Extra Reading Week 13

                         (A group of Indian Musicians in 1870: Image from Wikimedia Commons)
Folk Dance and Music by Epified

My reading for this week is a little off topic and unconventional but it kept popping up on the YouTube side bar and it was made from Epified so I thought I would try it. The video talked about music and dance. They describe how rich the Indian culture is and how it is in everyone’s roots. Whether the person be a farmer, businessman, or doctor, everyone is musically inclined. A lot of the folk music in Madhya Pradesh tells a lot about its history and people. The music is often about love, duty, and sacrifice, all things people lived through. It is really cool and different to hear that a lot of people practice this music together because it is not something you see in the US a lot. It reminds me of the native American culture. It is also really interesting to hear that different tribes that were all close to each other have different traditions and produced different types of music. It sets the different tribes apart but also gives them something to share in common which is their love for music. These people wanted to make music so badly that they would make instruments out of so many different things. It is inspiring how much they just loved to make and listen to music with their neighbors, they didn’t care if it wasn’t a real instrument, as long as it made sound. One example of this music being played and loved is when Krishna played the music to stop the demon. This example just explains what the Indian people think that music can do and what kind of impact it has on their daily lives. Not only is music important to them but also dance. Many tribes and cultures in India have special dances to go with their music. I enjoy reading about things that are different then the western culture I was raised in.                

Reading Notes Part 2 Week 13

(Lord Krishna & Kalia: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Dreams and Music by Epified TV (India)

I wonder if Krishna knows he is a god. He does these things that know one else can do like play music without learning, kill demons, and show people the world. No one tells him he is a god, although only his birth parents, king Kansa, and Yashoda knows. It must be confusing for him as to why he is like this but it is not mentioned that he has any strange feelings. I wish the video would explain more why everyone left their town and moved. All that is said is that there was a feeling that they should leave and then everyone did. Did one person have this feeling or was it the many? If one person had the feeling then how did they convince everyone else that the feeling was true. Also why did they pick the town that they settled in? Where their other people living there already? Was there conflict with the people that were already living there? Did they know about the demon that lived in the water before they got there? There are many unanswered questions in some of these short videos. I wonder what kind of music Krishna played to get rid of   

Kalia? Does the Indian culture at the time of this story have snake charmers because it seems that that is what Krishna is doing? The town now knows that Krishna is a god/Avatar but does Krishna know. No one has told him but he must know by now that he is special and there is something different about him. I like that the demons and the kids are illustrated because it makes it easier to invasion what they look like and how many of them there are and what they look like.

   

Reading Notes Part 1 Week 13

                              (Demoness Putana: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Krishna by Epified TV (India)

I am very confused as to why the characters in this story are not questioning anything that happened. Yashoda did not question that she woke up next to a boy when she gave birth to a girl. She was confused but she did not question this fact. In fact, she went with it and did not wonder where her baby girl went. She also does not question the fact that her husband brings her another son to care for. Whose son is it and why is Yashoda so willing to take the boy. Are the parents of this boy not worried about him? Yashoda also does not question how close Putana gets to Krishna. Putana inserts herself into their lives and know one is concerned about it. Yashoda then does not question the fact that she finds her stolen baby next to a dead corpse of a demon. I understand that the audience knows that Krishna is a god but Yashoda does not know this so why is she allowing her child to do these things without question. Once again, I enjoy that this is in video format and it makes it much easier to follow along too. Another thing that I question/wonder about this story is that straight of the bat the village people love Krishna. Why? Did he do something special that was not said or is it just because he was born? I am curious to see how King Kansa tries to find and kill the baby. The baby is far away and how will he know that he has found the right baby? Is there a distinct make that Krishna has to allow people to recognize him, like Harry Potter? Or will the king just get a feeling that it is the right baby, and what happens if he kills the wrong one?

Reading Notes Part 2 Week 12

Vasudev Meets Yamuna by Epified TV (India)

Ill start of by saying how much I enjoy listening to these stories in video form. I think presenting these stories with a video and a narrator is such a good idea. For me personally it is very difficult to follow along with these stories when just reading them. This is because there are so many words I don’t know and can not pronounce that it takes me a long time to read the whole story. It is also very difficult to follow all of the new characters and their names without having a face to put with the name. These are problems that are solved when a video is used to tell the story. Also Epified did a great job in this aspect because they also give the viewer something to watch that is not distracting from the story so it is easy to watch and listen. I think having one epic being read and the other in video format would be a good idea for this course, instead of having both of them as novels.

As for the story, this was a very interesting story to listen to. The father and mother continuously have their children killed by the king, the child’s uncle. The king keeps killing the babies after birth because the legend says the 8^th baby will be the downfall of the king. The day came and the 8^th child was born, a boy and a god. The father noticed that after the child was born the door to their cell was open and the guards were asleep. The father slips out and goes to a village where another baby had just been born. The father switches the babies and returns with a girl to their cell.

This is an awful concept portrayed in this story. I can understand why the father switched the babies but that is not justified. The father stole someone’s baby to save his own. He was fully aware that the king would kill this baby girl that he stole. I think that the father of the baby is just as evil as the king who kills the newborns.  

     

(Krishna: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Reading Notes Jataka The Guilty Dogs

                                            (Dog Nose: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

 The Guilty Dogs by Noor Inayat (Khan)

There seems to be a very common couple of themes in all of the Jataka stories. The first being that human and other animals are always included, nature in some aspect is usually included as well. The next theme is that there is always a king of the humans and always a leader of the animals. The next theme is that the animals are always avoiding death from the humans for either sport, resources, or false accusations. The last theme I have noticed in the couple of stories I have read is that the animal king always confronts the human king and amazes him. The human king always stops harming the animals and gives them good treatment after that.

This is exactly what happened in this story. The palace dogs destroyed something valuable to the king. This king finds outs and orders that all dogs in the city, except the palace dogs be killed. The dog chief then encounters the human king before the killing starts and asks him to reconsider. The dog chief explains that the city dogs were not involved in destroying his chariot and should not be killed. The king unsurprisingly does not believe him and asks for proof. The dog chief also unsurprisingly proves the king to be wrong and himself correct. The human king then feels so bad that he not only tells the dog chief that him and his followers will not be killed but will be treated like royalty. The story does not mention if the palace dogs will be punished.

This story is better then some of the others in teaching kids, the targeted audience, life lessons. It shows them good leadership on the dogs’ behalf and it shows courage. However, it also shows that leaders may respond with violence even before they know the whole story. It also shows that someone can act poorly and get away with it.     

Reading Notes Crab and Crane

The Crab and the Crane by Ellen C. Babbit

               This story, I also think, is meant to be a children’s book. Although, I don’t think it is a very nice read for children and I do not agree with its message. In the story there is a pond with very little water because of lack of rain and over consumption from other animals. In that pond lived many fish that were beginning to struggle because there was no water in their pond. The crane showed compassion to the fish, or at least that’s what they thought, and offered to take the fish to a new pond that had lots of water. At first the fish were hesitant because they thought the fish would just eat them all but the crane took one of the fishes to check out the new pond and when they came back the fish told the others that the pond was great and full of water. So, all the fish trusted the crane to take them to the pond one by one but instead he took them to a different place and ate them one by one. Eventually all the fish were gone and the crane became hungry again. He saw a crab by the pond where the fish once lived and he decided to play his game again. He told the crab there was a pond in a different place he could take him to with more water and food. The crab agreed to go and check it out, but the only way the crab could travel was to hold onto the cranes neck very tightly with is sharp claw. The crane took the crab to the place where he ate the fish instead of the pond where he promised. The crane said he was going to eat the crab and leave his shell with the fish bones but the crab still had a hold of his neck. The crab then killed the crane to avoid being eaten. I think this lesson teaches kids that even though you are smart and ask the right questions you still can trust people which I don’t think this should be taught to the young, no matter how true it is. I also don’t think that teaching the lesson that you should kill the problem instead of fixing it should be taught to the young.       

                                              (Crab: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Reading Notes The Ox

                                                             (Ox:Wikimedia Commons)

THE OX WHO WON THE FORFEIT by Ellen C. Babbit

The story of the ox that pulled the 100 carts was interesting. It seems that it was written as a children’s story because it teaches the fundamental act of treating someone nicely.  It was very easy to read with not very difficult wording or sentence structure. In the story an owner owns an ox that he enjoys telling all of the other people in town about. The owner loves his ox but mostly for his strength and never seems stop talking about it. He is always very kind to his ox and feeds him well so he can remain strong. One day while in town he began to gloat about the strength of his ox and bet that his ox could pull 100 carts. The gentlemen accepted the bet because they thought the ox could never pull 100 carts. The owner brought his ox out the next day to prove to the others how truly strong his ox was, and to collect his money. They tied the ox to the first cart with 99 following and the owner began to whip and yell at the ox. To the owners surprise the ox did not move even though he knew the ox could and the owner lost the bet. Once they were home the owner was very upset and asked the ox why he did not pull the carts. The ox responded by saying he did not like the way his owner was speaking to him and that he did not like being whipped. The owner apologized and said it would never happen again and the ox trusted him and forgave him. The next day the ox went to town and pulled the 100 carts to win the bet for his owner. I think this story is told in this way to teach kids its not okay to bully someone to get what you want. And if you need something to ask for it and not force it.      

PDE Mahabharata Reading D

Yudhishthira has reached the top of the mountain where he can enter into the afterlife. On his journey up the mountain all of his brothers and their wife died from the burden of the hike. Yudhishthira was the only one besides the dog to make it to the top of the mountain. It is interesting that Yudhishthira even after making it to “eternal bliss” refuses to be there because his cousins are there. His family and the Kauravas shared such bad blood on there time on earth that Yudhishthira would rather be in hell then with them. Yudhishthira is put through a series of tests to determine if he is fit to entering eternal bliss “heaven”. Yudhishthira passes all of these ethics and moral tests and makes his way through hell and does end up ascending to heaven. Yudhishthira must have great strength and courage to be able to pass these tests. He is often faced with the ultimatum of following the god to the afterlife where he would be content for eternity or helping a loved one. Yudhishthira always picks helping his loved ones over going to the eternal bliss.  “The holy life is prepared for all the sons of men.", does this mean man as in all the worthy people on earth or just the worthy males that live on earth. If they are excluding women where are the women going? Do they get to go to the afterlife or is there soul trapped after they die.  

                                      (The Pandavas: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Reading Notes PDE Mahabharata Part C

PDE Mahabharata: Riddles at the Lake by Donald A. Mackenzie

Pandava – the five acknowledged sons of Pandu

Brahmin – one of the classes in the Hindu system including priests and teachers

Yudhishthira – the eldest son of King Pandu and Queen Kunti and the king of Indraprastha

Nakula – fourth of the five Pandava brothers

Banyan – a fig that begins its life as an epiphyte i.e. a plant that grows on another plant

            Sahadeva – the youngest of the five Pandava brothers. Nakula and Sahadev were twins

            Arjuna – The third Pandava brother. It is believed that Arjuna was the best archer in the world at their time

            Bhima – is the second born of the Pandavas.  Bhima is responsible for slaying all hundred Kaurava brothers in the Kurukshetra War.

            Yaksha - a broad class of nature-spirits, usually benevolent, but sometimes mischievous or       capricious, connected with water, fertility, trees, the forest, treasure and wilderness.

            Brahma – a creator god in Hinduism and the creator of the four Vedas.

            Dharma – signifies behaviors that are considered to be in accord with Ṛta, the order that makes life and universe possible.

           Vedas – large body of religious texts originating in ancient India

           When the pandava reach a pond in the midst of their exile, they are overcome with thirst. In this pond is a being advising them to not drink the water until they have answered a set of questions. Yudhishthira is the only one of his brothers to answer the questions before drinking the water and therefore the only one that does not die. Yudhishthira requests that his brothers be brought back to life once he had completed the set of riddles. The brothers are then brought back to life but are unrecognizable for a whole year. I don’t understand why Yudhishthira requests that his brothers not be recognizable for a whole year. This story reminds me a bit of the scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail when they are crossing the bridge.

                                    (Yudhishthira Statue: Image from Wikimedia Commons) 

Reading Notes PDE Mahabharata: The Gambling Match Part B

Bibliography: PDE Mahabharata: The Gambling Match by Donald A. Mackenzie

                                     (Roulette Wheel: Image from Wikimedia Commons)     

     This story is interesting in that it is following a common trend that I have noticed. The way the kings and gods are portrayed in these stories is much different then those in western stories. The gods and kings in these stories are like normal people with anger and jealousy and rage. You often see in western stories that gods and kings and royalty can not make mistakes, they are incapable of human actions and are portrayed as above humans. This is probably the reason so many people blindly follow them and idealize them. However, it is possible for the exact same reason that the Indian people idolize their kings and gods, because they are no different then them and are capable of the same emotions. In this story I have found another common theme, unlike in some stories where rage is showed as violence, in this story rage is shown by knowledge and deceit. Instead of Duryodhana calling in an army to attack Yudhishthira and his land he invites him to gamble. However, he is very tricky and has rigged the game to win every time. One thing I found strange was that Yudhishthira never questioned anything that was happening like how Duryodhana had his uncle role the dice for him or how out of the many games they played Yudhishthira did not win a single one. It is unlikely to win zero games out of many even when gambling and Yudhishthira should have been more cautious before he gave away everything. Vidura tries to help his nephew Yudhishthira by explaining that he set himself free before gambling away his wife and that she could not be taken however his help does not work.  

Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata: Vyasa and Ganesha, Part A

Bibliography: PDE Mahabharata: Vyasa and Ganesha by John Mandeville Macfie.

                                   (Son and Daughter of Uparichara: Wikimedia Commons)

     

     This story begins in what appears to be the middle of a scene or the middle of another story. Vyasa is trying to find someone to write down all of the knowledge a person could know about life on earth and heaven. It leaves the reader to wonder, if Vyasa is writing down everything there is to know then by default, he must know everything there is to know. If he does have this knowledge, how did he get it? Is he a god, do the gods talk to him, is he immortal? He must be talking to the gods since on of them has offered to be his scribe. I am unsure what the comment about not putting the pen down means quit yet. My guess is that Vyasa will talk about something he does not want in the book but Ganesha will write it for everyone else to know, like jealousy or anger. In the next part of this story speaking of Vyasa’s father, I think it is interesting that the gods have the emotion of fear. In so many western stories the gods are so unlike humans that they do not have emotions like fear or jealousy like humans do. The gods also bribed King Uparichara which is also not very god like compared to western stories. It is typical and unsurprising that the king would not except his daughter and only his son. I have a feeling the daughter will play a large role in this story and the king may be sorry he did not except her. The style of writing is different from other stories we have read. There is no dialogue in this story only narrative, also different from this story is that the narrator is not a character, they speak as if this happened before their time.   

Reading Notes Video

                                    (Sita sings the blues: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley

This form of the story was my favorite by far because it is a different type of format. It is much easier to follow along because I am not taking time to figure out how to pronounce the words. I really enjoyed the three narrators and how they all have slightly different versions of the story but it is still the story. I also enjoy that they bring a humors side to the story that was not previously there. I think it is helpful that the narrators are explaining the story because you can here the story talked through instead of reading it. It is interesting that they also use modern objects and ideas through out the story and while the narrators are talking. I am confused of the significance of adding in the story of the couple from San Francisco. I am also confused by the changing the animation of the characters like when Sita is signing. I like that the story talks about where the places are in this day and age as they highlight it on a pop-up map. It is interesting the mixing of cultures because it seems that when Sita is signing the tone is very cabaret like, representing a western style of music. I really enjoy that the three narrators explain the confusing aspects of the epic as well as give a short history of the characters and the individual stories. This form of the story appealed to me because I am a visual person and it was much easier to understand the aspects of the story with images and video to support them.    

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana, Part D

     The Bridge by Donald A. Mackenzie

     There has not been much mention of water and its importance in this epic. It is not surprising that there is a King of the Ocean since there are many kings and queens presented in this epic. What types of sacrifices did Rama need to perform to summon the King of the Ocean? Is Rama stronger then the King of the Ocean? How different is this land under the sea from the one on earth, is it like what other myths of under the sea are like? Why does the king of the ocean grant Rama permission to have the bridge after Rama attacked his sea? Is there an island chain in this world that represents this bridge, if so, where would it be located? Rama does not seem to have much respect for the king of the ocean after he attacks the deep sea. Is this usual of kings to disrespect each other and to attack each other if they do not get what they wish for. Unlike any other story I have read there is no dialogue in this one. It is unclear if the author does this because the dialogue is not important or if it is more useful with no dialogue. Why was Rama traveling to Lanka, is it of great importance? The author of this story does not use very descriptive language and is not detailed in their writing. It leaves me asking a question, is this story very important to the topic of the whole epic?

                                                 (Rama's Bridge: Image from Wikipedia)

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana, Part C

                                          (Ravana: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

     Story from: Sita and Ravana by Sister Nivedita

     

In this reading the author describes Sita as being the most beautiful thing, which describes why she is often targeted and loved by others. Ravana continues to be the horrible villain he has been in past stories. The scene is painted well but I am left wondering exactly what these places look like. It is interesting that Sita will not even allow Hanuman to carry her out of her captivity. She is so devoted and in love with Rama that she will risk her life to stay devoted to him. Sita is a larger part of this epic then I realized, she is not only a love interest but a major reason for so many of the conflicts and journeys in this epic. If it were not for Sita and her importance to Rama then this epic would not be what it is. It is unclear to me if Ravana wants Sita because he loves her or because Rama has her. He has many wives so what is so special about Sita that he wants her over the other wives. Why is Ravana giving Sita two months to change her mind about him before he kills her? Is he waiting to see if Rama will come or is, he really hopping Sita will change her mind? It is interesting that the author uses the dialogue to rhyme, it makes it fell less real and more like a poem. The writing style is very different compared to the written text because the dialogue comes at the end and is separate from the narrative.        

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Section B

     In this next part of the book the story begins to develop and thicken. While the story progresses, the characters become more involved, intertwined, and important to each part of the overall story. One character that sticks out is Sita, who is Rama’s wife. Is embarks on this journey with Rama and is by his side through most encounters. Sita has become a target in the last few stories of this section because of her ties to Rama. At first, she is targeted because someone falls in love with Rama and they want her out of the picture. Strangely it is Rama’s brother Lakshmana who saves Sita and not Rama, I wonder if there is anything between them. Sita then becomes another target as Ravana falls madly in love with her. It seams she is targeted a lot, is there something more special about her that we will find out later. What will happen to her and Rama with all of the new love interests. We leave this section with Sita in danger again with Rama no where to be found. What will happen to Sita and will she be okay on her own? The author continues to paint very vivid scenes, where someone could imagine they were there.

Bibliography: R.K. Narayan, Ravana's Sister and Ravana and Maricha

                                                     (Sita and Rama: Image from Flickr)

Reading Notes: Narayan's Ramayana, Section A

                                       (Rama in Desert: Image from Wikimedia Commons)

Bibliography: R.K. Narayan, Rama's Initiation page 7

     The author begins with a very descriptive background of all information that is needed to be known. This is very helpful to understanding the bases of the story, but not essential. The author includes a list of all of the characters and the most repeated words most people won’t know. This includes some of the cities and concepts; this is a great idea for the reader because most are unfamiliar with these words and beliefs. The author then jumps straight into the beginning of the story with a small introduction before the first story is introduced. The author makes a clear indication of when they are going to start a story that deviates from the main plot. In the first story it is not reveled why Vishvamitra insists on only taking Rama to battle the demons but it is clear that it is important. It is also unclear why Vishvamitra must go to battle and why he must take Rama and his brother. One other thing that is unclear is why Rama and his brother must stay together. Are they stronger together? The author is speaking from an outside viewpoint with much dialogue. When describing scenes like the desert they are very descriptive, it is easy to follow along to. The author uses animals and objects modern day humans know which makes it easy to envision in the head. There are many unanswered questions in the beginning that will be answered over the course of the whole book. This is a good strategy because it makes the beginning more compelling and keeps the reader engaged. I don’t fully understand the mantras, is it like a spell or a favor? Understanding this concept might help to write different endings or twists to stories. What does the author mean when Vishvamitra says the boys will take care off him? Does he need protecting and if so why could only Rama do it?       

Reading Notes: Week 2 Anthology

THE FOOLISH, TIMID RABBIT by Ellen C. Babbitt

• Author gives story plot in the title
• Asks a question that is never answered in the story, left for interpretation based off of actions
• Author tells audience information the rabbit does not know
• Author uses animals strategically, the rabbit is small and is the scared one while the lion who is known to be brave is the wise one.
• Author indicated the lion is powerful before the situation is resolved which is why the animals listen to him.
• Past tense is used
• Author uses lion and king of beasts interchangeably probably to indicate the power and knowledge of the lion.
• Author does not describe the how the earth is breaking up, it is left for interpretation.
• Author is speaking from an outside perspective and not from anyone character.
• I enjoy the use of animals everyone is familiar with because it is easier to visualize.

THE CROCODILE IN THE RIVER translated by Robert Chalmers

• Author spends lots of time describing in detail the island and its fruit, it creates a good image for the reader of exactly what the scene looked like
• I like that the author uses qualities of living things to describe inanimate objects, it makes it seem more alive and more real. It also makes it easier to visualize.
• I like that the author does not introduce the characters until later in the story and spends the first part describing the location.
• Author does not spend anytime describing the two characters
• I feel like the story is not over and should continue with the crocodile returning with nothing
• Does the monkey continue to return?
• Education and knowledge are clearly a theme in this story as well as others, many characters must outsmart other to get out of situations, I like this more then using strength to get out of situations.
• Like in the rabbit story the author speaks from an outside perspective and when dialogue is not used the story is in past tense.

(Representation of the Rock the Bodhisatta had to cross: Image from Wikimedia)

Week 2 Reading Overview

   

                                          (Hanuman carries the mountain: Wikimedia Commons)


     I have decided to read the R. K. Narayan's Ramayana version available. The main reason I made this decision is because I really don't like to read books on the computer and only do it when I have to, I prefer a physical book instead. I also like the fact that there is one author and it is a consistent story that will flow through out the book. In addition, there is an online reading guide in case I do not understand certain aspects of the story.
      The first comic I found interesting is the Tales of Balarama: Valiant Brother Of Krishna. I choose this comic because it as a sense of adventure with two brothers fighting demons. Also the changing of the India's geography catches my eye since that is my minor. Really anything about people going different locations and using the resources native to that area interests me.
     The second comic I found interesting is Hanuman to the Rescue because, again, it has a sense of adventure. I also find interesting the use of things like the sun and moving mountains as an advantage because these are things humans use as a tool but here they are used in a different way.
     The first video I find interesting is Purushartha - The Four Aims Of Life because I find it fascinating to study the differences and the similarities of what our culture compared to Indian culture finds important to life. It gives insight to why aspects of the Indian culture are different to ours and other cultures. Similarly I found the Stages of life equally interesting for the same reason. It is interesting to see the similarities between the two cultures of the first three stages. However, our culture tends to stop at the third stage while the Indian culture has one final stage that seems important to the individual and their spirit.