Week 6 Story: WWE, Indian Mythology Edition

Tonight, here on SportsCenter, we are going to show you the Top 10 plays in India this year. It was a year with many great athletic feats, but one athlete claims the top two spots. Many compare his bold feats to Rama, but I think he's even more impressive because he doesn't even need weapons. Here are SportsCenter's top two plays of the year. Both feature Bhima, a superhuman superstar in the WWE. Let's roll some footage.

Footage 1 - #2 Play of the Year - Bhima vs Baka

"Baka, an asura hailing from Ekachakra, has been harassing the townspeople. He's been eating one townsperson every week, and Bhima, the hero who trained under the legendary fighter, Drona, is going to attempt to put a stop to it tonight. They're entering the stage now!", Vyasa stated.

"Bhima appears to be taunting Baka; he has been eating rice while calling Baka's name. Surely this will upset Baka," Vyasa noted. "And it does! Baka is charging Bhima with a tree branch! What will Bhima do?!?"

The crowd fell silent as Baka charged, but cheered uproariously as Bhima caught the club with a single hand and grabbed Baka with his other hand. No one expected Bhima to be able to counter Baka so effortlessly. Then, Bhima threw Baka to the ground. The crowd roared, "Finish him!"

Bhima, using his signature move, the Bow-and-Arrow, placed a knee on Baka's back, one hand on Baka's neck, and the other at the waist of Baka and shattered Baka's back. Bhima hadn't even broken a sweat!

Following the fight, Bhima gave an announcement on the TV, "Townspeople of Ekachakra, Baka will no longer bother you."

Footage 2 - #1 Play of the Year - Bhima vs Hidimba

Vyasa announced, "In one corner, we have Bhima, who has not yet fought a rakshasa, and in the other corner we have the formidable rakshasa, Hidimba."

In one side, Bhima, his brothers, and his mother enter the room with minimal applause; no one knows exactly who Bhima is yet. On the other side of the room enters Hidimba and his sister, Hidimbi. Hidimba had plans to cheat. Hidimba forced Hidimbi to take the form of a very beautiful girl, and he was planning to distract Bhima so the fight would be quick and easy. Bhima noticed the beautiful girl, but knew not to fall for the trick. Hidimba and Bhima have now entered the ring. Hidimba notices that Bhima is not distracted, but now also notices that Hidimbi has fallen for Bhima.

"Can you believe what we're seeing?! Bhima has gotten Hidimba's sister to fall in love with him! Surely Hidimba will take offense!", Vyasa exclaimed.

And, as Announcer 1 had suspected, Hidimba had taken serious offense. He charged Hidimbi, but Bhima stepped in the way. The crowd fell silent, eager to here what the hero and rakshasa were going to say.

Bhima boomed, "You coward, you're here to fight me!"

Bhima and Hidimba fight while the Pandavas cheer Bhima on.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia

Hidimba turned his anger towards Bhima. Hidimba rushed Bhima, but Bhima caught him by the arms before Hidimba could land a blow. Bhima threw Hidimba to the ground, and then drug him offstage. The crowd was going wild. They had never known of Bhima, and he is manhandling Hidimba! After minutes of wrestling, it became obvious to the Pandavas that Hidimba was trying to make the fight last a long time so he could finish off Bhima once Bhima wore out. Arjuna, aware of the plot shouted, "Finish him, Bhima!"

Bhima climbed to the top rope, and the crowd fell silent. He was towering over Hidimba, who still lies on the ground. Bhima flew off the top rope, bodyslamming Hidimba. The crowd went wild, cheering Bhima's name. Bhima then showcased his signature move in front of the eager crowd - the Bow-and-Arrow. Bhima picked the rakshasa up by the neck and waist and then threw the rakshasa over his knee, breaking Hidimba's back. The fight was now clearly over. However, not only did Bhima defeat Hidimba, he then added insult to injury by marrying Hidimba's sister after she witnessed the stunning victory of Bhima over Hidimba.

Author's Note

While reading the Mahabharata, I noticed that described fights had a lot of drama and followed a common theme with Bhima ending the fights the same way. It was around midnight at the time of me reading the Mahabharata and my tired brain for some reason made me think of the Mahabharata fight scenes as a WWE-esque story. I adapted two fight scenes from the Mahabharata (Bhima vs Hidimba and Bhima vs Baka) into a WWE atmosphere while mirroring the plot points from the stories into my story. I put Vyasa as the announcer as he was the one who authored the Mahabharata so I thought it was fitting.

Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part B

Story Information

Bhima's Adventures

Prince Vidura, the brother of Pandu and Dhritarashtra, was good to the Pandavas and Kunti. Prince Vidura was not eligible to be king because his mother was a slave, but he was a prince. Prince Vidura came across a plot that Duryodhana had to kill the Pandavas - he had built the Pandavas's house out of wood and soaked many household items in oil. Vidura told the Pandavas of the plan to murder them, and then Vidura schemed to get them out. Vidura planned to dig a tunnel to the forest so the Pandavas could escape. After the house had burned down with the Pandavas and Queen Kunti escaped to the forest, the town of Hastinapura was sure that the Pandavas and their mother had passed away. In the forest, a rakshasa attempted to eat the group. Then, the rakshasa, named Hidimba, decided to charge the attack towards his sister, Hidimbi. However, Bhima fought off the rakshasa as Bhima did not want him to attack Hidimbi and snapped the rakshasa's back, and the rest of the group remained unharmed. Bhima's fight with the Rakshasa lasted a very long time, but Arjuna told Bhima to finish off Hidimba before morning as the rakshasa would grow stronger in the morning. The rakshasas's sister had taken the form as a beautiful woman to trick Bhima, but Bhima did not fall for the trick. However, the raskshasi fell in love with Bhima, and pleaded with Queen Kunti to be Bhima's wife. Kunti agreed and Bhima married the rakshasi. They had a son named Ghatotkacha who vowed to come to help the Pandavas whenever called upon. Soon, the group was in Ekachakra, and were waiting for Bhima to return to help slay a demon that had been attacking the town's rice cart. Bhima went out with the rice cart, and surprised the demon (named Baka) and killed Baka by grabbing his neck when Baka was charging with a club and then breaking his back. 

Bhima and Hidimba fight while everyone else watches.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia

Sources:

"Indian Myth and Legend" by Donald A. Mackenzie [Online]

"The Indian Heroes" by C. A. Kincaid [Online]

Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part A

Characters

• Vyasa - tells the Mahabharata to Ganesha
• Satyavati - mother of Vyasa, daughter of Uparichara
• Parachara - rishi/father of Vyasa

Information

Story of Vyasa's Birth: Found online here

There was a king named Uparichara who was so noble that the gods were worried that he was trying to gain too much power. Indra decided to bribe Uparichara with a flying crystal chariot made by Vishvakarma. Uparichara decided to take the chariot. The chariot was like other chariots made by Vishvakarma, and Uparichara loved it a lot. In fact, "Upari" means upward and "Chara" means going, so Uparichara's name literally translates to "upward going". Uparichara was flying over a river when his semen landed in the river, and, then, a fish had two of Uparichara's kids. A fisherman caught the fish and kids, and gave the boy to the king and raised the girl. The girl's name was Satyavati, and she met a rishi named Parashara. Parashara and Satyavati had a kid and named him Vyasa. Vyasa went on to tell the Mahabharata to Ganesha.

Other Sources: "Uparichara Vasu" on Wikipedia

Story of Bhima:

The Pandavas, Pandu's sons, and Kauravas, Dhritarashtra's sons, lived together on the bank of the Ganges. Duryodhana, the evil son of Dhritarashtra, one day conspired to kill the Pandavas. Duryodhana poisoned Bhima, one of the Pandavas, while Bhima was eating. Duryodhana then threw Bhima into the Ganges where Bhima sank to the bottom and was bitten by the poisonous serpents known as Nagas. The poison from the Nagas counteracted the poison from Duryodhana and Bhima woke up. At this point, Bhima was in the city of serpents and the king of the serpents, Vasuki, was in awe of Bhima and granted him a wish. Bhima wished for strength and was given extraordinary strength. Bhima then slept for eight days before returning to his home, besting Duryodhana's assassination attempt.

Sources:

"Indian Myth and Legend" by Donald A. Mackenzie [Online]

Bhima with the Nagas in the underworld
Image courtesy of Wikimedia

Story of Drona:

Drona was the son of Bharadwaja, a brahmin. Drona's best childhood friend was Drupada, a son of a king. Eventually, Drupada became a king when his father passed away. A sage passed away and left celestial weapons to Drona, so Drone went to Drupada's kingdom to share the weapons with Drupada. However, Drupada had no intentions of continuing the friendship with Drona and Drona left without saying another word after Drupada's reply. Drona then became the teacher for the Pandavas and Kauravas, under the condition that they would one day help him defeat Drupada. However, Drona favored the Pandavas, and Duryodhana grew jealous. Drona only ever turned away Ekalavya, the son of a king who was notorious for robbing travelers. Eventually, Ekalavya became a good archer and Drona told Ekelavya that he would take him on if Ekalavya would cut off his thumb, and Ekalavya cut off his thumb. One day, Drona's pupils were sparring but it became serious between Bhima and Duryodhana, and the fight was won by Arjuna, Bhima's brother. Drona sent the Pandavas and Kauravas to Drupada's kingdom, and after Drupada's army was slain, he was brought to Drona by the Pandavas. Drona again requested Drupada revive the friendship and Drupada agreed.

Sources:

"Indian Myth and Legend" by Donald A. Mackenzie [Online]

"Mahabharata, Epic of the Bharatas" by Romesh C. Dutt [Online]

Famous Last Words: A Very Busy Week

This week was extremely hectic. Between having multiple assignments due, deadlines for submitting PMAP (Project Management Advisory Panel) documents for Concrete Canoe, a budget interview with the Gallogly College of Engineering, concrete research for Concrete Canoe, and grading homework (I am a TA in a Structural Analysis class), I was unable to balance everything I needed to finish this past week unfortunately.

However, I really enjoyed the readings in Indian Epics this week. I read two comics - "Kubera: The Lord of Wealth" and "Heroes of Hampi: The Mythology of Kishkindha". The Kubera comic is going to help me a ton with my storybook as I am focusing on Lanka and Vishvakarma in my storybook. The Heroes of Hampi comic was very interesting and I ended up learning a lot about geography in India, and actually learned a little to help with my storybook in the Hampi comic as well.

My best writing in the past week was definitely an appeal with PMAP for revising a rule that they have instituted that hinders research, and I am excited to get to meet with PMAP tomorrow to further discuss this rule. They have been understanding and willing to work with engineering competition teams and I think they'll do what's best for the teams. However, this writing was not creative, and I am finding that I struggle to switch between technical writing and creative writing.

I read a story in this class this week that told a story using a diary to convey emotions. I had not considered writing a diary entry in the past, but the story was great and I am now considering writing a diary entry story in the future.

Unfortunately, I did not make it to writing a Week 5 story for this week. I got to it late Thursday night, and I was not able to think of a story in time. However, I'm not overly worried because I completed the readings and an extra credit assignment, so I should be fine. I am appreciative of the flexibility and extra credit in this class - it allows me to maximize my learning on my busy schedule.

Last year's concrete canoe - image taken by me

Reading Notes: "Heroes of Hampi: The Mythology of Kishkindha" Comic

Characters

• Hakka
• Bukka
• Shiva
• Sati - Shiva's wife
• Daksha - Sati's father
• Pampa - Sati's rebirth as a river goddess
• Vali - king of Kishkindha, monkey, gains half the strength of every opponent he fights
• Jambavan - bear king
• Surya - sun god
• Sugriva - Surya's son, Vali's brother
• Mayavi - demon

Setting

• Hampi - ancient town on Tungabahdra river
• Kishkindha - monkey kingdom
• Rishyamukha Hill - hill in Hampi region
• Vijayanagara - city/empire created by Bukka and Hakka

Plot

• Hampi is attacked where Hakka and Bukka must defend themselves
• Hakka and Bukka go hunting and see a very brave rabbit which is a sign that they will become kings
• Mysterious old man tells Hakka and Bukka the story of Hampi
• Sati's father, Daksha, does not want Sati to be married to Shiva and Sati is aware of this
• Sati sacrifices herself to spite her father
• Shiva is angry and summons a warrior named Veerbhadra to kill Daksha
• Gods are scared of Veerbhadra
• Vishnu calms Veerbhadra with lotuses and Veerbhadra gives him the Sudarshana Chakra in return
• Sudarshana Chakra is a very powerful weapon created by Vishvakarma
• Different stories depending on where you look as to how the Sudarshana Chakra was created
• Some say Vishvakarma wanted his daughter to be able to hug the sun, and he collected stardust to make three inventions, including the Sudarshana Chakra
• Some say Vishnu killed Hayagriva on Chakravana Mountain (constructed by Vishvakarma) and stole the Sudarshana Chakra from Hayagriva
• Sudarshana Chakra is a disk weapon that has 108 edges
• Sati becomes the River Goddess Pampa
• Shiva falls into the river and is saved by Pampa
• Pampa and Shiva marry and gold is rained down creating Hemakuta
• Old man now tells about Kishkindha
• Vali is king of Kishkindha
• Anjana, who was cursed to live as a monkey, gives birth to Hanuman who Vali wishes to kill
• In this comic, Hanuman is the child of Shiva
• Anjana gives Hanuman to Jambavan for protection
• Hanuman ties a lion and elephant together by the tails and is cursed to forget his powers
• Surya teaches Hanuman the Vedas and Shastras
• Hanuman then agrees to protect Sugriva
• Vali wants to kill Sugriva
• Mayavi wants to fight Vali
• Vali agrees, follows Mayavi into a hole, and Sugriva sees blood coming out of the hole and closes it, returning to Kishkindha as king
• Turns out that Vali was not actually dead
• Vali chases Sugriva and Hanuman out of Kishkinda to Rishyamukha Hill where they hide away in a cave that Vali cannot get to
• While in the cave, Sugriva and Hanuman see Lakshmana and Rama searching for Sita and decide to talk to Lakshmana and Rama
• Rama and Lakshmana help Sugriva take down Vali, and Sugriva becomes king of Kishkindha
• In return, Sugriva and Hanuman help search for Sita
• Sugriva, Hanuman, and Jambavan at southern tip of India and learn of Sita's location in Lanka
• Jambavan reminds Hanuman of his powers that he was cursed to forget
• Hanuman jumps to Lanka and finds Sita
• Sita is rescued by Rama
• Rama helps Hanuman receive a reward for helping save Sita by having Hanuman pray to Shiva to ask for a favor
• Shiva has Veerbhadra give Hanuman an idol that grows into a temple
• Temple is named Uddana Veerbhadra Temple
• Old man leaves Hakka and Bukka and they decide to start an empire
• Track down old man, whose name was Vidyaranya, and name city Vijayanagara
• Vijayanagara was the second largest city in the world as of 1500
• Very established trading center with Europeans and other Asian/Middle Eastern countries
• Empire spanned entirety of Southern India

Image of temples in Vijayanagara from Wikimedia

Bibliography

"Heroes of Hampi: The Mythology of Kishkindha" published by Amar Chitra Katha

"Vijayanagara" from Wikipedia

"Sudarshana Chakra" from Wikipedia

Reading Notes: "Kubera: The Lord of Wealth" Comic

Characters

• Brahma - Great-Grandfather of Kubera
• The ultimate god in Hinduism
• Kubera - Lord of Wealth
• Heti - first rakshasa
• Sukesa - Rakshasa born son of Parvati and Shiva
• Malyavan, Sumali, Mali - Evil sons of Sukesa
• Vishnu - the preserver
• Kaikesi - daughter of Sumali
• Vishrava - Father of Kubera
• Dashagriva - Ravana

Setting

• Lanka
• Alakapuri - where Kubera retreats to

Plot

• Kubera wants to be a lokapala (guardian of the world)
• Brahma makes Kubera the Lord of Wealth and gifts him Pushpaka
• Pushpaka is a chariot made by Vishvakarma
• Described differently in many stories
• Can be a flying temple, chariot, etc
• Said to shine very brightly
• Origin of Lanka is discussed
• Vayu and Vasuki were testing who was more powerful, and Vayu (wind god) blew hard enough that the top of a mountain blew into the sea, forming Lanka
• Mountain top blown away belonged to Mount Meru
• Mount Meru has still not been identified by scholars
• In mythology, Mount Meru is the center of the universe
• Mount Meru is supposedly approximately 1,000,000 km high according to mythology
• Possibly Mount Kailash?
• Brahma accidentally created rakshasas while reciting the Vedas because Brahma got hungry and his hunger created two children, one being a rakshasa
• Heti, the first rakshasa, had a grandchild who was ditched and recovered by Shiva and Parvati
• The city of Lanka was created for Shiva and Parvati by Vishvakarma as a wedding gift
• Parvati and Shiva named adopted son Sukesa, who was gifted wealth by Shiva
• Sukesa had three sons who became evil and took over Lanka
• Mali, Sumali, and Malyavan attack the gods, and Vishnu respons by killing Mali and forcing Malyavan and Sumali to leave Lanka
• Vishnu uses Sudarshan Chakra - weapon made by Vishvakarma
• Kubera moves into Lanka and becomes king
• Sumali takes note of Kubera's wealth and becomes jealous
• Sumali forces Kaikesi to marry Vishrava
• Have four kids - Shurpanakha, Vibhishana, Kumbhakarna, and Dashagriva
• Dashagriva cuts heads off and gains boons from Brahma, he wishes to become invincible but he is not invincible against humans
• Sumali tells Dashagriva to take over Lanka from Kubera
• Dashagriva agrees, pushes Kubera to Alakapuri
• Dashagriva invades Alakapuri, fights Kubera's Angeyastra (fire sword) with a Varunastra (water sword)
• After defeating Kubera, Dashagriva steals Pushpaka
• Dashagriva now has complete power over Lanka with his army of rakshasas
• Rama invades Lanka by building a stone bridge to Lanka and killing Dashagriva
• Vibhishana is named king of Lanka
• Rama takes Sita home to Ayodhya
• Pushpaka is returned to Kubera

Kubera, the God of Wealth, in an
image from Pexels

Bibliography

Kubera: The Lord of Wealth published by Amar Chitra Katha Vol. 839

Storybook Plan

Who Will Tell the Story?

The stories within my storybook will be told by Vishvakarma. Vishvakarma will be discussing different inventions of his and the stories associated with his inventions. I think this is an effective way to discuss the story of Lanka while also analyzing just how much each god can affect a story within Indian Mythology.

Main Ideas

During this storybook, I want to learn more about what Vishvakarma is credited with inventing. Further, I want to see how Vishvakarma affected Indian mythology with his inventions. I also found myself interested in Lanka while reading the Ramayana, and I thought that there was plenty of information to dissect how Vishvakarma is subtly intertwined with many of the stories about Lanka.

Story 1: The City of Lanka

The first story will be a broad discussion on the architecture and history of Lanka. This story will focus on how the architecture has shaped stories told in the Ramayana and stories that took place before the Ramayana. This story serves as the background of the final story - the battle for Lanka.

Sources:

Lanka from Wikipedia

Kubera Comic

Story 2: Vishvakarma's Chariot Shop

This story will be a conglomerate of stories about various chariots made by Vishvakarma and a quick overview of the history associated with each chariot. Eventually, Pushpaka will be mentioned, which helps with tying the chariot story in with the overall theme of Vishvakarma and Lanka.

Sources:

Kubera Comic

Vimana from Wikipedia 

Indra from Wikipedia

Story 3: The Bridge to Lanka

This story will serve as a bridge, pun intended, to the final story of my storybook. Vishvakarma's son, Nala, constructs the bridge to Lanka which allows me to further tie this story together with Vishvakarma. The Thai version of the bridge to Lanka may be mixed with the Indian version to gather up even more information on the bridge. This story will end with Rama's army entering into Lanka.

Sources:

Nala from Wikipedia

Adam's Bridge from Wikipedia
PDE Ramayana (primarily focusing on Donald A. Mackenzie's stories)
Suvannamacha from Wikipedia

Story 4: The Battle for Lanka

This story will tie together all of the previous stories. Lanka, Pushpaka, and Rama's Bridge will all be discussed in this story. There will also be other inventions of Vishvakarma discussed in this story; many of the weapons used in the battle for Lanka were invented by Vishvakarma. This story will also discuss Rama's first thoughts when he entered Lanka, but I will somehow make a way to appear as if Rama told Vishvakarma his thoughts on Lanka so I can retain the Vishvakarma point of view throughout the story.

Sources:

Vishvakarma from Wikipedia

PDE Ramayana (primarily focusing on Donald A. Mackenzie's stories)

Kubera Comic

Indra from Wikipedia

Comment Wall

Please leave your comments for my storybook here! The storybook is titled Engineering India and can be found by clicking on this link: Engineering India.

An image of Vishvakarma from Wikimedia

Week 4 Lab: TEDEd Videos on Style

General Notes:

This week I've decided to watch videos on creative writing style. I have noticed that I tend to struggle with style while writing stories for Indian Epics class. I think I struggle because I have been trained to write engineering papers - papers with no usage of pronouns, no colorful language, and with an emphasis on relating theory to experimental results instead of using creativity. I'm usually doing at least one lab report a week, so it is hard for me to switch to a creative style and do well. I hoped that watching these videos would help me learn to write in a more creative style.

Notes from Videos:

The Power of Creative Constraints

• Creative constraints are needed to help narrow down what to do
• Imagine trying to invent with no constraints
• Iterative and innovative creativity both exist
• Many discoveries are made on accident while researching another topic

What Makes a Hero

• "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" - book discussing how all heroes are essentially the same character
• The Hero's Journey
• Starts in known world and travels through an unknown world
• Hero's worst fear is then faced
• Crisis - hero's darkest hour
• Treasure - after the crisis the hero somehow claims some treasure
• Result - Monsters bow down or chase out monster
• Return - Hero returns to his world
• New Life - Hero is a new person
• Resolution - All plot lines get straightened out and finished up
• Believed that we follow this type of plot as it mimics human life

How to Build a Fictional World

• Rules are made for a fictional world and the story follows these rules
• Steps to write
• Set a basic setting
• Make a timeline
• What rules exist?
• What kind of government, what do people believe in?
• Retransform entire real world into a fictional world

What "Orwellian" Really Means

• "Orwellian" used to named authoritarianism
• Really means how deceptive language works

What Makes Something "Kafkaesque"?

• Unnecessarily complicated processes
• Characters have circular reasoning that causes problems with work

How to Write Descriptively

• Must use descriptive language to ensnare someone in your imaginative world
• Use all five senses to lay out a really good scene
• Avoid cliches

Beware of Nominalizations

• Nominalization formed when adding -ity, -ition, or -ism to a noun
• Nominalizations can obscure the true meaning of a sentence
• Use verb driven sentences

The Pleasure of Poetic Pattern

• Repetition should be used as much as possible when writing poetry
• Instead of repeating same thing over and over again, repeat sounds within a word
• Assonance - repetition of vowel sounds
• Consonance - repetition of consonants

Final Thoughts

I got some valuable information from some videos, while others did not help me as much. However, videos such as "Beware of Nominalizations" was all about not doing something I've been trained to do in my engineering and science courses and was important for me to understand that this technique is not useful for creative writing. I thought that "What Makes a Hero" was a very interesting video; I had never thought about how all good hero stories have the same basic structure. 

Image of pen and paper from Flickr

Sources

See this video playlist to find all videos discussed in this post.

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana Part D

Characters

Nala - Monkey son of Vishvakarma
Indrajit - Son of Ravana
Garuda - God of the birds
Kumbhakarna - Giant rakshasa that awakens once every six months to eat humans
Mandodari - first wife of Ravana

Setting

Lanka - designed by Vishvakarma

• "towering up to pierce the heavens" [1] - Rama's first thoughts of Lanka

Plot

• Rama was devising a plan to cross to Lanka with all of the monkeys and bears
• Tried to get god of the oceans to help, but the god was unresponsive
• After Rama fired arrows into the ocean, the King of the Ocean told Rama to seek Nala
• Nala decides to build stone bridge to Lanka 
• Rama and his crew reaches Lanka
• Ravana had monkey spies with Rama who returned to tell Ravana that he should surrender Sita before Rama gets the chance to attack
• Ravana brings fake head and bow of Rama to convince Sita that Rama is dead
• Rama launches his attack on Lanka and Ravana's forces
• Thousands of vanaras killed and eaten
• Rama and Lakshmana hit by Indrajit's arrows after Indrajit turns invisible
• Garuda saves Rama and Lakshmana but does not state why he helped
• Rama's forces start to beat back the rakshasas
• Rakshasas awaken Kumbhakarna to attack
• Kumbhakarna defeats Hanuman but is slain by Rama's fiery arrows
• Once again Indrajit uses invisibility and this time a Brahma weapon to defeat Rama's forces
• Hanuman jumps to the Himalayas and brings back mountain top with herbs needed to restore the injured and dead
• Indrajit attempts to convince Rama that Sita is dead
• Vibhishana tells Rama that Indrajit is simply using magic and gives Rama a plan to slay Indrajit (at a place named Nikumbhila)
• Lakshmana slays Indrajit
• Ravana hears of Indrajit's death
• Mourns Indrajit's death heavily and decides to kill Sita
• Rakshasis tell Ravana not to kill Sita as it would make him dishonorable
• Ravana goes out to the battle 
• Tries to kill Vibhishana but Lakshmana saves him
• Ravana throws a dart through Lakshmana's heart
• Hanuman returns to the Himalayas again to get the herbs to save Lakshmana
• Rama and Ravana are about to do battle when Indra decides to send Rama his chariot, armor, and sword
• Vishvakarma made the armor himself
• Rama and Ravana begin fighting and Rama is attacked first but uses Garuda's weapon to save himself by shooting arrows that turned to birds to eat the snakes Ravana had fired at Rama
• Rama begins shooting heads of Ravana off, but is unable to weaken Ravana as heads grow back faster than they can be removed
• Rama slays Ravana by shooting Brahma's weapon given to him by Indra
• Rakshasas cease fighting as soon as Ravana is slain
• Vibhishana performs funeral rites and is proclaimed King of Lanka
• Mandodari mourns Ravana's death and states that she knew Rama would end Ravana
• Rama gets to see Sita
• At first both seem very happy to see each other
• Then Rama says that he can't have Sita back as she was with Ravana for so long and Rama assumed that she had been with Ravana as she was unharmed
• Sita casts herself into a fire to prove that she has been loyal
• Gods come to Rama and plead for him to stop
• Fire announces that Sita is absolutely pure
• Rama and Sita take a ride back towards Ayodhya and Rama tells the stories of his quest to get her back along the way
• Rama returns to Ayodhya right at the end of the 14 years
• He was named ruler as soon as he arrived
• After a while in Ayodhya, citizens of the kingdom became untrusting of Sita as she had been taken by Ravana
• Rama exiles Sita for 16 years
• Sita has Rama's two children - Lava and Kusha
• Lava and Kusha sing about Rama, Rama eventually learns they are Sita's sons
• Sita comes to prove her purity and is returned to the earth
• Lakshmana, Rama, and others decide to ascend to the heavens

Rama and Ravana fight. This picture also shows all of the janara fighting
alongside Rama and Lakshmana. Image from Wikimedia

Bibliography

[1] Myths of the Hindus and Buddhists by Sister Nivedita
[2] Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana Part C

Characters

• Sugriva - Monkey king sought by Rama
• Has had his wife and kingdom stolen by his brother, Vila
• Hanuman - Monkey god that is a devoted follower of Rama
• Sampati - Vulture, brother of Jatayu
• Jambavan - leader of the bears
• Vibhishana - younger brother of Ravana

Setting

• Kishkindha - Kingdom of Sugriva/Vali
• Lanka - Ravana's Palace of Gold
• Mahendra - Mountain range

Plot

• Hanuman intercepts Rama and Lakshmana as they approach Sugriva's location
• Sugriva tells story of Vali chasing him out of the kingdom
• Vali chased a monster down a hole
• Sugriva saw blood come out so he filled the hole with a mountain
• Vali actually had slain the monster, returned to Kishkindha and exiled Sugriva
• Rama gets Sugriva to challenge Vali for the kingdom and his wife
• Vali's wife, Tara, begs Vali not to fight as she knows that Sugriva has returned with Rama and Lakshmana
• Vali disregards this warning and decides to fight
• Vali is initially winning the fight until Rama kills Vali with an arrow
• All of the vanaras cry because Vali has died, even Sugriva
• Hanuman comes to Kishkindha
• All of the vanaras are awed by Rama's strength
• Sugriva promises to help Rama find Sita, but they must wait for the rainy season to pass
• Rama cannot enter the city with Sugriva due to his father's wish
• Rama does not want to wait a month as he is restless
• At end of rainy season, Sugriva still doesn't have forces together to search for Sita
• Lakshmana entered Kishkindha to threaten to kill Sugriva if he did not aid Rama as he had promised
• Immediately Sugriva organizes an army of monkeys and bears to search
• Varanas cannot find Sita
• Come across Sampati who tells the Varanas that Sita was taken to Lanka by Ravana
• Lanka is across the ocean
• Sampati tells story of him and Vatayu
• Vatayu and Sampati grew up in a nest in the Himalayas
• Sampati lost his wings because the sun burned them off
• Nishakara says that he will regain wings someday, but only at the hands of a noble person
• Vanaras devising a plan to ensure that Sita really is on Lanka
• Jambavan reminded Hanuman of his birth and stories of him jumping to try to reach the sun
• Hanuman was then convinced he could jump to Lanka and did so
• During his jump, a rakshasi tried to eat Hanuman, but Hanuman killed the Rakshasi and finished his trip to Lanka
• Hanuman wanders through Lanka to find Sita
• Finds Ravana sleeping amongst his wives, but Sita is no where to be seen
• Eventually finds Sita among ashoka trees, surrounded by rakshasis
• Ravana tells Sita that he will kill and torture her if she does not submit to Ravana
• Sita crawls to base of tree Hanuman is in
• Hanuman is able to talk to Sita as she is close 
• Initially, Sita is worried that Hanuman is actually Ravana taking Hanuman's shape, but Hanuman shows Rama's ring and Sita is assured that Hanuman is who he says he is
• Hanuman attempts to bring Sita back to Rama, but she refuses to be touched by a man that is not Ravana
• Sita gave Hanuman jewelry she had in her hair for him to take back
• Sita tells Hanuman that Ravana plans to kill her within 2 months and asks if Rama will save her and kill Ravana
• Rakshasas capture Hanuman after a fight
• Realize Hanuman could not be killed with weapons, they use a Brahma shaft to capture Hanuman
• Hanuman tied up more after being caught by the Brahma shaft, but other ties release the strength of the Brahma shaft
• Hanuman remains calm as he wants to talk with Ravana
• Ravana talks with Hanuman who tells Ravana that he needs to surrender Sita or he will be killed by Rama
• Ravana is angered and sets Hanuman's tail on fire
• Hanuman breaks out of the ties and burnt Lanka down after Sita prayed that the fire does not burn Hanuman
• Hanuman talks with Sita and tells her Rama will return shortly
• Sugriva organizes his forces to move to Mahendra
• Need to devise a plan to cross the sea
• Rakshasas need plan to fend off Rama and his army
• Vajradanshtra
• Dress up as Bharat's troops so Rama won't attack then launch an assault of arrows and spears
• Nikumbha 
• Will take on Hanuman and Sugriva
• Vibhishana recommends Ravana return Sita to Rama to avoid destruction of Lanka and death of Ravana
• Ravana is angered and casts Vibhishana away
• Vibhishana is angered and decides to join forces with Rama

Hanuman returns to Rama after burning Lanka.
Image from Wikimedia

Sources

Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie

Feedback Strategies

General Notes

I was happy to learn more about how to give feedback as I am a leader of Concrete Canoe and I am always looking for ways to offer feedback without upsetting the members. If I come across as rude, we will surely lose members we really need. Hopefully after reading these two articles I will be able to offer constructive criticism without seeming condescending.

Another place I have struggled to give feedback is at work. As an engineering intern, I made up my own ways to accomplish tasks and sometimes found quicker ways to a solution. However, I was always worried to offer feedback as I didn't want to upset my bosses but I did want to help improve processes. Sometimes I would just casually bring it up, sometimes I'd show my coworker while asking a question, and sometimes I would ask my coworker whether they thought my way was a good way to come to a solution so that they could make a decision on their own. It was interesting to read about good strategies for offering feedback to see what I did and did not do.

"How to Provide Great Feedback When You're Not In Charge"

Source: Farnam Street

This article gave four pieces of advice to give feedback. The first piece of advice was to show appreciation for when things are done right. To establish the necessary respect to offer the feedback you need to first learn to offer feedback even for good things. The second piece of advice was to offer constructive feedback on ideas, not on the person. By doing this, you're more likely to get the person to listen to your feedback. The final two pieces of advice are to not offer feedback too often and to take feedback yourself.

"How to Give Bad Feedback Without Being a Jerk"

Source: Next Big Idea Club

The biggest piece of advice in this article is to explain why you're offering feedback. Psychologists found that feedback recipients were 40% more likely to accept feedback when the reasoning for feedback is offered. The next piece of advice was to show that you aren't offering feedback because you think too highly of yourself, but because you genuinely want to help. Ways to accomplish this are to make sure you let the feedback recipient know that you accept feedback, ask if they are willing to receive feedback, and have a conversation instead of a lecture.

This image from Pixabay shows that feedback should be
a conversation, not a lecture.

Topic Research: Vishvakarma

General Notes:

After my previous project brainstorming post, Professor Gibbs gave me some story recommendations for Vishvakarma and also recommended that I tell the story from Vishvakarma's point of view. I really, really liked the idea of telling the stories from Vishvakarma's point of view as that gives me a lot more freedom in which stories I can tell and how to tell the story. I've compiled some story ideas, but I may change my mind if I learn of other interesting stories I want to retell. I have included four potential stories to tell as I wanted more freedom to decide when I get start writing my stories.

Story 1: Rama Builds a Bridge to Lanka

According to this story from the Ramayana, Rama gathers an army of vanara, intelligent monkeys, to help construct a bridge from India to Lanka to get Sita back from Ravana. The lead architect of the bridge is named Nala, a vanara who happens to be Vishvakarma's son. The bridge discussed in this story of the Ramayana exists today, though it is covered by approximately 3 feet of water. The bridge was constructed out of stones.

When I tell this story, I may talk about how Vishvakarma gave guidance to Nala to build the bridge. I can use some simple engineering knowledge discussed from Vishvakarma's point of view to make it seem like Vishvakarma really designed the bridge.

The vanaras build a bridge to Lanka with Nala and Nila shown as blue and white monkeys
talking with Lakshmana and Rama. From Wikimedia

Sources:

Nala from Wikipedia

Adam's Bridge from Wikipedia

Story 2: Vishvakarma's Chariot Shop

Vishvakarma was credited with designing many different chariots or palaces that flew through the skies including the Pushpaka, Indra's chariot, and 

This story has the potential to be expanded into multiple stories told about battles/other events that took place using Vishvakarma's chariots that he helped construct. However, I struggled to find complete stories for each of the different chariots. If I can find complete stories that mention the chariots, I can use Vishvakarma as a storyteller for three stories in which Vishvakarma describes his chariot he made then discuss stories from Vishvakarma's point of view. I think that this story has potential to expand, assuming I can locate stories from the Ramayan a

Sources:

Kubera Comic

Vimana from Wikipedia 

Indra from Wikipedia - This source briefly discusses Indra's chariot

Story 3: Vishvakarma's Celestial Weapons

Vishvakarma was also accredited with the creation of some of the astras used in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Some astras I have found to be specifically accredited to Vishvakarma include astras used by Shiva and Vishnu. 

My original intent was to discuss some of the weapons Vishvakarma created, thereby introducing many gods/goddesses. I could also focus down on one astra and its adventures through stories as told from Vishvakarma's point of view. One potential complication is that different Indian mythology sources accredit the creation of astras to different deities.

Sources:

Astra from Wikipedia

Sudarshana Chakra from Wikipedia

Story 4: The Story of Lanka

Lanka was the city which has ties to Shiva, Kubera, Ravana, and the battle between Ravana and Rama. Vishvakarma was said to have made the palace in the city of gold. The palace was so beautiful that it ended up creating drama when the palace would trade hands between owners throughout Indian mythology.

This story is very related to the Pushpaka story and serves as a complete story if I decide to go more in-depth on each chariot and the surrounding stories. I would talk about Vishvakarma's many creations in Lanka throughout the Ramayana.

Golden palace in Lanka from Wikipedia

Sources:

Lanka from Wikipedia

Kubera Comic

Wikipedia Trails: From Ramayana to Mankameshwar Temple

Ramayana

I started with the Ramayana as I was interested in the historical accuracies of the book and wanted to see what Wikipedia had to say. Furthermore, I was interested in the potential writing topic discovered on the Wikipedia Page.

Ayodhya

I went to the Ayodhya page as I remembered reading about Ayodhya in this week's readings and wanted to learn more about the history of the city. I was also interested to see what the city looked like.

Temple in Ayodhya. I was amazed to learn that Ayodha has more temples
than one could count. Image from Wikimedia

Hanumangarhi

This page caught my eye because the structure was described as a massive fort surrounded by walls and it intrigued the civil engineer in me. I always find it amazing that civilizations were able to construct such large, sturdy structures that still stand today without heavy machinery and computers.


Mankameshwar Temple

Once again, I got curious about historical Indian engineering and architecture and found this article. The Mankameshwar Temple was dedicated to Shiva and contains several smaller temples dedicated to other Indian mythology characters such as Rama, Hanuman, and Krishna.

Week 3 Story: The Wild, Wild...East?

On July 18, 1849 a man by the name of William McCoy was elected the first mayor of Independence, Missouri. At the time, Independence was beginning to boom - it was the gateway to the West and had a rapidly growing population that had finally surpassed 1,000 citizens and economy. As a man looking to set up a family in the West, William prayed for a son to carry on the family. William's prayer was answered - William eventually had a total of four sons, though each was with a different wife. With his wife Katherine, he had a son named Remi. 

Remi was quite the extraordinary young man. He learned exceptionally well from any book he could find, and he was as good of a shot with a rifle as anyone in Independence had ever seen. Remi would regularly venture out into the wilderness to bring home a deer or squirrels for his family to eat. As soon as he entered manhood, Remi was given the office of Independence Sherriff. 

One day, a man named Victor that owned a trading post in the town of Council Bluffs, Iowa, went to Remi's sherriff quarters to report that his trading post has been vandalized frequently by outlaws. Remi volunteered to help stop the outlaws and went with Victor to Council Bluffs. However, Remi wanted to bring along his brother, Larry. Victor was eternally grateful for the young men to help, and he paid them with guns that seemed straight out of the heavens; the guns were powerful and shot straighter than Remi or Larry had imagined guns could shoot. Sure enough, Remi and Larry made short work of the outlaws, capturing or winning gunfights against each outlaw. After dealing with the outlaws, curiosity caught up with Remi and Larry and they wanted to experience more of Council Bluffs.

The young men decided to talk a walk through Council Bluffs to see what they could find. While touring the young city, the men happened upon the mayor's house. The house was the biggest that either brother had ever seen, and was decorated perfectly. The yard was filled with flowers of all types - from the soft pink wild rose to the vibrant yellow goldenrod. While walking around the mayor's yard taking in the beautiful botany, the mayor's daughters happened to walk outside. Remi caught a glimpse of the mayor's daughter named Sally and instantly fell in love. Sally was beautiful, and she took a quick liking to Remi as well. Remi approached Sally and confessed his feelings, and Sally let him know that the feeling was mutual. After a month of meeting up daily, Remi asked for Sally's hand in marriage. Sally was happy, but the mayor was not yet convinced that Remi was the right man. To convince the mayor, Remi would have to capture a bison. However, the mayor greatly underestimated Remi's strength, courage, and intelligence and when Remi returned with a buffalo, the mayor happily let Remi have Sally's hand in marriage.

Remi and Larry with the celestial weapons given to them by
Vishvamitra. Image from Pinterest

Author's Note:

This story was derived from the Part A readings from the Public Domain Edition Ramayana. These readings start by telling the story of how Rama ventured into the jungles with his brother, Lakshmana, to help Vishvamitra rid of the rakshasas terrorizing his hermitage. Vishvamitra gifted the young men with celestial weapons, and Rama and Lakshmana slew all of the rakshasas. While helping Vishvamitra with the rakshasas, the young men ventured into the town and went to the king's palace to pick flowers. The king was named Janaka, and he was the father of Sita. While there, Rama met Sita and they instantly fell in love. The king told Rama that he could only have Sita's hand in marriage if he could string Shiva's bow. Sure enough, Rama attempts to string the bow and does so well that he actually breaks Shiva's bow. The king is then convinced to let Rama have Sita's hand in marriage.

Bibliography: 

Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana Part B

Characters

• Bharata - Brother of Rama
• Atri and Anasuya - Sages in hermitage visited by the exiled persons
• Viradha - rakshasa
• Agastya - Another sage visited by Rama
• Shurpanakha - rakshasa woman
• Khara - brother of Shurpanakha
• Jatayu - Vulture that had been watching over Sita, Rama, and Lakshmana

Plot

• Bharata returns to palace and learns that Rama has been exiled and Dasharatha has died
• Bharata is distressed as he wants Rama to be the king
• Though Bharata is distressed he organizes Dasharatha's funeral as Dasharatha deserved
• Funeral involved making sacrifices to fire and adorning Dasharatha with gold and gems
• Bharata tracks down Rama in the jungle and offers the throne to Rama
• Rama refuses as Dasharatha had wished Rama into the jungle for 14 years and Rama does not think it is right to take the throne against his father's wish
• Bharata gives Rama sandals to put on then returns to Ayodha and places the sandals at the throne, signaling Rama as the ruler but absent
• Bharata then leaves to Nandigram to rule the kingdom from the forest
• Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana spend time at the ashrams of sages
• Anasuya was told the story of Sita's life
• Sita born and found while father was plowing
• Discusses exile of her and Rama
• Sages blessed the exiles
• The three meet Viradha who tries to abduct Sita
• Viradha can't be slain by weapons
• Rama and Lakshmana have to fight with hands, dig a pit, and throw Viradha in
• Rama and the crew meet Agastya
• Given celestial bow, shining dart of Brahma, Indra's quiver, gold hilted saber
• Agastya tries to get Rama to stay at his hermitage, Rama refuses and wants to venture deeper into the jungle
• Shurpanakha was shapeshifting rakshasa woman who fell in love with Rama
• Normally very ugly but shapeshifted to be beautiful to try to win Rama's love
• Rama declines and says Lakshmana is single
• Shurpanakha was not humored by being made fun of and attempts to attack Sita
• Driven back by Rama and nose and ears cut off by Lakshmana
• Returns to brother Khara who sends 14 rakshasas after the crew
• Khara and his army came to kill the crew
• Rama sent Sita and Lakshmana to a cave to hide while he battled off the army
• Fire arrows killed most of the army
• Dushana killed by Rama's celestial weapon
• Khara killed by a blazing arrow from Rama's bow
• Shurpanakha is Ravana's sister
• Shurpanakha returns to Ravana and tells of Rama
• Ravana decides to set out for Rama
• Talks with Maricha about Rama
• Develop plan to take Sita
• Maricha assumes the form of a beautiful deer
• Sita sees the deer and wants Rama to slay it
• Lakshmana is weary as rakshasas like to try to disguise themselves as deer
• Rama strikes Maricha in the heart with an arrow and Maricha uses Rama's voice to call for help
• Sita believes Rama is in trouble but Lakshmana thinks it is a trick
• Sita is sad and Lakshmana decides he will go investigate in case Rama is in trouble
• When Ravana saw Lakshmana leave Sita he moves in to kidnap Sita and falls in love with her
• Jatayu stepped in to try to save Sita but Ravana slays him
• Brahma foresees Ravana's death at Rama's hand
• Sita returned to Lanka as Ravana's prisoner
• Ravana is trying to woo her
• Rama is told that Sita was kidnapped
• Rama comes upon dying Jatayu and is told what happened
• Rama comes across a demon while searching for Sita and has to burn the demon's body so he can be reborn in a better form and tell them what happened to Sita
• Rama comes across a hermitage with an old lady who had been paused in time and she was told of Rama's coming in the past and he frees the time curse and performs her funeral

Setting/Buildings

• Ayodha
• Chitrakuta jungle
• Lanka - Ravana's home

Picture of Ravana cutting Jatayu's wings off as Shiva is
shown in the background. Picture from Wikimedia

Bibliography

Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie

Reading Notes: PDE Ramayana Part A

Characters:

• Dasharatha - King of Koshala
• Father of Rama, Lakshmana
• Sacrificed a horse (Ashwamedha) to have 4 sons with his wives
• Janaka - King of Mithila
• Father of Sita
• Ravana - Monarch of rakshasas
• Gods and demons made powerless to Ravana by Brahma
• Vishnu - Located in Ocean of Milk
• Vishvamitra - Status was brahmarishi
• Sita - Avatar of the goddess Lakshmi
• Rama - Avatar of the god Vishnu 
• Janaka - King of Mithila
• Father of Sita
• Parashurama - Avatar of Vishnu
• Guha - King of Nishadha

Setting/Architecture/Engineering:

• Ayodhya - Capital of Koshala 
• Big streets
• Palace of Dasharatha was fortified with walls
• Palace of Sita's father
• Lake that was very clear/reflective (a looking-glass) with smooth stone steps
• Filled with flowers, fruits, etc.

Plot:

• Minor gods want out of control of Ravana, ask Vishnu, located in the Ocean of Milk, to help
• Vishnu divides himself into four parts to be born to Dasharatha
• Rama and Lakshmana go with Vishvamitra to help preserve his rituals from Ravana's attacks
• Gifted celestial weapons
• Travel to the hermitage and slay many rakshasas
• Vishvamitra tells story of Ganga River to Rama
• Rama is told story of Ahalya
• Cursed by husband after Indra, a god, tricked her into falling in love with him by disguising himself as Gautama, Ahalya's husband
• She became invisible and the curse would be lifted when Rama visited the hermitage
• Rama and Lakshmana go into the town where Vishvamitra lives and wandered the streets
• Go to king's garden and pick flowers
• Rama meets Sita and they fall in love
• Rama must be able to string Shiva's bow to marry Sita
• Rama succeeds, gets Sita
• He breaks Shiva's bow
• Parashurama tells Rama he must string Vishnu's bow to be forgiven
• Rama and his 3 brothers all marry Janaka's daughters
• Dasharatha decides he wants Rama to be king
• Manthara disproved - she was the nurse of Prince Bharata that Rama hit as a kid
• Manthara convinced Kaikeyi, mother of Bharata, that Bharata deserves the throne and she should tell Dasharatha he owes her two favors
• Kaikeyi demands Dasharatha make Bharata king and banish Rama for 14 years or she will drink poison
• Dasharatha is not happy but does as she asks
• Rama is told that he is being banished and Bharata will be king
• Rama is not concerned with the banishment and willingly leaves
• Sita and Lakshmana decide to go into the jungle with Rama after much protest from Rama
• Guha took care of the horses and gave paste for their hair to live like hermits
• Sita prayed to Ganga for safe return in exchange for offerings when they return
• Dasharatha had accidentally killed a hermit's son
• He was cursed to have a son taken from him
• Dasharatha died of grief because Rama was dead

Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana being banished to the rainforest.
Image from Wikipedia

Bibliography:

Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie