Mariah's Indian Epics Blog

Banyan Tree Image Source Research and background for the next entry in my storybook. This information is for the Banyan tree and Krishna. Link 1 This website talks about the ancient meaning and uses surrounding the tree. Generally planted in front of temples of Krishna or Shiva When the leaves rustle the deities living in the tree are the cause The botanical embodiment of the universal soul Provides fulfillment of wishes and other material gains Symbolizes longevity and Trimurti Vishnu is the bark. Brahma is the roots Shiva is the branches Link 2 The site talks mainly about a specific holy tree but it has other good general information and talks about Krishna's role a bit. Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita before the battle in the Mahabharata by the Banyan Krishna says "there is a banyan tree which has its roots upwards and its branches down, and the Vedic hymns are its leaves. One who knows this tree is the knower of the Vedas." The Vedas...

Krishna and Radha Image Source Notes: Brahma stops by and wonders why Krishna can be such a good guy; Krishna is so confident in his own divinity that he can prank Brahma Not sure how 'kindness is the ultimate strength' came up when Krishna was trying to ride a cow Krishna learns the truth of his birth; is told he cannot marry Radha Vrindavan villagers do not want Krishna to leave them; Krishna has to talk to them like they were his children, reminding them why he has to leave with Balram Akrur sees Vishnu in Krishna The brothers make all kinds of friends in Mathura; almost forgot that Kamsa is Krishna's uncle This arena Krishna and Balram are in is very ancient Greece I think it would be nice to read a story about a normal person in India. It's almost not impressive to me that Krishna could lift the divine bow because I have no one to compare him to but all the other great figures I've read about. Krishna and Balram defeat Kamsa Ugrasen was made th...

Krishna being a trouble maker Image Source Notes:  8th incarnation of Vishnu (If Vishnu is in an incarnation is he also still with the other gods?) Vasudev took Vishnu when the entire Mathura was asleep Yashoda's daughter Maya was switched out with Vasudev's son Durga appeared out of the child Maya and tells Kamsa that his fate still awaits him Everyone loves Krishna and they come from far to visit him Putana is a demon sent by Kamsa to kill Krishna, and Kamsa will continue sending demons after Krishna; even baby Krishna is able to defeat evil Krishna was a trouble maker child in the village Krishna holds the universe inside him; Brahmand If anyone was in doubt before they know for certain now that Krishna is an avatar I need Krishna to come to Oklahoma to kill the tornados Even Indra recognizes Krishna (But why did Indra not know Krishna is Vishnu?) Radha and Krishna are childhood sweethearts Bibliography: Epified, Krishna, Source

Marble Image Link Story: In New York City, Marble was the son of an important figure in the entertainment industry. Marble looked up to his father and aspired to be exactly like him. When Marble wasn't accepted into his dream university he was devastated. He thought in that moment he would never be as great as his father, but Marble thought to turn this slight misstep into an opportunity. Instead of becoming just like his father, Marble was determined to become the greatest in his own field. He sought out the legendary modeling guru Benjamin. Benjamin was uninterested in teaching Marble his ways though and sent him off. Undeterred once again, Marble decided to learn from Benjamin by doing what everyone else does. Starting with his Wikipedia page and reading through interviews and company reports, Marble quickly learned what it would take to become a modeling executive through self study.  One day some of Benjamin's interns were trying to get in touch with an up and c...

An Archer like Arjun or Ekalavya Image Link Notes: Durwasa likes to curse people for petty reasons but Kunti is unafraid of him. He gives her a gift that allows her to summon any god. The sun god Surya visits Kunti and she has a child. Kunti has to give him up. When Pandu is cursed by a hermit and cannot have kids, Kunti shares the information that she can summon gods and have their children. Kunti takes the sons back home to Hastinapur after Pandu and his other wife die. The creation of Gandhari's children is very strange and helps shed light on why they were always set out on destruction and revenge. Bheem ends up at the serpent king's home where he is bestowed with gifts. He also decides that it is time to grow up and face the dangers the future has for him. Bhishma is the grandfather to all the boys. Drona becomes the war teacher, Arjun was the perfect warrior. Ekalavya became the worlds best archer just because of his willingness to learn. Drona has him cut ...

Bhishma gives his oath Image Link Notes: King Shantanu marries Ganga and the kingdom lives in relative bliss. Ganga begins to drown her children as a condition of past arrangements. Ganga leaves with the 8th son after Shantanu confronts her. Ganga returns years later with their son Devavrata. Time passed as it always does. Shantanu wants to marry Satyavati but her dad doesn't approve because Devavrat's children will be heirs and not Satyavati's. Devavrata becomes Bhishma after he vows to never have an heir so that Satyavati can marry his father Shantanu. Shantanu is not very happy with Bhishma but grants him the ability to decide when he will die as a gift for his sacrifice. Parshuram fights Bhishma because he will not marry Amba. Another situation that doesn't make a lot of sense when you think about it. Bhishma reminds me of a cool uncle that seems to know a lot but no one really knows why. So many characters being introduced at once is challenging. Wh...

At the time of this posting there are only 65 days until graduation.  Image Link 1. So far I am definitely happy with how the class is going. The beginning of each week starts stressful because of the to-do list but once I get started working it's all manageable. Monday and Wednesday have the biggest chunks of uninterrupted time to get the assignments done. I think this helps me get as much finished during the week and not wait for the weekend. I enjoy the reading, even if it takes me much longer than the estimate to complete. The Wikipedia trail extra credit is my favorite. I learn a lot of random stuff that I'm sure will help me win trivia. My storybook website is a source of pride for me. It's much better in my opinion than my blog site. 2. There's not much I feel the need to change significantly as the semester progresses. I'd like to manage my time a little better just so I can finish more extra credit assignments each week. I am worried about my futu...

 Feedback Cat Image Link 1. The quality of comments have been good and generally helpful. The ones I've found to be most useful include specific feedback. When there is a vague suggestion I'm not sure what is being recommended so I don't usually do anything different. 2. I hope my feedback has been helpful. It is a little stressful for me to give feedback, I'm pretty sensitive to what I receive and don't want to offend anyone that I think I'm helping. I probably overthink the comments I'm giving out. Using guidelines like WWW are useful for me, just so I keep my feedback concise. 3. I haven't really felt connected through comments and feedback; there are a lot of people in this course. I sometimes am given a post from someone I've previously interacted with but that's about the only time I feel like I'm getting to know people. 4. It's more helpful for me to receive concise feedback so I want to keep working on giving concise...

Mango Tree Image Link The image above heads my first work in my storybook. I searched for a good image for a while before I finally found this one. It includes the fruit, flowers, and leaves that I talk about in my story and leaves a really nice visual for the reader.  So far in the semester I am pleased with the progress I have made. I still struggle enough with story writing that I tend to procrastinate getting started on that assignment. What I've seen from myself is that I enjoyed writing more in the beginning of the semester and now my creativity has faded.  Otherwise I think it's going good. I am particularly happy with my first story in my storybook. I just sat down and wrote the whole thing in one go, keeping it relatively painless. The readings are easy enough to understand, especially with a second read through. I'm not sure why but I picked up on the first half of the Mahabharata really quick. That was a nice change from the Ramayana which required q...