Week 14: Reading Diary B - The End is Nearing

Reading Diary Pg. 351-412
Mahabharata by William Buck

• Today's reading starts off with the author, William Buck, bringing the story to a close and bringing up the description of the setting. 
• The setting still remains Shaunaka listening to the story told by his friend Sauti the storyteller. Sauti was in Hastinapura, where he had overheard the Mahabharata which was being recited by Vaishampayana, who is a disciple of Vyasa. Vyasa is the composer of the Mahabharata and is the one who taught it to Vaishampayana. Buck goes on to explain that as his book comes to an end, we can expect to see a bunch of different stories merging at the end. 
• The battle is now over, and Bhishma is still alive. He is waiting to choose his own moment where he will die. Everyone gathers together to visit him so that they could be there with him while he dies. 
• Bhishma decides not to put a curse on Yudhishthira for leading the army against him, and he has decided not to have any anger towards anyone. His last words are to Krishna and he ends up dieing on the exact day of the winter solstice, which is the shortest day of the year. They take burn him to his ashes and pour them out into the Ganges river.
• Yudhishthira is in despair over all of the deaths. He has a dream where he sees himself along with his brothers and Draupadi on a journey, accompanied with a dog. As they continue on this journey, Draupadi and all of his brothers die and he just continues on the journey with the dog.
• Yudhishthira travels to Hastinapura and declares that the war is officially over. Rakshasa is disguised as a hermit. 
• The Brahmins of Hastinapura utter a mantra which kills Charvaka. Yudhishthira is made king. The is an elaborate ceremony with ritual, in which he is officially crowned. He tells the people of Hastinapura to treat Dhritarashtra with respect, as they had not before. 
• Yudhishthira holds a festival with plenty of food and gifts for everyone. It is here that he meets a mongoose who is golden colored on half of his body, and he explains that he acquired this color from rolling in the grains that a generous poor family had offered to Yama. He wishes to be gold all over, but hasn't been able to find anyone generous enough to give it to him. 
• Yudhishthira is thankful that he has shared his story with him, and generously gives him gifts of food and silk for his wife. 
• Arjuna travels to Indraprastha, where he meets the god Agni who burns Arjuna's weapons to ashes. He finds that the Khandava forest has grown up again and that Indraprastha is in ruins. 
• A flood drowns the city of Dwaravati, and only Balarma and Krishna survive, but Balarma later dies. 
• Right as the book is ending, Takshana takes Astika with him into the naga kingdoms under the world. 

Week 14: Reading Diary A - The Duel

Reading Diary Pg. 307-349
Mahabharata by William Buck

• The beginning of this reading talks about Duryodhana, who uses power to keep anyone from entering the lake, making it impenetrable. I'm thinking he did this in order to exert power and prove he is strong. The others did not take this so well, and it eventually caused a duel. Yudhishthira began speaking to him from the other side of the lake, since he couldn't cross into the waters, proposing that Duryodhana fight one of the Pandavas brothers. This lead to a duel between him and Bhima. As Bhima had swore earlier in the reading, he smashes Duryodhana's thighs. 
• Arjuna comes into play after the battle has ceased, and as he comes in on his chariot and dismounts it, the chariot immediately disintegrates into ashes. This has occurred because Drona had actually destroyed his chariot prior to him riding in on it. Krishna had the power to hold it together by illusion long enough for him to get back, but as soon as he gets off it was depleted. As I read this story, I wonder if Arjuna was aware of this before it had happened, or if it was a shock? 
• Back to the duel between Duryodhana and Bhima. Duryodhana is on the verge of death at this point. Sanjaya, Kripa, Kritavarman, and Ashwarrhaman pay him a visit, only to find him in immense pain, but still alive. He then goes to tell them about the story of Death and how he is not sorry to die because he is glad to have fallen in battle like a warrior rather than to become a a slave. His dying words to Krippa are that he needs to make sure Ashwatthaman becomes the commanding general. 
• Ashwattahaman prepares to raid the Pandavas camp, desperately wanting revenge. They are somwwhat tricked by the Pandavas deciding to sleep outside of their camp that night, which is where they were headed to raid. Ashwattahman goes to tell Duryodhana news, and he officially dies.  
• There are only three survivors of the Kaurava army - Kripa, Kritavarman, and Ashwatthaman. Dhrishtadyumna is the only one on the other side to live. He goes on to tell the Pandavas and Krishna that the camp had been raided. Bhima is outraged by this news and seeks out Ashwatthaman. Meanwhile, Krishna convinces Arjuna to stop Bhima from attacking Ashwatthaman, because he is in possession of the Brahman-astra. Also known as Brahman mantra, it is an extremely powerful weapon created by Brahma. After looking in to that a little bit more, I read that it can be compared equivalent to modern day anatomic weapons, nuclear and thermonuclear bombs.  

Week 13: Reading Diary A - The Becoming Battle

Reading Diary Pg. 191-246
The Mahabharata by William Buck

• This reading begins with the Pandavas in the forest, fetching water from a nearby lake. One by one, Yudhishthira sends them to go to the lake and get some water. When none of them come back he goes to the lake himself to check on them and finds their bodies there. As he approaches the lake a voice begins to speak to him. He is to answer a series of questions before being allowed to drink the water and when he does so he ends up seeing his brothers. The answers were actually a test from his divine father, Dharma. 
• The Pandavas decided to spend their thirteenth year of exile in the Matsya kingdom. Yudhishthira enters Virata's service as a brahmin with expertise of dice and chess. Bhima becomes Virata's cook. Sudeshna employes Drapaudi as her personal maid. Sahadeva gets put in charge of the cattle. 
• The story of Karna and Indra is told. Indra decides that he wants the armor and earrings that Karna has worn every day since he was born. Karna's father, the son god Surya, warns him to refuse Indra but he goes against his father's advice and claims he is honored by Indra's request. Indra dresses up as a brahmin and goes to Karna asking for the earrings and armor. Karna recognizes him and calls him on it. He demands to get the infallible throwing dart in return for the earrings and armor, which he does give him. The dart can only be used once. 
• Kichaka, a general of king Virata, develops this really passionate desire for Drapaudi. She on the other hand resists him. He assaults her and she runs to Virata for protection. She ends up being rescued by the treasure lord, Vaishravana. 
• Sanjaya comes to visit the Pandavas as a mission for Dhritarashtra. Yudhisthira tells him that he wants Indrapratsha to be given back to them, or at least five other villages. Dhritarthrastra wants to give Indraprastha back to the Pandavas, but Duryodhana refuses to give them any land at all. 
• Karna wants a fight with the Pandavas. Karna refuses to fight as long as Bhishma is bearing arms. Kripa on the other hand thinks that the war wold be a really bad thing, but agrees to support Duryodhana. 
• Arjuna and Duryodhana make a visit to see Krishna. They find him asleep, and when he wakes he makes eye contact with Arjuna first and gives two options. The first option would be to he can take Krishna as his ally and the second option would be that he could have all of the soldiers of Krishna's army. Arjuna chooses Krishna as his ally.

Week 12: Reading Diary B - Arjuna Comes Back

Reading Diary Pg. 139-189
The Mahabharata by William Buck

• The reading begins with Arjuna being cursed off because he refuses Urvashi's advances. I wonder, what exactly his advances mean? Is there something behind it? His punishment is that he has been cursed to live an entire year as a eunuch. 
• Chitrathara, lord of the gandharvas has been ordered by Indra to aid Arjuna in music and dancing. This is interesting to me because I wonder what exactly the tie to music and dancing is. I feel like there hasn't been a lot of this aspect included into the books we've read thus far.  I found this part really interesting. He also aids in helping Arjuna disguise himself, which would help him since he is exiled for thirteen years. He also teaches him the use of divine weapons - I wonder what exactly are "divine" weapons?
• The story of Mankanaka is told - Mankanaka lived in a forest and lived off of eating plants. When he would get a cut, instead of blood coming out, grass juice would come out. The fact that grass juice was coming out of himself made him so happy that he would jump up and down and dance. His dance was contagious and soon the whole world was dancing with him! Some gods were worried that all of this dancing would destroy the earth. So, god Shiva was sent down to earth to tell him to stop dancing. As soon as Mankanaka saw that god Shiva had come down to see him, he stopped dancing.
• The story of Rishyashringa is told - Rishyasringa's birth was induced by Urvashi. Vibhandaka had seen Urvashi bathing causing him to ejaculate into a lake and a deer had drank the water from that same lake. Rishyashringa ended up being the product of Vibhandaka and the deer, hence why he has antlers. The King of Agna was told that only a man with such a pure heart at Rishyashringa could cure the drought. So, his daughter Shanta offered to bring him into the city. He came to the city, bringing along rain with him and ended up marrying Shanta. 
• Meanwhile, the Pandavas venture on a journey to Mount Kailasa. Near Rishava's mountain, the Pandavas are attacked by the mountain. Hanuman comes back into the story. He blocks the path that Bhima is trying to go on, but then Hanuman tells Bhima where he could find the Lotus lake. Bhima ends up taking the Lotus flower from the lake and Matali returns Arjuna to earth where he is finally rejoiced with his brothers! He brings along with him heavy weapons. 

Week 11: Reading Diary B - The Great Fire

Reading Diary B Pg. 49-91
The Mahabharata by William Buck

• The reading begins with Duryodhana asking Dhritarashtra who he thinks, him or Yudhishthira, will rule Kurujangala after he has stepped down. He then says that the people of the town say that Yudhishthira would look after us he cares for Bhisma. Dhritarashtra is saddened by this and says, "The people say! Am I already dead? I will send the Pandavas away for a little while  and I will give you this kingdom or I won't, I will divide it."
• The King's songs Duryodhana and Duhshasana get the minister, Purochana, to build some sort of fire trap at the house where the Pandavas are staying. Yudhisthrita is warned about this dangerous plan, and they prepare a tunnel route that will allow them to escape in time. They were able to safely escape from the fire trap, but they had to leave six corpses behind in their place. 
• Vyasa takes the Pandavas to the swayamvara of Draupadi, the daughter of king Draupada of Panchala. Draupada had recently been captured by Drona, and was forced to give up half of his kingdom. He felt much humiliation from this. He begged and begged the god Shiva to give him a son who could defeat Drona. Later on, in a dream, Shiva appeared to Draupada and told him to pour two cups of butter, one for a son and one for a daughter. Dhrishtadyumna and Draupadia, his sons, were born this way. 
• Drapada had set up an archery test in which only Arjuna could pass, so Arjuna wins Draupadi, to everyones surprise. Krishna, an avatar of the god Vishnu, tells Arjuna to remember their past together, but he does not remember. 
• Draupadi marries all five of the Pandava brothers. 
• Dhritarashtra is so excited to find out that the Pandava brothers are alive and grants them the region of Khandava to rule. With that, the Pandava brothers build the city of Indraprastha. 
• Arjuna goes to visit, Krishna, but he ends up falling in love with Krishna's sister, Subhadra, and with Krishna's approval he takes her to be his wife. The fire god, Agni, comes to see Krishna and Arjuna in the form of a woodsman with with gold skin and dressed in black rags and butter smeared all over his mouth. Agni keeps trying to burn down the forest, but the storm god, Indra, protects it with its rain. Agni burns the forest while Arjuna and Krishna distract Indra. 
• The Asura, Maya, the architect god flees out of the forest and seeks Arjuna's protection from Agni. As a reward for this rescue, Maya builds a palace for the Pandavas.

Week 11: Reading Diary A - The Mahabharata Begins

Reading Diary A Pg. 1-49

The Mahabharata by William Buck

• William Buck begins his version of the Mahabharata by introducing some characters. 
• He introduces Duryodhana, saying that he "causes all creatures to be slain and wastes the earth; he fans the flame of hostility that at last consumes all". 
• He introduces Arjuna, saying that he "is the prince of all bowmen: with spells of bewilderment he guards these pages embellished with elegant expressions and conversations human and divine". 
• He introduces Nakula and Sahadeve, saying that "Nakula is dark and Sahadeva is fair: they guard Arjuna's chariot wheels; in this whole world of men they have not their equals in beauty and strength and excellence of conduct".
• He introduces Yudhishthira, saying that "he is the embodiment of all manlieness: he is kindhearted; cease to fight him, do not court defeat". 
• William Buck begins chapter one with dialogue between Sauti and Saunaka. Sauti tells him that he head Vyasa's Mahabharata was first written down for the poet by the elephant god  Ganesha, and then goes to explain to Saunaka the background of the story of the Mahabharata. 
• Vyasa was the composer and Ganesha was the scribe. Vyasa composed the Mahabharata in his head and then asked Ganesha to write it down for him. Ganesha is the son of God Shiva, and he opposed this and tore off his human head, and then used an elephant head to replace the missing one. 
• He then told of the story of the churning of the ocean: Long before the ocean was salt, it was made of milk. "Churn the ocean, and she will yield amrita, the nectar of immortality, and precious gems, and all manner of illusion and revelation". So, they places a snow mountain , Mandara, in the middle of the milk sea in order to churn the ocean waters. Once this happened, Gods began to emerge. Those who emerged were: Lady Lakshmi, bearing good fortune to men; Airavata, Indra's elephant; Surabhi, the white cow who grants any waish; Parijata, the wishing-tree of fragrance; Rambha, the nymph, the first Apsaras; and Dhanwantar, the physician, bearing a cup filled with amrita, the essence of life. 
• Poison bursted as a result of the churning of the ocean and Shiva swallowed it, resulting in her tongue turning blue. 
• Next, the story of the snake sacrifice of Janamejaya is told. (look at reading guide for reference)
• The Mahabharata finally begins with the story of Shantanu and Ganga falling in love. The dead king Mahabhisha sat in heaven watching over the world. He spots Ganga walking along the banks of the Ganges river, and he was enchanted by her looks. Their eyes met causing Mahabhisa to perspire, which only happens in heaven when one is ready to be reborn, as Shantanu. Meanwhile, Ganga goes to Shantau's father and explains her love for him. When his father dies, he becomes king. Shantanu meets Ganga in human form along the river, and they agree to get married but Shantanu must agree to never question any of Ganga's actions. Ganga gives birth to a child a year, and drowns each one in the river. She does this because of a comittment, to free them from punishment and send them up to heaven. Ganga leaves with the last child, named Bhishma.
• Shantanu later marries Satyavati, and have a son names Vichitravirya. 
• Bhishman obtains three wives: Amba, Ambika, Ambalika. 
• Introduces the Pandavas and Kripa and Drona.
• Arjuna is Drona's best pupil and is the only one of the prines able to pass Drona's test of shooting the bird made of straw. 

Week 10: Reading Diary A - The Suspense of the Battle

Reading Diary Pg. 85-131

• The gods send a gandharva to provoke Duryodhana.
• A battle breaks out and the gandharvas take Duryodhana captive, but he later gets freed by the Pandavas.
• Duryodhana's original plan to humiliate the Pandavas had completely backfired. 
• In the forest, the Pandavas are approached by a brahmin. He comes to them desperate because a giant deer has stolen his equipment that he uses to make fires. 
• The Pandavas chase after the deer in attempt to catch it, but fail. 
• As they are walking back, Nakula finds a lake and wants to drink because he is thirsty. 
• A voice arises from the lake telling him that he must answer a series of questions before he is allowed to drink out of the lake. 
• He ignores the voice and drinks out of the lake water anyways. This kills him instantly.
• Sahadeva, Arjuna, and Bhima also drank out of the lake without acknowledging the voice and ended up dieing as well. 
• This ended up being a test by their father, who is the God of death. 
• The brothers are brought back to life, and are sentenced to exile. On their thirteenth year of exile they received the gift of unrecognizability.
• They spend twelve years of exile in the forest and then are disguised during the thirteenth year.
• Draupadi is raped by Kichaka, so Bhima squeezes him to death.
• The story of Kichaka raises suspicion in Duryodhana's eyes. Susharman takes king Virata prisoner, but is backfires as Bhima rescues him and then captures Susharman. 
• Susharman, one of Duryodhana's sidekicks shows excitement when he hears of his death, and suggests that they attack Vitrata and steal his cattle.
• Prince Uttara, the son of Virata, hears the news of the cattle raid and take his charioteer. He ends up being terrified as they approached the enemy and then runs away. He is told to drive the chariot so that he can fight instead. 
• In a moment of anger, Virata throws dice as Yudhishthira and draws his blood 
• Uttara and Abhimanyu get married. 
• Krishna and Balarama attend the wedding and send a messenger to ask Duryodhana if half of the kingdom could be given to Pandavas. 
• Satyaki urges that everyone prepare for war. Both of the pandavas and Duryodhana are recruiting allies for the upcoming war. I have a sense that they are really nervous for this war or battle to break out. 
• The Pandavas end up making another bid for peace, asking that they all be given five villages and in turn the war can be avoided. 
• Duryodhana wants to accept the offer but when the time comes he cannot resist his will.

Week 9: Reading Diary A - The Mahabharata

Reading Diary Pg. 1-39
Mahabharata by R.K. Narayan

• Shantanu is a Kuru king of the city of Hastinapura. He is a descendent of the Bharata race and the lunar dynasty. He is the youngest son of King Pratipa. Each of this siblings had gone down a different path and Shantanu just happened to become the king of Hastinapura by default. 
• Shantanu falls in love with a woman, who ends up being Ganga of the Ganges river. He asks her to marry him and he agrees under one condition, that he never questions her actions. He agrees, and they soon wed. 
• Time goes on and they soon have babies. Shantanu still does not know that the woman he has married is Ganga. She then drowns their newborn babies each in the river. Although Shantanu agreed never to question his wife's actions, he protests her against drowning their eighth child. This is when she tells him that she is the river Ganga.
• The story goes, that she is the river Ganga, and was incarnated into her present form in order give birth to eight gods. These eight gods would go by the name of the vasus, who are being punished with a human incarnation for stealing Vasistha's cow. By drowning the babies, they return to heaven. 
• She disappears into the river with the eighth child and later returns him to his father when he is fully grown. His name is Bhishma. 
• Since his wife has been gone, he eventually falls in love with another woman by the name of Satyavati. They later get married, and have two sons of their own - Chitrangada and Vichitravirya. 
• Chitrangada becomes king, but dies soon after. Bhishma then takes over and ruled as regent for Vichitravirya. 
• The king of the kingdom next door holds a swayamvara for his daughters: Amba, Ambika, and Ambalika. Both Ambika and Ambalika marry Vichitravirya. He later dies before ever having the chance to be a father. Satyavati begs Bhisma to take over and help his daughters to have children. He refuses because he took a vow of celibacy. They decide that the widows will bear children with Satayavi's son, Vyasa. 
• Ambika is terrified when she looks at Vyasa, because he is so ugly. She sleeps with him with her eyes shut, so their child is born blind. His name is Dhritarashtra. 
• Ambalika turns pale when she sees Vyasa, and therefore their child is born very pale. His names is Pandu.
• One of Ambalika's servants sleeps with Vyasa, and she reacts very positively her him. She bears a flawless child.
• Dhritarashtra marries Gandhari. She covers her eyes to share her husband's blindness
• Pandu has two wives, Kunti and Madri, but cannot have children
• Kunti has a mantra for obtaining sons from the gods. She conceives a child named Karna. 

Week 8: Reading Diary Self-Assessment

Going back and reading through the instructions of the reading diaries, I have realized that I have drifted a bit from what the reading diaries are supposed to be. I have been writing my reading diary based on the main ideas and summaries of the chapters, while the point of the diary is to reflect on how you feel about the readings and what stands out to you the most, as well as character development. For my reading diaries, I have pretty much had a different strategy for each post. One week I will pick a couple main characters and write about them, while other weeks I will write what stands out to me from each chapter, and others I will simply write bullet points for what happens in the readings as I go. I haven't really found a strategy that I like best yet, I just kind of see how I feel about it each week and choose. Typically, my diaries are around the same length each time since all of the readings are about the same length. Sometimes I will put in my favorite quotes or what stood out to me the most in each reading. I did that more so in the beginning of the semester than I do now, but I definitely want to start doing that again. I do not add images into my diary posts, which I also think is something that I want to change. I think adding in an image would really summarize and put the diary to life. I would definitely say that I remember the readings better in this class since I am not being tested over it. I feel like I can just enjoy the readings and reflect on what I think about it, without having to worry about what I think may or may not be on a test or having to remember technical things. Overall, I would say that I am doing pretty good with the reading assignments. I haven't missed one yet, so I feel caught up on everything. One thing I do find myself doing sometimes is skimming through some of the chapters. I do need to work on more detail and really reading into the stories and reflecting on that rather than main ideas or summaries.

Week 7: Reading Diary B - The Exile Comes to an End

Reading Diary Pg. 374-432
The Ramayana by William Buck

• Vibhishana offers Rama to use a Pushpaka for his journey to return back home. A pushpaka is a flying chariot. Vibhishana offered this to Rama in order to help him return home in time for Bharata to see that he has come back, and does not kill himself as he had vowed to if Rama had not come back at the end of his exile. 
• On their way back home on the pushpaka, Rama stops to show where they buried Jatayu. Rama sends Hanuman home to Ayodhya ahead of them to tell his brother, Bharata, the news that they are on their way to returning from exile. Bharata cries tears of joy!!
• The time has come where Rama finally returns home to Ayodhya. Presents and gifts are being thrown at Rama, as the town is so excited to have him and to have him serve as their king.
• As time goes by, thousands and thousands of years actually. Sita becomes pregnant. 
• This creates gossip among the people that Rama serves. They are appalled that he has allowed Sita back into his home after being with another man, Ravana, even though she has proven her innocence.
• Thinking of this, I feel like it represents the thoughts and actions of a much earlier time period than today's modern views. Even though she had proven her innocence, just the fact that she was in the presence of another man is enough to send her into exile. 
• Rama demands that his brother, Lakshmana, take Sita down the Ganges river and abandon her, leaving her in alone and in exile. She is still pregnant.
• Vibhishana is aware that Sita is in danger and is in need of help, so he ensures that Valmiki will rescue her in her time of need.
• This goes back to the beginning of the book, where it first started telling the story of Sita being dropped off along the river and wandering herself. Valmiki comes to her rescue (causing him to finally come out from under his anthill) and invites her into his hermitage with welcome arms. 
• Not too long after, she gives birth to two sons, Kusha and Lava.
• Kush and Lava grow up being told of the story of Rama, their dad, from Valmiki, without knowing that Rama is in fact their dad. They learn the story backwards and forwards, and grow up really looking up to Rama as a role model figure. 
• I find this ironic because they almost look up to Rama in place of a father figure, when he is in fact their father.
• Kush and Lava eventually are told that Rama is their dad. Sita feared that they would resent him, but they actually took it really well and continue to look up to him.
• Rama held a big festival in the forest that lasts for a year. Kusha and Lava sing each day, and Rama eventually realizes they are his sons.
• Kala, Time, comes to Ayodhya in disguise as a hermit and demands a meeting with Rama. He announces that anyone who disturbs their meeting will have to die. In the midst of the meeting, Lakshmana walks in, and therefore must die. 
• The book ends with Lakshmana going to the Saraya River to die.

Week 7: Reading Diary A - Sita's Return

Reading Diary pg. 325-373
The Ramayana by William Buck

• The fight to get Sita back still continues at this point in the book
• Hanuman and Sugriva kill Ravana's magicians, Lightning Tongue and Thunder Tooth. They were fighting with Jambavan in order to keep him from killing other demons, but they ended up being killed by Hanuman and Sugriva. 
• There is a feeling of despair among Lanka. I feel like this may be so because of the many losses this town has recently experienced. Shuka makes the feelings throughout the town known to Ravana.
• In the midst of all of this drama, Mandori exclaims her love to Ravana. 
• Ravana gets into a bit of a scuffle with the time god, Kala, but brushes it off his shoulder, because he feels as if he is invincible
• This stands out to me because it seems as if Ravana is quickly losing more and more of his troops and that he should be feelings pretty insecure and worried at this point. 
• Rama and Ravana finally go into battle. I feel like there was a lot of suspense coming up to this point, and now they are finally able to meet face to face and determine who is the better god
• The battle is a tough one. Rama repeatedly cuts off Ravana's heads, but they grow back every time. Ravana disguises as Indra, which catches Rama off god, but Matali is able to see right through it and keep Rama on the right track 
• Ravana may be in a state of weakness at this point because he is thinking Rama will fall for this trick, and might not be quite as on guard.
• Rama is finally able to kill Ravana for good
• Once Ravana is dead, Shuka delivers a note from Ravana to Rama. This does not happen in the other version of the Ramayana, so I like reading something that was unique to Buck's version.  
• Vibhishana becomes the new king of Lanka. 
• Hanuman is sent to tell Sita of the news of the victory
• Rama and Sita are able to reunite for the first time. The fire god, Agni, is able to prove Sita's loyalty to Rama.
• The time has come where Rama's exile is nearing its end. He is rushed for time to make it back to Ayodhya in time, so that his brother, Bharata, doesn't kill himself as he previously vowed he would do if Rama had not returned by the time his exile had ended.

Week 6: Reading Diary B - The Quest to Rescue Sita Continues

Reading Diary Pg. 270-324
The Ramayana by William Buck

Once Hanuman reports the news to Rama, he knows he has to get to Lanka to save her. He struggles with figuring out a plan to cross the sea in order to reach the city. In the midst of this, the Water King, Samudra, rises up and explains that a bridge can be made out of floating rocks across the sea by the monkey, Nala. With this, they get everyone together and one by one help in the making of the bridge to Lanka, until it is finally finished.

Vibhishana seeks to convince Ravana to give Sita back to Rama, and he is quite frankly offended by this. He does not take this lightly. Vibhishana is upset that Ravana has refused to do the right thing and give Sita back, so he sort of takes matters in his own hands by going to Rama and telling him for himself. Rama was skeptical at first, but ultimately decides to trust him. Vibhishana tells Rama all of the information that he knows and agrees to help him, but refuses to fight against his own people. This is understandable and relatable. No matter how angry you get at your loved ones or family members, you ultimately would not want to fight against them. This says a lot about his character.

Rama and his search team head over the bridge to Lanka and begin to make a plan to get Sita. In the meantime, Ravana has his minister, Shuka, a hawk, watching over Rama and his team. They eventually figure this out so Rama sends demon spies in the form of a monkey, which Vibhishana is able to detect.

Ravana uses his magicians to make it look like Rama has had his head chopped off. Ravana shows the head to Sita, and she immediately weeps when she recognizes his exact features. While this is happening, Phrahasta bursts in, not realizing what is going on, and exclaims that Rama has arrived in Lanka. Sita then realizes that this has been a sick prank.

Ravana wants war with Rama. He attacks Rama's forces, but Rama and his team are able to overpower him. when they are defeated, Rama awakens his brother, Kumbhakarna, who actually urges Ravana to give Sita back to Rama, as he believes it is wrong to take another man's wife. He eventually agrees to attack Rama though. This ended up being a bad choice, because Rama chops his head off, killing him. Ravana's son, Indrajit, get killed in battle by Rama's forces, leaving only himself left to fight Rama.

Week 6: Reading Diary A - The Search for Sita

Reading Diary Pg. 219-270
The Ramayana by William Buck

This reading begins with Hanuman telling the story of Sita's abduction to Jambavan. During this time, a new character is introduced. Jatayu's brother, Sampati, overhears the part of the story where Jatayu was involved, and unfortunately killed. Sampati is still grieving his brother, but remarks that he had actually seen Ravana flying over to Lanka. Lanka is a town that is across the ocean, and therefore hard to reach. Sita's search team decides that Hanuman should be the one to jump across the ocean to reach Lanka, since he is a monkey.

As Hanuman leaps across the ocean, he encounters some obstacles. He becomes tired and lands on the mountain Mainaka, which has been hiding under the ocean from Indra for years, and rises to give Hanuman a rest. As he almost finished his leap, the female rakshasa Sinhika rose up and swallowed Hanuman, but he was able to escape by crushing her heart and escaping through her ear.

When Hanuman finally makes it to Lanka, he realizes that he needs to find a way to navigate through the city without being seen so he disguises as a cat. That way he could walk throughout Lanka without being questioned. He makes his way to Ravana's bedroom, where he finds all of his wives. He did not find Sita there. Vayu, the god of wind, directs him towards the ashoka grove, where he would then find Sita.

While Sita is in the ashoka grove, Ravana comes to see her, trying to seduce her and get her to voluntarily admit to want him. Ravana is no longer allowed to rape women, so in order for him to love Sita, she needs to initiate it. Sita ignores Ravana, so he gets angry and walks away. When Sita is alone, Hanuman calls to her and speaks of Rama. She immediately weeps. She gives Hanuman a message to send back to Rama.

As Hanuman leaves Lanka, he decides to make some trouble in the town. Ravana is furious and orders for his head to be chopped off by his brother, Vibhishana. He refuses to chop his head off so Ravana ordered for him to set his tail on fire. He does but Hanuman breaks free and sets the entire town of Lanka on fire. Hanuman checks on Sita, and tells her that Rama will be back for her.

Week 5: Reading Diary B - Sita's Abduction

Reading Diary Pg. 162-218
The Ramayana by William Buck

The story of the Golden Deer, and Sita's abduction is one of my favorites throughout The Ramayana. I choose to retell this story for one of my posts in Narayan's version of the book, and I truly feel it can be interpreted in many different ways. William Buck's version is very similar to Narayan's. Maricha disguises as a beautiful golden deer, catching Sita's attention. At Sita's request, Rama chases after it, where it then turns into its true form. Maricha yells for help with Rama's voice, tricking Sita into thinking he is in need. She tells Lakshmana to go save him, and in the meantime Ravana comes up to Sita disguised as an old man, which she welcomes, and then he snatches her up and takes her away. Jatayu, the bird who has been their protector, comes to the scene to help save Sita, but Ravana takes his wing, causing him to die. This was a really emotional scene, as Jatayu was a heroic character. Sita runs to him, sobbing, and holds him as he dies, but Ravana snatches her back up. Jatayu is able to stay alive just long enough to inform Rama on what had happened.

• Ravana holds Sita captive in Lanka
• Indra informs Sita of why Ravana will not rape her
• Ravana decided he wanted to have many wives. He saw Rambha, who was in love with Nalakubara, son of Vaishravana, and raped her. When Nalakubara heard of this news, he cursed Ravana, saying if he had ever raped a woman again, his head would explode. Because of this curse, Ravana cannot rape Sita, rather he will persuade her to give it to him. Ravana is not used to be rejected, as he always convinced women to give it to him, except for Rambha. 
• Rama and Lakshmana are not able to get to Sita in time, so they head to the hermitage of Sage Matanga, where they find out he is dead. Savari is still living there though, and tells them that she saw Ravana take Sita away. She tells them of the monkey brothers, Vali and Sugriva, and about Sugriva's friend, Hanuman
• Hanuman brings Rama and Lakshmana to Sita's jewelry, giving them some sort of direction to where Sita might be
• Sugriva and Vali fight, and Rama is loyal to Sugriva, so he shoots Vali causing him to die. Sugriva becomes king and promises to begin a search for Sita once the rainy season is over, in return for helping him in his battle. 
• When the rainy season comes to an end, there is no sign of help from Sugriva, so Lakshmana personally goes to confront him. Sugriva sticks to his promise and send out masses of monkey in all directions in search of Sita. 

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

Week 4: Reading Diary B - The Journey Continues

Reading Diary Pg. 60-109
The Ramayana by William Buck

• Dasaratha decides to make Rama his successor and have him carry out his legacy as king. He king of does this behind his other son's backs, and in the end it comes around to get him. This is a similarity to what happened in Narayana's version of the Ramayana. One of Dasaratha's wives, Kaikeyi is convinced that this is a terrible mistake, and uses her two wishes that the king owes her to make her son, Bharata his successor, and to put Rama in exile. He has no choice but to fulfill her wishes. Rama is told about his exile, and does not resist. This is a true show of his character, and how the author is wanting him to be betrayed as. 
• Sita and Lakshmana plan to go into exile together with Rama, and as they try to leave, the people of Ayodhya are determined to keep them from leaving. They make the river rise, blocking them in and forcing them to stay through the night. 
• When they begin their journey into exile and enter the forest they run into Guha, the Hunter King. He immediately runs to Rama with open arms and big huge saying, "Oh Rama, Rama! Now you are an outcast like me! You look more outlandish than I remembered you!" (p. 72). He whistled and men came out from behind trees bearing all sorts of hot, steaming food! Later that night he goes on to tell them all the story of how he rejected Shiva's priests, and kicked her statue every single day. When he later died, Shiva rescued him because Shive considered him his most devoted follower. 
• Guha then goes on to tell them another story of when Kaikeyi had used her power to get Dasharatha to teach her the language of animals, even though he was to guard that knowledge with him own life. One Dasaratha had figured out what was going on, he knew he had made a mistake and did not have to do what she had demanded of him. 
• As Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana continue their journey, they meet sage Bharadwaja who convinces them to stay Chitratuka, where they choose to reside and Lakshmana builds them a beautiful house.  
• As the reading comes to an end, Dasharatha is told of Rama's departure. He dies the next day. His last thoughts were of a time he had accidentally killed a young boy in the forest, and he sees a connection between the death of that boy and the loss of his son.
• I really enjoy picking out the similarities and differences between the two versions of the Ramayana. For me, this version is easier to follow since I already have knowledge of the story and can focus more on what is happening, instead of just getting the characters distinguished. Although, very similar, I can point out differences here and there.

Week 4: Reading Diary A - The Story of the Ramayana

Reading Diary pg. 1-59
The Ramayana by William Buck

Characters

Valmiki - lived inside of an anthill because of unsuccessful attempts to find friendship, happiness and hope. Was convinced by Narada to save Sita, who was exiled by Rama because of gossip, and welcomed her into their town. Valmiki became a poet, and tells the story of Rama to Rama and Sita's twin boys, Kusha and Lava.

Kusha and Lava - Sons of Rama and Sita. Memorized the poem that Valmiki has to them by heart and sing it at a festival in the forest, in which Rama attends, not knowing that the two boys are his own.

King Dasaratha - King of Ayodhya. Had no son, but greatly longed for one to inherit his kingdom. He says, "Brahmana, I always long for a son. I can find no happiness without him, therefore make a sacrifice with fire, to please the gods" (p. 8). Calls Vasistha, who grants him sons.

Vasistha - Dasaratha's priest who performs a sacrifice so that Dasaratha can obtain sons.

Indra - King of Heaven

Ravana - Demon King

Vishnu - Soul of the Universe

Rama, Bharata, Lakshmana, Shatrughna - Dasaratha's four sons

Vishwamitra - Tells the story of Ravana to Dasaratha

Notes

• Ayodhya is described as being "filled with warriors, like a mountain cave filled with lions; her warriors were impatient and deadly to foes" (p. 8). They kept the city safe. The city was also known for its abundance of food, wood, and water. 
• Vasistha performs a sacrifice, and calls down Indra, the King of Heaven, who is not happy to be called, because he is unable to beat Ravana in battle.
• No amount of power by the gods can defeat Ravana. Indra goes to Lord Vishnu, trying to convince him to become incarnate as a human in order to defeat Ravana. He already has become in human form. 
• 16 years later, Vishwamitra arrives at the palace looking for help with his battles with the rakshasas. The baby Sukesha had three sons: Mali, Sumaili, and Malyavan
• They went to Vishwakarma, the architect gods, and asked for a home to be built. Lanka was made. Vishnu attacked and killed Mali. 
• Ravana married Mandodari, and had a son Meghanada (Indrajit)
• Ravana challenges Yama, the god of death, who surrendered to him. Surya and Chandra surrendered to him as well. 
• Ravana then attacked Amaravati, Indra's heaven, who slammed the gates of heaven to keep Ravana from coming in.
• In Mithila, Rama's strength allows him to break the bow of Shiva and he is able to wed Sita, Janaka's daughter. They marry and are brought back to Ayodhya. 
• Vishwamirta, ultimately wants Rama's help in defeating Ravana. Dasaratha agrees to allow Rama and Lakshmama to go with him. He becomes a mentor to the boys.
• On their journey, they travel to Mithilia, where Rama restores Ahalya.
• Rama's strength allows him to break the bow of Shiva, which gives him permission to marry Janaka's daughter, Sita. They travel back to Ayodhya. 

Week 3: Reading Diary B - The Final Quest

Reading Diary pg. 131-171
The Ramayana by R.K. Narayan

Since this reading consists of many short chapters, I decided to format my notes by chapter, and introducing any new characters that stands out to me as I go.

Chapter 8 - Memento from Rama
This reading starts out with Hanuman arriving in Lanka in further search for Sita. He shrank himself so that he could not be seen while searching. He finds several streets with houses of women that belong to Ravana, who he used to be enchanted by but have since been neglected upon the arrival of Sita. Hanuman enters a mansion, where he finds a beautiful women, whom he may think is Sita. She seemed very happy, with attendants fanning her left and right. Hanuman thought, it can't be Sita, and later realized it must be Ravana's wife, Mandodari. He continues his search, when he spots Sita in the Ashoka Vana pleasure garden, where she is being heavily guarded by demons. Ravana comes up to her to convince her to be his main mistress, where she refuses and Ravana orders the demons to break her will. Hanuman cant help but have have respect for Sita for staying so loyal to Rama. She becomes desperate, wanting to kill her life, until Hanuman comes before her and explains everything. They exchange jewelry. Indrajit, Ravana's son, takes Hanuman to Ravana, where he tells him about Rama and demands him to surrender. In furry, Ravana wants to kill him, but Ravana's brother, Vibhishana, persuades him not to. He puts Hanuman's tail on fire, burning Lanka to the ground. It is later rebuilt by the architect of the gods, Maya.

Chapter 9 - Ravana in Council
This chapter begins with Ravana admiring the new architecture of his city. He was so enchanted that he almost forgot he was attacked by a monkey, who then burned down his city. This chapter takes place in a council meeting setting, where Ravana and his people express their thoughts on what happened and what the next step should be. Mahodara, a giant to giants, wants to defeat all of the monkeys. Ravana's son, Indrajit, wants to kill Rama. Vibhishana speaks of the dangers of humans and reminds Ravana that he is not protected against humans and that he should release Sita. Ravana demands him to leave or be killed.

Chapter 10 - Across the Ocean
Vibhishana seeks out Rama in order to make peace. At first, they question him and especially Sugreeva and Jambavan are suspicious of him. They think if he is that quick to turn against his brother Ravana, then he is not loyal and cannot be trusted. Rama demands they take him in by saying, "One who speaks for himself must be accepted at his face value. One who seeks asylum must be protected"(p. 143). He was an asset to help plan out how to attack Lanka. Rama's first challenge was to get all of his armies across the ocean to get to Lanka. He prayed and fasted for 7 days and demanded the sea gods to help his armies cross, or else he will evaporate all of the ocean's water. The sea gods allowed a bridge to be built, and with the efforts of all of the troops, they were able to march across the ocean and arrive in Lanka.

Chapter 11 - The Siege of Lanka
Ravana's troops were dropping one by one. No one who went out had returned. Ravana tried many things to keep Rama from attacking. He sent his people out disguised as monkeys, he tried to fool Sita into thinking Rama had been decapitated, and tried to corrupt Rama's supporters, such as Sugreeva. Rama demanded his troops to attack Lanka. Sita is tricked into thinking Rama and Lakshmana are dead, but later finds out they were just injected with poison to make them faint. Garudu, a bird who is the vehicle of Vishnu, is able to reverse the power of the poison. Rama is later brought to Ravana for confrontation, where he sees how badly shattered Ravana is and allows him to return tomorrow with fresh weapons to fight.

Chapter 12 - Rama and Ravana in Battle
Rama and Ravana embark into an intense battle, where many armies on both sides have been destroyed. Ravana becomes so weak that he faints, but Rama refuses to kill him while he is in that state. When he rises again, Rama gets him in the heart and kills him. He orders for a funeral to be arranged as he exclaimed, "Honour him and cherish his memory so that his spirit may go to heaven, where he has his place. And now I will leave you to attend to his funeral arrangements, befitting his grandeur."(p.160) This really shows Rama's true character. He is a loving person, and wants the best for all, and for everyone to be remembered for their good, not their bad.

Chapter 13 - Interlude 
This chapter begins with Rama sending Hanuman to get Sita. Sita was overjoyed to finally be freed of Ravana. She is going to see Rama for the first time, while they are surrounded by a large crowd, which makes Sita feel a bit uncomfortable and awkward, but of course accepted it. Sita senese a barrier between her and Rama, and it rather confused. Rama then claims that his task is done and that he has freed her. He claims they could not longer live together again, since she had resided alone in a stranger's house. Sita broke down as she hears this, and Lakshmana demands that a fire be lit, and Sita jumps into it demanded that she had been untouched by Ravana. Rama was now satisfied, since he had established his wife's loyalty in front of the public. He welcomed her back into his arms, and they were together again at last!

Chapter 14 - The Coronation
14 years have gone by, and thus Rama's exile is over. He will now return to Ayodhya, where Bharata will be awaiting him. If Rama does not return, he is prepared to kill himself. Rama, Sita, and many others make their way back home to Ayodhya, where a happy reunion was awaiting them!

Week 3: Reading Diary A - Buckle Up For the Ride!

Reading Diary pg. 89-130

The Ramayana by R.K. Narayan

This reading starts off with Sita being abducted by Ravana. Jatayu, the bird and their protector, tries to fight off Ravana, but dies and uses his last breaths to tell Rama what happened to Sita. Rama and Lackshmana head to Kishkinda in desperate search of Sita.

Chapter 6, The Vali, is known as the most controversial chapter in the Ramayana. This chapter takes place in the mountainous forest regions of Kishkinda, a kingdom ruled by extremely intelligent monkeys. Sugreeva is ruler of the monkey clan, and Hanuman was his helper. 

One statement by Narayan that stood out to me right away as I started this reading was, "In the Ramayana, the participants are not only human beings but many others from God's creation, intelligent, cultured, and with their own achievements of spirit as well as physique" (p. 98). I thought this was really cool, because as we have seen already in the previous readings, Jatayu was an eagle, and I really became attached to him as a character. I may be writing about the animal characters for my storybook, so I had done a little research about them this past weekend, and found it so interesting. 

Sugreeva's Story 

Vali, the brother of Sugreeva, possesses unlimited strength because he was the only one who was able to turn the churner until nectar was obtained from the ocean. "He was rewarded with immeasurable strength. He held more energy than the five elements in nature and at one stride could cross the seven oceans and reach the mountain Charuvala, beyond all the seas" (p. 100). The demon, Mayavi, with odious features, challenged Vali. As soon as Vali rose to fight, Mayavi backed down, knowing that he had acted before thinking, and fled into a subterranean passage. Vali chased after him into the passage where he then disappeared. Right before he dissapeared he told Sugreeva to "Stay here and watch until I return" (p. 100), but there was no sign of him for many many months. Sugreeva was instructed to block the passage by his advisors so Mayavi could not re-emerge. Eventually, Vali destroyed Mayavi and returned from the passage, and was enraged to find out that Sugreeva had blocked the passage, thinking his own brother was trying to lock him in there. Once he found Sugreeva, he attacked him in vein, and Sugreeva fled to Mount Mantanga to hide from Vali. He also takes Sugreeva's wife making her his own, leaving Sugreeva without a home and without a wife. 

Rama was touched by this story, and felt pity for Sugreeva. Hanuman believes that Rama can help to defeat Vali. Rama agrees by saying, "I will help you. Tell me what you want." (p. 101). Sugreeva also agrees to help Rama find Sita. 

Dundubi's Story

The bones on top of the mountain are the bones of the monster, Dundubi, who was a powerful demon in the shape of a buffalo. He wanted to engage in war with Vishnu, who directed him to Shiva, where he expressed the wish to have the power to fight forever. Shiva then directed Dundubi to Indra, the chief of all gods, who then told him to go meet Vali, the only one who can fufill his wish. Vali attacked Dundubi as he descended from the mountain, and their fight continued for a full year. Vali takes Dundubi's horn off, killing him with it and whirling him into the air. His body flew to the spot where Sage Matanga was performing sacred rituals, who then went after Vali for ruining his prayer ground. 

• Sugreeva calls Vali to a fight, feeling confident with the help of Rama. They go into battle, and Rama strikes him with an arrow that later kills him. Sugreeva becomes the king. 
• He later helps Rama with his search for Sita by sending out search parties. 
• Hanuman and Andgada go south in search for Sita, but have no luck. They eventually run into the ocean, where they meet Sampathi, Jatayu's brother. 
• Sampathi was burned and charred by the sun god, and restored by the sound of Rama's name. Sampathi had seen Ravana take Sita to Lanka. 
• The bear, Jambavan points them in the right direction to Lanka, which is across the ocean. 

I really enjoyed this reading, because I loved the involvement with animal characters towards the end. I think it is really cool to see all the different characters in this book and how they interact with each other. There was constant action and surprises in this reading, making it really fun to read. My favorite part of this book so far is all of the character development and the stories explaining each character's past. 

Week 2: Reading Diary B - My Journey Through the Ramayana Continued

The last chapter ended with one of Dasharatha's son's mother, Kaikeyi, demanding her wish be that Rama is sent into exile for fourteen years, and her son Bharata become the successor. Dasharatha had no choice but to abide by these wishes since he owed them to her. Dasharatha dies when he hears of Rama's departure into the forest. Bharata is so enraged that his mother would exile his own brother, that he refuses to take the crown. Lakshmana and Sita accompany Rama with his exile.

Chapter 4: Encounters in Exile 

This chapter begins with Rama, Lakshmana and Sita continuing through the forest. They encounter Jatayu, a bird who was previously a friend of Dasharatha. Once Jatayu was informed of Dasharatha's death, he wanted to end his life then and there, but the boys convinced him to keep his life, as he is the closest thing to a father figure now. He agreed to embark on their journey with them.

-> A quote that I loved from this page was when Jatayu said, "While I fly, follow me in the shadow of my wings"(p.66). To me, this quote represents security for the boys and Sita. They are now being watched over by the bird, and it almost seemingly feels like their father watching over them from above. With all of the uncertainty and danger in their journey, they now have a feeling of comfort and solace when being protected by a friend of their dads.

As they continue to embark on their journey, they finally reach Panchvati. Rama is reminded of the reason he is here in the first place... "he had come here to encounter and destroy the asuras, the fiends who infested this area, causing suffering and hardship to all the good souls who only wanted to be left alone to pursue their spiritual aims in peace"(p.67). Ramas purpose of incarnation was to destroy these asuras and therefore abolish the fear from all men and gods, to establish peace, and to bring justice to the world. While he was in the woods, he meets a woman named Kamavalli, daughter of Sage Visravas and sister of Ravana, and is immediately paralyzed by her beauty.

-> Although he is just mesmerized by her beauty, Rama's reaction to this woman makes me wonder if he finds it somewhat normal to be in love with more than one woman at a time, since his father had many wives. Does polygamy exist in this story?

Kamavalli quickly asks for Rama's hand in marriage, but he politely refuses. As Sita walks out of their cottage toward the two, jealousy overcomes Kamavalli. She then goes on to convince herself that Sita is not Rama's wife.

-> This reminds me of a modern day situation, as every girl feels envious toward that one girl that seems so perfect on the outside, making you feel a bit of insecurity. I also know we have all at some point in time convinced ourselves of something in order to feel better and more in control about a situation.

Kamavalli goes to extremes to break apart Rama and Sita, and plans to capture Sita. She later gets captured by Lakshmana, who punishes her by cutting off her nose, ears, and breasts. She eventually runs off to her brother, Ravana in Lanka.

Chapter 5: The Grand Tormentor

This chapter starts off with Ravana in Lanka, and gods are acting for his every need. Vayu, god of wind, was there to blow away flowers and sweep the halls clean, Yama, the god of death, was there to sound the gong at each hour of the day, and the god of fire was there to keep lamps, incense, and camphor flames lit at all times. Many more were there to serve him. Out of no where, Soorpanka comes running to the scene, falling to the throne, crying, "See what has happened to me!" (p.80). Ravan is furiated, until she begins to talk about Sita and her beauty and falls in love with her just from her description.

Ravana visits his uncle, Maricha to gain advice about Rama, since he had been up against him before. They come up with a sneaky plan, not to fight off Rama, but to distract and trick him, and then snatch Sita. Maricha disguises as a beautiful deer, capturing Sitas attention. Rama attack the deer so that Sita may have it, and while doing so he shoots him, but his cries sound like Rama's. This worries Sita, and she forces Laksmana to go check on him. While doing so, Ravana shows up to capture Sita. Her efforts are not enough to keep him from taking her. Jatayu, their protector, comes back into the picture and tries to fight off Ravana! He exclaims, "Don't seek your own ruin, and the ruin of your whole clan, class, tribe, and all. Rama's arrows will end your career, have no doubt about it"(p.94). His efforts fail, and he gets struck down. Sita is now captured by Ravana, but Jatayu is able to tell Rama what has happened before dying. He can now finally be with his beloved friend, Dasharatha. His last words, "Do not despair. You will succeed in the end"(p.95), showing his faith in Rama. To me, this feels like it is almost coming from his father, and foreshadows his success in getting Sita back safely.

Narayan, R. K. 1972. The Ramayana.