Reading Notes: The Mahabharata part C

These reading notes come from a public domain edition of Mahabharata, which contains the story of Riddles at the Lake

In Riddles of the lake, the pandava brothers go looking for water during their exile. Upon seeing a pond far off, the brothers send Nakula, then Sahadeva, then Arjuna, and then Bhima to go scout it out. When they arrive, they hear a voice as if from nowhere which says they must answer questions before they drink the water. However, none of the three heed the warning, and each of them dies after drinking from the pond. Finally, Yudhishthira comes looking for the three and finds the three bodies around the pond. He breaks down in sadness, but also hears the voice, which again tells him he must answer riddles before drinking the water. Yudhishthira responds to the voice, asking who it is. The voice identifies itself as a yaksha. Then, as the voice asks questions, he answers the riddles one by one. Finally, finishing the riddles, the Yaksha reveals itself as Dharma, the god of wisdom. He embraces Yudhishthira, who is his son, and they revel together. Then Yudhishthira asks that his friends be restored to life.

This story reminds me a lot of stories about sphinxes, which are often interpreted as asking unfortunate souls difficult riddles. It could be neat to incorporate this creature into the tale.

Image Information:

Sphinx - Wikipedia

Reading Notes: The Mahabharata part B

These reading notes come from a public domain edition of Mahabharata, which contains the story of Bhima and Hidimbi

I tend to avoid describing battles too often. When I was younger, I thought they made for the most interesting writing, but having aged a bit I find that it can be distasteful if the only content to a story is fighting. That being said, I want to write about Bhima's fight with Hidimba.

In the story, Hidimba is a rakshasa who lives in a forrest and likes to eat people. When the Pandavas brothers come to the forrest, he smells them, and wants to eat them. He sends his sister, Hidimbi, to find them, but when she does, she see's Bhima and falls immediately in love. Instead of bringing the humans back to her brother, she declares her love for Bhima. After growing impatient, Hidimba comes to kill the humans himself. Bhima drags him off into the heart of the forrest to fight him, intending to take the fight away from his sleeping brothers so they wouldn't wake. But they do, so that was unfortunate... Arjuna mentions that the demon will get stronger in the sunlight. This sends Bhima into a rage, and he becomes very strong. He grabs the demon by the hair and the waist and breaks the demon's back over his knee.


One of the reasons I liked the (short) description of this fight was that Bhima was using his bare hands to fight a supernatural creature which should be able to beat him. This reminded me very much of Beowulf, one of my favorite epics of all time. In Beowulf, the protagonist hears about a monster named Grendel who has been eating warriors in a kingdom. Beowulf decides to fight the creature unarmed (and in the story, naked) and tears the monster's arm off with his bare strength. I thought this might bring me some inspiration in my descriptions.

Image Info:

Beowulf and Grendel - Deviant Art

Week 6 Storytelling: The Ten Minute Tournament

This story is based off of a public domain edition of Mahabharata, which contains the story of Bhishma at the Swayamvara.




Shalwa stirred in his armor, adjusting the shoulder plates to rest flat on top of him. He had fought in 4 wars, each of which lasted more than two years, but even after spending that much time in his armor, it still felt uncomfortable. He loosened the straps on his greaves, but as he did so they flopped loosely against his shins.

The heat certainly didn’t help the matter either. Hundreds of princes and kings had gathered for the princesses’ swayamvaras, and they had spent the last 4 hours gathering in front of the king’s palace, waiting for the commencement. Shalwa had been here just as long as any other prince, and already he could see heat waves rippling off of the metal plates. The sun was unrelenting; it was almost midday, and it would only get hotter from here. He wiped the sweat from his brow. 

Shalwa had come for the hand of a princess, as everyone else had, though he knew which one would choose him. He had met Amba, the eldest princess, two years ago, and in secrecy, they had sworn oaths of marriage. “You know my father won’t approve of you. He has gone past wanting me to be happy, he only wants the best things in the world for me,” she had told him. “I don’t care if your kingdom is small, or your palace poor, I want to be with you. Thankfully, my sisters agreed to a swayamvara by combat; we will be betrothed to the three winners of a great tournament. You must tell no one, and more importantly, you must win.”

Shalwa obeyed his beloved’s command, and told no one of the tournament, but it was less than a month later that he began hearing murmurs of King Benares’s planned announcement. Five months passed, and even the common folk were speaking of a tournament. He wasn’t surprised this morning when all the kings and princes arrived clad in armor.

Shalwa began sharpening his sword, but on the third stroke, the commotion of armored nobles began to hush. As he stood up, Shalwa could see King Benares standing at the top of the palace stairs. The murmurs fell to utter silence, and his voice boomed over the crowd. “Kings! Princes! Nobleman from faraway lands! I welcome you to my daughters’ swayamvaras!” The crowd erupted into a loud applause. “My daughters have all agreed. In a husband, they want not the richest of kings, not the most handsome of men, but the most valiant of warriors! And thus, starting today, we will be hosting a great tournament for my lovely daughters’ hands in marriage!” The crowd erupted once more, but this time, each contestant yelled out his best battle cry.

As the crowd quieted, the king continued. “The brackets will –”

“My apologies, grand king, but I will determine the rules.” The voice was quieter than the king’s, but Shalwa could still hear it. Shalwa’s eyes darted to a smaller figure ascending the base of the palace steps.

As Shalwa laid eyes on the man, a chill went down his spine. The man’s hair was jet black and long, falling to his waist. His moustache and beard were just as long and swayed in the wind like silk. He wore nothing on his torso and loosely fit black pants on his legs. His shadow clung to his skin unnaturally, but never touched the ground. When he turned his eyes to the crowd, they were a shining green. In his hand he held a bow which took the shape of many black and green snakes. When Shalwa looked at it, he swore the snakes moved, and in the back of his mind, he heard them hiss.

The man took the bow, and with the fang of one of the snakes, he drew a fine line in the sand. This time he yelled so that the whole crowd could hear him. “My name is Bhishma, and I will be making the rules! Anyone who crosses this line wins. If no one crosses, I win, and I take the princesses.” The king was standing behind the man with his mouth hanging open. Before the king said anything, a great beast of a warrior began yelling from the crowd. He pushed the other kings out of his way and ran at Bhishma. Like lightning, Bhishma drew his bow and fired an arrow straight through the warrior’s armor. Where it landed, shadowy snakes erupted from the man’s skin and bit his face. He howled in pain for a moment and then fell silent.

“Will there be any other contenders?” Many kings glanced meekly at each other. King Benares mouth still hung open, but his face had changed from confusion to fear. The palace guards, just as taken aback as the king, had failed to act, but now they charged in unison at Bhishma, spears pointed at his heart. Bhishma spun around, his hands a blur of shadows, and barraged the guards with arrows. Not a single one missed, and all the king’s guards fell dead.

Yet just as the arrows plunged into the guards, one grand king, clad in gold and iron, yelled out to the rest of the kings, “today we fight not for the hands of the princesses, but to end this man’s life!” And with that, he and an army of armored kings screamed and charged forward. Shalwa grabbed his freshly sharpened blade, and charged with them, eager to cross Bhishma’s line in the dirt.

But Shalwa never reached the line. He reached a pile of kings lain out before the line, 6 feet tall, each with many arrows plunged into his armor. Some kings were climbing the pile, swords in hand, and crying battle cries, but many, like Shalwa, reached the pile and stopped. Shalwa closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and turned around. He stripped his armor right then and there, and walked to the city gate.





Author's Note: This is based off the story of Bhishma and the Swayamvara. In the story, Bhishma is not portrayed as a "bad guy," he is actually one of the protagonists. He has sworn an oath never to be king, and therefore tries to help his half brother rule the kingdom. Thus, Bhishma goes to a Swayamvara to take three princesses to make the wives of his half brother. When Bhishma arrives, King Benares announces a tournament, but Bhishma instead kidnaps the princesses, draws a line in the ground, and kills every king who tries to cross (and a number of small armies in the process.) Functionally, I didn't change the story's plot, only the point of view. Also, Bhishma isn't a dark sorcerer in the original story, only a fantastic archer. Shalwa isn't even revealed until later, but he was at the tournament, he didn't fight Bhishma, and he was secretly betrothed to Amba. Also, although this is an Indian epic, I had trouble imagining a tournament of armored men and not imagining european style equipment, so many descriptions will reflect that.



Image Info
Shalwa Clad in Armor - Deviant Art

Reading Notes: The Mahabharata part A

These reading notes come from a public domain edition of Mahabharata, which contains the story of Bhishma at the Swayamvara.



Bhishma was the son of the goddess Ganga and the great king Shantanu. But after swearing he would never rule, one of Shantanu’s other two sons would have to become king upon Shantanu’s deathbed. And so, after making Vichitravirya king, he planned to find him a wife (or wives as the case would be.) He set out to the city of king Benares, who had three daughters – Amba, Ambika, and Ambakika. They were all very beautiful. They announced that they wished to marry a brave warrior, so their Swayamvara was set to find the bravest knight. One of the daughters, the eldest Amba, was secretly betrothed to Shalwa. She was certain that Shalwa would win due to his faith and love for her. But Bhishma came to the city and, with all the kings around him, walked straight up to the girls. He said that he had seized the maidens, and anyone who wanted them should come and claim them from him. But for all the kings and princes that attacked him, he killed them all with his bow. This included horses, elephants, and a number of kings. Eventually, his enemies stopped coming, and Bhishma took the princesses back home to Hastinapura.

Image Information

The Oath for which Devavrata became known as Bhisha - wikimedia

Week 5 Story: Love at First Sight

This writing is based from Sita Daughter of the Earth, written by Saraswati Nagpal. I accessed this graphic novel in OU's Bizzell Library reserves.

The city gates of Videha towered over Rama and his brother as they entered the kingdom. The sandstone archway stood seventy feet tall, and the iron doors shone brightly in the sunlight. The doorway itself could fit twelve men standing shoulder to shoulder; today, the gate was getting its full use. It was the morning, but the sun was already beating on the Ayodhyan princes’ skin.

Inside the city, the markets were as busy as ever. Rama looked around the crowds of people; many of them were wearing expensive silks which glistened in the sunlight. “This city looks very wealthy,” Rama whispered to his brother, Lakshmana. But his sage, Viswamithra, turned his head at the statement.

“The city is very wealthy, but what you are seeing are many princes, not common folk.”

Rama looked at one of the princes near him. The prince was dressed head to toe in lapis blue silks, with a golden crown and necklace, and rings on most of his fingers. Many servants cheerfully bustled about him, describing the multitude of items for sale in the city markets. Rama remembered dressing like that months ago. Such garb was not meant for battle, especially not against rakshasas. “Viswamithra, why are there so many princes visiting the city?”

“The king’s daughter’s swayamvara is tomorrow morning. Rumor has it she is very beautiful.” At this, the sage looked at Rama over his shoulder and smirked. “Some even say her beauty must be divine.” His words trailed off as he turned back, and he continued walking.

“Is that why we’re here?” Lakshmana asked. His father had told the two princes before their journey that it would soon be time for them to find wives.

“No, no, of course not. We’re just here for supplies.” Rama heard something in the sage’s voice, but chose to ignore it. Viswamithra was inherently cryptic: if he hid any wisdom in his tone of voice, Rama would not soon discover it.

As he talked and walked, Viswamithra’s shoulder bumped up against a figure next to him. “Oh, excuse me miss,” he said gently. As the girl’s head turned, her eyes locked not on Viswamithra, but with Rama’s own eyes. He stared into the girl’s eyes, and her beauty entranced him; her eyes were greener than the jungle and enveloped him like the ocean. No matter how Rama tried, he couldn’t look away from her; it wasn’t that he wished to and couldn’t, but that he never wanted to look anywhere else. Even as he looked at her, she looked back, and her eyes widened at the sight of him. In that moment, Rama spent an eternity. And just as eternal as that moment was, so too was it fleeting. When it passed, Rama was thrown back into the normality of life, the girl was lost in the crowd, and his brother and sage were walking down the streets of the market.

The day was spent gathering supplies for the journeys to come, but Rama’s night was restless. In the beginning of his journey, Rama’s dreams were plagued by the rakshasas he had fought, but tonight he couldn’t even picture a rakshasa. He could only imagine the girl, and the look in her eyes. The image of her kept him up most of the night, and even after he found sleep, his dreams were filled with her.

Rama awoke to the prods of Viswamithra. “Wake up Rama. You’ve slept away most of the day. We need to get moving, and before we do leave, I want to see the princess’s swayamvara. You won’t believe what the king has in store for those princes.” He prodded Rama once more before departing.

The old sage and the princes of Ayodhya walked the market streets once more, but this morning those same market stalls were empty. Although thunderous sound roared from far across the city, the streets around them were silent. They walked without speaking, and with every step, the uproar of the crowd grew louder.

“Make way for princes!” Viswamithra shouted as he pushed spectators aside with his walking stick. The entire city (and many from outside it) had gathered to look upon the princes. If their garb had been flashy the day before, they shone like stars today; most of each of their bodies were covered in gold from head to toe, with great capes flowing behind them. But already, many looked defeated. When they finally found a good place to spectate, Viswamithra told the boys, “King Janaka stated many years ago that only a man who could string his family’s bow could marry his daughter. Little do these princes know it was once the bow of the god Shiva. It would take a miracle to string it.”

Even as Viswamithra spoke, Rama could see a prince grabbing the giant bow. But flex as he might, the bow wouldn’t even lift from its resting place. Around him were many other princes; most of them looked both defeated and exhausted. Looking further, he saw the king, Janaka, and sitting next to him was –

Rama’s heart skipped a beat, and then one beat more. The same green eyes from the day before met his. At first, the princess’s eyes showed hopelessness, but as the moment lingered, they became excited. Without breaking his gaze, Rama pushed his pack into his brother’s hands. He walked up to Shiva’s bow as the last prince walked away. Rama lifted it and began to bring the string to the opposite tip. But before the string ever reached it, the bow split in half, straight down the middle. As it split, a crack like thunder rang out, and the crowd fell silent. Rama walked up the stairs of the thrown of the king, his footsteps echoing among the people. His eyes still held the princess’s gaze. Her mouth revealed a simple smile, but her eyes were beaming.

Back in the crowd, Lakshmana stood with his mouth agape, and Viswamithra chuckled to himself. “Divine indeed.”

Author’s Note: this story is based on Sita, Daughter of the Earth, which itself is based on the Ramayana. Both of those tell stories of Sita and Rama meeting; as Sita and Rama are both incarnations of gods who were in love, their love, even in human form, is very powerful from the moment they see each other. In Sita, Daughter of the Earth, Sita hears of Rama before he even arrives in the city and immediately falls in love. She secretly hopes he will come to her swayamvara and string the bow. Then he does, and the bow breaks, and they get married. I thought this was surprisingly unromantic; while I find the theme of “godly love trapped in mortals” to make for an incredible romance, it makes more sense for that love to be triggered by sight than by hearing stories of a prince who slays demons (which is how he was described to Sita in the graphic novel.) Ultimately, this writing follows the story more closely to the Ramayana.  

Image Information

Market Place - deviant art

Reading Notes: Ravana, Roar of the Demon King

The notes are taken by Ravana, Roar of the Demon King, a graphic novel written by Abhimanyu Singh Sisodia, with art by Sachin Nagar. I checked this out of OU's Bizzell library, where it is on reserve.


This story tells the origin of Ravana, and then lines up mostly well with the Ramayama. Dashanada (Ravana's birth name) was born of the daughter of Sumali. Sumali was the king of the daityas, and a rakshasa. He convinced his daughter to marry Vishrava, who was born of the mind (and a son of Brahma). His siblings were named Vibhishana, Meenakshi (who would be named Shoorpanaka for her nails) and Kumbhakarana. While his grandfather taught him violence, his father taught him peace and great teachings. Additionally, he learned to play the Veena at his father’s request. His grandfather told him and his brothers to pray to Brahma and ask him for power over others. After cutting off his own head 9 times, Brahma appeared and granted Dashanada immunity from gods and beasts, so long as he protected a potion, which he put in his navel. Kubera, the god’s treasurer, was particularly unliked by Dashanada, so Dashanada took the great city Lanka from him and opened the gates to all demons. Then he married Mandadori, daughter of the architect of all asuras. Dashanada went to the mountain that Shiva lived on with the intention of taking it to his mother, but Shiva crushed him under it. After spending years under the mountain, Dashanada gained shivas favor and the name Ravana. Shiva gave him a powerful axe that would destroy any enemy it was thrown at. After some humans killed some Rakshasas on earth, Ravana led a campaign to take over earth. Then, he raped Kubera’s son’s wife. Kubera’s son cursed him to never touch another woman without her permission. Ravana got pissed and declared war on the gods, soon taking over heaven. From here, the story follows the Ramayama.

Image Information

Ravana, from the cover of the Graphic Novel - artist's webpage