1. Possible Topic: Sita’s Life. Sita has captured my attention since before I even knew who she was and what story she came from. Most of it came from the pictures I have seen, and now that I am half way through the PDE Ramayana, I understand why I was so fascinated.
Research so far. Reading the Ramayana has been my largest source of research thus far. I have also browsed the Wikipedia page on her to find out more about her life. I could write about her birth, marriage, and exile as the three parts to the storybook. I had to tread carefully through this page, as I did not want to spoil the end of the Ramayana for myself! I looked at multiple Storybooks for Sita (she is quite popular) and they gave me more ideas.
2. Possible Topic: Magical Weapons. I think it would make a great storybook to write various stories on the celestial weapons that appear in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. Some options include giving some weapons a personality; making some silly, others serious.
Research so far. I have read of some of these weapons appearing to Rama in the Ramayana, but I know there are many “magical” weapons that appear in Hindu storytelling. I found a really cool Wikipedia article on celestial weapons in the Hindu culture.
3. Possible Topic: Gods of Trimurti. Another possible storytelling option is three of the Gods that are a part of the Trimurti, the name of the three major deities in Hinduism. They are Vishnu, Shiva, and Brahma. From the Ramayana, Vishnu is the God that Rama came from, Shiva is the God whose bow was broken by Rama, and Brahma was the God who gave Ravana his boon.
Research so far. I have read multiple Wikipedia articles, and gone down a few rabbit holes trying to learn more. I learned that in the Trimurti, Brahma is the creator, Vishnu is the preserver, and Shiva is the destroyer. I believe a good storybook could come from these three Gods and three stories emulating their “titles”.
4. Possible Topic: Animal characters. I have truly enjoyed all of the animal characters that have made their way into the stories. I believe three great ones come from the Ramayana, and they are Hanuman, Sugriva, and Sampati. The three have very grand stories, and I believe they could be expanded/changed for the storybook.
Research so far. I have perused articles for all three, and I believe it is possible to make a storybook out of them. I am partial to Hanuman based on his actions in the Ramayana (epic!), but Sampati’s story of losing his wings with Jatayu and Sugriva’s battle with his brother Vali are also other great possibilities.
“Today, I think they need a good wax,” the chief caretaker told Sami.
“Yes, sir,” he responded, hiding the annoyance in his voice.
"They’re just shoes!!!" he yelled in his head, "They cannot rule a nation, a territory, a kingdom, and they sure can’t rule me!"
Like previous times he was angry about the golden shoes, he knew it would pass when the paycheck came. He knew he had a much easier job than most. Many considered him lucky, for he toiled indoors in a temperate palace with few tasks to even callous his hands. Ayodhya was, after all, one of the top five places to live in “Ramayana, Real Estate.”
He thought of his wife, Jasmine, and frowned. How could he ever complain when she was in the mill by the river. She always came home covered head to toe in flour, and she smelled of manure. It was so hard on her muscles and joints. He decided he needed to stop whining about his job.
He grabbed a new cloth, as he always did. The shoes were too precious for a used one, and he would be punished if they saw him using one. He had never met this Rama, but Sami wasn’t sure if he believed all the God-like characteristics he possessed.
He never lied? He walked away when told to go into exile? He broke a God’s bow?! Doubt it. That Sita sure was beautiful though, so he must have done something right.
Sami rubbed the shoes feverishly, but careful not to harm them. After all, they still had thirteen years on the throne, and he wanted to be there for all of it.
“I wish this job were easier,” he muttered quietly under his breath. Suddenly, his arm felt stronger. It was as if something magical had happened while he cleaned; doing the exact same thing became easier when he said so!
"It must be coincidence…" he thought to himself. "There is no way these shoes are magic, is there?" He pushed the sleeves up on his shirt and began flexing, looking at his reflection in the perfectly polished golden throne behind the shoes.
"WOW," he thought, "I could get used to this!"
"I wish I would never die!" he whispered loudly while rubbing the shoes, and then turned his back quickly to make sure no one was behind him. Coast was clear. He quickly checked the front and back of hands wide-eyed, then realized he probably wouldn't notice anything from that wish for quite some time.
"Hmmmmm," he thought, "I should have thought that through a little better." He decided to try again, but this time he would wish for something that could happen instantly.
“I wish I had more money,” he whispered next. At first, it seemed nothing happened. Then, suddenly, his brother came walking in, with an armed guard following. He had sorrow on his face, and tears in his eyes.
”Your wife…Jasmine... Sami… She…. I… They couldn’t stop it…” Sami’s brother choked out between sobs.
“Brother! Tell me!” Sami screamed.
“She was pulled into the mill, Sami, they couldn't stop it, she is gone,” he said somberly, head down.
The guard walked up in tune with the situation, as if he were going to fix it all.
“Here is wages she would have made for five years. It is the least we can do,” the guard stated.
Sami couldn’t breathe. What must he have done to deserve such a punishing karma?
From that day on, Sami swore to never wish upon the sandals again.
He lived until the end of time, unable to die, or be killed, which was a curse he would never wish on anyone.
Author's Note. This story is a tangent to Section 24 in the PDE Ramayana where Bharata put sandals on Rama’s feet, and then sent them back to Ayodhya to become the place-holder for Rama when he returns to be king. In this story, a worker in Ayodhya has to tend to the gold shoes.
The worker is not ever mentioned in any of the Ramayana, but I got the idea when Bharata said they would sit on the throne waiting for Rama. I immediately pictured them losing their shine and perfection, so it only made sense to put someone over them to tend to them. The story has no definitive place in the main story, so it gave me a lot of leeway when deciding my characters, their story, and the plot. This is the main reason I went with this one.
The image I have selected for "The Golden Shoes" is Bharata when he is putting the golden shoes on Rama before he takes them back to Ayodya. It gives the perfect symbolism of Bharata putting himself beneath Rama by saving the throne for him, because in the picture he is kneeling at Rama's feet looking up, while Rama is looking down at him.
Bibliography. This is based on Section 24 of the PDE Ramayana.
These are my notes for the second 20 sections in the PDE Ramayana (Part B, 21-40). I have made three more options for the Storytelling assignment.
The Golden Sandals
I liked the part where Bharata put sandals on Rama’s feet, then sent them back to Ayodya to become the place-holder for Rama when he returns to be king. One completely tangent story could be a servant in Ayodya that has to tend to the gold shoes. It could involve his thoughts on the idea, as well as his daily duties to the “king”. The shoes could have magical powers that he discovers in secret. Knowing this, it could be a story on what he decided to do with this celestial shoes.
The Death of Viradha
One story I found to be very exciting was the death of Viradha. He was immortal to death by war, so Rama and Lakshmana had to think outside the box to come up with a way to keep him from killing them. This portion of the story was not very long, so I could embellish with dialogue, or more description of the happenings. I might even come up with an alternate form of death for Viradha, since the entire purpose is for him to die then ascend to heaven.
The Saintly Woman
While Rama and Lakshmana were on their way to find Sita, they found a woman, Shabari, there waiting for them. If I were to use this for Storytelling, I could do a sort of prequel. In it, I could have the conversation between her and the saints, and then possibly right up until they arrived. It would be the fast-forward version of all the time she spent alone. There could be silly parts where she goes a little stir-crazy, and serious ones where she longs to die.
These are my notes for the first 20 sections in the PDE Ramayana. Below I have listed three of my favorite parts from part A that I am considering for my Storytelling post.
The Tools that Come Alive
In the morning Vishvamitra chanted powerful mantras, which caused celestial weapons to appear for Rama, and the spirits of the weapons stood before the prince with clasped hands and said, “We are thy servants, O nobly generous one. Good betide thee! Whatever thou dost desire, lo, we shall accomplish for thee!”
Said Rama, “When I have need of you, I will think of you, and then you will wait upon me.”
I really enjoyed this part. I think it would make a great story to embellish on the magical weapons that appear when needed. I could go for serious, and describe each weapon and where they are stored. I could also aim for funny, making them talking, each having their own personalities.
Then and For Ever
At that instant, Rama heard the jingle of the bangles on the lady Sita's feet, and he said, "I know of a surety that there comes hither a lady whom I shall love beyond all things else in the world." Lifting his eyes he saw Sita, the king's daughter, and they loved each other then and for ever.
I could write a more in-depth love story between Rama and Sita. It could include what she was thinking, and maybe what her nurses thought of her love at first sight.
The Wedding
The marrying of the four sisters to the four brothers stood out to me. It was clear Sita and Rama loved each other, but nothing was spoken of the other three wedded couples. I think it would be a fun idea to make a story of the women and men arguing separately about who they had to marry.
