Indian Epics

Vyasa eased the pain of the loss of the child, this story will be what I write about this week. Vyasa summons the ghosts Image Source Bibliography:  Source . Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913).

The Pandavas and the sages seem like it'll be an interesting story to write about this week. Pandavas in the forest Image Source Bibliography:  Source . Life in the Forest: Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913).

Long ago, an evil plot to eliminate competition to the thrown was brewing among princes. King Dhritarashra, and Prince Duryodhana sought to kill Queen Kunti and her sons. However, Prince Vidura was clever, and he knew of the plot his half brother was plotting. To prevent the plot from coming to fruition, he visited his nephew Prince Yudhishthira and gave him a cryptic, dark message. Prince Yudhishthira, considered by many to have the wisdom of a sage, was able to interpret the message left to him by his uncle and gathered his family into the new palace which had just been built by the evil duo. Upon entering the palace, Yudhishthira noticed every last bit of furniture was soaked in oil and the ceilings were made of nothing more than wood. He told his mother that he believed they were in grave danger, and that they needed to plan an escape before they were burned inside the house. In secret, they hired a miner to come and build them a tunnel. They hid the miner and the tunnel from the c...

Interesting that they escaped alive and are now sort of on the run. Bhima and Hidimba Image Source Bibliography:  Source . Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913)

Interesting how in the story Ganesha is never described as looking like an elephant outside of the image of him at the bottom. Ganesha Image Source Bibliography: Source   The Mahabharata, A Summary by John Mandeville Macfie (1921). 

When a new King was crowned, Rama was sentenced to exile by him. The king was threatened by Rama, for if Rama would have tried to take the crown, he would have succeeded. However, instead of fighting the exile, Rama accepted it. His lover, Sita begged and pleaded with Rama to allow her to accompany him. But Rama believed the woods to be too dangerous for her. He told her of all the wild animals, poisonous snakes, lack of food, water, and the many other dangers that awaited him in the forest.  But Sita simply looked at him with tears in her eye and said, “As long as you are with me, there is no evil that I shall fear”. She told Rama of the prophesy she received numerous times as a child by many seers, that she would one day live out in the woods. She told Rama that being with him was heaven and hell did not exist. And so, they set off together into the woods. It was not just Sita who wished to follow Rama into his exile, but also Lakshman. Lakshman vowed to set out before Ram...

Rama's wounds were an interesting thing, I'm not sure I remember him getting wounded last week. Still believe I will write about the relationship between Rama and Sita. Rama and Sita Source Bibliography: Reading Source Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists: Ramayana Sister Nivedita 1914

I may write about how Sita followed Rama into exile this week. Her relationship with Rama may play a part in my semester story as well. Rama and Sita Source Bibliography: Source     Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists: Ramayana  Sister Nivedita 1 914

Hey Guys!! Welcome to my comment wall! Let me know how you like my story and what critiques you have! Thanks https://sites.google.com/view/ king-arthur-in-india

As the war between Ravana and Rama waged on, the Rakshasas were unable to defeat the godly archer Rama. The man-eating demons felt their only choice was to awaken the sleeping giant Kumbhakarna. Kumbhakarna is considered the mightiest of the demons and was even powerful enough to defeat Indra. Many years ago, Kumbhakarna devoured many humans. In order to protect man, Brahma cursed Kumbhakarna into a deep slumber. He decreed that Kumbhakarna would sleep for six months at a time, awakening for only a day. During this one day, Kumbhakarna would devour as big of a meal as he could before going back to sleep. After much struggling, the Rakshsas were able to awaken the sleeping giant. Once he awoke, Kumbhakarna learned of the troubles the demons were having, and devoured many deer, pig, and humans alike. Then he asked the demons where the army of apes were so that he may go and devour them as well. He called forth his chariot and rode into battle. Terror struck the apes when they saw the dem...

I am definitely going to write about the battle between Rama and Kumbhakarna! It's good to know for me that the Kumbakharna fights against Rama, since their battle will also be in my Semester project. Kumbhakarna Image Source Bibliography:  Source . Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie

Vali's Death was an epic battle, it should be a good story. I think I'll write about this story this week. I think it's interesting he's called the monkey king. Makes one wonder if there's any connection to Sun Wu Kong from Chinese mythology. Vali Image Source Bibliography:  Source . Ramayana, The Epic of Rama, Prince of India, condensed into English verse by Romesh Dutt (1899)

I agree with the praise article the most. Many people are quick to just tell someone how well they did or are doing at something, but no one really wants to play devils advocate and tell them what's wrong or what they can do better. This falls in line with the second one article, it helps people understand how to word their constructive criticisms so that kids, as well as adults can be "praised" while also giving them ideas on how to do better. Criticizing Praise  What Kinds of Messages Help Kids Grow? Feedback Image Source

For my project I will be telling a story about King Arthur being transported by Shiva back through time to India. The timeline will be will when Rama sets out to defeat Ravana. King Arthur will join Rama on his quest to defeat the demon king. Along their Journey they will encounter many trials including Ravana's brother Kumbhakarna. I will be pulling bits of information from these stories, as well as some of other stories and putting my own original spin on the entirety of the story. Kumbhakarna  Source The Lord of Lanka: The Rise and Fall of a Demon King  Source The Sons of Rama: The Invincible Twins   Source Rama Image  Source

Long ago the Demon King Ravana accomplished great feats. Because of his greatness, Brahma granted Ravana invulnerability to the Gods and demons. With his relative immortality, Ravana was able to oppress all the gods. He commanded them, controlled them. The Gods were unable to stand up to him. Ravana made the God of death Yama his slave, subjected Agni and Vayu as well as the sun and moon. Ravana demanded sacrifices from the gods. The gods sought out protection. They begged Brahma to save them from Ravana. However, what he did for Ravana could not be undone. In order to save the gods from him, Brahma told the gods to go see Vishnu. Vishnu told the gods that Ravana did not have protection from man or ape, and that they should become apes. Vishnu's plan was to split his spirit into four parts, later to be born as a four mortal men. When Vishnu's mortal forms reached a proper age, he would set out to defeat Ravana and at that time he would need the help of the apes. Then, 10 month...