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In Part B, I decided to pick out the most interesting stories in the  The Giant Crab and Other Tales from Old India. 2. Spend a Pound to Win a Penny : This story is about a monkey who is so greedy that he scoops up as many peas as he can while the pea steamers have their backs turned. The catch with the mischievous monkey is that he dropped several of his peas. When he noticed that he dropped one of his peas, he scrambled down the tree and was discovered by the men on their horses. He wasted all his energy on this one pea that he ended the night with no peas.  3. The Cunning Crane and the Crab: This story is about a Crane who lived on the banks of a lake and coerced the fish that he was their savior by carrying them to where "the water as deep and fresh and cool." The Crane was so conniving that he convinced all the fish that he would not eat them; however, he did not convince the Crab. The Crab snipped his head off completely.  8. The Jackal Would A- Wooing Go : This

In Part A, I decided to pick out the most interesting stories in the The Giant Crab and Other Tales from Old India. 1.  The Giant Crab : The story focused on the greedy crab who gobbled all of the animals in the kingdom and then he started to feel alone. His lack of self control and nasty habit deterred any animal coming near the lake, but the Elephants would not stand for it. 2. The Hypocritical Cat : I like how the mice win in this story. They are smarter than the cat. 3. The Crocodile and the Monkey: This story was really vicious. It talked about Mrs.Crocodile waiting the heart of the monkey. I think that I could make this relative to a love story. Alligator in its natural habitat 5. The Dishonest Friend : This story focused on honesty being the best policy. A man left his plough with his friend the hold. The friend sold the plough in a matter of seconds and lied about it. You can go anywhere with the re-creation of this story. I could make the setting in a barn or abo

The Descent of Ganga. Wikimedia Commons I missed Monday's reading; therefore, on Tuesday, I decided to make my reading notes over Appendix 2 . With that being said, it was logical for me to go back and read Appendix 1: The Story of the River Ganges . This story is told by Visvamitra, the character I took notes about in Tuesday's notes. I'm actually really happy I was able to read about Visvamitra before this passage.  In Appendix 1, I really focused on the goddes Siva and her lack of mercy to her people and how the river Ganges came from Visnu's foot. The emergency of the river Ganges from a foot reminded me of the birth of Athena and how she came from the splitting of Zeus' forehead. With that being said, having mythology on my mind, I thought the river Ganges to be symbolic of Poseidon and the wonders of the seas. When Visnu, who can be representative of Poseidon, kicked the shell of the universe, water began to flow and Ganga fell to the heavens. Her b

Wise Words from Louisa May Alcott This image pictured is from the announcements on Thursday. I chose this picture because of the quote and the intricacy of the poster. I love the waves because they are depicted as though they were rough ocean waves, but the boat is still able to float and not be devoured by the see. I just believe that this quote and image  is reflective of my college career. Thus far, my college life has been an ebb and flow of getting to know myself, my level of determination, and my desires as I weather the storm. Just as the quote said, I'm learning to sail my ship and sailing a ship isn't easy, especially in rough seas.

Flickr Hannah, You've come so far in your writing and storytelling abilities. Going in to this course, you knew that you struggle with creative writing unless you have a prompt in front of you. This has been a great opportunity for you to think outside of the box and really extend yourself beyond the boundaries of your mind. Although, you're still not the most comfortable with free writing, you have become better acquainted with how capable you are to improve. Your best writing took place in week ten. Week ten is when you decided to create a "sequel" to the first story in your portfolio. Outside of this course, you did really well presenting your Critical Analysis Project topic in your African American Studies course. The Epics of India course has advanced your quality of writing. You can write much more content in a lesser amount of time. You really like how this course is creating a sense of discipline and growth in your writing abilities and your affinity to

This portfolio has a theme that encompasses both the modern and ancient Indian culture surrounding rakshashas. 1. My Life's A Charm : This story is about a young woman's introduction to her "true calling." 2.  My Savior In Ashoka Grove - This story focuses on Sita's experience as a prisoner in a garden of rakshashas. 3. More Than Charm : This story is the sequel to My Life's  A Charm. It narrates the beginning of Shala's new life on Mount Kailash. 4. Charmed : This is the final story that illustrates Shala's purpose as a rakshasi.

Part 1: The Warlord, A Charm Thief In the Warlord's deep abyss, he sits indulging in the smell of fear that is radiating from both the heavenly and earthly creatures confined to his devilish kingdom. The rocks begin to tremble and the screams begin. The Warlord lets out a booming, maniacal laugh as lightning strikes and thunder claps. "I'm going to enjoy this for the millionth time...he says. He will enjoy my sacrifices." The rocks from the abyss begin to rain down harder. In  the pit, the stones pouring from the dark sky are knocking gods, goddesses, and other brahmins unconscious or in a fog to be devoured. Then come more blood curdling screams as the stones became hot and more forceful. "And you all think this is the bad part," says the Warlord. As soon as he finishes his statement, tendrils of darkness begin seeping through the thick walls that confine them. The jet black, sticky tendrils latch on to the golden skin of each divine creature and be

This week, I decided that I would chose a story based off of one of the characters that I have previously read about. Last week, in the Sacred Tales of India  I read about Visvamitra and planned to use him as an influence and model for one of my characters in this week's story. The reason that I like Appendix 2: The History of Visvamitra, is that this story gave me more information and background about Visvamitra, that I was able to tailor my character to. Also, this appendix gave me details about Visvamitra that would not have been further covered or thought about unless I had come across this illustration. The Battle for the Sacred Cow. Commons Wikimedia Appendix 2: The History of Visvamitra, begins the story with a re-telling of the Sacred Cow. I know this because I read the story. Furthermore, the story illustrates how Visvamitra is so memorized by the rishi's magical cow that he is willing to use force. Reading this appendix, I had a better understanding of the co

I decided to take this week to utilize the story planning option. My goal is to create the most enticing and captivating story, as this will be my last "official story" in my portfolio. The goal of this last story is to summarize Shala's endeavors to restore the balance of good and evil. I'm wanting to incorporate a segment about the Warlord; however, I'm not sure if I should break it into chapters to take a moment to address his background. I decided that I would combine both stories from the Indian Story Book and the Sacred Tales of India .  I think that I could title Part I: The Warlord, A Charm Thief. I want to alter the story about the Sacred Crow from the  Indian Story Book .  Vishvamitra Bewildered in Evil Thoughts The Sacred Cow:  The story begins with the monarch, Visvamitra sitting on his throne wrestling about how he's going to interrupt the peace in his kingdom. Visvamitra is bored with the happy pattern of his people and the king

Reading Part B consisted of several stories just as Part A did. Instead of the three stories, there were four: The Bride of Yama, The Goddess who Devoured Elephants, The Slayer of Kangsa, and Chand, The Unbeliever. After reading the stories, I wanted to take the most notes over The Slayer of Kangsa as it piqued my interest about a new story. Once I saw slayer, I immediately thought about the potential of one of my pre-existing characters. Krishna Kills Kangsa The Slayer of Kangsa talked about Kangsa, who was a king of Mathura, that had become a tyrant and oppressor. Because of his evil deeds, the lesser gods had to ascend to heaven for divine intervention and advocate for the death of Kangsa. Kangsa was so evil that he was having children killed, but little did he know that his on sister had a newly born son. He released giants and soldiers to dismember the children of the land. The gods eventually intervened and dismissed this tirade on children. However, Even after Kangsa'

The Sacred Tales of  India is a book that is exactly how it sounds. The book.is filled with sacred tales, specifically sacred rituals. There are four parts to this manual; however, I'm only going to be reading Parts A and B. In Part A, there are three stories that the author capitalizes on The Divine Brothers, Snatched from Death , and By Itu's Favor.  Sweet Indian Bakery The story that appealed to me the most was  By Itu's Favor. I was initially drawn in by the summary of the ceremony/ritual that is to be performed in reverence of the deity, Itu. Itu is honored and represented by a small earthen jar. This small earthen jar reminded me of my story, My Life's A Charm. The story I wrote had a character who possessed a small trinket that shape-shifted into a magical being. Furthermore, I was curious to see how the story would play out involving the jar and the god, Itu. The story began with that seemed like a fable or tall tale to learn about integrity. The begin

Screenshot of Pinterest Board Welcome to my Epics of India Pinterest board. I'm utilizing this board for all things related to this course. For example, one of the images from my story and extra credit came from Pinterest. Furthermore, I am not new to this amazing site compiled of DIY craft instructions, gifs, memes, and most importantly my future. If you really want to learn more about my plans for ther future, my dream wedding, my dream decor, you're welcome to explore my Pinterest boards. There are so many ideas to learn and extract information from on Pinterest. I've used this site as inspiration for so many small projects that range from room renovations to how to lose 1000 calories in one workout. 

Example of a Preta 1. Yaksha : I read about Yakshas in one of my peers' posts. I really though that these spiritual beings were interesting as they are able to shape-shift. I also learned that there are darker versions of Yaksas called bhuta. 2. Bhuta : These are supernatural creatures as well. There are bhutas in every religion; however, they are all represented differently. In the Indian culture, bhutas are restless souls prohibited from entering heaven or hell. 3. Bhuta led me to Pretas : Pretas are invisible mummies that usually travel with demons. These Pretas are usually reincarnated into another body, but they cannot eat or drink. 4. Akasha  is the term that encompasses all of the elements and beings from which everything thing is made in the Hindu culture. Akasha means sky and is depicted as a fifth element, sound.

Flickr Due Today Do Today ~~~ This little rhyme-like, sing-songy tale has been plaguing me for several weeks. I have completely abandoned my schedule that I created at the beginning of the semester. Since the beginning of the semester, my extracurricular activities and academic studies have really escalated. Most of my time has been dedicated to studying my anatomy and physiology course and attending labs. It seems as though I've like I have a prioritization issue, which; however, it can be very difficult maintaining courses in two locations. My A&P course requires me to drive to Oklahoma City. In addition to this course, I just started another six week online course that requires a lot article reading. On top of all of my course work, I have had to deal with medical complications. I recently found out that I'm going to to need surgery. With that being said, I 'm going to need to revamp my schedule accordingly. My goal for next week is to not use the

Sakuntala This story talks about an Emperor Dushyanta who was hunting for antelope until approached and befriended by two hermits who showed him the holy place of the hermits and the protector of the forests and wild animals, Sakuntala. Instead of making the hermits friendly, I think that I will make them thieves. The storied used a lot of imagery concerning the animals and serenity of the forest. I believe that I will implement the same principle as well. This story also focuses on how the King takes a liking to Sakuntalal and her beauty. I want to create a love story about how they fall in love in the midst of all of the chaos taking place in the story. I still want the story to have a modern setting. I may use the story line from Fifty First Dates or Dear John . Bibliography: Indian Epics Story Book Dushyanta and Sakuntala

The Sacred Cow The story begins with the monarch, Visvamitra sitting on his throne wrestling about how he's going to interrupt the peace in his kingdom. Visvamitra is bored with the happy pattern of his people and the kingdom, it is too calm. I found that I could include this story line into a new story that pertains to the warlord from More than a Charm. The warlord innately would want to start a war. Furthermore, the monarch went out with his flock to visit a saint name Vasishtha. The king was going to find some way to receive a blessing for his war or find someone to war with. The most interesting thing about Vasishtha s that he possessed a magical cow, Sabala. The saint asked him and his fighting men to stay for season; however the king was impatient. He commanded his men to capture Sabala and she was resistant. The kid did not know the magical power that she possessed. I think that I will make Sabala a maiden instead of a cow but describe her with similar characteristics.

This image is from this week's Words of Wisdom. The quote by Francis Bacon states that "good books are true friends." I can directly relate to the quote. You can start by defining a true friend. Personally, I denote a true friend as someone who's always there when you need them. They provide encouragement, support, wisdom, and excitement. These are all characteristics of good book. There are novels that offer support, wisdom, and entertainment. Furthermore, even when acquaintances walk out of your life, true friends are there. It goes the same for a book. Books are always around if you need them. When people physically leave you to go run errands or leave from you life, you still have the characters from a good book to comfort you and provide a time to "get away." Poster Courtesy of Laura Gibbs. Information by Laura Gibbs Below The source for the proverb is  Forty Thousand Quotations:  Prose and Poetical  by Charles Noel Douglas ( Bartleby.com ). 

Tumblr Being in the tenth week of this course, one would think that writing stories would get much easier, Don't get me wrong, I've come to enjoy storytelling, developing a plot, and adding all of the details. However, starting a story somehow seems to remain an issue. I grab my laptop, pull up blogger, click new post, and stare at the blinking cursor for almost twenty minutes. Even after re-reading my stories, and reviewing my notes page, I find myself clueless as to how I'm going to start my story. Flash! Ther light comes on and I pull out a spiral notebook. For me, I've always enjoyed writing my notes and assignments on paper. Sometimes it is more efficient to just type memos and compose papers electronically; however, I've come to the realization that something bout lined paper and lead helps create better writing. This past week I decided to start writing my story on paper. I feel that I did much better with the producing a quality story much faster. Alt

Down the long, dark corridor we walk. I waited patiently for her to begin to talk.  All the hidden history spewed from her mouth, and my throat closed up as though I were suffering from a drought. Louder and louder my heart would thump just as the shadows chasing across the walls made me jump. It's like my life began to unfold. What else is there that has to be told? Further and further I dragged my feet on. In this windowless corridor, I couldn't tell if it was dusk or dawn. Time felt as though it had paused. I've been dragged into this new dimension to continue some sort of cause. On and on about my parents' life the rakshasi explains, and the tears star falling down like the spring time rains. Click and clack we reach the end of the hall as I stop and stare at the birch bark door so high and tall. A future awaits behind these doors. As soon as I pull the handles, I can't turn back anymore.

I've stared at this screen several times trying to figure out the best template for my blog. There were so may ideas going through my mind as to what I wanted see on my blog. The plethora of templates that I had envisioned matched the number of customized template options that blogger has built in. I have changed the presentation of my blog at least three times. One time, I completely re-built my site and forgot to hit the "apply changes button." I was distraught and gave up on site decorating for a couple of hours. Now, I am satisfied with the presentation of my blog. I wanted a template and display that was cohesive with the content of my stories, the course, as well as my own preferences for a webpage. I wanted the webpage to reflect me. The technicalities and gadgets that are involved in the tinkering of colors, fonts, and images can be quite taxing on an individual. I'm pretty tech savvy; however, I did face a few setbacks with assigning colors to different asp

Actor dressed as Ravana. Commons Wikimedia This week I decide to read The Lord of Lanka: The Rise and Fall of A Demon. The story talked about Ravan's siege in the Land of Lanka. Unlike the Ramayana, this comic goes into detail about the demon king who kidnapped Sita and how he rose to power. The story begins with an explanation of Ravana came to be a demon. Because Ravana's parent's conceived at an improper time, therefore their children were deemed to be wicked and born as rakshasas. I saw this portion of my story was an opportunity to further illustrate how my character in last week's story planning post came to be. Furthermore, when Ravana's mother Kaikesi found out that her son was going to be wicked, she was distraught. Her husband counteracted her grief with a word from the gods that "the youngest however will be a noble one." The youngest song was Kubera. As all of Kaikesi's sons became of age they acted arrogantly. Even in their arrogance,

Ashoka Grove was a beautiful resting ground in the middle of a dark, evil-ridden forest. The flowers ranged from pink, puffy ashoka blossoms, orange lotuses, to beautiful Malobar daffodils, orchids, and magnolias. The aroma was overwhelming and enchanting. It was a scene so serene. The crisp, warm spring breeze would blow and pick up the swirling pool of petals collecting on the ground  in a whirlpool and sweep them up into the air. The whistle of the wind was a harmonious sound to the ears of the grove's visitors; it is a sound so hypnotizing and enticing that the visitors go numb to the razor-sharp teeth of the rakshasas that are sinking into the veins of their warm, fleshy necks and limbs. For years, Ashoka Grove was a hot attraction. Thousands of visitors would venture across the world to experience such a magnificent wonder of Mother Nature. People from all walks of life could be seen lying down in the mounds of petals on the ground trying to make a "flower angel."

Rakshasas stories in the corridor. Down the long, dark corridor we walk. I waited patiently for her to begin to talk.  All the hidden history spewed from her mouth, and my throat closed up as though I were suffering from a drought Louder and louder my heart would thump just as the shadows chasing across the walls made me jump. It's like my life began to unfold. What else is there that has to be told? Further and further I dragged my feet on In this windowless corridor, I couldn't tell if it was dusk or dawn. Time felt as though it had paused I've been dragged into this new dimension to continue some sort of cause On and on about my parents' life the rakshasi explains And the tears star falling down like the spring time rains Click and clack we reach the end of the hall as I stop and stare at the birch bark door so high and tall. A future awaits behind these doors As soon as I pull the handles, I can't turn back anymore. There's

The Danava King Part B of the gleanings consisted of five different stories; however, I decided to focus on one story in particular. This story illustrated how the good versus evil spectrum in both the celestial and earthly realm were out of kilter. Why were things out of kilter? A demon king, Bali had come to reign over the earth and almost all of the heavens. Most demons were vicious and wicked; however, Bali was wicked in a seductive and enticing manner. Bali drew people to him by granting and honoring favors. He possessed so much power and adoration by the people and even the most powerful gods and goddesses that he exhausted his time posing as a charitable and kind king. I want to utilized this aspect in my storytelling this week. I like the idea of plot twist and shocking the reader, for I was really surprised to find out that the Danava king was good. Many men and women worshiped Bali over the usual gods. His reign was so powerful, yet concerning, that the great Godk, the Prese

The reading notes for Part A were split into four different stories. I decided to take notes on each section. Battles of Gods and Demons The story is set around the Creation and balance of the universe under the direction of the Trinity. I liked this idea, as it reminded me of the holy trinity in the bible, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Some Christian based religions don't recognize the three. This chapter presented the preface of the story. It set the tone that the story was going to be about good versus evil, Devas versus Danavas. The story talks about how the war between the demons and gods began. It started with the sharing of ambrosia, an immortalising liquid to be given to both demons and gods to preserve them; however, the demons did not receive their predetermined portion.  I got the idea to continue my story, My Life's A Charm. from this chapter. It talked about the gods living in peace until a certain demon was born and built up the a

My title, Le bonheur est la clé de succès translates to happiness is the key to success. I chose this title because it encompasses happiness, a subject under the learning by Heart challenge. Also, I really love this quote. Most people measure their happiness by their success; however, when you have more positive outlook and exciting mannerism you're more likely to be successful. Your happiness is also influenced by how you monitor and balance your health. When you feel better physiologically, your personality shines brighter. In the article, Keep Things Simple for a A Health, Long Life , the author, John Schumann illustrates that are not shortcuts to health and happy living. Wellness is maintained by getting enough sleep, moving, eating well, interacting socially, and reflecting on the positive moments in your life. I can attest to the fact that reflecting on the positive aspects in your life and being a part of jovial environments increases your level of happiness. It gives you th