Tech Tip: Embed SoundCloud

This week I decided to embed a song from SoundCloud into my blog. I love music because it is so powerful and can change the mood, at least mine, quickly. I listen to almost all genres of music and am always looking for new music, so please share! Here is a song I have had on repeat all week:

Storytelling for Week 3: The Great Banyan Tree

First up on the divine’s agenda was Solomon. 

Solomon spent much of his days meditating, preparing himself for the judgment he would face in the afterlife. Finally, it was time for Solomon to say goodbye to his family. Solomon could feel death approaching like an old friend. It was comfortable, and he wasn’t scared. Upon his arrival, Solomon was greeted by a divine being of obvious enlightenment who he assumed to be God. In a blindingly white room, the two individuals were accompanied only by a great banyan tree. 

Banyan Tree. Source: Wikimedia Commons

Breaking the silence, Solomon asked, “How many deaths must I die until I reach enlightenment?” 

“As many deaths as there are leaves in that tree,” the divine responded. 

Solomon couldn’t believe this answer! He begrudgingly complained, “I am never going to reach enlightenment. I wasted away an entire life meditating and this is what I get in return!” 

And back to Earth Solomon was sent to be reborn. 

Next up on the divine’s agenda was Tiny. 

Tiny was always content. He enjoyed the small things in life. For example, Tiny had to work very hard for much of his life, but even after a long day, Tiny would skip home merrily to greet his wife and children with a smile. Tiny hadn’t expected to meet death so early, yet he wasn’t scared of it either. Upon his arrival, Tiny was greeted by the divine and the great banyan tree in the same white room as Solomon and all of the other mortals who had passed through death. 

Tiny curiously asked, “How many lives must I live until I reach enlightenment?” 

“As many lives as there are leaves in that tree,” the divine responded. 

Tiny’s face lit up in delight. 

The divine inquired, “Tiny, why does this answer give you so much relief?” 

Tiny responded, “Because there are only so many leaves in that tree, which means I am well on my way!” 

With this, Tiny reached his enlightenment!

Author’s Note: I heard this story in my yoga teacher’s training a few weeks ago, and really loved it! The story itself is very old and has been passed down by word of mouth so I am not sure of the original source. When I heard the prompt “Trial in the Afterlife” for this week’s storytelling post, I instantly thought of this story and wanted to create an adaptation. I like this story because I think it’s meant to encourage gratefulness. If we are grateful and content rather than searching for something, we can live much more fulfilling lives whether we believe in the afterlife and reincarnation or not. 

Bibliography: I found a blogger's version of this story, which I referred to, called The Bodhisattva and the Two Aspirants by Doug O'Brien posted on June 25, 2014.

Week 3 Reading Diary: The Ramayana Part C

I really enjoyed the character of the monkey-king in Sugriva and Hanuman, especially because the human characters are still present rather than a story based entirely on animal characters. Likewise, I found the details in King Sugriva about the high officials of the monkey kingdom, or the mahamatras, and the vanars very interesting; maybe because it reminded me of a favorite scene from The Wizard of Oz. 

Flying Monkeys. Source: Wikimedia Commons

I love the depiction of Rama in Sugriva and Vali, which reads “To his foes resistless Rama is a lightning from above, To his friends a tree of shelter, soul of tenderness and love, Dearer than his love of glory is his love to heal and bless…” I can see where some readers have a problem with Rama’s controversial tactics of guerrilla warfare in Vali’s Death; many people don’t find the strategies of guerrilla warfare fair or honest. Especially with Rama’s saint-like portrayal, these sneaky tactics don’t exactly match up with his character. I was so surprised by Rama’s display of impatience in The Rainy Season! I feel like this is so out of character for him, and especially after his display of unfair combat, I feel like this change in character is leading up to something important. I like the idea of having to wait until a rainy season is over; I think it creates a really beautiful picture. I would like to learn more about this rainy season specific to India and how it affects life there.

Brainstorming Project Topics

1. Yoga: I am currently pursuing my yoga teacher training certification and with this comes intense studying of the subject, which originated in India. I have already seen a lot of overlapping of ideas between yoga and our literature in Epics of India. Dr. Laura Gibbs also suggested that I look at a previous student’s project, IE:Yoga Studios: Pose Origins Workshop. The project is laid out so that the viewer feels as if he or she is actually present in a yoga class, which I found very interesting! I was so impressed by how well the author explained some very complicated ideas; I know how hard it can be to break down such complex ideas, but this author didn’t seem to struggle at all with this.

2. Nina Paley’s Sita Sings the Blues: I am very interested in watching Nina Paley’s contemporary animated film, Sita Sings the Blues. I think that I might be able to come up with a project around her beautiful animations. I would love to research more about her art and learn just how Indian culture really influences her work, specifically in Sita Sings the Blues.  I am also interested in how Nina Paley got involved in such an original idea for a cartoon. She is obviously very talented, having been written about in the New York Times.

3. Animals characters: I really enjoyed our Week 1 StoryRetelling Assignment, where we were asked to incorporate animals into our new story. I took this opportunity to play with a symbolic animal, the deer. I think I am drawn to this idea because animals are universally symbolic, defying culture or geography. I would like to learn more about their meaning. For example, a turtle might be an interesting animal to focus on. I would also like to learn which animals are specifically important to the people of India.

4. Karma is another topic that I might want to pursue in my project. I think I could incorporate this idea with another one like animal characters, for example. Karma is something I have always been a believer in. I would love to create a beautiful project around this idea that what comes around goes around. I would also like to learn more about how this idea affects the culture and literature of India. I do believe that every action has a consequence, like the butterfly effect. This butterfly effect could be an interesting starting point for a project!

Butterfly. Source: Flickr

Storytelling for Week 2: The Deer Chital

Somewhere between the disenchanted city of Ayodhya and the corrupt kingdom of Lanka, the deep and quiet Pachavati forest protected a majestic deer named Chital. White speckles lay gently upon his narrow honey-colored back, which culminated in a lively tail that appeared to be dipped in snow. 

Chital Deer. Source: Wikipedia

Chital considered the lotus flowers to be his dearest confidants; their melodious observations made his heart dance. 

Lotus Flowers. Source: Flickr

All day Chital and his lotus friends would blithely banter about silly human affairs and nonsensical celestial entanglements. It seemed like each day more and more news surfaced regarding the activity of the most virtuous Rama. Chital innocently worried for Rama and Rama’s beloved, Sita, while the loti comforted him in their karmic wisdom. Like never before, Chital experienced an unusual gust of wind that sends chills up his bony spine. Next came a womanly cry from above, “And O thou forest and flowery trees, and thou Godavari, and woodland deities, and deer, and birds, I conjure you to tell my lord that Ravana has stolen me away.” Sita. Instantly, Chital felt as if he had known her for a lifetime, as if Sita was summoning him specifically. Never before had Chital felt more purpose to his life. Chital knew what to do. He ran vigilantly to an opening in the trees that he might catch sight of this wondrous woman. The sighting was much more daunting than anything Chital had ever witnessed: Ravana maiming Sita’s protector, the vulture Jatayu. Incredibly, Jatayu was able to conjure up enough strength to knock Ravana to the ground but only more angered, Ravana violently severed Jatayu’s wings. Out of plain sight, Chital watched Sita mourn the lifeless bird before Ravana dragged her away from the earth. Chital couldn’t believe his eyes; he began to weep. From mere gab, Chital had spent a lifetime drawing up what an encounter with such people might entail, but this confrontation was not comparable to such daydreams. This was a nightmare. The clouds grew darker. The forest seemed petrified and, for the first time, the loti were speechless. The moon came and went. With the arrival of the new sun, Chital remembered Sita’s words, “… and deer, and birds, I conjure you to tell my lord that Ravana has stolen me away.” Chital had no choice but to fulfill Sita’s request, so he set off for Rama.

"The lotus-flowers faded, the sun grew dark, the mountains wept in waterfalls and lifted up their summits like arms, the woodland deities were terrified, the young dear shed tears, and every creature lamented."

Author’s Note: An adaptation of Jatayu and Ravana from Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita (1914) is portrayed from the perspective of a deer. This story specifically stuck out to me because I love its personification of nature, which I included above. I mentioned in my Reading Diary of Part B this week how I enjoyed the introduction of the deer, a symbol of gentleness, spirituality, and love. I also incorporated the lotuses into my story because of their meaning of rebirth, purity, and divinity, which I mentioned in my Reading Diary of Part A. I named the deer Chital because a chital deer is a native deer to India.