Mariah's Indian Epics Blog

Durga Puja Image Link Hanuman As we know already Hanuman is a devotee of Lord Rama. He appears in the Ramayana and Mahabharata and has evolved through stories over time. Hanuman has gained much popularity since the medieval times and is thought to be the perfect combination of shakti and bhakti. Hanuman may make an appearance in my storybook so I wanted to look into his background. Ramlila Ramlila refers to the dramatic live reenactments of the story of Rama. Normally performed in an open air theater at night, the audience is encouraged to participate alongside the actors. Declared by UNESCO as an 'intangible cultural heritage of humanity' for its ability to bring people of all backgrounds together. When reading Hanuman's Wikipedia I came across this festival as he is often portrayed with extravagance. Navaratri Navaratri is a 9 day Hindu festival that usually celebrates the goddess Durga. The 2 to 4 times a year event includes public celebrations using classi...

Varanasi, India Image Link Chipko Movement For my storybook I will be focusing on important symbols from the environment. This was an article recommended to me by Laura so I thought I'd share what I've learned from the little bit of research I have done. The Chipko movement began in 1973 with the intent of slowing deforestation. It is widely known today that environmental destruction has a disproportionate negative impact on women so it is very interesting that women were the driving force behind the deforestation protests back in the 1970's. The women and villagers of this movement helped inspire many more in the quest to protect their natural environment. Prosopis cineraria The attempts at saving this type of tree in the 1700s was a major inspiration to the Chipko movement over 200 years later. This tree is worshipped by the Hindus during the Dasahra festival. The tree also makes an appearance in the Mahabharata when the Pandavas place their...