Week Five: Famous Last Words

This week I am feeling pretty good about this class. I have done pretty much all the extra credit so far that was available, and I have only missed one assignment. I am pretty far ahead on the expected points to have at this point in order to have an A, which makes me feel good and also relieved. My goal is to finish this course at least three weeks early—but the earlier the better! My final three weeks will be super difficult in my other courses, so I am trying to alleviate some of that stress by not having to worry over this one at the same time! It kind of sucks though, because this is my most interesting class! But I have 130 points at the moment, and the professor has not gotten to my project yet. I turned it in on time, so I can assume I will have ten more points for that, which puts me thirty points ahead of schedule already! I have an exam on Friday for my French Phonetics course. I am a little nervous because there will be an oral portion, but otherwise I feel okay. I did well on the quiz, so that leads me to believe the exam will be okay too. I have a midterm coming up in my Jews/Other Germans class. It is an essay, which I normally would not worry over. However, we only have three grades in this course so I am pretty nervous. No room for error here. I had my monthly massage this week! I know this doesn’t seem important but oh my goodness this girl works wonders! I have mild scoliosis so anytime I get some pain relief it’s a wonderful thing. This weekend I am going to the Pink and Black Ball with my boyfriend. I got my dress last weekend and I really like it! They altered it to fit me quite well. Saturday I’ll celebrate Valentine’s Day with my boyfriend. I basically hate the holiday, but there will be chocolate and wine so I tolerate it, haha. Here is a picture of my boyfriend and I at last year's Pink and Black Ball:

(Personal Photo)

Reading Diary A: Rama Goes Away

So this began even worse than I recall it being in the previous version we read of the Ramayana. Not only was Rama sent into exile, he was also disinherited!? Geez. This story gets worse and worse. And now the king has died? This is depressing. Bharata is still loyal as ever to Rama, his brother. Bharata’s crazy mother, Kaikeyi is included in the group of people who follow Rama into the forest. She should have been forced to stay home after all the trouble she caused. Vinata is now a slave because she lost a bet—one which was rigged? People really can’t play nice in this story can they? Who loses their freedom over a little bet? So Ravana’s sister falls in love with Rama on site, and Ravana falls in love with Sita only from haring her physical description. Goodness, this must be one sexy couple! But seriously, what is this nonsense? Why does everyone in this story fall in love for such shallow reasons? I noticed Rama and Sita are one of few couples who are not in a polygamous relationship. I wonder if this has something to do with their status in India and Hindu culture as a “perfect couple” or if it is a mere coincidence…

(Image from Indian Epics Resources)

Reading Diary B: Searching for Sita

Reading the actual story behind Ravana’s curse was really interesting! It added a lot to the story—in my opinion—to include this information.  Though, the story itself made me rather sad because even though Sita and others who might catch Ravana’s interest in the future are protected, this curse did nothing for Rambha herself. The issues between the two monkey brothers are still rather sad. It seems silly they did not communicate better, but I guess that’s the way the world works… Also, WHY DO WOMEN JUST KILL THEMSELVES WHEN THEIR HUSBANDS DIE??? Stop it, right now. It seems pretty ridiculous that Sugriva was too drunk to pull it together and help Rama, after everything Rama did for him. He would still be hiding away on a hill without Rama! Angada thinks he screwed up so he decided to meditate and die. What? Why does everyone want to die? Seriously? This is so dramatic—not in the good way. They waited an entire rainy season to even begin looking for Sita and he thinks one extra month means he should just die? Why is everyone so intent on death and destruction in this story?

(Image from Indian Epics Resources)

My Maria

                “Kumbhakarna!”

                “Yes, dear?”

                “Dinner is ready!”

Wonderful! My beautiful wife, Maria, is always cooking up delicious mountains of food for me, which is good because I am a very large fellow. It takes a lot of food to keep this belly from rumbling! I hope she made dessert, too. Last week, she made a rich gulab jamun and I ate myself sick, but it was well worth it. I just cannot control myself around desserts.

"Maria, what have you prepared for me today?"

"Oh my single-minded man, can I at least receive a kiss before you assault the food I've worked so hard on all day?"

"Sorry, honey. My stomach made me forget myself."

I wrapped my arms around Maria, kissing her softly. I pulled back gently and caught sight of the table. Oh my. Maria outdid herself. The table was piled high with scrumptious-looking delicacies. She caught me staring past her at the food and began lightly scolding me. Luckily, she is used to my love of food and knows I love her just as much—maybe even more!

“Alright, dear, you can eat now. I’ve prepared a whole butter chicken, lamb vindaloo, naan paranthas stuffed with vegetables, samosas, a big pot of rasam—“

“Nom, nom, nom, nom, nom, nom, nom”

“Ugh, that man! He isn’t even listening… I guess I won’t tell him about the ladoos.”

My ears perked up, even in my food-induced craze I could listen for the sound of desserts! I’ll just have to sweet talk her into giving the precious ladoos to me, as soon as I finish off this dish…

“Dear, can’t I please have some of the ladoos? I know how hard you worked on it; I want to show my appreciation! By eating and enjoying it, of course!” I said while rubbing my belly happily.

“I’m afraid not, Kumbi. I’ve already thrown it all out.”

“What!? How could you?”

I dropped to the floor in despair and—strangely enough—opened my eyes in my family’s house, back on the island.

                Oh my. That was some dream. I really must get off this island and find me a wife, one who can cook as well as the wives of my dreams. I must’ve dozed off again… What year is it? I suppose I’ll have to venture outside and check. Ugh. I HATE waking up… Sometimes I wish I could sleep forever, but then I’d miss out on all the food! I could try ringing the servants’ bell. *RING, RING, RING*… Hmm, that is strange. The servants know better than to ignore me when I first wake up. I am always rather grumpy, but who could blame me following a dream like that, only to wake up wifeless and hungry? No matter, I will punish the servants later. Right now, I need to track down some food. Hey, what’s that noise? I hear a faint rumbling outside. Was that a battle cry? Oh, goodness. Did I miss something important? I do believe there is a battle going on outside; I hope Ravana hasn’t started trouble again…

 

(Image from Pixabay) 

Author’s Note: I chose to tell this story because I was interested in Kumbhakarna’s character, but he was not elaborated on very much at all in the original version. I completely made up his dream world and I changed the scene in which he initially wakes up during the battle between Rama and Ravana. I liked telling the story using a lot of dialogue as well as inner thoughts of Kumbhakarna because I felt it showed the relationship between him and Maria very well. I was hoping to convey that they cared for each other, in spite of Kumbhakarna’s obsession with food. I think my version of Kumbhakarna is much more relatable and lovable than the original, which was an important goal of my story. I used the Ramayana for my inspiration and VahRehVah.com for the names of the traditional Indian food mentioned in the story. I have personally tried samosas—the Indian food, not the drink!—and they were pretty good, though I hear they are much more impressive when they are homemade, as Kumbhakarna’s were in the dream. The image is something I found by simply searching “traditional Indian food”, so I am unsure what exactly is in the picture. I love the song "My Maria," so I chose to use that inspiration for the name of the wife, which is why she does not have a traditional Indian name.

Bibliography:

Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way

 VahRehVah.com

Week 4: Reading Diary B

So it has been really interesting getting to read this story in greater detail and having many of my previous questions answered as a result. One scene that still really irritated me was when the king grants his queen the two owed wishes, which she designated as having her own biological son become the new king and having Rama sent away for twelve years. This is simply nonsense to me. I have noticed this theme in Indian culture and it is something that is difficult for me to wrap my head around. I understand that once you have agreed to something you should not back out of it. However, it seems unthinkable for me to consider promising not one, but two, requests be fulfilled without any stipulations or clue as to what those requests might be. I cannot imagine agreeing to such a thing myself! But also, it is madness to think that the so-called stepmother of Rama could be so malicious, even if provoked by the other woman. Everyone is responsible for their own decision-making. It is very hard for me to imagine a justification for the queen’s actions, even if she did truly believe she would fall under such harsh circumstances if Rama were to become king. 

(Image from Wikimedia)

Week 4: Reading Diary A

 

(Image from Wikimedia) 

I am really enjoying this new book; it is a very fast-paced and interesting read! I am getting  a little confused with all the names, once again. I was really horrified by the first chapter, the one where the woman drowned her firsts even babies! But I was fascinated by the five brothers all taking the same wife. I thought it was ridiculous how the mother thought she was advising the brothers to share their alms--not a wife--and yet they had to follow through with it. But it also bugged me that the wife-to-be would not speak up and share her own opinion on the situation, after all, she only agreed to marry one brother, not all five! Then again, she was already allowing her husband to be chosen via a competition, so I guess at this point she was fully resigned to her fate... One recurring question I had was in regards to the brothers conception: do they/the general public/their cousins know of their godly lineage? I do not remember this being discussed anywhere in the story, but it seems relevant. I wonder if the family relations would have went over more smoothly had their cousins known of the divine origins, or if this would have only made them even more jealous...

Styles Exploration

Topic: I want to do my project over Vaishnavism, the worship of Vishnu. It is a particular sect within Hinduism. It is actually the largest sect! I am planning to do an introduction page where I share basic facts about Vaishnavism. I would definitely want to consider the story of Rama and Sita for my project, as it is a favorite of Vaishnavites. I also want to tell some stories about Krishna, as he and Rama seem to be the main incarnations of Vishnu that are focused on. I am thinking the birth of Krishna will be an interesting story to tell. I also found a story about Vishnu himself! A character named Narada asks for a beautiful face in order to win a girl, but Vishnu gives him a face like a monkey instead!

(Image taken from Wikimedia)

Bibliography: 

1. Narayan, R.K. (1972) The Ramayana

2. The Story of the Birth of Krishna

3. The Story of Vishnu and Narada

4. ReligionFacts

5. Wikipedia

Styles:

1. Vishnu

I like the idea of Vishnu himself telling all of the stories, from a first-person point of view. It could be very casual, like he is recalling good memories with a friend. It would make sense too, because Vishnu was an incarnation or himself directly involved in every story I am considering. It would also back up the idea that Vishnu is all-pervading.

2. Each Character

I am also thinking of having each main character in each story tell that particular story. In this case I would want them to be telling their story as it occurred, as opposed to recalling a memory. I would want them to have as much or as little knowledge as their story would suggest they have--for example, Rama would not know he was an incarnation of a god when telling the story of him and Sita.

3. Guru

I also think having a wise old Guru tell each story to a group of students would be fun! In this style, the writing would be in third-person storytelling mode. I like this one because it seems like something that could, and does, actually happen. I could also embellish it with fun side notes about the students interrupting and so on.

4. Bedtime Stories

Also using a third-person storytelling narrative, I think making each story into a brief, embellished bedtime story for children would be fun to do. I would make a grandmother be the storyteller. I could maybe have a grandfather involved too. I think it would be sweet to have the grandmother play Sita and the grandfather play Rama, for example.