Week 10 Storytelling: Krishna's Wrath

Edit: The revised version can be found here

The legend of the demon lord Bana was known far and wide. He was a monstrous being with cruel intentions. Bana thrived off of terrorizing others and making the lives of humans unbearable. The humans from the surrounding areas had been driven off to the point where only the demon race was thriving under Bana's rule. He enjoyed many awful things. One of his favorite things was to fight in battle with those that considered themselves worthy opponents. Bana had grown to the point where he was overflowing with confidence. He had a very strong sense of entitlement and arrogance. He did not think there was one person that could even rival him in a battle. So, he did something that many would not. He begged the god Shiva to send a worthy opponent his way. 

Shiva was very reluctant to do this because Bana had no idea what was about to come his way. He granted Bana's wish, but he gave him fair warning of what was about to come. Bana ignored this warning and went about his life. He was eagerly waiting for the challenger to approach his kingdom.

The young hero Krishna would be the one to challenge the demon Bana. Krishna's sole purpose on earth was to ride the world of demons. He had been prolific at this even at a very young age. Krishna did not care for the legend of the demon Bana. Krishna knew what he was capable of and did not falter when he heard of Bana's strength. The demon had 1,000 arms that he used to wield weapons of terror. This did not phase Krishna. He was the hero of the people. He had the life-blood of Lord Vishnu running through his veins. When the time came to battle Bana, Krishna was ready. He took his discus in his hand and slashed each arm from the body of Bana. The demon could do nothing as Krishna dismantled him limb by limb. The young hero Krishna then proceeded to free the slaves of the kingdom and restore peace to those living in the realm.

(A photo of a statue of Krishna at the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago. Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Author's Note: The story that I told was a direct retelling from its source. Krishna was created from the body of Lord Vishnu. He contained the might and power of Lord Vishnu. Krishna's purpose on earth was to rid the world of the demon lord Kansa and his allies. Krishna comes across many demons during his travels and he easily defeats them. Krishna was even able to do this when he was just a toddler. This exemplifies his extraordinary strength and abilities. This specific story details Krishna and his battle with the demon lord Bana who had 1,000 arms. Bana was a very confident and boastful demon. He prayed to the god Shiva for a worthy challenger. Bana would get this wish and Krishna would come to face him. In the end, Krishna easily defeats Bana. The demon begs for forgiveness and he is spared from his foolish judgement and actions.

Bibliography: Shri Krishna of Dwarka and Other Stories, by C. A. Kincaid. Source: Blogger.

Reading Notes: Krishna, Part B

I went ahead and finished the second half of the reading for today. I really enjoyed the stories associated with Krishna. I found that the stories of his origins and adventures were the most entertaining. I plan on writing about Krishna in my storytelling this week. I took notes over what I liked the most from the chapters. 

• The battles with the demons are the most interesting to read
• The descriptions of the demon Naraka is very powerful
• It sets the tone for the chapter and highlights his strength
• I would like to emulate that form of writing
• I think it would help setup my stories a lot better if I used that much descriptive detail
• Krishna easily dismantles the fortifications of the demons
• I like how the story emphasizes how skilled and powerful Krishna is
• He then easily defeats the five headed demon hiding in the moat
• Krishna then proceeds to easily defeat the almighty Naraka
• He is very generous and frees the thousands of people being held captive
• He also gives away the wealth acquired from his victory
• The thousand arms of Bana were a cool feature
• I like how he was so devoted to what he believed
• This made him come across as a very fierce and tough demon
• His arrogance and overconfidence would prove to be his undoing
• This seems to be a common theme in a lot of these stories
• It was interesting to see Krishna show mercy on the demon king
• Bana repented for his wrong doings as soon as he realized how foolish he was
• This was definitely something that I did not expect to happen

(A kid reading a book. Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Bibliography: Shri Krishna of Dwarka and Other Stories, by C. A. Kincaid. Source: Blogger.

Reading Notes: Krishna, Part A

I decided to do the one week reading over Krishna. I was really drawn into the reading because I wanted to check out his origins and the heroic feats that he accomplished. I took notes over the couple chapters that I liked the best. 

• The origin on Krishna comes from Vishnu
• He was the black strand of hair that was born into the world as a baby boy
• I think the whole idea of sending a son to earth to rid the demon lord Kansa
• I really like the way that Kansa is somewhat taunted throughout all of this
• He rids the land of baby boys after he learns that Krishna has escaped his grasp
• It is terrifying to know that he would go to such extreme lengths to destroy the one that was promised to the people
• I found the whole eighth child thing to be a very interesting detail
• I like how Krishna was able to swap out his place in the cell
• The baby girl contained Vishnu's divine vigor and was able to slip through Kansa's grasp
• She continued to taunt him as she ascended into the heavens next to Vishnu
• The upbringing of Krishna was also really cool to read
• Even as a child Krishna managed to do incredible things
• He was able to suck the life from the demon Putana
• She had gone across the country poisoning all baby boys under the guise of a beautiful woman
• I found it interesting that she too was saved as she had nursed baby Krishna even with bad intentions
• Trinavarta was also sent to kill Krishna but would not succeeed
• I was amazed at how such a child could defeat two very powerful demons with ease
• The mischievous side of Krishna was also fun to read about
• I would possibly like to highlight that in my storytelling

I really liked the first part of the reading for this week. I will continue to think about my storytelling options moving forward. I think I have a good foundation of where to start.

(Reading a book from Pixabay)

Bibliography: Shri Krishna of Dwarka and Other Stories, by C. A. Kincaid. Source: Blogger.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part B

I continued with the reading for the second half of the week. I think it has been great so far. I really enjoy re-reading some of these stories. I think there are a lot of things that are missed when you read something the first time.

• I really enjoyed reading about the battle scenes again
• The Great Battle is going to be a lot of fun to retell
• The Kaurava vs. Pandava clash contains a lot of opportunities for me to write about
• I think the most interesting part of this chapter is Prince Arjuna's decision
• I was surprised to see such a cheap trick used in honorable battle
• Shikhandi played a very interesting and impactful role here
• I did not expect there to exist such a person in the army
• I also did not expect a hero to deceive his enemy like so
• Prince Bhishma was done in by his desire to not kill a woman
• I thought that was the end of the prince in that moment
• The bed of arrows also added a really cool effect to the story
• It emphasized just how dire and extreme the situation was
• I would like to explore what Bhishma was going through during this whole experience
• This is not detailed in the story at all
• I think it would be cool to make up my own story for what Bhishma is experiencing
• I could also explore the rest of the battle
• I will continue to ponder about my writing options for tomorrow

(A photo of books in the library. Source: Flickr)

Bibliography: The Indian Heroes: Mahabharata by C. A. Kincaid. Source: Blogspot.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part A

So, I began the one week reading of the Mahabharata. I think going through this adventure a second time will really help me understand what is going on within every story. I found that a bit difficult to do on the first read through. Again, I took notes over the story that I liked from the first part of the reading. I should be able to come up with a good story idea from this.

• I think exploring the family dynamic of the Pandavas would be really cool
• I remember taking notes over part of this reading the first time
• However, I want to create a story from this
• I would like to possibly make up stories about Pandu and his time as a prince
• I really like the events that unfold between Duryodhana and the Pandavas
• It is evident that his jealousy drives him to do and think terrible things
• I feel like there is always a deep hatred that drives people to do these things
• I think if I explored Duryodhana and told stories from his perspective it would be cool
• I believe that the escape from the palace fire has a lot of potential for a retelling
• I explored this a bit with the last time reading the story
• However, I would like to flip the script and change some events that happen here
• I know that the Pandavas escape through the secret tunnel
• It would be cool to possibly change their means of escape
• I could also change if they actually survived these events
• I think if I told the story from Duryodhana's perspective it would be really cool
• I could create an internal conflict in his mind on why he is doing these terrible things

(An assortment of books. Source: Pexels)

Bibliography: The Indian Heroes: Mahabharata by C. A. Kincaid. Source: Blogspot.

Week 8 Progress

Overall, I have been fairly happy with my progress so far. I have missed a couple of assignments that I need to do some extra credit for. I do not normally miss assignments, but sometimes that is the case. I do have a good weekly routine. I sometimes wait until late at night to do my assignments though. I enjoy the assignments for the most part. I think my favorite are probably the reading assignments. I like to read new stories, so that is why they are my favorite. I have not been utilizing the extra credit like I should be. I think that this is the main change that I want to make for the second half of the class. I want to avoid using the grace period as much as I have. I might want to try different storytelling methods for the coming weeks.

(A photo saying to get your stuff done today and not tomorrow. Source: Flickr)

Week 8 Comments and Feedback

Overall, I think I have been receiving great feedback from my classmates. I think it is always helpful to get another opinion about things. I think I find the ones with suggestions the most useful. I do not always actually change my work, but I appreciate the different ideas that are given to me. I usually try to apply them to my future work if I can. I feel like I have been leaving fairly good feedback to my peers. I try to focus on one thing every time I read a story and offer feedback. The best strategies I have found are just reading the stories multiple times through. This ensures that I have a good grasp of what the writer is trying to accomplish. I feel like I get good ideas from reading other stories. I try to remember things that I like as I move along.

I feel like I have been getting to know people fairly well from their introductions. Of course, this is only a brief intro into who they actually are. I think my intro provides a fairly good glimpse into my life. I am happy with it so far.

I think that I should take other people's suggestions more seriously for the future. This would probably help me get more out of the feedback that I receive. I should also focus on giving more reasonable feedback that people can use readily. I do not want to make any drastic changes to my blog. I think I am going to update my portfolio a bit though. I could use a better title and intro page.

(Feedback graphic. Source: Cheezburger)

I chose this image because it emphasizes that there is always more on the horizon. It is easy to get caught up in the now. We should remember that something great is always right in front of us. 

Week 8 Reading and Writing

I think that the reading assignments have been going very well for me over the course of this semester. I had a lot of practice with this last semester, so I already had a system in place that I knew worked for me. The same goes for the writing. My favorite reading so far has definitely been the Ramayana. There were so many cool stories to read and write about. I really enjoy reading about battle scenes, and I try to focus my writing on things like this. My reading notes have helped me  quite a bit. I am able to write down some key things that I like about the story. When I revisit the notes I just put them into writing. I have not done any new strategies this year. I think the system I have now works great. I am also very happy with my project. I think the portfolio option is really great for me. It allows me to add my favorite stories. My biggest accomplishment so far is probably my portfolio stories. They are refined versions of what I write about during the week.

(This is a photo of Rama fighting the demon Ravana. Source: Wikimedia Commons)

This is one of my favorite photos because it accompanies my story where Rama fights Ravana's forces. I was a huge fan of the reading, and I was able to create my own story out of it. This was definitely my favorite part of the Ramayana.

I think for the future I should just keep doing what I have been doing. It has been working very well for me so far. I might try to get more creative with my writing options. I usually prefer to stick close to the source. I sometimes create new characters, but this is few and far between. I might try to put modern elements into my future writings.

Week 7 Story Planning: The Midnight Ambush

I decided to try something different this week and write a planning post. I have not done this before, and I thought it would be cool to research a story topic more in depth. I have a lot of cool ideas for story writing next week. However, I decided to just stick with one idea and run with it for now. It could change next week.

The attack of the Pandavan camp came as a real surprise to me the first time that I read the story. I was not expecting something of this nature to occur because I was certain that the Pandavan's would not experience an act as egregious as this. It was a cowardly attack that took place in the dead of the night while the Pandavan camp was asleep. This definitely took me back to the time Rama ambushed a foe to reclaim the monkey kingdom. The circumstances, of course, were definitely different. However, I think the act was done so in a very shady and cowardly manner. It did not come as a shock to me later when Ashwatthama was later forced to give up his gem. I knew that he would get what was coming to him in due time. I noticed that the actual combat is not described in the story at all. There might not be much combat to begin with. However, I would like to expand upon what is already there. I also noticed that this attack has a lot of impact on the future. I think I should touch on just how impactful the acts Ashwatthama committed were. I decided to expand my knowledge on Ashwatthama, so I did some research.

I used Wikipedia as my main source. Ashwatthama is actually considered to be an avatar of one of the Rudras. He is also an avatar of the Chiranjivi. It is interesting to note just how powerful the gem in his head was. It gave Ashwatthama the power over many different kinds of beings except humans. This gem protected him from a lot of earthly desires and necessities like thirst. What I found most interesting is that Ashwatthama is considered to be like Shiva himself. He has the ability to hone his strengths and become a Shiva like being while in battle. So, it is almost impossible to  defeat him while he is enraged and in battle. I also did some research on the Narayanastra. This is the weapon this Ashwatthama uses to defeat the Pandavan forces. It is actually the weapon belonging to Vishnu while he is in another form. It is such a powerful weapon that it brings about total destruction or the target surrenders. I think it would be cool to incorporate its ability into my story. I got my information from Wikipedia.

Overall, there is a lot of detail that I came across while doing my research. I think this is an important step in the story writing process. I may not use all of the information that I came across in my story. However, it gives me a far better understanding of what I am writing about.

(A photo of Ashwatthama losing his gem. Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Bibliography: Public Domain Edition Mahabharata, from Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie. Source: PDE

The Narayanastra information came from Wikipedia.

The Ashwatthama information came from Wikipedia.

Reading Notes: Mahabharata, Part D

I finished up the reading for the fourth part today. I continued to enjoy these stories and the uniqueness that they have to offer. I took notes over the sections that I liked the most. I tend to gravitate towards stories that involve battle, so that is what I did.

• The attack on the Pandavans was very surprising to see
• Ashwatthaman bravely marched forward to the camp
• He was unfazed and determined to reach his goal
• This made me think of Rama's ambush
• The circumstances are obviously different
• This attack in the night was vicious and driven by hate
• I did not expect to see such an act take place
• I think the fact that he attacked the camp at night says a lot about his state of mind
• I think it is very cowardly to go after someone while they sleep
• There are a lot of other ways Ashwatthaman could have attacked
• Attacking someone while they sleep is definitely the most cowardly way
• The interaction with Shiva was also interesting
• I think there are a lot of cool things I could write about from this ambush
• The actual violent scenes are not included in the writing
• It would be fun to go into a scene like that
• I could possibly change the events that take place

I think it would be really fun to write about the night raid ambush. I am thinking about changing how the events take place. It might be interesting to change the outcome of the night raid.

(A photo of a book and glasses. Source: Pixabay)

Bibliography: Public Domain Edition Mahabharata, from Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie. Source: PDE