Story: Chinese Children's Story

There once was a little girl dragon who was very good friends with five panda brothers. Although, many people disapproved of this strange friendship the girl dragon and the pandas were quite happy together. They always played together in the gardens and had a wonderful time.

One day the little dragon came over to the pandas house to practice archery. When she walked through the kitchen she immediately stopped and sniffed the air.

"I know that glorious smell from anywhere. Someone has made cookies!", she exclaimed. Sure enough, she saw the cookie jar sitting on a nearby counter. It was a very tall counter top and even though she stood on the very tip of her toes she could not reach the cookies.

She ran outside to where the panda brothers were already shooting their bows and arrows.

"Guys, you have to come inside and help me get these cookies! They smell so good, but I can't reach them. With your help, I know I could reach them or at least break the jar so that they fall toward me."

One of the pandas called Bhi was the first to reply, "Okay, I'll help you in any way that I can."

Bhi and the others began walking toward the house when the oldest panda brother spoke up, "No, this isn't right. If mother wants us to have the cookies, then she will give them to us later. We shouldn't take them now. Just be patient."

The panda brothers always listened to their oldest brother because he was their leader and the smartest of them, so the boys headed back and returned to their archery.

Outraged, the girl dragon began to yell at the boys: "I have always helped you guys whenever you have asked. Why won't you help me? I have been good and I deserve my cookie now!"

She kept pestering the pandas and the oldest brother kept reminding everyone that they would get the cookies in due time. Finally, the dragon gave up and sat off to the side of the boys to pout for the rest of the afternoon.

She is just about to give up and head home when a voice comes from inside the house: "My little pandas and my cute green dragon, come inside! I have a special treat for you."

Ecstatic to hear the call of the pandas' mother, the little girl rushes past all of the boys to get her cookie. They all end up racing to get inside where they are each given their reward.

The eager dragon takes the first bite into the cookie she has been waiting all afternoon for and.... it's horrible. She looks around to the pandas and notices the same disgusted look on all of their faces. Their mother notices and asks, "What? What's wrong? Do you not like your treat?"

She picks up one of the cookies and takes a bite, and immediately figures out the problem: "Oh no! I'm so sorry kids, I forgot to add the sugar to these cookies. I think I added extra salt instead!"

The pandas' mother begins laughing at her silly mistake, but to the little dragon girl and the panda brothers, this was no laughing matter. They had patiently waited all this time for something so bitter and disappointing. However, the dragon girl was most upset of all. She couldn't believe that she was so impatient and almost broke the rules for such a terrible reward.

Author's Note: I had a lot of fun writing this story. I adapted the character perspective I learned from my readings this week into a children's story. I read the graphic novel about Draupadi by Sarswati Nagpal. In this take on the story, the author focuses on Draupadi's inner conflicts, her arguments with the justice- loving Ydhishthira, and how she wishes for fiery revenge most of her life until she actually witnesses it during the war. I decided to make her a dragon because she is actually born from fire!

Bibliography: Draupadi: The Fire- born Princess by Sarswati Nagpal
Image: Panda Riding a Dragon by Third- Bear, Deviant Art

Reading Notes: Draupadi: The Fire-born Princess, Part B

The second half of this graphic novel really developed Draupadi's character into something I had never thought about before. I truly enjoyed reading into her person more in depth.

Her and Krishna's relationship deepens significantly. She mentioned him visiting her in her father's palace before marrying the Pandavas and how much she enjoyed his company. I did not know until reading this book that he also took care of her children while she and the Pandavas were in their  thirteen year exile. He also plays an important role in mentoring Draupadi through her personal journey from fiery revenge to the calmer understanding of Dharma in the world.

There is also much conflict between Draupadi and her husband Yudhishthira for this same struggle of vengence vs justice. As the eldest of the Pandava brothers, he often made the decisions about what the group did. However, he always favored Dharma and following the rules even while Draupadi was continually attacked and dishonored. This caused many quarrels between the two characters, but after all of the death seen during the war, Draupadi came to see Yudhishthira's point of view and became more forgiving of those who had wronged her.

Bibliography: Draupadi: The Fire- born Princess by Sarswati Nagpal
Image: Dharma Wheel, Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Draupadi: The Fire-born Princess, Part A

I finally decided to read one of the graphic novels on reserve at the Bizzell Library. I used to read Manga so I was interested in how the epics we've been reading would be portrayed.

Firstly, I love the artwork and how each characters have their own  unique details. The Epified videos and the comic books do not do as good of a job at this. I also like that a family tree is included on the inside cover. One of the most difficult things to keep up with, especially in the Mahabharata, is how everyone is related.

This novel is essentially the stories of the Pandavas told by Draupadi, but her perspective brings new life to the tales. Particularly, the birth of Draupadi took me by surprise! I had never heard this story before, but remember the king that Drona ordered the Pandavas to bring to him as their gift? That king that grew up with Drona and later left him starving is Draupadi's father! Afterwards, he and his wife meditated and prayed until the gods sent them a son and a daughter via fire sacrifice to avenge them.

Bibliography: Draupadi: The Fire-born Princess by Sarswati Nagpal
Image: Woman and Fire, Pixabay

Reading Notes: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part E

I found these two videos quite interesting. I listened to them on my ride back to Norman tonight. The metaphor of Vishnu as cowherd and the Cow as earthly resources has been mentioned in a previous video, but I liked hearing it explained more in depth. Vishnu as the judge of dharma makes perfect sense to me, especially as his reincarnation of Rama.

In this form, Rama right the balance of power and nature between many characters. The story of Vishnu as Matsya, the first fish, intrigues me very much as well, but the ending puzzles me. Initially, this fish teaches man the importance of kindness, but then he teaches a lesson of showing too much kindness. There is also a future savior-like avatar of Vishnu, called Kalki which is equally fascinating. It seems that a character like this can be found in every major religion.

Bibliography: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part E
Image: Dasavatar (Vishnu's Avatars), Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part D

I liked at the beginning of the first video when the narrator walks us through many stories in Shiva's life. One of my favorite things from this course is the Hindu artwork. Of these portraits, I particularly like the ones that feature a god/goddess/other character surrounded by important scenes of their stories. It is such a unique style of artwork that I haven't seen before. One of these portraits could also be easily used in the picture storytelling idea.

Perhaps my favorite quote from this video is: "Nothing is absolute. The forest transforms into a field and back into a forest again. The bride becomes a warrior, the killer becomes a mother, the tormentor becomes a guardian, the animal becomes god." This idea is explored in the second video when a few of the goddesses are discussed. Especially Durga, and the image of her that is discussed, intrigue me. I also like the idea that the demon she is standing on represents an ego that forgets the celestial beings and their role in the function of the world. Again themes of balance, transformation, and higher purpose are described through the forms of deities.

Bibliography: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part D
Image: Shiva's family history, Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part C

Woah, this part seemed especially deep today. There were many complex metaphysical ideals crammed into short videos. However, I did find it quite insightful into how the Hindu  religion views gender roles and the meanings of life.

I particularly like the Goddess Kali and how she balances out Shiva, the Destroyer. He remains distant from the material world, but she is determined to bring him into it. Even though she is depicted as a violent, lewd woman, she counters Shiva's destruction with resurrection and life. It really reminds me of a yin and yang approach to the metaphysical aspects of the world.

I'm really struggling to come up with an idea for a story from these videos. There are less stories and more general descriptions of the gods and goddesses, used to explain how the universe works. Perhaps I will try using the five motifs writing idea this week.

Bibliography: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part C
Image: Kali, Wikimedia Commons

Story: How the Jungle Began

Everyone was gathered at the Peace Rock during a great drought when Hathi, the master of the jungle, revealed how the world was created. Because the water level had dropped down so low that the Peace Rock was visible all of the jungle had formed a truce so that no one would be killed while drinking from the river. All of the animals, from deer to wolves, were lying on the river bank attempting to stay cool when Shere Khan, the tiger, sidled up to the river bank covered in blood.

He bragged of killing man. Not only that; he bragged of killing out of choice instead of need. Bagheera, the other masterful hunter of the jungle, was disgusted and Hathi sent Shere Khan away from the river. But before the tiger left he made a strange remark to the master elephant: "It was my right and my Night. Thou knowest, O Hathi."

As soon as Shere Khan was out of ear shot Mowgli asked Hathi, "What right does he mean? It is always shameful to kill man."

Hathi sighed before replying,"Stay quiet and I will tell you a tale older than the jungle.

"In the beginning of the jungle, we creatures walked together without fear. Back then there were no droughts and we all ate leaves, flowers, fruit, and bark. Tha, the first of the elephants created this jungle. Where he made furrows in the ground with his tusks, there the rivers ran; and where he struck with his foot, there rose ponds of good water; and when he blew through his trunk, there the trees fell. We knew no man; everyone lived together as one people.

Tha was too busy making the forest to deal with small quarrels over grazing land, so he named the first of the tigers master and judge of the jungle. It is said that one night two bucks came to the tiger to settle their argument. One of them pushed the judge with their horns, and the tiger sprung, killing the deer.

Until that night none of us had died or known death. Ashamed and afraid, the first tiger fled into the marshes of the North. When Tha returned to the crazed scene, no one would tell him who killed the buck. So instead he asked the trees to lean over and use their branches to mark the one who brought death to the jungle.

Meanwhile, Tha apponted the ape as the new judge. At first, the grey ape appeared wise, but soon he began to scratch and leap up and down. When Tha returned, he found the ape hanging upside down and mocking those below. There was no law in the jungle, only foolishness.

At this point Tha called all the animals together. He said,'Your first judge brought you death and your second has brought you shame. Now it is time that you know law, a law that you cannot break. You will meet fear and he will be your new master.'

One of the buffaloes rose up and asked: ' What is fear?'

The creator of the jungle answered,'Seek and ye shall find it.'

Soon the buffaloes did find it, huddled away in a cave. The creature was hairless and walked on its hind legs. When it spoke the animals ran, trampling each other. That night we did not lie down together as was the custom. Instead pigs lied down with pigs, wolves lied down with wolves.

When the tiger heard about this new creature he sought to redeem himself by killing what made the rest of the jungle so afraid. He found the cave and approached man, but also fled in fear once he saw the creature. He went to Tha, begging for help to defeat man and help the jungle. The master of the jungle agreed to allow him to live without fear of man once per year.

When the night came, the tiger could feel it and he returned to the cave. Just as Tha said, the man lied down on the ground before the tiger in fear so that he was able to kill man. The tiger returned to the jungle proud of his accomplishment for he had killed fear itself. Alas, things could not return to normal. The animals were now afraid of him, and he was still shunned from his fellow creatures."

Author's Note: This story comes from the Second Jungle Book so I'm not sure how much of this legend and how much of this is from Rudyard Kipling's imagination. He is a British author who lived in India for a time which inspired his writing. I found the story immensely intriguing because it explains the creation as well as the evolution of the jungle into how we know it today.

Bibliography: The Second Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, Project Gutenberg
Image: Elephant T, Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: The Second Jungle Book, Part B

The next story with Mowgli, "The Letting of the Jungle", was considerably darker than the other story or the Disney movies. He seeks revenge on the man village for persecuting and torturing a couple who took him in previously. The context of this story is a bit confusing to me, and I still don't understand if this man and woman are his biological parents or just a kind couple who took care of him when he returned to the village for a brief period. Either way, Mowgli asks Hathi and his sons to destroy the village and drive out the people who live there, thus "letting in" the jungle to grow in the village's place.

Throughout this story there is a constant identity strain for Mowgli. He does not fully fit in with his jungle brothers nor is he accepted by the man village. He claims to understand man to his wolf brothers, but detests them all the same. He speaks about how his senses are more heightened than other men, but will never match the jungle creatures'. There is much disdain for the humans and envy of the jungle animals in Mowgli's dialogue and inner thoughts.

Bibliography: The Second Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, Project Gutenberg
Image: Mowgli, Wikipedia Commons

Reading Notes: The Second Jungle Book, Part A

I recently watched the newer remake of the Jungle Book, so my interest in this subject was renewed. I read the first chapter of this book, "How Fear Came". I didn't know what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised!

This first chapter centered on the law of the jungle, particularly the Peace Rock and Shere Khan's killing of man. If you've seen the movie than you know about this cool concept of the peace rock. Essentially, when the jungle is facing a devastating drought this rock is uncovered in the river bed. When this rock is visible a truce is called between all of the animals so that no one shall be killed while they drink from this river. This is to protect everyone since water is more necessary to live.

While at the Peace Rock Tha, the ruling elephant, tells a story about the creation of the jungle. I personally love that elephants are the creator of the jungles. Tigers were named to be the judges, but they brought death. Then, the apes were the tiger's replacement, but they brought shame. Lastly, man brings fear. I love how everyone has a role and this devolution of the jungle society is explained through these animals. Normally death, shame, and fear would be considered fairly abstract concepts, but these stories really simplify the matter.

I also like at the end where Mowgli inquires about the behaviors of Shere Khan. Than makes it seem that he continued killing largely from the stigma and abandonment he felt from the other animals.

Bibliography: The Second Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, Project Gutenberg
Image: The Jungle Book cover, Wikimedia Commons

Reading Notes: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part B

I like the metaphor of Narayan/ Vishnu very much. I remember this image from Sita Sings the Blues video. The perception of reality is quite interesting. Although the narrator speaks of Lakshmi with the utmost respect, Nina Paley (the creator of Sita Sings the Blues) satirizes the patriarchy present in this image. At the end the two swap places so that Vishnu is rubbing the feet of Lakshmi.

I did think it was very interesting to learn the source of the cow deity in Hinduism. The metaphor of the cow and the cowherd is also quite intriguing. However, I do still think there is an unequal representation of women and the roles that they play in Hinduism. Yet, what older religion isn't  riddled with underlying sexism?

Bibliography: Pattanaik's Calendar Art, Part B
Image: Vishnu, Wikimedia Commons