Week 10 Reading Diary B: Mahabharata by Peter Brook

I thought the scene between Duryodhana and Ashwatthaman was a very powerful scene. He talked about seeing an owl slaughter baby crows, and it was a sign to him that it was his time for vegenence. Then he described going into the camp and slaughtering the Pandavas' children. He didn't have any remorse about the war.

I absolutely hated Krishna in this film just as much as I did in the book. He knows things that he should be telling the Pandavas, but he either keeps it to himself or tells them at the worst possible timing. This led to the Pandavas killing to siblings.

(Image Information: Duryodhana and Bhima battle. Source: Wikipedia)

Week 10 Reading Diary A: Mahabharata by Peter Brook

I thought Bhishma's encounter with the man, Shakhandi, who used to be a woman, was a lot more personal in the film. I thought it was a rather strange encounter between the Pandavas and Bhishma altogether. The way that they literally walked up to him and asked him how they could kill him and the fact that he gave them a legitimate answer... I would have not done that, unless I was purposely wanting to die. I also found it hilariously beautiful and awkward the way the arrow that was shot was walked in slow motion over to Bhishma, which ended up entering his flesh, as described by Bhishma himself, "like a snake." Bhishma also remains ridiculously conscience after many arrows have hit him. They mention that he will die, not yet, but soon. But at that point, it looked like he was just sitting on the ground talking to people like nothing ever happened, minus the various arrows protuding his flesh.

(Image Information: Bhishma awaiting his death. Source: wikipedia)

Week 9 Reading Diary B: Brook's Film "The Mahabharata"

I thought the crystal palace of the Pandavas was interesting. I would have liked to actually look at the palace and the scene, rather than Duryodhana telling us and staring at a crystal structure. I might write my storytelling post about what this would have actually been like. I guess it would have been a little bit harder to build a crystal palace for such a small section of the play.
I also thought that the gambling scene was very telling. Yudhishthira just kept coming back for more.
I think my favorite part of the film so far was the scene in which everyone dies from drinking the water. If some random godly voice was telling me not to drink, and I saw all of my siblings dead at the edge of the water, I would suspect there was a reason why they were telling me not to drink. I actually really liked the riddles that the lake asked, too.

(Image Information: the fate at the lake. Source: slideshare)

Week 9 Reading Diary: Brook's Film "The Mahabharata"

This was very different from the first film I had watched for this class. In this version of the Mahabharata, you can actually see the story come to life through the usage of actors. The first thing I noticed about this film was the music. The music they chose sounded so graceful, traditional, and beautiful. I also thought that it was interesting that the opening scene is of the poet. I had read so many pieces so far, but I read them more like stories, rather than realizing they all had a purpose or a lesson and the epic was used for entertainment and was passed on through generations.

I loved this storytelling aspect of the film. Not only does the narrator put himself in the story, but he stops telling the story every so often to put in his own reasoning or detail about what was going on. I also enjoyed the fact that the little boy acted like a child would when being told a story. Always asking "why?"

(Image Information: The story begins... Source: eastiseverywhere)

Week 7 Reading Diary B: The Five Tall Sons of Pandu

I think the most compelling part of this reading was the hesitation. You could see this when Arjun was debating about morals when confronted with going to war with his own family. You could see it when Krishna and others on Duryodhana's side fought for a peace mission. You could even see it when Bhishma told Duryodhana the gods were not on their side.

I feel like ego plays a large role in this human version of the epic. The way seems to continue less out of rage, but more so because they want to prove themselves. I think this is seen in Karnu who still chooses to fight Arjun even after learning they are brothers.

I also get caught up on the story of Bhishma's death. They sent out someone they knew he wouldn't kill. They did this so he would let his guard down and they could follow through with the attack. That was family. They knew someone in their family actually had morals and he was killed because of it.

(Image Information: Bhishma's death Source: Hard Krishna)

Week 7 Reading Diary A: The Five Tall Sons of Pandu

This was a very different way of telling the story of the sons of Pandu. I enjoyed this version, however, because it was much more believable without all the magical aspects. I found the dispute between the cousins to be more realistic too. Instead of fighting each other with powers they seemed to be just like brothers fighting and trying to prove themselves to each other. I liked this reading, it was shorter than I anticipated, but I guess that's what you get when you take all the magic out of an epic.

(Image Information: Krishna and the pandavas. Source: Pinterest )

Week 6 Reading B: Mahabharata PDE

The story of Drona's Death was very interesting to me. The fact that Yudhishthira was visited and asked for truth was my favorite part. Technically he did not lie about his son. It was Drona's fault that he did not pay attention to the words "the elephant". The story of Bhima and Duhshasana also caught my attention. This for the way in which Bhima carried out the murder. I mean, HE DRANK THE DUDE'S BLOOD.

I also thought it was crazy that Duryodhana decided that because he would not get mercy by the Pandavas, he was willing to continue the war until everyone was dead. I liked that Bhima fulfilled his promise and smashed Duryodhana's knee. His followers said they were willing to kill Bhima for it but decided that they would not because Duryodhana was the first one that had not been fair (dice).

(image information: Bhima righting Duryodhana.. Source:Backtogodhead)

Week 6 Reading Diary A: Mahabharata PDE

I'm starting to get a little confused by all the characters in the story. That's why I chose to include the following image that will help me when I need to look back on how people are connected.

(Image Information: Family tree of the story. Source: Quora)

I have to say that while I was reading the story of Arjuna and Shiva, all I could think about was Arjuna being a little kid and throwing a tantrum to get what he wanted. He used all of his arrows at the God, and continued to do so until they were all exhausted, and then threw down his bow and insisted on them wrestling. I also thought it was really cool that Hanuman was still alive and a part of the new story. I really enjoyed reading the part on Hanuman's wisdom about the splitting of the sacred books and the stray from the truth. This caused disease and evil to come into the world. As he explained, selfishness was seen through sacrifices. Passion was seen as more important as truth in this new age. He explained the differences in the four castes. It was really interesting to read this encounter between the two brothers. 

Reading Diary B: Online PDE Mahabharata

I absolutely loved the second story in this section, "Bhima and Hidimba". I enjoyed that fact that Hidimba sent his sister to capture Bhima and his family for food. Rather than doing that, she fell in love with Bhima and tried to convince him to come with her and be her husband. Hidimba had become so angry at this site that he planned to kill them all, including his sister. 

I have really liked Bhima in all of the readings, however, in this piece he sounded really full of himself. "I have arms like the trunks of elephants." Like....... okay?

I thought it was strange that the sister actually got Bhima to marry her. This very powerful man not only married this demon, but he was happy with her and had a child with her. And then just one day they all go to visit Bhima's family and she leaves off with her son. 

(Image Information: Bhima defeating Hidimba. Source: Yama's Tattoo Parlor"

Reading Diary A: Online PDE Mahabharata

I found it very interesting that a deer had a large role in this epic, just like the Ramayana. It also just so happens that the fathers in both stories (Pandu, Dasharatha) were cursed. As I began reading further into the pieces, I had an idea of the miseries that were to come. It all started in "Pandavas and Kauravas" in which the relationship between the groups of children was described. It was very interesting to see how the leaders of each group were presented (Bhima being a powerful leader and Duryodhana being more envious and evil-minded when it comes to power).

I definitely foresaw what the next few stories held. As the story goes, Duryodhana attempted to kill Bhima with poison and dump his body. I thought the part about the venom of the snakes neutralizing the poison from Duryodhana was a very cool aspect of this story. I enjoyed the fact that because of Duryodhana's jealousy, Bhima actually gained a lot out of being attacked (such as super-human strength). I also enjoyed the fact that all of Pandu's sons agreed it was better to leave this a secret for the possibility of an unexpected advantage in the future.

(Image information: Bhima the Warrior. Source: Harishankar)

Reading Diary B: Sita Sings the Blues

I really like that they had three different stories going at the same time. The narrative, the blues songs, and the story about the modern day couple. I actually got my idea for my storytelling this week from watching this second half of the movie. I was a little worried I would not be able to come up with another story because I had already wrote two about the Ramayana, but I'm really excited about this idea! It actually didn't even come from a story in the film, but rather a song that a group of women sang.
Also, I finally made the connection the girl in the story was the girl who actually made the film. I really enjoyed this film. I also liked how the narrators pointed out something I know most of us were thinking. Why would Sita still be so devoted to someone who has treated her so badly? He is willing to send away this girl that loves him more than anything just to appease the people in the city. Then he makes her prove her loyalty, not once, but twice! I am married, and I know "true love" but I am not sure I would even go through that much for a guy. It reminded me of the article I found on how Sita was supposed to represent the ideal woman.

(Image Information: Rama thinking Sita is contaminated. Source: Nina Paley)

Reading Diary A: Sita Sings the Blues

(Image Information: Sita Sings the Blues. Source: GStatic)

I chose to watch "Sita Sings the Blues" for my first reading assignment this week because of the fact that I actually found this film a couple of weeks ago and watched some parts of it and absolutely loved it! I was really excited to see this as an option this week.

Watching the video from beginning to end was entertaining. I enjoyed the way they had people that knew the stories from heart (or parts of the story, as you can see from the video they don't remember specifics very well). After they told the story, it would show an animated video of Sita's story to the tune of a blues song.

I think my favorite thing about this video is how the narrators seemed to be discussing the story with the viewer, almost as if I could chime in with my idea at any time. I also appreciated that the story was an overall view of the Ramayana, rather than a detailed reading. It was definitely refreshing after having to read each story one by one for the last few weeks. I would recommend this film to anyone watching to learn the basic story of the Ramayana. The readings I did before made this laid-back type of narrative more enjoyable because I already knew what to expect. 

Reading Diary B: Public Domain Ramayana

I was kind of thrown off by the story "Kumbhakarna". I felt as if I was reading the stories of Ramayana, and I get to this piece where Ravana wakes up his brother and all of the sudden in a paragraph later, Rama has killed him. I guess I was looking for more of a storyline in this piece rather than a sudden death. Perhaps that can be something I write about in my storytelling assignment?

I also thought the story "Sita Departs" was kinda of strange also. After Sita had been brought back to Rama after Ravana's death, he doubted her purity while in the possession of Ravana. She was willing to walk through large flames in order to prove herself to him. After that, the returned to their home and Rama was crowned the King. However, people of the city doubted her purity that she had already been tested for. Rama gave in to the wishes of the people and exiled Sita even though he spent so much time trying to get her back. Finally, after learning she was the mother of his children, Rama brings Sita back to tell the citizens of the city about her purity to Rama. After doing so, she was embraced by the Earth and Rama once again was without his love.

(Image Information: Sita being taken into the Earth. Source: KidsGen)

Reading Diary A: Public Domain Ramayana

I have to say I really love the strength shown by Sita in "Sita and Ravana" even though she had her life threatened. I love this story because Sita was powerful enough in her love for Rama and her love for her own wishes that she is able to refuse Ravana. Even with the offering of power and wealth and anything else that she could wish for, she knew that she would not yield to Ravana.

My favorite story of all the readings in block "A" had to be "The Burning of Lanka". I found this piece to be hilarious. Not only were Ravana and his followers not able to torture Hanuman with the fire, but they also caused their own demise by treating Hanuman in such a way. I could just imagine this wonderful monkey realizing that the Gods had protected him from the wrath of the fire and taking advantage of the moment to destroy the evil and greed that surrounded him. After doing so, he was able to escape to organize his monkey army and gather the support of others to march on the city and destroy Ravana, including Rama. I absolutely loved this reading and I have a feeling it may be included in my storytelling project.

(Image information: Hanuman burning Lanka. Source: Shree Hanuman Blog)

Reading Diary B: Public Domain Ramayana

I think that I enjoyed the second set of stories even more than the first! It is probably because the first readings set up the story, and this batch really got into some variety. My favorite part of this set was when Maricha became a deer. I thought the description of the deer was very interesting: lotus blue ears and a tail of rainbow! The first thing that I imagined was a "My Little Pony" character.

(Image Information: Maricha as the beautiful deer. Source: glimpse of krishna)

Anyways, I thought this was a very clever act. Even though Rama made Lakshman stay to protect Sita and in doing so had changed the way Ravana had originally foreseen the plot, they made their plan work around it and eventually captured Sita.
The other story I found to be very interesting was "The Sandals" by Donald A. Mackenzie. After deciding to not come back to Ayodhya, Bharata planned to rule for his brother while he was away, without taking the seat on the throne. Rather, an object of Rama's was placed on the throne to represent his rule. I thought it was interesting that Bharata held up his brother's right to the throne and even offered to be banished instead of Rama.
So far, my favorite character is Rama. This is most likely because his character has been established in so many different ways. I could tell his love for Sita was true in how he makes sure she is always protected (even though she may escape the protection such as when Ravana comes in disguise as an older, hungry man). You could almost feel his lament after finding out that Sita had been taken.

Reading Diary A: Public Domain Ramayana

After completing the readings, the ones that stuck with me most were "Bhagiratha and Ganga by John Campbell Oman" and "Rama Wins Sita by Donald A. Mackenzie". I think that I enjoyed the story of the goddess Ganga becoming a river because it made a definite correlation between the heavenly world and the earthly world. Not only was this connection made, the story mentioned the importance of communication with the Gods on a constant basis. It mentioned the line of men that continued to perform sacrifices in order to aid their ancestors that had passed on after coming into contact with Kapila. My favorite part of this story is when Ganga gets tangled in the hair of Shiva. For me, when I read that, I just had a strange image of a girl stuck in some guys hair. 

The second story I mentioned above (and the Janka story before it) grabbed my attention because it reminded me of Act III of Wagner's "Die Walkure". In Wagner's opera, the god Wotan sends his favorite daughter, Brünnhilde, into an enchanted sleep by kissing her eyes. In addition, he casts a spell that creates a magical flame around her that will only allow the bravest man to enter and save her. However, now that I think about it, I guess this is how a lot of epic stories play out when they involve the daughter meeting her soul-mate and most worthy companion. 

(Image Information: Photo of Rama and Sita. Source: Amor y Sabor)

I enjoyed most of the PDE readings, however, the few written in poetic form were a little harder for me to stay with. I seemed to get a little lost (thank goodness there was an audio recording!)