EXTRA READING: Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part E (Rama)

Rama's secret is to outgrow the beast to discover the divine. The battle between the Devas and the Asuras is aligned vertically, while the battle between the Manavas and the Rakshasas is aligned horizontally. Humans who uphold dharma (good) are called manavas while the humans who uphold adharma (bad) are called rakshasas who are described as demons. Rama is the only avatar of Vishnu to be worshipped as king. Rama is a man who upheld dharma as he upheld the code of civilization and refused to succumb to animal instincts despite temptation. Rama's role is to stay alert and ensure everybody behaves as they are expected to and if things go wrong, he has to rush to help as Vishnu would to set things to right. Rama has to remind people of their obligations to outgrow animal instincts and make sure things keep moving. In addition, Rama as the king has to punish law-breakers and reward law-abiders as Vishnu would do as well.

There are different accounts that state the different number of Vishnu avatars. Some say there are 10, some say 12, while other accounts state that there are 22 avatars of Vishnu. However, no matter how many avatars there are, it often has been commented that the order of Vishnu's descents follows the evolution of the man and the human avatars follow the varna system. An avatar redefines dharma for a particular age in time. Avatars are sent to this earth to balance human demands with nature's needs for as long as possible.

Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Rama) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Rama. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part D (Trivikrama)

Ignorance breeds insecurity and arrogance. Lakshmi and Saraswati are usually never seen together. The Devas and the Asuras focus on either Lakshmi or Saraswati only one at a time. Vishnu, however, focuses on both goddesses simultaneously. Lakshmi is Vishnu's connection to the earthly needs of humans. Saraswati is Vishnu's connection to the spiritual needs of man. He knows that the two goddesses do not get along so he keeps Lakshmi at his feet and Saraswati in his mouth. The journey to Sarawati, the goddess representing peace, goes from finite to infinite, which is a journey of "what I have" to "what I am." From Brahma's nostrils, Vishnu is incarnated as a boar with long tusks which is Vahara. From that day, Vishnu is the guardian of the earth, which is why he is the color blue.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Trivikrama) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Trivikrama. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part C (Kurma)

Wealth eludes the insecure. Lakshmi is a goddess who people worship because she provides our food, clothes, and homes. The Devas and Asuras are half siblings who are trying to save Lakshmi. The Devas and Asuras do not get along but work together to churn. Lakshmi rises from the ocean because of the Devas and Asuras. Lakshmi and Vishnu get together. Lakshmi has a sister named Alakshmi who represents conflict, the opposite of Lakshmi. They cannot live without each other.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Kurma) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Kurma. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part B (Matsya)

The overall secret of Matsya is that only humans can both empathize and exploit one another. The larger brain of humans allows humans to imagine, which inspires and makes us curious. The brain of humans allows the physical manifestation of spiritual reality which is born of Vishnu so we can realize Vishnu. Matsya is the fish avatar of the ten avatars of Vishnu. Manu is a man that represents all of humanity and here is his story. Manu's water pot that contains the fish is Manu's property which is quite different from the way animals mark their territory by their urine. In Manu's notion of property, one's territory is not inherited but instead, it is fought for. No rules and law protect one's existing territory. Without territory, animals will not survive. Now, Manu's fish has grown in size so it is transferred to a bigger water pot. As the fish continually grows, Manu takes care of it by providing bigger and bigger water bowls for the fish to live in. Manu takes care of that one fish but never considers the other fishes outside the bowl. The fish gets bigger and bigger, and it does not occur to Manu that the fish is strong enough to fend for itself as to throw it back into the ocean.The fish itself also never asks Manu if he can be let back into the ocean as he himself does not know if he can fend for himself to the point that the fish becomes dependent on Manu. Manu ends up having to put his fish into a lake because the fish is too big. Manu wonders why he is sad and suffering when he has spent all this time taking care of the fish. He blames a storm and curses the sea. However, he soon realizes that his obsession with the one fish made him become insensitive to the fish and to himself. Manu exclusively took care of that one fish but became insensitive when he did not take care of the rest of the fishes. The law of karma is that every action has a reaction that we experience. Manu understands his lesson and the fish he took care of comes back with a horn on his head which symbolizes Vishnu's sign.

Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Matsya) by Devdutt Pattanaik (link)

Matsya. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Pattanaik's Secret Secrets of Vishnu: Part A (Mohini)

Mohini is the female version of Vishnu. Material reality is represented by females while spiritual reality is represented by males but both realities are interdependent on each other. Mohini is female in form but male in essence. Mohini is spiritual reality wrapped in material reality. However, this does NOT mean that men are only spiritual and women are only spiritualistic. Vishnu is a god who celebrates infinite growth spiritually and materialistically. Vishnu is worshipped because people inspire to be like him.

Maya is the measuring scale, Brahma is doing the measuring, and Prakriti is that which Brahma measures. Maya continually changes as Brahma's experiences and expectations changes. Therefore, what was right in the past may be wrong in the future; what was good in one part of the world may be bad in another part of the world; what one person considers beautiful another may consider ugly. This conflicts people and makes people question life.


Bibliography: Seven Secrets of Vishnu (Mohini) by Devdutt Pattanaik's (link)

Mohini. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part E

Subhadra wins over Draupadi and Abhimanya is born to Arjuna. Jarasandha is killed which makes Yudhisthir the next king.  Duryodhan is humiliated and Shakuni comes up with an evil plan. Yudhisthir puts on a gambling match to which Draupadi is at stake. 



Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Abhimanyu, son of Arjuna. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part F

Dushasan was pulling on the garments of Draupadi to humiliate her just as he did to her five husbands, the Pandavas. Draupadi looked to her husbands for help but none did. Therefore, Draupadi prayed to Krishna and he answered her prayer as to there was no end to her garments that Dushasan was pulling at. The Pandavas left Hastinapur with rage in their eyes. They wanted revenge on their cousins. The Kauravas sent the Pandavas an invitation to gamble and the Pandavas agreed to it even though they knew what was at stake. The Pandavas lost and were sent into exile for 13 years. While in the forest, Krishna visited them and saw the terrible condition that they were in to which he blamed himself for this happening. Krishna promised his support when the time came for revenge against the Kauravas. The brothers face many difficulties in the forest like fighting Kirmira and barely not having enough food and resources to survive. A wise sage came and visited them in the forest and told Arjun that he has to acquire Indra and Shiva's celestial weapons to win the war. In order to do so, Arjun paid his respect to Shiva to gain grace from him. As Arjun is paying his respect, he encounters and even fights Shiva to which Shiva grants him his mighty weapon. Next, Arjun meets Indra who invites him to Indralok. Arjun was not happy in Indralok because he missed his brothers and wife. In Indralok, there is a beautiful woman named Urvashi. Urvashi was attracted to Arjun and confessed her love for him. He did not feel the same way so she put a curse on him saying that he would not desire any women. While Arjun was in Indralok, his brothers were paying respect to the gods to which Bhim meets Hanuman.

Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Krishna visits the Pandavas and Draupadi in the forest. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part C

When Karna was a baby, he was found floating in the river by his father. Karna already had the beautiful armor to protect his body and had tremendous rings on his ears when he was a baby and grew as he turned into a man. By knowing about his story, Karna knew that he was a Kshatriya, therefore, he was on a quest to prove it. Karna finally got Parshuram to accept his has his pupil. Karna was an eager and attentive student, but one-day Parshuram figured out he was a Kshatriya when Karna held the pain of spider's bite as to not wake up Parshuram who was sleeping on Karna's lap. One-day a tournament was held and Karna showed up uninvited to show his power and that he could defeat Arjuna. Karna did in fact beat Arjuna who was insulted, but since Karna was not invited, he could not claim rightful victor. The Pandavas wanted to fight Karna but only could fight if he was of royal blood. Karna told his story and at that moment, Kunti (the Pandavas' mother) fainted and Duryodhan named him king of Anga so that he would be worthy to battle the brothers. King Drupad was once a pupil of Drona, the man who is teaching the art of war to the Pandavas. Drupad and Drona were once close friends and Drupad made the promise that Drona could get half his kingdom one day. When Drona went to visit Drupad and acquired about the promise, Drupad was a different man and told Drona that he had never made such promises. Drona vowed to himself that Drupad would pay for humiliating him. Duryodhan, one of the Kaurava brothers, created a plan to kill his cousins, the Pandavas, because he knew that they would be the next rulers and did not like that. Duryodhan's plan was to burn the brothers to their death in a palace made of wax. Upon reaching Vanvrat, the Pandavas realized that the palace built for them was made of combustible material. Therefore, they quickly assembled a plan to escape by building an underground tunnel. This plan of escape was successful. As soon as Kunti and the Pandavas escaped their death trap, it was Bhim who took his family (literally) onto his own shoulders. He took care of them and protected them as they journeyed through the forest. The Pandavas finally settled in a quiet city known as Ekachakra and disguised themselves as Brahmans. The once wealthy and powerful Pandava family were now begging for food and staying at a kind scholar's house. The asura named Bakasur would eat the townspeople as they gave him food to eat. This week it was the scholar's turn to face Bakasur and he knew that this would be his death. When Kunti heard this story from the scholar, he told him that her sons can and did defeat Bakasur. As the Pandavas lived their lives, Drupad was granted a son and beautiful daughter named, Draupadi. She grew up to become a young woman whose beauty was unmatched. 

Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Arjuna and Karna battling each other in the tournament. Source: Flickr. 

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part D

The Pandavas, disguised as brahmins, decided to attend Draupadi's swayamvar to win her hand and heart. As the swayamvar began, a mighty bow was placed in the middle of the room. To win Draupadi's hand in marriage, a suitor had to watch the reflection of a fish swimming in a bowl of oil and shoot an arrow to penetrate the fish's eye. All the princes and various other suitors could not fulfill the challenge. However, when Arjuna came up to string the bow, he did what no one thought he could. Arjuna successfully fulfilled the challenge. However, another man wanted his try at the challenge and his name was Prince Karna. Now Karna was a charioteer's son which did not bring him any respect. Therefore, before he could even attempt to string the bow, it was Draupadi herself who told him he could not. Karna returned to his seat humiliated. Now that Arjuna won the hand of Draupadi, they returned to their home. The brothers were looking for their mother and found her praying in their hut. Kunti thought that her sons brought food and without looking behind her told them to share what they have. Little did she know that what they brought was a new wife, Draupadi. She realized her mistake but did not take it back for fear that it would tear the brothers apart. However, the brothers felt weird about it because they believed it was Arjuna who was the rightful husband of Draupadi. As the brothers felt unsure about the request of their mother, a sage came by and said that Draupadi was destined to have a husband with five virtues. The brothers took this as their sign and all married the beautiful Draupadi.




Bibliography: Mahabharata by Epified (link)

Draupadi and the Pandavas. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Reading Notes: Jataka Tales (Babbitt), Part A

The Monkey and the Crocodile - The crocodile tried to trick the Monkey through several attempts, first by telling the monkey that there is ripe fruit across the river and the other time saying hello to the monkey while he was trying to be a rock. The monkey was wise, clever, and outwitted the crocodile, which ended up saving his own life.

How the Turtle Saved his Own Life - The sons of a king thought that the turtle was a demon and were extremely frightened by the turtle. Therefore, the king asked his men to think of ideas on how to kill the turtle. One day was that the turtle be thrown out in the water, which the turtle tricked the men making it seem like that was the worse idea ever when in actually the turtle was most safe in the water.

The Merchant of Seri - There were two merchants both selling the same products. One was nice and the other was greedy. One day, in a village the two were selling at lived a poor grandmother and her granddaughter. The granddaughter badly wanted something that the merchants were selling to which the grandmother unwilling agreed to. They were first visited by the greedy merchant to which the grandmother gave him a bowl to trade which was made of gold but unbeknownst to her or her granddaughter. The greedy man figured this out but pretended it was worth nothing so he could trick them. He left acting like he did not want the bowl. Next, the nice merchant visited the poor family and treated them with respect by telling them the truth about the bowl. He did not feel right to take it from the family but the grandmother insisted so in exchange he gave them all the money and product he had. In the end, it was the rich man who received blessings and the poor man who was left with nothing. The message of this story is that being kind reaps its reward.

The Turtle Who Couldn't Stop Talking - The turtle ended up losing his life because he could not keep quiet and could not keep from talking. If only he stopped talking like he was asked to, his life would have been safe from harm. Even to this day, this lesson is important because in situations when we have no right to speak or should not speak, we should just hold our tongue because it is for the best.

The Ox Who Won the Forfeit - A man who owned an ox placed a bet with the people of a village that his ox could move a hundred wagons. The man called his ox names and treated him with disrespect that the ox did not do as his owner asked him of, therefore, losing the bet. However, the next day, when the ox and the owner went back to village and placed another bet, a different outcome happened. The owner showed respect and love to the oxen to which the ox successfully won the bet and the two were happy. I believe the main lesson of this tale is to treat others with respect and that respect will be given back to you.

The Sandy Road - A group of traveling merchants can only travel the road by night because in the day, the road was too hot to travel. The merchants were doing great on the journey and one day they were so close to their destination that the pilot said that they could throw away all their water to which they did. However, that night as they were traveling, the pilot fell asleep and did not make their destination. The merchants were getting worried but miraculously they found some water and made it to their destination. The moral of the story is to never be too confident and save your resources until one is for sure they do not need it.

The Quarrel of the Quails - When the quails worked together, they saved their lives. However, when they quarrel and bicker with one another, they end up losing their lives to the fowler. The moral of the story is that quarreling never solves one's issues.

The Measure of Rice - A greedy king wanted to gain riches so he fired an honest Valuer in replace of a peasant and dumb Valuer. The not-so-smart Valuer tricked people and were setting unreasonable prices for various goods. Therefore, one day a horse-dealer talked to the honest Valuer and asked what he should do to set the prices straight and fair. The horse-dealer ended up showing the true colors of the bad Valuer who said that a measure of rice is worth the whole king's kingdom. The dumb Valuer was laughed at and did not show his face again.

The Foolish, Timid Rabbit - Once upon a time a timid rabbit lived in the forest. One day a coconut dropped to the ground and the rabbit thought the world was breaking. That one single rabbit got a whole bunch of rabbits, a deer, and a fox to believe that the world was breaking. It was not until when the pack of animals ran into the lion that the lion was able to prove the timid rabbit wrong and saved the animals.

Bibliography: Jataka Tales by Babbitt (link)

Turtle. Source: Flickr. 

Reading Notes: Jataka Tales (Babbitt), Part B

"The Wise and The Foolish Merchant" - In this tale, there are two merchants both ready to sell the goods throughout the country. The wise merchant knew that they both could not travel and sell similar goods at the same time so he asked the foolish merchant who shall travel first. The young and not as wise merchant decided that he shall go first and the wise one allowed it. Just as his journey began, the foolish one was tricked and deceived by a demon and his demon friends, which ultimately led to the foolish man's death. Next, is the wise merchant's turn to go into the country and the same demon attempted to trick him just as he successfully accomplished with the other merchant. However, as wise as this merchant was, the demon could not trick him; therefore, he was able to sell all his goods and make a substantial profit.

"The Elephant Girly-Face" - There was once a elephant named Girly-face who was called Girly-face because she was kind and has never hurt anyone before. However, one night Girly-face was negatively influenced by a band of robbers who were talking outside her gate one night. It was because of what he learned from the robbers that Girly-face became this way and began killing whoever came near him. Therefore, the king sent his one of his wise men to check on Girly-face to which he determined that it was because of the robbers that he was acting this way. So the next night, a group of nice men talked about being kind around Girly-face and from then on he was nice again.  I believe the moral of this story is that people are susceptible to the influence of those around us. Therefore, we must make sure we are leaving a good impression and impact because we never know who may be listening to and watching us.

"The Banyan Deer" - There were two herds with two kings respectively. There was also another king who enjoyed hunting deer so much that the people of kingdom made an enclosed park of deer so that the king can hunt whenever he so pleased. The king granted the two deer kings their lives but not their respected herds. Many deers were being killed that the two deer kings began to be concerned. One day it was a mother who just had her child that was supposed to die, but instead the Banyan king too her place and bravely faced his death. When the king saw the kindness of the Banyan king he was drawn by that compassion and did not kill anymore deer.

"The Princes and the Water-Sprite" - There was once three princes, Prince of the Stars, Moon Prince, and Sun Prince that were sent to safely live in the forest until the day that their father, the king, dies. While in the forest, both the Moon Prince and Sun Prince were dragged into the river of the water-sprite because they could not answer his riddle correctly. When the oldest prince, Prince of the Stars came looking for them, he ran into the water-sprite and correctly answered his riddle, which prompted the water-sprite to give back one of the brothers. When the water-sprite realized how kind the oldest prince was, he decided to give back both the brothers.

"The King's White Elephant" - The king bought a beautiful white elephant from the merchants who took care of him and his father. The king took care of the white elephant for as long as he lived.

"The Ox Who Envied the Pig" - The oxen ate only grass and straw but did most of the work on the farm. However, the pig does nothing to contribute to the farm but gets fed delicious food. One day a young ox asked his older brother why it was like that and the older brother replied that the pig is eating the food of death. The young ox saw this to be true and did not envy the pig anymore.

"Granny's Blackie" - An elephant named Blackie helps his owner, Granny, who is becoming old and feeble find work so they he can support himself and Granny. Blackie never had to work a day in his life but realized he needed to find a job. Therefore, he did find a job and got paid two silver coins, which allowed him to start working for himself and Granny, his beloved owner.

"The Crab and the Crane" - The crab tricks the crane which became payback for what the crane did too all the fish. (We read this one earlier this semester).

"Why the Owl is Not King of the Birds" - The owl is not the king of the birds because the crows did not like them and testified against the owls. Therefore, the turtle dove became the king of the birds instead.

Bibliography: Jataka Tales by Babbitt (link)

Elephant. Source: Flickr. 

Reading Notes: Epified: Krishna, Part A

All of Krishna's enemies and loved ones did not know that Krishna was not part of their world, but instead they were part of his world. Krishna was a king and a god. Kamsa was Krishna's evil uncle and Kamsa was foretold that Kamsa's sister and brother-in-law (Krishna's parents) eight child would kill him. Kamsa was furious so he threw Krishna's parents into jail instead of killing them. When Krishna was born, he was the eighth incarnation of the god Vishnu. Before Kamsa could take Krishna and kill him, Vasudev took his soon to the Yamuna River. A large and majestic serpent appeared and took Vasudev and Krishna under its protection as Vasudev walked the river. Once Vasudev reached the other bank, he reached the cowheard people and knew this was where he must leave his son.

Bibliography: Krishna by Epified (link)

Birth of Lord Krishna. Source: Wikimedia Commons. 

Readings Notes: Epified: Krishna, Part B

Krishna taught Brahma a lesson by replacing the cows, his friends, and the village people out of his own self. Even though Brahma was mischievous and attempted to trick Krishna, in the end it was Krishna who humbles Brahma when he realized that the village that he stole was okay because Krishna created these things out of his own self. Hastin was the strongest bull in the village and it was Krishna's brother who wanted to kill Hastin. However, Krishna said that that was wrong and that he would ride the bull by the next full moon. Krishna was successful in his task by being nice and kind to Hastin. Krishna was in love with a woman named Radha and wanted to marry her. However, he could not marry her because he was destined to be the saviour of Dharma, which was revealed to him by the family priest. Krishna was a strong man and he was victorious against all those who wanted to kill him. However, there was one man named Kamsa who was actually Krishna's evil uncle who wanted to destroy Krishna. Therefore, Kamsa gets Akrur (devotee of Vishnu) to invite Krishna to Dhanur Yajna which was organized by Kamsa. However, Akrur was nice and told Krishna the real intentions of Kamsa by inviting him which was to kill him. Even though Krishna's parents did not want him to go, he told them that it was his destiny and he left Vrindavan. The people of Vrindavan were extremely sad that he had to leave but Krishna told them that it was his destiny. When Krishna arrived to Mathura, the city he would now call his new home, he and Balram made friends with the people which people were open and kind back to Krishna and Balram. One of the people that they met was an old woman named Trivakra. Trivakra was waiting for Krishna for many long years because it was Krishna who was destined to heal her of her deformities. Krishna happily healed Trivakra and his heroism and kindness spread throughout the village, even to his evil uncle. His uncle tried one last attempt to kill Krishna by incorporating Kuvalayapida, the large and intimidating elephant that everyone was afraid of. However, in the end it was Krishna who kills Kuvalayapida and comes out victorious. After this victory, Krishna along with his brother, Balram, finally defeats and kills their evil uncle, King Kamsa. At the death of Kamsa, the people of Mathura cheered and were overjoyed because they were no longer under the rule of the evil king. As people were happy, Krishna had to perform an important task that Akrur had to remind him of. Krishna freed the father of Kamsa (Krishna's grandfather) who had been imprisoned by his own son. After freeing his grandfather, Krishna frees his birth parents. It was Krishna's grandfather, Ugrasen, who redeems the throne of Mathura. Now there were some people who were sad by the death of Kamsa that they waged a war against the city of Mathura which made Krishna feel bad. He did not want the people to suffer he wanted them to be safe. Therefore, Krishna and his grandfather decided to shift the city of Mathura to Dwarka. It was Dwarka that became Krishna's kingdom.

Bibliography: Krishna by Epified (link)

Lord Krishna. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part B

As Dhritarashtra married Gandhari, who gave up her sense of sight to be like him, Dhritarashtra's brother, Pandu married Kunti and Madri. It was at this time that Kunti's secret from her past in known to the audience. Kunti had a son from the celestial sun god, Surya, who she had give away because she was not married. Kunti's son was the "most beautiful thing she had seen in her life" and she could tell that he would be destined for greatness. However, even though it was heart-wrenching for Kunti, she laid her son in a basket and sent him down the river. After the secret was known to the audience, Pandu, Kunti, and Madri all set off for the forest to spend some peaceful time together. It was in the forest that Pandu made a life-altering mistake that would cost him and his kingdom dearly. Pandu shot one of his arrows at an intimate hermit couple and as a result, the hermit struck Pandu with a curse. The curse was that as soon as Pandu becomes intimate with a woman, he would die. It was because of this curse that Pandu became closed off and he sent word to Hastinapur that he would not return. In her efforts to console Pandu, Kunti told him the gift of the ability to call upon the gods and bear his sons, but failed to mention of her son that she gave up. At this Pandu was overjoyed and asked Kunti to give him children. The first child was named Yudhishthira given by the god Yama. Next, Kunti called the god of the wind, Vayu, to which she and Pandu were given their son, Bhima. Last but not least, Kunti and Pandu were given Arjuna from the god Indra, the king of the Devas. Pandu was pleased with his sons with Kunti but both felt bad for Madri, the other wife of Pandu so therefore, Kunti gave Madri two beautiful twin sons named Nakula and Sahadeva. Pandu and his family lived a happy life in the forest until one day, Kunti found him dead. He had forced himself onto Madri in a moment of passion and the next thing they knew, Pandu died. When they were cremating Pandu, Madri decided to share in her husband's death therefore died alongside him. After this, Kunti decided to take her five children and head back to the Hastinapur kingdom. Back at Hastinapur, it was during this time that Gandhari, wife of Dhritarashtra, gave birth to a lump of flesh. Gandhari was devastated and did not understand why Vyasa's prophecy of her having 100 sons was not true. Gandhari asked a servant to throw out the lump of flesh, but before that could happen, Vyasa paid and visit and told Gandhari that what he foretold her was in fact true. Therefore, Vyasa took the lump of flesh and divided it into 100 pieces and placed them into individual vases. The 100 children were born and as Gandhari held her eldest son, Duryodhan, the people around her who could see, realized that all 100 children had a demonic look about them. Nevertheless, since Gandhari and Dhritarashtra could not see, they were happy because they were their children. Just at the peak of their happiness came Kunti and the five sons of Pandu to Hastinapur to ruin the joy of Dhritarashtra and his family. As the two families came together, Duryodhan became jealous of the Pandavas especially Bhima. The Pandavas were the center of attention and had many admirers. Duryodhan became angry and extremely jealous and looked to his uncle, Gandhari's brother for comfort. Through his uncle support, Duryodhan created and executed out a plan to exile the Pandavas even to the point of pushing an unconscious Bhima into the depths of the water. Bhima woke up to serpents biting and attacking him but he got the upper hand even to the point of the serpents began to be scared of him. After fighting off the serpents, Bhima found himself in Naag Lok which was home to the most powerful serpents. It was in Naag Lok that Bhima met Vasuki who gifted him with the magic potion. As he swam back home, Bhima realized it was time for him to stand up and protect his family. Bhima came back to Hastinapur and it was around this time that their grandfather thought that they need to become trained to be men and warriors to which enters Drona, their wise teacher. Drona trained the boys to become skillful warriors, each brother with his own skill. One day the brothers met a mere boy by the name Ekalavya. Ekalavya was an archer and proved to be much better archer than Arjuna, to which made Arjuna upset. Arjuna asked Ekalavya who his teacher was and he said Drona. Arjuna was shocked and in dismay because he felt betrayed by Drona. When Arjuna asked Drona about this, Drona did not know what he was talking about. Then Ekalavya was before Drona and he told Drona that long ago he asked him if he could be his pupil, and Drona declined. Therefore, Ekalavya became a skilled archer by his own merits. Drona was upset that Ekalavya would claim him as his teacher so putting merit and justice aside, he asked Ekalavya to cut off his right thumb so that he no longer could be the world's greatest archer.

Bibliography: Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution by Epified (link)

The Five Pandavas. Source: Wikipedia. 

Reading Notes: Mahabharata Movie, Part A

The first episode of Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution begins with the phrase that Epified takes the Mahabharata from a "how every event is both a result of what happened before it as well as a cause of what follows" perspective. I thought this perspective was unique and it drew me into wanting to watch more of the videos. The first episode is about King Shantanu and his wife Ganga, and how he learned that Ganga had to drown their children for the eight Vasus. At the end, Ganga leaves Shantanu with their eighth child. In episode two, Devavrat, son of Shantanu and Ganga, is reunited with his father and brought back as the long-lost prince of Hastinapur. As time went on, Shantanu falls in love with Satyavati, who was a humble fisherman's daughter. Even though Shantanu loved Satyavati, they did not get married and Shantanu was devastated and became secluded. Therefore, as a result, Devavrat decided to take matters into his own hands and made a groundbreaking oath the he would never marry or never have any children so long as that Satyavati and Shantanu could be together. As Devavrat swore upon this oath to the gods, he became known as Bhishma. As Bhishma brought Satyavati back to his father, Shantanu was not as happy as Bhishma expected him to be. However, Shantanu realized the virtuousness of his son and granted to him the power to choose when he would die. As time passed, Shantanu dies and Bhishma gains two half-brothers to which he acts like a father to them. One of the brothers dies to which this was a wake-up call to Bhishma that he needs to find his other brother a wife; therefore, he goes into the neighboring kingdom and kidnaps the three princesses. The eldest princess was Amba and she told Bhishma that she was in love with King Shalva to which they allowed Amba to go to her love, but when she did, she was greeted with the opposite reaction that she was hoping for. Shalva did not want anything to do with her. As Amba goes back to Bhishma and asks him to marry her, he refuses because of the vow he made. Amba becomes furious and promises that she will ruin Bhishma's life as he did to hers. However, Amba could not find a warrior to take on Bhishma so she finally resorted to ask the sage Parshuram to battle Bhishma to which they did but neither one of them could defeat each other. Finally it was Parshuram who gave up and Bhishma won by default. As Bhishma returns from battle, his other brother dies, leaving the kingdom without any ruler. Satyavati begged Bhishma to break his celibacy and marry for the sake of the kingdom's future. Bhishma refused and that was when Satyavati told him of her secret son, Vyasa. Vyasa came to the kingdom and Satyavati asked him to father the children of Vichitravirya's widows. As time went on, finally there were three princes for the kingdom's throne. The sons of Vyasa were taught by Bhishma. There was contempt brewing between two of the brothers for the throne but Bhishma did not recognize it. It was Dhritrasthra that became king and for him Princess Gandhari became his wife. Princess Gandhari gave up her sight for her husband.

Bibliography: Mahabharata: Karmic Revolution by Epified (link)

Bhishma (a.k.a. Devavrat) introduced to his father, Shantanu. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part D

Ashwatthaman, Kripa, and Kritavarman visited a dying Duryodhana amidst the battlefield. Ashwatthaman asked Duryodhana's blessing if he could attack the Pandavas for doing this to Duryodhana. Ashwatthaman got his blessing and went to attack the Pandavas in the middle of the dark night. As Ashwatthaman, Kripa, and Kritavarman were at the outskirts of the Pandavas campsite, the great and mighty Shiva paid them a visit. Ashwatthaman tried to battle the god until he realized it was Shiva in which he then drew back and did him homage. Ashwatthaman started a fire on an altar and casted himself into the flames as a sacrifice to the mighty Shiva. When Shiva saw the humble sacrifice Ashwatthaman was making to him, he accepted the sacrifice and entered Ashwatthaman's body to fight for him against the Pandavas. At this, Ashwatthaman, with the spirit of Shiva, rushing into the Pandavas camp and battled the enemy.

When Yudhishthira found out about the raid, he grieved for his lost but was more worried about Draupadi and her reaction for it was her sons and brother that died in the battle. When Draupadi heard what happened, she wept before her husbands exclaiming, "We have lived in exile for 13 years so that your children could prosper. However, now that they are dead, can you all desire to have that powerful kingdom if you all cannot pass it down to anyone?" Krishna answered Draupadi in reply, "Why are grieving like you lost a husband on the bloody battlefield? You have no better reason or cause to cry than others."At this, Draupadi turned to Bhima and asked him to bring head of Ashwatthaman. Bhima told her that he could not because Ashwatthaman was a brahmin. Therefore, instead of the Ashwatthaman's head, Draupadi asked that her husbands steal Ashwatthaman's most precious jewel that is near and dear to his heart. Arjuna did as Draupadi asked and gave Ashwatthaman's special jewel to Draupadi.


Bibliography: "Public Domain Edition: Mahabharata" by Laura Gibbs (link - sections 69 and 70)

The Raid on the Pandavas. Source

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part C

As the Pandavas were living in exile in the forest, Krishna came to pay them a visit. As soon as he arrived, it was Draupadi who approached him first saying, "Duryodhana tried to make me his wife as my husbands stood their in silence, not moving a muscle. Is it not the duty of a husband to protect their wife? If so, why did they not even attempt to save me from the evil Duryodhana?"Krishna attempted to console Draupadi as she cried her eyes out. He told her, "Do not cry anymore as I am here to help your husband's family so you can once again be a queen."

Krishna then went to Yudhishthira and said, "I am deeply sorry I could not help you in your battle at Hastinapura. However, I am here now, what can I do to help?" After talking to Yudhishthira, Krishna makes his way back to his kingdom. Draupadi is still crying and upset at how her life is turning out. She does not like her current lifestyle and misses her old life. Therefore she goes to Yudhishthira to complain saying, "How did our lives end up like this? We used to enjoy the luxury of soft and silky beds, chairs of ivory, and beautiful robes. And now, what do we have? We are beggars now sleeping on stiff grass mats and wearing rags as clothes. I ask of you, Yudhishthira, that we go into battle and seek and take back what is ours."

Yudhishthira responded to Draupadi by saying, "Being angry and thoughts of destruction is bad and sinful. Do not think and talk this way. We have to love and forgive others." Draupadi said in return, "You might have a point, but how can I praise lords who have done us wrong? Those who have done evil are now happy, and we who are good people are now sad and in grief. I cannot give praise to the lords who have desired this inequality for us."

Yudhishthira said to Draupadi, "The gods are mysterious, but do not doubt your religion or the power of the gods."

Bhima then came up to Yudhishthira and Draupadi and said, "I agree with Draupadi. We must take down our enemies and take back what is rightfully ours."

Yudhishthira said in reply, "Even though we are suffering, I do want to fight for what is ours. However, I have given my word that we remain in exile. Therefore, my word is my word and we cannot escape."


Bibliography: "Public Domain Editions" Mahabharata by Laura Gibbs (link)

Krishna visits Draupadi. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part B

A great party awaited Krishna when he visited the Pandavas that the women, especially Draupadi and Subhadra, became extremely intoxicated. As the picnic was coming to a close, Krishna and Arjuna was visited by a brahmin. The brahmin was Agni, the god of fire, who asked of the two heroes for food. Agni did not want regular ordinary food but the food he so craved and desired was the Khandava forest. Agni attempted in the past to consume the forest, but Indra had always defeated him and put out his fire with rain. Agni begged Krishna and Arjuna to help him because he had gotten terribly weak and pale from only drinking ghee for the past 12 years. The heroes agreed to help Agni in exchange for celestial weapons. Agni got Krishna and Arjuna the celestial weapons they desired and soon after the battle began. The great Indra poured down torrents of rain but it was no match for Arjuna's arrows that eventually Indra was defeated and Agni got to consume the forest. During the battle, animals were dying left and right but six creatures did manage to escape, one being Maya, who was the son of a rishi.

Maya was utterly grateful to Arjuna for sparing his life that in return, he promised to build a beautiful and grand palace for the Pandavas. Maya was an architect and had an abundant source of gold and gems stored safely in the Himalaya mountains. Maya worked hard and diligently on the palace for the Pandavas that in just 14 months, a majestic palace stood tall, adorned with beautiful gems that people that it was on fire. There had not been a palace like this in all the land that Maya wanted to protect it so he brought eight thousand rakshasas to guard the impressive and gleaming palace.



Bibliography: "Public Domain Editions" Mahabharata by Laura Gibbs (link)

Burning of the Khandava Forest. Source: Wikipedia

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part A

The author of this epic was Vyasa who had the god Ganesha write out the story. The Mahabharata begins with story of Vyasa's own birth. Vyasa was born to King Uparichara and a female fish, true to the fact that King Uparichara's semen fell into a river as he was flying in his crystal car through the sky. Ten months later, the female fish gave birth to two children - one boy and one girl. Once the children were born, the king took the male child to raise him and left the little girl to be raised by the fisherman. The girl, Satyavati, grew up to become a beautiful woman that reeked of fish. One day, a rishi made a deal with Satyavati that he could get rid of her awful smell in return that she has his child but still remain a virgin. The deal was made and she gave birth to a son and finally got rid of her fishy smell.

The next story was about a king named Shantanu and the goddess Ganga. Before ever meeting Shantanu, Ganga made a promise to eight Vasus that she would become their human mother so that they could return to their celestial state. In return, the eight Vasus promised that an eighth part of their power would belong to her son. The Vasus and Ganga made the pact, and that is when Ganga met Shantanu. Shantanu fell in love with the undeniable beauty of Ganga and asked her to be his wife. She agreed to be his wife on one condition: if he were to ever speak harshly to her she could immediately depart from him. Shantanu agreed to Ganga's condition and did not utter a word when she cast down to the river their seven babies. When Ganga gave birth to the eighth child and was about to cast him down the river as well, Shantanu could not take it anymore and lashed out at Ganga. At this, their marriage vow was broken and Ganga left Shantanu with the baby in her arms. Before long, Ganga returned to Shantanu to give him the son. Shantanu's heart was moved by the boy and he took him into his kingdom. Shantanu named the child Devavrata and never was Ganga seen again.


Bibliography: Public Domain Editions Mahabharata by Laura Gibbs (link)

Ganga presents her son, Devavrata, to his father Shantanu. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues, Part B (More Reading)

The second half of this movie is pretty much about Rama's exile of Sita and how devastated she was in the forest. The narrators mentioned that Rama almost always had this element of doubt of Sita's pureness, which I believe was heightened when the people of his kingdom were referring to it with a bad connotation. Therefore, in order to please the people, Rama banished Sita into the forest even though she was pregnant with his twin children. Even though she was banished from the kingdom, Sita prayed for Rama everyday, which I believed showed her unconditional love to him. Throughout the second act of this film, Sita sings the blues for and because of Rama, even up to the point of creating a river of tears. I think it is interesting how the female narrator interpreted Sita singing songs to Rama as her unconditional love to him. However, the two male narrators thought Sita singing songs to Rama was unfair to her because she should not love someone who does not treat her right. I believe that all three narrators are correct...Sita cannot help but love Rama because she has been through so much with him and her devotion to him is pure. However, on the other hand, if Rama has this notion that Sita is bad and contaminated even though she has always proven her true and pure love for him, then let the man go. Sita deserves better than that which she gets at the very end of the movie when it is finaly Sita who is getting her feet rubbed by Rama and not the other way around like at the beginning of the movie. :)

Bibliography: Nina, Paley. Sita Sings the Blues. Link.

Sita Sings the Blues. Wikimedia Commons.