Reading Notes A Week 3: Ramayana

-
Image Credit. Rama and Sita by Indi Samarajiva. Source: Flickr. 

The beginning of the Ramayana is very interesting. There are many characters and deities. It is hard to keep track of them all. I think that the four sons born to Dasharatha will be very special since they are Vishnu divided into fours. It seems that Rama will be the greatest of the four brothers. Even early on there is more talk of him and more description of what he is doing. So far I like all the magic and mythical creatures but I wish the setting was more descriptive.
I am enjoying the love between Sita and Rama that is beginning. I like that Sita's father had a task set that any suitor would have to pass before marrying his daughter. Rama proved himself and now he and Sita will be married. The character of Rama seems to be a classic hero and Sita a classic princess but we will see how their characters change throughout the story.
Everyone knows having four wives will lead to some jealousy eventually. I was not surprised at all when Kaikeyi asked Dasharatha to make her son the heir and banish Rama. I do not like her character and think that she could be used as a villain in one of my stories. I like Sita's character she is a true princess insisting that she will not wear bark. I like that Dasharatha stuck up for her so that she could continue to wear silk. I did not enjoy the last very sections of the story but overall I really enjoyed reading A.
The storytelling and wording is sometimes hard to follow but overall I am enjoying the complexity of the Ramayana. I'm hoping there will be more dialogue from Sita in reading B and that Rama will regain his place as heir to the throne. 

 Sources used: M. Dutt, R. Dutt, Gould, Griffith, Hodgson, Mackenzie, Nivedita, Oman, Richardson, and Ryder. Public Domain Edition: Ramayana

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Introduction

-
Image
(Image Information: Personal Image Whitefield Family; Taken by Hannah Whitefield; Photo from May 2019)  Hi everyone! My name is Hannah Whitefield and I am from Pauls Valley, Oklahoma. It's a really cool small town about 45 minutes south of here. There are some pretty cool things in Pauls Valley considering it's a small southern town. We have an action figure museum, water park, movie theater, and what I consider the best Mexican restaurant in Oklahoma. I enjoyed growing up in a small town, but I love living in Norman. There are so many more activities to do along with a faster pace which I have found suits my personality better. I work at Ted's Cafe Escondido part-time. I like working as a waitress, though sometimes being in customer service is trying. My co-workers are all very fun to be around which makes my job much better. I am a senior Psychology major which I absolutely love and think that everyone should study at some point. It's just so interesting! I lov...
Read more

Week 9 Story: The Magic Potion

-
Image
Image Credit. 5 Nagas and Their Role in Hindu Mythology. Source: Google Images . One day a man was swimming along in a river when a group of snakes attacked him. They did not bite him but wrapped around him and pulled him into very deep waters to drown him. The King of the snakes saw what they were doing and commanded them to let the poor human go. The little snakes obey his command and released the man. When Bheem woke up he looked around in awe of what he saw. He was in an underwater castle and was surrounded by snakes and he could breathe under the water. His memory came rushing back to him and he sprang to his feet. He knew that these snakes were a threat and did not plan to be caught by surprise again. "Calm down Bheem. I am Vasuki, King of the Snakes, and they have been commanded not to harm you." "Vasuki? King Vasuki I mean. Thank you so much for sparing my life!" The king threw a feast in honor of Bheem. He had a wonderful time at the feast and...
Read more