Week 12 Extra Reading Diary: Ramayana Part 2

Ramayana

The Golden Deer was one of my favorite stories from The Ramayana. I was excited to read it again in this unit. Maricha disguises himself as a golden deer. Rama chases after the deer, and Ravana kidnaps Sita. Jatayu and Ravana fight, but Ravana wins.

In Rama's Quest for Sita, Rama searches for Sita. Rama is filled with grief because Sita is gone. Jatayu told Rama what had occurred between him and Ravana. We also learn about Hanuman and Sugriva in this story.

The story Hanuman contains the story about Hanuman going to Lanka. I enjoy that story, especially because of reading storytelling posts that others have written.

Hanuman and Surasa fighting

Rama wins the battle against Ravana in Rama Confronts Ravana.

The story comes to an end in Rama's Coronation. Rama returns home after his exile. People doubted Sita's virtue because she was captured by Ravana. Rama banished her from the kingdom. She gave birth to Lava and Kusa. 

Week 12 Reading Diary B: Bengali Folktales Part 2

Bengali Folktales

This is the second half of this unit. It contains eight stories.

The first story is A Ghostly Wife. A ghost lived near a Brahman's house. The Brahman's wife angered the ghost accidentally. The ghost nearly killed her, stole her clothes, and went to the Brahman's house. The Brahman and his mother did not notice that the woman was not his wife. They noticed that she acted differently. They sent for an exorcist. Eventually, his wife was found. I really liked this story, even though I don't understand how they didn't realize the woman wasn't his wife.

The Story of a Brahmadaitya contained more than one part. (Part 1 Part 2 Part 3) I did not find this story as interesting as the previous one.

I liked the story of The Origin of Rubies (Part 1 Part 2). I always like the stories about kings and queens and princes and princesses.

Ruby (The Origin of Rubies)

The Ghost who was Afraid of being Bagged starts out with a wife griping at her husband. He leaves to become rich. I liked this story. I found it humorous.

The last story was The Bald Wife. This story was about a man with two wives that hated each other. 

Week 12 Reading Diary A: Bengali Folktales Part 1

Bengali Folktales

There were nine stories in the first part of this unit. All of the stories in this half contain multiple parts, so they are long.

I liked the story of The Evil Eye of Sani. It had three parts. (Part 1 Part 2 Part 3) It is the story of Sani and Lakshmi. They are the goddesses of good and bad luck. This story would be too long to use for the storytelling assignment.

The next story was The Boy whom Seven Mothers Suckled. I really liked this story, and I am actually using it for my final project. It is a bit odd, but I like it! It had two parts. (Part 1 Part 2)

The next in this half was The Origin of Opium. (Part 1 Part 2 Part 3) This story was about Ganga a Rishi and a mouse. Rishi changed the mouse into many different animals, because it asked him to. Eventually the mouse was changed into a woman. She ended up drowning. People who use opium will have one quality from each of the animals that the mouse transformed into.

The last story in this unit is the story of The Ghost-Brahman. This was the shortest story of this half of the unit. It only contained one part. I was not as fond of this story.

A Mouse (The Origin of Opium)

Week 11 Extra Reading Diary: Ramayana Part 1

Ramayana

Valmiki tells us the story of The Birth of Rama. The story contains many details and really allows you to visualize the setting. As we have learned before, Dasaratha was unable to have children, so a sacrifice had to be performed. This was the Horse Sacrifice. Rama was born to Kausalya. Bharata was born to Kaikeyi. Lakshmana and Satrughna were born to Sumitra.

Next is the story of Vishwamitra, Rama's Teacher. One night, Rama saw the full moon and wanted it for his toy. No one could soothe him. Dasaratha's chief counsellor gave Rama a mirror that reflected the moon. This comforted Rama. I found this story very humorous. The boys education began at the age of five. Rama did the best. When the boys were sixteen, Vishvamitra talked Dasaratha into letting him take Rama and Lakshmana with him. Vishvamitra taught them a lot.

The story of Rama and Sita is a love story. They fell in love at first sight, and Rama broke the bow of Shiva to be able to marry her. They fell deeply and love and were married. Rama was chosen to succeed Dasaratha as king.

The story of Kaikeyi's Plot tells the story of how Bharata became king instead of Rama. Manthara was the slave of Kaikeyi. She hated Rama. She went to Kaikeyi and talked her into using her wishes to put Rama in exile and make Bharata king. King Dasaratha did as Kaikeyi wished, but he was filled with grief.

Dasaratha and Kaikeyi

The story of Rama's Exile talks about Dasaratha telling Rama about the exile, and Rama leaving with Sita and Lakshmana. 

The Death of Dasaratha occurs while Rama is in exile. He was so full of grief that it killed him.

The last story in this half of the unit was Rama and Bharata. Bharata finds out the news of his father, and that he will be king. Bharata goes to Rama, and tries to convince him to come back. Rama said he won't come back until after his exile is over.

Week 11 Reading Diary B: Twenty-Two Goblins Part 2

Twenty-Two Goblins

I enjoyed reading The Snake's Poison. The king's answer at the end was what I thought it should be.
I found the story of The Girl and the Thief very humorous.
I did not like the story of The General's Wife very much. It makes it seem like women are viewed as property, not people.
I am enjoying trying to figure out the answers to the riddles in these stories. I was wrong in the story of The Four Brothers.
I liked the story of The Old Hermit. I answered the riddle correctly for this one!
The story of Father and Son, Mother and Daughter was The Great Puzzle. It was confusing.

Mother and Daughter

Week 11 Reading Diary A: Twenty-Two Goblins Part 1

Twenty-Two Goblins

In these stories, a goblin is telling stories to a king. At the end there is a riddle that he must answer.

The story of The Three Lovers was interesting, and the answer to the riddle was one that I didn't expect.
The story of The Brave Man, the Wise Man, and the Clever Man was good, but I don't think it would be good for the storytelling post.
I liked the story of Food, Women, Cotton. It had an answer to the riddle that I did not expect.
The Three Delicate Wives story really got my attention. It was kind of strange.

I really like the aspect of the king having to answer the riddles at the ends of the stories.

The king with one of his wives

Week 10 Reading Diary B: Finishing Narayan's Mahabharata

-Krishna sees Kunti in Hastinapura and tells her about her sons. Duryodhana refuses Krishna's plea for peace.
-Krishna speaks to Karna and tries to convince him to leave Duryodhana. Karna doesn't, but promises Kunti that he will only attack Arjuna in the battle.
-The war begins on the field of Kurukshetra.
-Arjuna shoots Bhishma in the back and Bhishma dies. Karna now wants to fight because of this.
-Drona dies because he is tricked. They make him think that his son is dead.
-Karna and Arjuna fight. Karna's chariot wheel gets stuck and he begs for mercy. Arjuna kills him.
-Bhishma is cremated on the shores of the Ganges. Many, many deaths at the end of the story.
-Arjuna's son is the king of Hastinapura at the end of the story.

Arjuna and Bhishma

Week 10 Reading Diary A: The Thirteenth Year of Exile

-Dhritarashtra has people spying on the Pandavas. He wants to humiliate them, but this ends up backfiring.
-The Pandavas find a lake and want to drink from it. Nakula finds it first and a voice tells him he must answer questions first. He ignores it, drinks the water, and dies. Yudhishthira is the only brother to answer the questions. It was a test from his father, and all the brothers are brought back to life.
-The brothers receive the gift of being unrecognized for their 13th year of exile. They use this gift to be in the court of King Virata.
-Draupadi is raped by the brother of the queen. She gets Bhima to avenge her. He kills Kichaka. The king and queen want to send Draupadi away.
-Karna lost a fight with Arjuna.
-The Pandavas try to make peace
-Bhishma calls Karna conceited and boastful. This makes Karna very angry.

Bhima avenging Draupadi

Week 9 Reading Diary B: Continuing the Mahabharata

-Duryodhana finds out that the Pandavas are not dead. Bhishma and Vidura want him to make peace, but Karna says that they are traitors. He wants war.
-Dhritarashtra gives the Pandavas part of the kindgom. They name the city Indraprastha.
-Arjuna goes into exile for 12 years.
-Yudhishthira is now the king of Indraprastha. The coronation occurs.
-Maya built the assembly hall at Indraprastha and the hall has many illusions. The Pandavas and Draupadi make fun of Duryodhana when he is fooled.
-Shakuni tells Duryodhana to get revenge by playing against the Pandavas in a game of dice. They go to Hastinapura.
-Yudhishthira loses everything he owns in the game. Then he loses his brothers and himself.
-The Pandavas head back to their city.

Dice

Week 9 Reading Diary A: Beginning Narayan's Mahabharata

-Shantanu is the king of Hastinapura. He falls in love with a woman and marries her. The woman tells him to never question her actions. She drowns all of their babies in the river. The king protests when their 8th child is born. The wife says she is the river Ganga and is returning the children to heaven. She takes the eighth child with her and returns to heaven.

-The king then falls in love with Satyavati. They marry and have 2 children. Chitrangada becomes the king, but dies soon after

-A king holds a swayamvara for his daughters to find a husband. His daughters were Amba, Ambika, Ambalika. Bhishma takes all three for Vichitravirya.

-Dhritarashtra marries Gandhari who covers her eyes so she can share her husband's blindness.

-Pandu is married to Kunti and Madri. Pandu can't have children because he is cursed. He shot a deer (who was a celestial being in disguise) and the deer cursed him so he would die if he had sex.

-Pandu's wife, Kunti, has a mantra to obtain sons from the gods. She got this from Durvasa. She previously had a son with Surya (the sun god). Her child was named Karna and she put him in a basket to float down the river. He was rescued.

-Kunti has sons from many gods. They go live in Hastinapura.

-Dhritarashtra wanted Yudhishthira to be his heir. He was jealous that the people liked Yudhishthira more than him. A house was built that could catch on fire easily. The Pandavas are sent there but they are warned by Vidura. They escape the house through a tunnel and live their life in hiding.

-One of Kunti's sons wins Draupadi as their wife. Kunti makes her sons share everything they acquire, so they shared Draupadi as their wife.

Pandu and Kunti

Extra Reading Diary: Khasi Folktales Part 2

Khasi Folktales

What Caused the Shadows on the Moon
There was a family of deities. There was a mother, three daughters, and a son. The three daughters were Water, Fire, and the Sun. The son was the Moon. The Sun and the Moon possessed greater beauty than the two others. The Sun and the Moon were equal. The Moon acted differently as he grew up. He had wayward tendencies. He chose a life of pleasure and did not listen to advice of the elders. He stayed for a while with evil companions and low associates. When he returned home, he was amazed by his sister's (The Sun's) beauty. He went to his mother and demanded that he and The Sun get married. The Sun was angry with her brother and threw ash in his face. This caused marks on his face. The light of the moon has been pale marked by dark shadows ever since.

What Makes the Lightening
In earlier days, animals tried to imitate mankind and speak their language. There was a festival held every 13 moons. There were contests and dances. The animals would attend and wanted a similar carnival. After preparation, the thunder giant was sent to summon people to the festival. Everyone was enjoying themselves at the festival. The lynx did a dance with a beautiful silver sword. The thunder giant saw and thought that the sword was beautiful. The thunder god asked the lynx if he could see the sword, and the lynx wanted to say no. Everyone shouted at the lynx for not being courteous. The lynx gave the thunder god the sword. The thunder god was very forceful using the sword and it flashed everywhere. He leaped into the sky with the sword while beating on his drum. This is now known as thunder and lightening.

How the Cat Came to Live with Man
The cat used to live in the jungle with the tiger (its brother). The tiger was the king of the jungle. The tiger was not mindful of the well-being of his family. The cat was very proud of her family. Their household was very poor because of the tiger. The cat wanted to hide her poverty from her friends and neighbors. She tried to talk to her brother, but he was very angered. He got very sick one day and many people visited him. He told his sister to light the hookah, but she was disgraced because there was no fire to light the hookah. Her brother yelled at her and told her to go get a firebrand from the dwelling of mankind. Children were in the village and began to play with the cat. She loved playing with the children and did not want to return home. The tiger was angry with his sister and all the visitors left. He went to search for his sister and she heard him coming. She grabbed a firebrand and gave it to him, but her brother was abusing her. She returned to the village to live with man.

The cat

Week 7 Reading Diary B: Ryder's Panchatantra Part 2

Ryder's Panchatantra

The Sensible Enemy
A prince was friends with a merchant's son and a son of a man of learning. All of their fathers told them that they show no aptitude for their profession (the profession of their fathers). The prince wanted them all to leave together because it was unmanly to remain their after being insulted. The merchant's son said that they needed money so they should go to Climbing Mountain. They all found gems, but didn't know how to guard them. The son of the man of learning suggested that they swallow them and carry them in their stomachs. A man saw them do this, so he decided to follow them. He was going to cut them open when they fell asleep. The man talked to them and they allowed him to travel with them. They passed a village and a bird sang. The bird's owner understood the bird. The bird told him that the travelers had gems. Robbers caught them and they were searched for the gems. The gems weren't found. They were set free only in loincloths. The bird continued to sing multiple times. The chief finally decided that he would cut them open. The fourth man with no gem in his stomach volunteered to go first. He wanted to gain glory by being generous. He died and the others were freed.

How the Rabbit Fooled the Elephant
Four-Tusk was the elephant king. There was a drought that lasted 12 years. The other elephants went to their king for a solution. He sent elephants in 8 directions to search for water. Those who went eat found a place of paradise. The king traveled with them to this place. They ended up crushing many rabbits that had made this their home long before. The rabbits that were still living got together to make a plan against the elephants. A rabbit named Victory had a plan. The rabbit spoke to the elephant and said they violated the Lake of the Moon. This was because they killed the rabbits that were there. The elephant realized that he had sinned against the blessed Moon. He asked where to travel to ask for forgiveness. The rabbit tricked him and said that the moon was angry because he touched the water. The elephant said it would never return.

The tricky rabbit

The Loyal Mongoose
A Brahman named Godly had a wife that mothered a son and a mongoose. She treated the mongoose like it was her son. She did not trust the mongoose. She thought he would hurt her child. One day the mother left to get water and told her husband to watch their son and protect him. He left to beg for food instead of doing what she asked. A snake crawled toward the baby. The mongoose wanted to protect his "baby brother" and stopped the serpent. He tore the snake to bits. He ran to his "mother" to show her what he had done. She thought that he ate her baby. She angrily dropped the water jar on him and killed him. She ran home to her baby and saw the baby safe and the snake torn to bits. She was sad because of what she had done. She yelled at her husband when he returned. She called him greedy and blamed the mongoose's death on him.

Week 7 Reading Diary A: Ryder's Panchatantra Part 1

Ryder's Panchatantra

The Ungrateful Man
There was a Brahman named Sacrifice. His family was poor and his wife bugged him about going to get food. He went on a journey and went into a forest. He came upon a well. He looked into it and saw a tiger, a monkey, a snake, and a man. The tiger convinced the man to pull him out. The other animals convinced Sacrifice that he should pull them out, as well. They told him not to pull the other man out because he was a shrine of every sin. The animals left and told Sacrifice to visit them one day. Sacrifice felt bad for the man in the well so he pulled him out. The man said he was a goldsmith and told him to bring gold to him. Sacrifice headed home, but then went to visit the monkey. Next he visited the tiger and the tiger gave him a gold necklace. Sacrifice took this back to the man for him to sell. The man took it to the king and the king had Sacrifice fettered. (The necklace was the prince's) The snake came to help Sacrifice. It ended with the goldsmith being arrested and Sacrifice and his family living happily.

The Duel between Elephant and Sparrow
A sparrow and his wife lived in a nest in a tamal tree. An elephant came under the tree in search of shade. He pulled at the branch with the nest on it and broke all the bird's eggs. The sparrow and his wife barely escaped their death. The mother was very upset and a woodpecker tried to comfort her. She wanted to kill the elephant. They came up with a plan and went through with it. The elephant died.  This was a story that was a part of The Plover Who Fought the Ocean

The Elephant under the Tree

Right-Mind and Wrong-Mind
Right-Mind and Wrong-Mind were sons of merchants and they were friends. They traveled to a different country and Right-Mind found a pot with 1000 dinars. They decided to return home. Right-Mind wanted to split the money and Wrong-Mind wanted to each take 100 dinars and bury the rest. Right-Mind agreed with his friend. Wrong-Mind blew through his money very quickly. They went back to their money and each took 100 dinars again. Wrong-Mind lost it all quickly again. This time he went back to the money alone and took it all. Later, Wrong-Mind took his friend back to the spot to get the rest of the money. He accused Right-Mind of stealing it all! They took their issue to court and it was decided that the goddess of the wood would reveal the guilty one. Wrong-Mind asked his father for help. His father told him the story of A Remedy Worse Than the Disease. The story ended with Wrong-Mind being found guilty and being punished.

Extra Reading Diary: Khasi Folktales

Khasi Folktales Page

The Tiger and the Monkeys
The animals were free and living wildly. They decided that they needed a king to reign. They nominated the tiger to be king because of his strength. He was ignorant and self-absorbed. The animals wanted to take advantage of the tiger's ignorance. The monkeys played a trick on them.
The tiger was taking a nap one day and awoke to hear singing. He wondered where this was coming from and a monkey replied that it was his younger sister (it wasn't). The tiger wants to make the monkey's sister his wife because of her beautiful voice. They tried to talk the tiger out of the marriage by saying the sister was too young to marry. The tiger didn't care, but the monkeys talked him into giving them some time. The monkeys made a clay monkey to give to the tiger! The tiger accidentally pulled off the head and the monkeys attacked him. They said he killed their sister. The lion never found out that they tricked him.

The Legend of the lei Tree
The Mountain of the lei Tree is a very romantic spot. This place and the land around it was the most fertile in the world. The lei Tree grew on the summit of the mountain. It was very unique. The people never damaged the tree. They thought it belonged to an unknown god. The tree grew and the land became barren. They decided to send the best wood cutters to cut down the tree. They barely made a mark in the tree, but went home and returned the next day. The marks were gone. This continued for a while. A bird came to help them. She told them that the big tiger healed the tree at night. They left their axes sticking out of the tree one night and the blades cut the tiger's tongue.

The Stag and the Snail
They met at the animals' fair. It was very hot. The animals all chatted about their lives. The buffalo said the stag is the swiftest animal and everyone agreed. The snail was disgusted by everyone boasting. The snail boasted that she had not sweat along her long journey like everyone else had. The snail challenged the stag to a race. The stag agreed to it. The snails wanted to trick the stag and lined up along the path of the race unseen. The stag couldn't see the snail and would call for her throughout the race. She always answered that she was there. The stag was tired and could barely move. Before he reached the end of the race, he heard the snail say she had won.

The smart snail

Week 6 Reading Diary B: Indian Fairy Tales Part 2

Indian Fairy Tales Page

The Gold-Giving Serpent
There was a Brahman that was a farmer. One day he got really hot and laid down under a tree. He saw a snake and thought that it was the "guardian deity" of his field. He went to worship it. He poured milk in a bowl and gave it to the snake. The next morning the farmer looked at the bowl and saw a gold denar. This occurred every time he gave the snake milk.
One day the farmer's son took the snake milk because his father was unable to. The son decided he should kill the snake and steal all of its gold denars. The snake escaped its death and bit the son. The son died instantly. The father still worshiped the snake even though it killed his son.The snake told the farmer they could not be friends anymore and gave the farmer a pearl. The snake said to never come back.

Pride Goeth Before a Fall
Ten cloth merchants always went to places together. Three robbers trapped them and tried to rob them in the forest. The robbers took everything they had. They even took their clothes. The ten men only had a small loin-cloth to wear. One of the ten merchants noticed that the robbers laid down their weapons and he thought of a plan. He sang a song that only the other merchants would understand. This told the others his plan: They would divide up into groups of three to gang up on the robbers (three to one). The lead merchant would tie up the robbers. Their plan worked and they were free.

The Demon with the Matted Hair
A son was born to a king. The Brahmans gave the son the name: The Prince of Five Weapons. These weapons are the sword, the spear, the bow, the battle-axe, and the shield. When the son was sixteen years old the king told him to go complete his education. The son went off to receive his education and on his way he went through the forest inhabited by the Demon with the Matted Hair. Some men told him to stay away from the forest because the demon kills every man he sees. The prince was fearless and went through the forest anyway. He runs into the demon and shoots arrows at him. All the arrows get caught in the demon's hair. All of the prince's weapons got stuck in the demon's hair. The demon asked the prince why he wasn't frightened. The prince said he has the weapon of knowledge (he said it differently).  The demon let him go.

How Sun, Moon, and Wind Went Out to Dinner
Cute story!

Demon with Matted Hair

Week 6 Reading Diary A: Indian Fairy Tales Part 1

Indian Fairy Tales Page

The Lion and the Crane
The lion was eating and got a bone stuck in his throat. He asked the crane for help, and the crane was worried that the lion would eat him. The lion promised he wouldn't eat the crane if it helped him. The crane helped the lion, and came back later to ask the lion for a favor. The lion would not help the crane. The lion said the crane was lucky to be alive.

The Broken Pot
This story is really funny to me. The guy makes all these selfish plans and then loses what he has.

The Cruel Crane Outwitted
The crane tricks all the fish in the pond by making them think that he will carry them to another pond. When he gets them to the other pond, he eats them. He does this to all the fish, and then he sees a crab. He decides that he will also trick the crab. The crab is smarter than the crane and talks him into letting him hold onto the crane's neck. The crane later reveals his plan to the crab and the crab kills him.

The Charmed Ring: Part 1 Part 2
A merchant gave his son 300 rupees and sent him into another country to see how well he was at trade. The son came across men arguing about a dog. He begged the men not to kill it and gave them 100 rupees for it. He then ran into people arguing about a cat. They wanted to kill it. He begged them not to and gave them 100 rupees for the cat. This happened again with a snake. The boy was out of money and returned home to his father.
His father called him a fool and sent him to live in their stables. His only companions were the dog, cat, and snake that he bought. They grew very fond of him.The snake talks to the boy about meeting his father and talks him into going with him. They must dive into a spring, but the snake tells the boy if his father wants to reward him what to ask for. The snake tells the boy to ask for the ring on his right hand and the pot and spoon. The boy received these gifts and then returned. The dog and cat were waiting for him. They tested the powers of the ring. A princess appeared and he married her..etc. A prince had fallen in love with the princess and stole her away. The princess asks for a month before she will marry the prince and the cat and dog ask for a month to find the princess.
The story ends with the merchant boy speaking in the ring and his wife returning to him.

Dog and Cat

Week 5 Reading Diary B: The Golden Deer

Ravana's uncle, Maricha, tries to get Ravana to just leave Rama and Sita alone. Ravana refuses and Maricha gives in and helps him. Maricha appears to Sita as a golden deer. Sita convinces Rama to chase and capture the deer. Rama kills the deer and it cries out using Rama's voice. This frightens Sita and makes her worry about Rama. She forces Lakshmana to go find Rama to see if he is okay. Ravana comes to Sita disguised as an old man to trick her. He captures Sita, but first he shows her his true identity.
Jatayu tries to stop Ravana, but Ravana chops off Jatayu's wings. Before Jatayu dies, he tells Rama and Lakshmana that Ravana captured Sita. Sita drops her jewelry on the ground in hopes that someone will find it.

Ravana fighting Jatayu

Ravana would have just raped Sita, but if he did all of his heads would explode. This is because he had previously raped Rambha and because of this Nalakubara put a curse on Ravana. Ravana had to persuade Sita to have sex with him to be able to have sex with her. He could not persuade her.
The first monkey (Riksharaja) was both a male monkey and a female monkey. This story was told to Rama and Lakshmana by Savari.

Week 5 Reading Diary A: After Dasaratha's Death

Kausalya discovers that King Dasaratha is dead. Bharata is at his grandfather's and messengers are sent to tell him the news about his father's death. He returns as soon as possible and learns of his mother's request and Rama's exile. He is disgusted by what his mother did. Bharata becomes king and Dasaratha is cremated.
Bharata goes to find Rama to tell him of their father's death. He also asks Rama to return home to Ayodhya. Rama refuses to return home until the end of his exile because it was his father's wish. Bharata takes Rama's sandals to sit on the throne until his return.
Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita meet Agastya, a sage. The Valakhilyas try to persuade Rama to go to war with the demons and Sita tries to talk him out of it.
Shurpanakha (Ravana's sister) proposes marriage to Rama and he declines. After this, Shurpanakha attacks Sita. Lakshmana mutilates Shurpanakha. Ravana gets help from his uncle, Maricha. They capture Sita.

Ravana and his uncle, Maricha

Week 4 Reading Diary B: The Exile of Rama

Dasharatha chooses to make Rama king and starts to plan the coronation. Bharata is away at this time. Bharata's mother Kaikeyi is pleased for Rama until her servant, Manthara, talks to her about how Bharata should be king. Manthara tells her it would be better for them. Kaikeyi goes to Dasharatha and uses her two promises that he owes her. She uses one to make Bharata king and the other to exile Rama for 14 years.

Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana are prepared to leave, but must stop for the night. The elders of Ayodhya caused the river to rise up and blocked Rama from continuing his journey.

Rama, Sita, and Lakshmana in the forest

Bharata's mother, Kaikeyi, previously had tried to get Dasharatha to teach her the language of the animals. Dasharatha is not allowed to share this information, and if he did, he would be killed. He decided that it was best not to share the information with Kaikeyi. This story is told by Guha.

By the urging of Bharadwaja (a sage), Sita, Rama, and Lakshmana start to live in Chitrakuta. Lakshmana builds them a house.

Dasharatha dies from the grief of his son, Rama, leaving. When Dasharatha was young, he accidentally killed a boy in the forest. He sees a connection between the death of this young boy and the loss of his son, Rama.

Week 4 Reading Diary A: Starting the Ramayana by Buck

The demon warrior, Indrajit, begins the book by talking about Narayana and Valmiki (the poet). Rama has exiled Sita when she was pregnant with his two sons. Narada tells Valmiki to go rescue Sita. Valmiki must also teach the story of Rama to Rama's twin sons (Kusha and Lava).

King Dasharatha has no sons. He gets help and a sacrifice is prepared so that his wives will bear sons. Kausalya is Rama's mother. Kaikeyi is Bharata's mother. Sumitra is Lakshmana and Shatrughna's mother. When all of the sons are sixteen years of age, Vishwamitra goes to them and asks for their help in battling the rakshasas.

Ravana had great powers given to him by Brahma. He could not be conquered by gods, asuras, yakshas, nagas, or rakshasas. He challenges many powerful people because of his powers. His brothers also got powers. Vibhishana could always remember Dharma. Kumbhakama could sleep for six months after one day of being awake. Ravana is married to Mandodari and has one son, Meghanada.

Rama helps to break Ahalya's curse that she is under because of her husband, Gautama. This returns her to her former beauty. This curse was because her husband found her in bed with Indra.

Rama and Sita had fallen in love at first sight. For Rama to be able to marry her, he broke the bow of Shiva. He succeeds, and the two are married. Rama's brothers marry daughters of Janaka, also. Janaka is Sita's father.

Rama breaking Janaka's bow