Story Planning: Vishnu and Lakshmi

Story Planning: Vishnu and Lakshmi

 

Reading Notes: Krishna Epified (Part B)

 I really enjoyed seeing the interplay between Brahma and Krishna. It is very interesting to see such a different perspective on the creator deity and I felt like this story did a good job of explaining why.  From what I have heard so far, the Hindu religion has a very passive view of Brahma, defining him as a creator unworthy of worship since he had forgotten the purpose of his creation. I think that Krishna, as the avatar of Vishnu and the maintainer of the world, represents the purpose of that creation to the people and is therefore worthy of worship.

 

Krishna (Web Source)

 

 

Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues (Part A)

I feel like a lot of the stories I have read about have really detailed the endeavors of the male deities, so I felt like this would be a really great way to get a different perspective on the female deities, specifically Lakshmi. The format/layout of this animation was a lot different than I thought it would be, but I think it really helps explain the complexity of the overall story. I also really like the fact that there are three narrators throughout the animation that discuss and sometimes disagree with one another about what actually happened in the story or how one character is actually portrayed, which also adds to the complexity of the story.

 

Rama and Sita (Web Source)

 

Reading Notes: Sita Sings the Blues (Part B)

The beginning of this part started off very grimly, showing the film's author receiving a breakup email from her boyfriend who is in India. Later in the film, she calls him to beg him to take her back and the narrators (who have until this point only commented on the story between Rama and Sita, although at this point it is still a little ambiguous if they are commenting on Nina's situation or Sita's situation) discuss the problems associated with the unconditional love that Sita (and Nina) seem to be displaying. This reminds me of the difference between Sita's unconditional love and Parvati's unconditional love. While Sita is obedient and sadly takes the neglect from Rama, Parvati is angry and demands Shiva to respect her and fix the mistakes that he makes. Parvati and Shiva seem to share a very passionate and mistaken-ridden, yet nonetheless happy and devoted love, while Rama and Sita seem to share a more one-sided love. At the end of the story, Nina is working on this film with her cat and Sita has asked to be swallowed up by Mother Earth's womb in a final act of devotion to Rama, an act that denies Rama to have Sita back. I felt like this ending was very fitting and I really enjoyed this animation.

 

Sita Returns to Mother Earth (Web Source)

 

After watching these videos as well as watching Pattanaik's Seven Secrets of Vishnu, I wanted to write a story about the complex relationship of Vishnu and Lakshmi. It is easy to read some of these stories, especially the story of Rama and Sita, and feel like Rama is entirely to blame for the tragedies that Lakshmi faces. When I watched Pattanaik's videos on Vishnu, it was interesting to hear the difference between Brahma's relationship with Prakriti and Vishnu's relationship with Prakriti. Prakriti is a concept, like Maya, but also seems to correlate with the primary creator, sometimes identified as Parvati or Devi. There is a definite interconnected nature between the Tridevi and the primary creator, with Parvati, Saraswati, and Lakshmi making up the Tridevi. While Prakriti controls Brahma, who is unable to comprehend Prakriti without creating "an objective reality," Vishnu does not need to create any other reality and is therefore able to control Prakriti, who is also identified as being correlated with Lakshmi. 

In one of the videos, Lakshmi is sought after by the asuras and the devas and Vishnu helps the two groups coordinate their efforts to churn Lakshmi out of the ocean. When the two groups successfully free Lakshmi, they wait to see which group she will choose, but to everyone's surprise, she chooses Vishnu, who does not desire her.

I thought this would be a really interesting idea for a story if I wrote from Vishnu's point of view. I would like to write about his thought process as he coordinates the efforts in the above story of rescuing Lakshmi and his reaction as she chooses to follow him rather than either of the two groups that sought Lakshmi in the first place. Specifically, it would be interesting to detail this thought process and his following thoughts as Lakshmi continues to follow him, even after he denies her several times. I want to describe his intentions in this way, potentially shedding a new light on Vishnu as trying to be something he is not and continually failing both himself and Lakshmi by attempting to love the goddess in many of her forms, as Sita and Radha. Although it seems like he truly loves Sita and Radha, I believe he doesn't comprehend love the way that Lakshmi does, and this becomes the continual cause for him failing Lakshmi.

Bibliography:

Krishna Epified (Web Source)

Seven Secrets of Vishnu by Devdutt Pattanaik (Web Source)

Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley (Web Source)

Story Planning: Brahma

Story Planning: The Unacknowledged Creator

 

Reading Notes: Seven Secrets of Hindu Calendar Art (Brahma)

Brahma's Secret

I thought this reading was really interesting because it points out the differences between Brahma and the other Hindu deities, especially relative to the way Christianity views "the creator" deity. I know that I definitely had questions when I first started researching Brahma because I had a much different view of any deity that is deemed "the creator" from my own religious experiences with Christianity and what I learned in Latin about Roman and Greek mythology. 

I think it could be really interesting to tell the creation story from Brahma's point of view and really watch how he forgets the exact reason why the world is created. I think it could be really interesting to have Brahma interacting with some of the other deities as they come into the world and have them question him for not remembering why the world was created. 

I would like to portray Brahma as being really confident about his creation when no one else is around, but unsure of his creation in the presence of others. I think this could create an interesting dynamic that really highlights the reason why Brahma is not worshiped like the other deities. Other people have an interpretation of him that is negative once they realize he is unable to answer why he created everything.

I think Saraswati could be an important part of this story as the redeeming "better half" of Brahma by representing knowledge and wisdom. It would be interesting if Saraswati reminded Brahma why he created the world in the first place and it could reinforce her tie to Devi, who is also known as the primary creator (Brahma is often acknowledged as the secondary creator).

 

Brahma and Saraswati (Web Source)

 

Bibliography:

Seven Secrets of Hindu Calendar Art by Devdutt Pattanaik (Web Source)

Story Planning: Devi and Shiva

Story Planning: Devi and Shiva

"For most Hindus, God is best embodied in the form of three human couples: Brahma and Saraswati, Vishu and Lakshmi, Shiva and Shakti."

I thought this quote was especially important for the storybook that I am working on because these three couples form the basis of my story. I will need to read a little more about Shakti, though, since my story relates to Sati and Parvati.

Ardahanari's Secret

I thought this part was really interesting because it related the cultural view to the modern day perception of male and female counterparts. This really relates back to last week's reading that I did, where Shiva represented the spiritual aspirations and Parvati represented the materialistic desires. I find this to be an interesting perception because the materialistic desires mentioned specifically translate to having a family.

Shiva's Secret

I liked this part because I felt like it really clarified the difference between Shiva and Parvati as far as their aspirations. Shiva is essentially the "destroyer of desires." 

Then Kali entered the picture and Shiva became a little bit more confusing again. It's just difficult sometimes to understand the exact role of each deity in Hinduism because they all seem to be interconnected and there seem to be several different ways to explain every god, goddess, or divine concept. Although it is confusing, it really exemplifies the message I'm trying to portray in my storybook.

Shiva's Secret (continued)

After a thoroughly confusing introduction to Shiva in part 1, this again makes a little more sense. Shiva becomes the householder after Parvati is able to bring him out of a hermit-like state that starts when his first consort, Sati, kills herself because of her father's disapproval. Shiva then kills Sati's father, becoming the destroyer of social constructs. The Shri Yantra is the representation of balance between spiritual and material aspirations. I thought this was another really interesting concept and related well to what I am trying to explain in my storybook.

Devi's Secret: Desire and Destiny Create Life

This part of the reading made a lot of sense because I've done a lot of reading about Devi and the Tridevi already. I really like that the feminine aspect of the divine represents a balance between power and love, which translate into the concept of a mother. I think this is a very respectful view of the feminine aspect that isn't always appreciated or represented in this particular way in some cultures and is even lacking in some of the stories we read from the epics.

I think this week's reading could really help me with my storybook for this week because my next story is about Sati being greatly affected by her father's opinion of her marriage to Shiva and then killing herself in response to what she sees as an irreconcilable situation. I am trying to figure out how exactly I would like to portray Saraswati as being involved, but I think she will create these forms from a simple word (like Shiva from Brahma in the first story), but Sati and Sita will still be tied to her. I can see this working as a sort of in and out of consciousness experience for Saraswati as she bounces between each of the deities. Once Sati commits suicide, Saraswati will be devastated and console Shiva, urging him to seek vengeance for Sati.

I see this story being really big on balance and how things can quickly spiral out of control if Saraswati is unable to effectively divide her attention between her different forms. Saraswati is the powerful part of the tridevi as the primary creator (which will be revealed in the final story), while Sati and Sita represent the love portion of the tridevi.

Ardhanari (Web Source)

Bibliography:

Seven Secrets from Hindu Calendar Reading Guide by Devdutt Pattanaik (Web Source)

Story Planning: Ganesha and the Eternal Balancing Act

Story Planning for Seven Secrets from Hindu Calendar Art (Devdutt Pattanaik)

Ganesha

I really enjoyed the analysis in this reading and found the part about Ganesha representing the balance between pursuing what's best for the individual (Shiva/spiritual aspirations) and pursuing what's best for the family (Parvati/material aspirations) to be interesting.

I want Ganesha to be the central character in my story and for the content of the story to portray this balance that he represents. So, I'm thinking I could present Ganesha with a conflict of pursuing his personal interests while balancing the interests of his family. I am also considering a different approach of these conflicting interests by making the conflict about spiritual aspirations versus material aspirations. I do find the representation of Shiva as the manifestation of spiritual aspirations and of Parvati as the manifestation of material aspirations to be really interesting because it is a very individualistic perspective. I may be seeing it from a very western perspective, though, in which seeking individual achievements over familial achievements is sometimes viewed rather negatively for women.

Narayan

I thought it was interesting that death was not seen as a "full stop" in Hindu culture. I feel like this principle is embodied in the creation story with all of the creators and important deities interconnected.

At first, I was not entirely sure how I would approach connecting these two stories into one overall story, but my overarching goal would be to represent Ganesha as this figure capable of divine balance. With as many things going on during my own semester right now, I was considering making Ganesha into a student that works full-time and encounters plenty of defining struggles that help him learn this divine balance. Once he has an understanding of this balance, maybe he encounters pause in his endeavors while he continues to improve his ability to balance the things that the universe throws at him. I was also thinking I could show Ganesha as a male in one life, leaning towards the familial or material side of the balance as he sorts through this conflict and as a female in another life, leaning towards the individualistic or spiritual side of the balance. I think this could be an interesting way to explore gender roles and show how balance can be achieved no matter what the circumstances are.

Ganesha Graffiti by Zarateman (Wikimedia)

Bibliography:

Seven Secrets from Hindu Calendar Reading Guide by Devdutt Pattanaik (Web Source)

Story: Eye of the Parrot

Eye of the Parrot

Author's Note: This story combines the principles taught with Drona's test in The Mahabharata with the story of Rama and Sita in The Ramayana. I have heard Drona's test called "Eye of the Parrot" and the principles outlined in that story are really the most important part of this interpretation of the tragic romance Rama and Sita have. This story also incorporates Kamadeva, the Hindu god of love (much like the Roman's Cupid), who acts as Rama's Drona in guiding him back to Sita.

Ravana Kidnapping Sita (Web Source)

 

*Our story begins with Ravana kidnapping Sita and riding off to Lanka, just as Rama and Lakshmana return to find Jatayu taking labored breaths as he dies.*

"Jatayu, what has happened here? Who did this to you? Where is Sita?" Rama stared at the desperate scene, looking for clues as to the source of the commotion.

"Ra...van...a..." Jatayu exhaled painfully. "...hasSi...ta..." With each syllable seeming more arduous than the last, Jatayu took his last few breaths, leaving Rama and Lakshmana with almost no clues as to the events that had just transpired. 

Unsure of how to proceed, Rama and Lakshmana began to wander aimlessly through the forest. Rama, distraught with the thought of his love, Sita, being tormented by the perversions that Ravana was well known for, was unable to eat or sleep. Lakshmana, concerned for the safety of Sita and now the health of Rama, began scouring the forest for anyone who could help them. 

After searching for hours, Lakshmana stopped at a river to quench his thirst. Kamadeva emerged from behind a mango tree and peered back at Lakshmana, who could hardly believe that he had found anyone else in that forest, let alone Kamadeva himself. 

Kamadeva (Web Source)

"Please, help me find Sita. Surely you know of her and her unrivaled beauty? I am afraid that Rama will perish if I am unable to find Sita and bring her back to him soon." Kamadeva gave Lakshmana a long hard stare, as if he were turning over each word in his mind, carefully contemplating its weight. 

Once he had evaluated Lakshmana's plea, he agreed to help.  "However, I am not the one who can find Sita. Rama must find Sita."

Lakshmana, puzzled and increasingly more annoyed, began to question Kamadeva's methods. Kamadeva assured him that he would guide Rama to Sita, as long as Rama was willing to do anything necessary to find his love.

 ~ ~ ~ 

Rama was laying in the dirt when Lakshmana and Kamadeva arrived. The two looked at one another and back at Rama, and Lakshmana grew angrier by the second as he stared at the pitiful sight. "Rama!!!" he boomed. "Get up! Right this instant! I have brought someone to help us find Sita."

Rama barely looked in Lakshmana's direction, only slightly acknowledging his presence as the last word fell upon his ears. Rama's blank stare seemed to be fixated just behind Kamadeva. Following the path of Rama's gaze, Kamadeva noticed a lotus, not far off in the distance. The god hovered above Rama's ear, gently prodding him for some form of words that might elucidate the great meaning of this flower. 

"What are you staring so intently at?" Kamadeva asked.

"I'm not sure..." Rama answered. "Nothing seems to be in focus. But I cannot seem to tear my eyes away..." 

"Start with a color that you see. Keep it in mind clearly and focus on only that color. Once you find that the color is sharp, begin to outline the shape that defines that color until you have an image clearly planted in your mind."

Rama struggled with the task for a few minutes, finding a color only to lose its sharpness moments later or run into other colors once the shape was defined and lose the overall image. Finally, he settled on a golden yellow that grew longer as it grew sharper and finally transformed itself into the pistil of the lotus in the distance.

"Now what do you see?" Kamadeva could sense the epiphany within Rama waiting to strike.

After several moments of deliberation, Rama's eyes widened. "Sita." 

"Go and bring her back. Her love for you is strong. She has been clever enough to elude all of Ravana's tricks. Only the magnitude of her loyalty to you could rival her beauty. Focus on only her as you complete your journey. You will find what you must."

And with that, Kamadeva disappeared back into the forest and Rama and Lakshmana set out on their quest to find Sita. Before sunset that same day, Rama had slain Ravana and his various guards, finding Sita waiting for him patiently. 

Bibliography:

Narayan's Ramayana Guide (Web Source)

Narayan's Mahabharata Guide (Web Source)

Kamadeva Wikipedia Article (Web Source)

Communication Breakdown: The Story of Ahalya and Gautama (Amended)

Author's Note: The original source that inspired this story comes from the Ramayana, in which the story of Ahalya and Gautama is shared as background to one of Rama's encounters while on his way to Mithila. The story is one of deception and misunderstanding. Gautama, a sage and Ahalya's caretaker while she grows up, is granted her hand in marriage by Brahma, who made her to be exceptionally beautiful. However, Indra lusts after Ahalya. So, after Gautama leaves one morning, Indra changes his form to Gautama's and then seduces Ahalya. When Gautama returns, he finds the two together in bed and curses Indra to be covered in a 1000 female genitalia (later this is changed to a 1000 eyes) and turns Ahalya to stone. I changed the fate of Ahalya to include a counseling session between her and Gautama with Parvati, the goddess of love, devotion, and destruction. Parvati has her own experiences that make her particularly qualified to bring Gautama around to hearing Ahalya out.

The Story of Ahalya and Gautama (Amended)

Gautama burst into his room, seeing Ahalya, clearly shaken, and a cat attempting to exit the scene. The cat was Indra, the god of the heavens who had lusted after Ahalya for some time and had changed his form to her husband's form (Gautama's form) in order to finally succeed in seducing her. Gautama understood what had happened and immediately cursed Indra, causing him to be covered with a 1000 female genitalia. Just as he was about to lose his temper with Ahalya and turn her to stone, Parvati appeared to the couple and urged them to meditate away from one another until Gautama had calmed down and then discuss the situation.

Ahalya, terrified by the anger her husband had displayed, implored Parvati to mediate their discussion and provide them with guidance as they worked out the issue. Parvati, having been a part of many difficult discussions and engaging in plenty of frustrating situations with her own husband, Shiva, was understanding and promised to stay and guide the couple in their discussion with the goal of leading them to an understanding of what transpired, rather than letting their emotions take hold and destroy their relationship.

Ahalya by Raja Ravi Varma (Wikimedia Commons)

After meditating for the majority of the day, Gautama was ready to discuss the matter with Ahalya, only requiring that he was allowed to discuss his feelings about what he had seen first, and then letting Ahalya share her side of the story. The terms were agreed to and Parvati led the two in their discussion.

"When I saw you there with Indra, I felt completely shattered. It was as though I was being broken into a 1000 pieces as I cursed him to be covered with a 1000....well, maybe I could have handled that differently, but I nearly turned you to stone and if Parvati had not shown up when she did, I probably would have." Gautama seemed very disturbed, although considerably less angry than he had been earlier that day. 

"Ahalya, tell Gautama what you were telling me earlier. I know you are nervous, but surely you can see your husband was angry because he cares about you deeply. You two have a strong bond that is not so easily broken and if you are able to open up and discuss this, you will only become stronger." Parvati encouraged Ahalya who was still worried by her husband's temper.

"Gautama, he came to me in your form. I thought it was you until a moment before you burst into the room. I am so sorry, for I can only imagine how hurt you are, but please consider how hurt I am. I was deceived by Indra, and once I realized what was happening, he had already overcome me. You cannot imagine the fear and relief I felt when I saw you come through that door. I needed you more than ever in that moment, even in all your anger. If you can find a way to just see this from my view and imagine how terrified and disturbed I was, I know you'll find a way to forgive me. I promise you that I love you and only you." Ahalya began to tear up, saddened by the thought of Gautama no longer loving her in the wake of such a devastating event, as well as the thoughts of what Gautama was feeling. Seeing his wife cry, Gautama himself began to tear up and moved across the room to embrace her. 

"Recovering from this will be extraordinarily difficult, but if you two continue to communicate, I know you will be able to overcome this." With that, Parvati left the couple to pick up the pieces and begin the healing process.

Shiva and Parvati in British Museum (Wikimedia Commons)

Bibliography:

Narayan's Ramayana (Web Source)

Tales of Ancient India by Edmund Cox (Web Source)

Interpretation on The Wolf and the Lamb Story

The Wolf and the Lamb Story- Continued

Author's Note: The original source for this story was from Aesop's Fable, The Wolf and the Lamb. In the original story, the wolf devours the lamb because he is able to come up with an excuse to distract the lamb and buy himself time to attack her. My version picks up where the original version left off, but shows the critical flaw of the wolf, pride, and how the other lamb is able to use this to her advantage. I chose to give the story a different ending because it demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of the wolf, resulting in a more complete picture.

"Any excuse will serve a tyrant." A lamb peered out from behind the bushes lining the river just in time to hear her friend's last words and watch the grisly execution. Shaken by the scene, she took a couple steps backward and turned to run. In her haste, the lamb stepped on a twig, alerting the wolf of her presence. A devious grin spread across the wolf's face as he left his spoils to pursue a new victim.

"What luck!", he thought, approaching the lamb, now frozen to her spot. He had hoped to save the other lamb to eat throughout the day, but he had certainly not bargained for another one. With this lamb frozen to the spot, he thought she would be an easy meal. The wolf approached the lamb, who was now backing away slowly.

(Wolf approaching second lamb- Wikimedia Commons)

"Were you the one that dirtied my drinking water?", the wolf asked, continuing to approach the lamb.

"It appears that you ruined your own drinking water, wolf. Look at the mess of blood you have spilled into the spring. And what a shame, you left my friend unattended and now the coyotes have come to lay claim to your dinner." Sure enough, the wolf looked back at the spring to see several coyotes devouring the lamb he had just killed. In a fit of rage he barked at the coyotes that they would pay for taking what was his.

The lamb took this opportunity to run from the scene, narrowly avoiding severe injury by running around a large hole to get to the edge of the forest. The wolf came barrelling through the trees, his pride wounded by the loss of his first meal and the idea of losing his second.

"I'm not done with you! You think I didn't hear what you said about me?" The wolf was becoming desperate as he searched for some excuse to distract the lamb.

"What did I say about you? That your own foolish pride was what caused your destruction? Well that doesn't seem right. How could I have said something about you long before this, when it has only just happened?"

And with that, the wolf ran straight into the hole, meeting his untimely end.

Bibliography. "The Wolf and the Lamb" from The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs. Web Source.