Week 5: Reading Diary A - The Exile Continues

Reading Diary Pg. 110-161
The Ramayana by William Buck

• Dasaratha is dead; Bharata searches to find Rama with the hopes that he will return to Ayodhya
• Rama hears the news of his fathers and still refuses to come back until his exile is over
• Rama, Lakshama, and Sita visit the hermitage of Atri; Atri tells them the story of Mandakarni and the 5 Apsarases who live in the lake
• 14th summer of Rama's exile. Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita enter into the home of Agastya
• Agastya is the brahmana who lowered the Vindhya Hills, destroyed two demons, and then settled - he is described as a small man, but can easily do what is impossible to even the gods
• Possibly want to use the Vindhya Hills in my storybook

The Story of Agastya - Vindhya Hills were jealous of the Himalaya, and in envy, began to grow higher and higher until his peaks blocked the skies; the stars and the moon were blocked. Agastya arrived, but was blocked by Vindhya - all of the trails had been blocked, so Agastya had to ask permission to go south and come back again, and he was allowed to pass. Vindhya bowed low to Agasta, and the hills immediately decreased to their present height, well below the skies. He told Vindhya to to remain that height until he returns, and he has yet to return, and he has obeyed since.  Agastya burned and killed Ilwala.

• Agastya invited Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana into his home up in the hills. He seems like he has been waiting for him. I sense a little bit of fear within Rama. Agastya granted Rama and Lakshmana each a new bow that had "fallen from heaven" and never needed sharpening, in exchange for Rama's old one. I feel like this may be a trick?
• The Valakhilaya's tell Rama of the demons in the forest and request his help in war against them. Sita is unhappy with this and tried to get Rama to deny. 
• with the aid of the Valakhilaya's, the wives of Sage Kashyapa were able to conceive children; Kadru gave birth to a thousand eggs and Vinata gave birth to two eggs
• They each put their eggs in a jar of warm butter and set them outside; 500 years later, all one thousand of Kadru's eggs hatched into Nagas, and Vinata's two sons remained in their shells.
• I can quickly tell that this poses some competition between the two wives
• One of Kadru's sons finally hatched, and is described as a giant eagle with golden feathers and brilliant red wings. He had a head and wings like an eagle, but the arms and hands of a man.
• As Rama is telling this story to Sita, the demon abducts her with a long arm, so at the time Rama does not know where the demon has come from
• Rama and Lakshmana take off to fight and kill the demon - and they are successful 
• Sita was abducted by Viradha, who later reveals himself to be the gandharva names Tumburu, who had been cursed as a demon and was only freed once Rama brought his demon life to an end. The then flies up to heaven to find the gandharva king, Chitaratha