Meghanada Becomes Indrajit
Ravana's baby son had a voice like thunder, so they named him Meghanada (Cloud-Roar).
He became a great warrior, and in the war against the gods, he used a spell of darkness to make himself invisible. That is how he ambushed Indra and captured him.
"Your new name is Indrajit, Indra-Conqueror," Brahma told him. "And if you set Indra free, I will grant you a boon."
"Make me immortal!" said Indrajit.
"I cannot," said Brahma.
"Then make me even more powerful in battle and I will win my own immortality!"
And so Indrajit became an even greater warrior than before.
Notes. In the next chapter, Brahma tells the story of Ahalya, explaining to Indra that his crimes at that time led to his defeat in battle.
Ravana and the King of the Haihayas
Ravana was sacrificing to Shiva on a riverbank, singing and dancing in Shiva's honor.
Meanwhile, Kartavirya, Thousand-Armed King of the Haihayas, was relaxing in the river with his wives. As Kartavirya splashed, the waters rose and the flood carried away Ravana's offerings.
Enraged, Ravana fought with Kartavirya in a ferocious battle. Finally, Kartavirya knocked Ravana to the ground, and the gods watching from heaven rejoiced.
Ravana's grandfather Pulastya pleaded with Kartavirya to let Ravana go. Out of respect for the great sage, who was a mind-born son of Brahma, Kartavirya agreed.
Ravana was strong, but there is always someone stronger.
Notes. This episode covers several chapters, with the fight between Ravana and his ministers versus King Arjuna and his ministers told in elaborate detail. You can read more about Kartavirya Arjuna at Wikipedia.
Ravana and Vali
Ravana went looking for Vali, the monkey-king, wanting to fight him. He found Vali on the ocean's shore, engaged in worship.
He planned to sneak up on Vali from behind, but Vali grabbed Ravana and shouted, "Got you!" He then tucked Ravana under his arm and soared up into the clouds. Down below, the rakshasas saw their king struggling to get free. They chased Vali but could not catch him.
After flying around the world, Vali landed and let Ravana go.
"I want to be your friend, great monkey!" said Ravana.
Vali laughed and agreed; thus Vali became Ravana's ally.
Notes. Vali's wife Tara plays a role in the full version of the story because Ravana first goes to Kishkinda; Vali is not there, but Tara speaks with him and warns him that Vali is sure to defeat him.
The Birth of Hanuman
Kesari was king of the monkeys, and his wife was Anjana. Vayu the Wind-God gave her a child, but she wandered off and left the baby alone.
The little baby grew hungry, and when he saw the sun overhead he thought it was a mango, so he flew up into the sky, wanting to eat the mango.
The gods were amazed at the power of Vayu's son! Indra the Storm-God grew angry and struck the baby with a thunderbolt. The baby then fell down to the ground and broke his jaw; that is how he got the name Hanuman, Big-Jaw.
Notes. The complete story involves the eclipse-demon Rahu who is angry that Hanuman might get to eat the sun, but I did not have room to include Rahu here.
Hanuman and the Gods
Vayu picked up Hanuman and rocked the baby in his lap. Indra's attack on Hanuman made Vayu angry, so he stopped the air from moving. No one in the three worlds was able to breathe!
Brahma went to Vayu, and he healed Hanuman. Vayu then let the air move again so that everyone could breathe.
Next, all of the gods bestowed blessings on Hanuman. Indra gave him protection against thunderbolts, the Sun gave him radiance, Yama freed him from all sickness, and Vishvakarma made him invulnerable to weapons.
Satisfied, Vayu then carried Hanuman back to his parents, Kesari and Anjana.
Notes. In the next part of this chapter, there is a story about how Hanuman was cursed to lose all knowledge of these blessings; I'll start off with that story next time.
Bibliography.
Meghanada Becomes Indrajit is from Uttara Kanda: Sarga 29.
Ravana and the King of the Haihayas is from Uttara Kanda: Sarga 31-33.
Ravana and Vali is from Uttara Kanda: Sarga 34.
The Birth of Hanuman and Hanuman and the Gods are from Uttara Kanda: Sarga 35.
The links here are to the Uttara Kanda translated by M. N. Dutt, which is available online, although I am using Arshia Sattar's translation as my main source.
Laura, I love the incorporation of 100-word stories. I know you've mentioned it throughout the class multiple times but I enjoyed getting the chance to finally read some! A random thought I did have when reading, is how both the villains and heroes (good guys) in these tales still believe in the Gods and rely on them for their powers. I think that's just interesting because most of the time, I would assume the bad guys would be mean and not accepting of a godly figure, but this shows how religion and the Gods were above other things.
ReplyDeleteI especially liked the story of Ravana and Kartavirya, because it showed that no matter how strong we think "the bad" is, "the good" will always trump it. Also, I never knew the meaning of Hanuman's name, so that was actually really interesting to read (although I did feel sorry for him!
Laura,
ReplyDeleteThis is such a cool idea and a great way to touch on all of the areas you're interested in! Your short stories are so beautifully written, too. My personal favorite was The Birth of Hanuman. Although it is short, it tells a story that is perfectly paired with the photo. You did a great job porting the naivety of the baby by making it believe the sun was a mango.
I would love to try some short storied like this!