Week 2 Reading Diary, continued: The Ramayana Part B

I appreciated the literal translation of The Ramayana by Manmatha Nath Dutt because I often found myself wondering how much the wording varied from their original prose. At the beginning of Part B, I will say I started to get some of the many characters confused but eventually began to understand the narrative again. As in Bharata Returns by Donald A. Mackenzie, I cannot imagine unknowingly coming home to my father’s death and my brother’s exile. I think its important to note that people WANT to follow Rama. He is a leader by example - not by rank. This quality is not only very valuable but it is also very rare, and I think it is what makes Rama so powerful. The portrayal of Rama in Dasharatha's Funeral especially highlighted Rama's unique power over people when Dasharatha claims that "...this earth does not look graceful. The city appeareth unto me like the night deprived of the moon" in Rama's absence. Shortly after this, the idea of japa, or a repetitive recitation of a mantra, is introduced. I am familiar with this concept but would love to learn more about mantras related to the sacred literature of India. In Rama and Bharata, I found Jabali's morbid ideas surrounding death very intriguing. Likewise, I loved every bit of Rama's response to Jabali - spot on! More specifically, Rama claims, "Truth endures when all else passes away." To build off of my first post this week, Rama is very much a savior-archetype. For example, something about The Sandals story reminded me of Jesus cleaning people's feet. Furthermore illustrating this idea, Rama says that he "will live as a devotee... in a robe of bark" similar to the sacrificial life of a martyr. The last portion of Part B, Shabari, reaffirms this idea. Finally, I enjoyed the introduction of the deer - a symbol of femininity, gentleness, and unconditional love - into The Ramayanas.

Source: Wikimedia

Tech Tip: Weather Widget

I liked the idea of being able to see what the weather is like where a blog is originating from, so I chose to add a weather widget to my blog. To do this, I followed instructions provided by my professor, Dr. Laura Gibbs.

Week 2 Reading Diary: The Ramayana Part A

Upon beginning the Ramayanas, archetype was the first word to pop in my head. From the beginning of King Dasharatha, I couldn’t help but spot the many parallels between the Old Testament and the Ramayanas. Even the writing style of the ancestry in the first paragraph was similar to that of the Bible. More specifically, the depiction of Ayodhya sounded like an illustration of the Garden of Eden (or paradise) from the Creation story: “there were numerous birds and flowers, shady groves of fruit trees, and lakes gemmed with bee-loved lotuses”. At the same time, the city of Ayodhya reminded me of the story of the Tower of Babel: “it had wide streets with large dwellings, richly decorated temples, towering like mountains, and grand and noble palaces”. Through beautiful juxtapositions such as these, the Ramayanas portray a city of prosperous and happy people who at the same time had to be “surrounded by strong walls and guarded by a thousand warriors fierce as flames” – much like the classic fall of man. Similar to the sacrifice of Dasharatha and his wives', Sarah and Abraham are tested in order to eventually reproduce and become the forefathers of Israel. Furthermore, a favorite child, Rama, is introduced in Rama: Avatar of Vishnu in order to further complicate paternal sacrifice, just as with Abraham's Isaac. Then, in Bhagiratha and Ganga, there is the beautiful portrayal of Ganga who showered the earth and Shiva who caused many years of wandering; to me, this resembled the manna and 40-years of wandering from the Old Testament. I especially enjoyed the connection to the full moon in Dasharatha’s Sons as well as the ever-significant references to the lotus’ symbols of purity, rebirth, and divinity. 

Lotus. Source: Deviant Art

The Ramayanas read, 

“the lotus brightens at the promise of spring”, and 

“thousands of lotuses spread their lovely petals to the sun”, 

among other references to this lovely flower.

Tech Tip: Blogger Profile

The first tech tip that I decided to try out was adding a blogger profile to my sidebar. I also added an image of myself to this profile. Since looking at Sarah Trapp's blog I have been wanting to do this because I think it really helps to be able to put a face to a name, especially in the online community!

H.E.A.R.T. Learning Challenges

I love the idea of H.E.A.R.T. and I am excited to try out the learning challenges. By creating a balanced life around the H.E.A.R.T. concepts, a well-rounded life should come easily.

Health/Happiness

Too often, mental health and happiness go unchecked. For many, it is normal to spend money on clothes and personal trainers yet some don't see counselors or guidance as "worth the money." Why does our society put so much emphasis on the exterior rather than what's inside?

I know that gratitude is a huge part of happiness so here is a quote that I took a picture of, which reminds me to always be grateful:

(personal photo)

Which reads:

"I have learned silence from the talkative, 

Toleration from the intolerant, 

And kindness from the unkind; 

Yet strange, I am ungrateful to those teachers."

Empathy

Empathy is essential to a happy society - we must be able to understand and feel what others are going through.

Attention

Especially in this age of distraction, focus and attention are challenges that I specifically face. 

Reading

I know the importance of reading for a sharp mind and vivid imagination yet it is rarely a priority for me. That is why my New Year’s resolution is to read more.

Time

I'll own up to it - I am a procrastinator! I try to get things done early but no matter what it seems like I am just finishing a task as soon as it is due. This causes me to be late often, something that I am trying to work on.

The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali

Source: Wikipedia

I always loved this painting - it can be interpreted in so many different ways! For me, I see time slipping away and how the perception of time can vary from person to person, as from culture to culture. I prefer a more relaxed and non-western time orientation where everything isn't so rushed; however, timeliness is imperative in the United States. 

Carol Dweck's Growth Mindset

Although I didn’t recognize her name at first, I realized instantly that I have previously seen this TED Talk. Carol Dweck has so many great ideas! I actually feel that we have used growth mindset in Epics of India already. For me, the retelling of the story was challenging. I wouldn’t say that creative writing is my forte. Still, I enjoyed the assignment and challenge. 

Source: Twitter

As Carol Dweck mentions in “Make Challenge the New Comfort Zone”, it’s true that often we fret over challenges and hardships when we should be grateful for them! Yoga has especially helped me to train my mind to be grateful for challenges. 

One of my favorite books is Switch On Your Brain by Dr. Caroline Leaf, who believes that by changing your mindset you can change your outcome. 

Source: Pixabay

Dr. Leaf's research is there: Positive thinking leads to growth, while negative thinking hinders growth. This idea is revolutionary and hopeful! I am definitely interested in learning more about the growth mindset this semester.

My Storybook Favorites

The idea of creating a Storybook and being able to build on to something that interests us as individuals really excited me. I am already considering building a story around Krishna but that may change as we dive into the next few weeks.

I was super impressed by Brittany Rodgers’ The Magic Map. First of all, I loved this title and thought it did an excellent job of hinting at what the story was about but at the same time hooking the reader into wanting to know more - this combination is key to writing a good story. Secondly, Brittany's writing was not only creative but detailed which made her story that much better, and now I can see why you encourage us to include images in our blog posts… it really makes all of the difference!

Two particular images stood out to me in The Magic Map.

1. A visual such as this majestic mountain sets the stage for the reader: 

The Magic Map

2. A map like this provides the reader with perspective for just how far the character must journey:

The Magic Map

Kate Carlton’s Delilah’s Radio Hour was much different from The Magic Map. For me, this difference was due to the fact that they had such different settings and time periods. Personally, I preferred those of The Magic Map, but I am happy to see that there is so much flexibility in the choices we can make while creating a Storybook.

I really enjoyed the Storybook Rama and Sita: Not So Happily Ever After because the author did a great job seamlessly turning a sacred story into a modern tale of love. I think that this could be hard to do without making it sound too corny or like you’re trying too hard to “make it work”, which I felt that I was doing a bit when retelling my nursery rhyme Moderation is Key, but I never sensed either of these feelings when reading Rama and Sita.    

The images in Rama and Sita showed me the value of eye-catching colors such as those in this image:

Rama and Sita

I could not believe just how many very impressive storybooks have been created by students in your Epics of India and Myth-Folklore class!!