I switched to wanting to be an editor because I would get to read books all day.  Somewhere along the way, I realized that those passions might be better off as hobbies, and today I'm majoring in biomedical engineering and probably going into a career that will have nothing to do with Indian epics.
This class has really helped me learn to write and read better, and I'm remembering how much fun it was to create characters and read stories and write for myself.  Every week I'm so excited to be reading something new and writing something new.  I love discovering new parts of Indian culture through the Ramayana and Mahabharata, and all of the different versions of the stories are so amazing to me.  I love reading myths and ancient folktales, so all of these new stories are so fascinating.  I especially love reading the graphic novels or watching the Epified shorts so I can better visualize the characters.  All of the reading methods I've chosen helped emphasize different parts of the epics, in my opinion.  Reading the Ramayana through the Public Domain definitely demonstrated how people can rewrite the same story so many different ways, whether through prose or verse.  The graphic novels showed different visualizations of the classic characters.  Narayan's version of the Mahabharata, while heavily condensed, still did a very good job of helping me understand the major story arcs and important characters, while the Epified videos helped fill in some gaps and again helped with character visualization.
Writing stories every week also helped me so much with my writing ability.  I haven't written anything in a very long time, but with this class pushing me to churn out stories every week, I've gotten so much more practice.  I'm working on a lot of my issues with using passive voice rather than active voice, but I hope I'm improving a lot!  I am also very excited to work on my Storybook because I really love the idea I picked and can't wait to develop it!
I also think that I have been improving a lot with giving feedback to people.  I used to be a little afraid of criticizing completely, but I feel more comfortable giving honest critiques to people now.  I also feel more comfortable receiving feedback and using it to help my stories.
This class has really helped me develop my more creative side and I'm really happy with how everything has been going so far!

Reflection.  Web Source.

Story: Shoot for the Moon

“This is magnificent,” a voice breathed, and I instantly snapped towards it.

I would recognize that voice anywhere.

“How did they do that?” another voice said.  I didn’t know this one, but it sounded like a young boy’s.

I peered through the tree branches and saw them, the sage and his pupil, marveling at my work of art.

Hours and hours of practice had paid off finally, and the dog whined piteously as they stood around it for its mouth was completely shot full of arrows.

None of them hurt the dog in any way, but he had lost his ability to bark or close his mouth at all.

Taking a deep breath, I emerged from the bushes and stood before them proudly.

“Are you the one who produced this miracle?” the man asked.  His student stared in awe, and I swelled with pride.

“Yes, I am,” I said.  “Do you not remember me, teacher?”

The man started and squinted at me.  “I would remember a pupil as talented as this.  Tell me the meaning of what you said.”

“Come,” I said, gesturing towards my hut.  I showed them the statue I had carved of the famed sage, Drona.

“You rejected me before when I asked to be your pupil.  Now look how far I have come.  Your statue has been here the whole time, watching me and guiding me to be the best archer in the world.”

I felt my heart beat like a drum in my chest.  This was the moment I had been waiting for, all these long years alone in the forest, practicing day and night.

“Will you take me as your pupil now?  I would do anything to be your student!”

To my surprise, he burst out laughing.  “You?  Be my pupil?  I could not possibly teach you.  I only teach Kshatriyas, ones who are worthy of being taught the martial arts.  I do not know what fluke caused this miracle to be created by you, but it is no indication of your worth.

You must prove yourself to me through a greater sacrifice.  I demand that you cut off the thumb of your right hand.  If you can do this for me, I will teach you everything I know.”

I felt all my breath rush out of my lungs.  If I cut off my right thumb, his teachings would be useless to me.  Without the thumb on my right hand, I could not steady my bow.  My aim would be ruined.

“B-But that will . . .” the boy beside Drona stammered.

Drona nodded grimly.  “Sacrifices must always be hard.  Or they are not true sacrifices.”

White hot anger ran through my veins.  He knew exactly what he was doing to me, to my talent, to my potential.  This was not a sacrifice.  It was my death.

“No,” I whispered.  And then again, louder, “No, I will not do it.  I will not cut off my thumb to please your cruel whim.”

He smirked derisively.  “I thought you said you would do anything to be my student.  See what your promises are worth.”

“I will not do something so blatantly meant to destroy me.  If I cut off my thumb, I would be useless as your student.  No, I did not need your help to create this, and I will not need it now.”

Without another word, I turned around and stalked away before they could see the tears that dripped down my face.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Thunk.

Every arrow I shot hit its target.  I had set up a practice dummy made of an old log with branches lashed to it and I shot arrows at it furiously.

Within minutes, it had fallen to pieces from the onslaught and I stood there panting, wanting something more to kill.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of approaching footsteps through the trees and I spun around and nocked an arrow.

“Who goes there?” I snarled.  “Answer, or I will shoot!”

“Please, I only came to see you,” a voice called, and the boy from earlier emerged from the bushes.

I didn’t lower my bow.  “Who are you?  Why do you want to see me?”

He stood awkwardly, but I noticed the only part of his body at ease was the arm holding his bow.

“I don’t think it’s fair what Drona did to you.  I know you wanted to train with him, but I was wondering if you would train with me instead.”

“And who are you that I should want to train with you?” I said contemptuously, but inside I was already wondering what it would be like to practice against someone other than myself.

“I am Prince Arjuna of Hastinapura, son of Indra,” he proclaimed proudly.  “I thought I was the best archer in the world, but you have shown me my arrogance.  Please, teach me!”

I breathed and relaxed, finally lowering my bow.

“You would really want to train with me?  I’m not a Kshatriya, you know.  I would barely be worthy to clean your feet.”

“I don’t care!  I will never be the best if I don’t practice with those better than I am.  I want to know how you did that.”

“You want to know how I did the trick with the dog?  It will take you months of practice at least, if not years.  I’ll work you harder than Drona ever did,” I warned, hoping against hope.

His eyes gleamed with ambition, and I knew I needn’t have worried.

“Show me.”

Arjuna.  Web Source.

Author's Note:  I was really saddened by the story in the Epified Mahabharata about Drona's cruel treatment of Ekalavya so I wanted to rewrite the story into what I thought should have happened.  In the original, Ekalavya does cut his own thumb off and is prevented from becoming the legend he should have been.  Obviously, I did not do that in my version, and I also made Arjuna more sympathetic toward Ekalavya's plight.

Bibliography:  Epified Mahabharata.  Ekalavya's Story.  Web Source.

Reading Notes: Epified Mahabharata Part B

• One of the episodes randomly had a different voice person, and it was a little interesting haha.  I had gotten so used to the male one, that the female one gave me a bit of a shock.
• Yesterday it seemed like they cut out a lot of detail from the Mahabharata, but this time it seemed like there were a lot more stories that I hadn't read in the Narayan version.
• The differing version of why Kunti had an illegitimate son was interesting.  Less blame was placed on her because the sage didn't tell her exactly what the mantra would do.  In the Narayan version, she was told though and she just wanted to know whether it would work.
• I was very disturbed at the retelling of Gandhari's sons.  The putrid lump of flesh being divided into the vats of oil was very weird, not to mention the fact that her sons apparently looked demonic and were the type that only blind parents could love.  It definitely seems like they have a bit of a bias towards the Pandavas, which I don't appreciate.
• The story of Ekalavya was very sad too.  He worked so hard and he couldn't enjoy any of his hard work because he wasn't a kshatriya.  This story really demonstrated a lot of the caste system prejudice that was present back then.  It seemed that Narayan glossed over a lot of that in his retelling.
• Personally if I were Arjuna after meeting Ekalavya, I would be inspired to work even harder rather than just being angry that somebody else had beaten him that shouldn't have.

Ekalavya cutting off his thumb and presenting it to Drona.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Epified Mahabharata.  Web Source.

Reading Notes: Epified Mahabharata Part A

• I love this drawing and animating style!  It's so cute and I like how it looks like they're drawing it in real time!  I also really like the look and appearance of each of the characters.  They all show so much emotion!
• Going through the story again this way with all of the little retellings of the story each time really helped me get the character names down!  It's also helped me a lot with remembering family trees.  I had a lot of problems remembering all of the different relationships but it really helps when the story is condensed so much.
• I did kind of miss all of the extra detail though.  I watched it with my friends and I found myself pausing after every video to give them more in depth explanations of what had happened!
• I really enjoyed going back through the Mahabharata this way!  I'm definitely going to be watching all of these in the near future, maybe even this week if I have time!

Epified Mahabharata.  Web Source.

Bibliography:  Epified Mahabharata.  Web Source.