Reading Notes: More Jataka Tales Part A

Jataka Tales

After reading the Ramayana and the Mahabharata for the past month, I wasn't used to reading stories that were just one and done. It wasn't bad just different in the way that I expected more to happen and it just kinda ended fast. I chose to read the More Jataka Tales because I remember reading the Monkey and the Crocodile already and I wanted to read something new. I wasn't disappointed. I loved reading this stories mostly because everything was a bit unexpected. My favorite story was The Woodpecker, Turtle, and Deer. It was such a sweet story about friendship between animals that you wouldn't think would associate. 

More Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt

Week 9 Story: Prince Bhishma Must Die

Amba

My legs ached from walking so much and my throat raw from pleading. Pleading. That is all I am able to do as a woman, plead. Men, with all their boasting of how honorable and strong they are, were worthless. No man I spoke to was brave enough to fight the legendary son of Ganga. Not one king, not one warrior was brave enough to fight the man who ruined my life. You must know Bhishma. Don't tell me you too have succumbed to the lies. How he is such an honorable man that only wants the best for his family and kingdom and I am portrayed as a bitter and cynical woman. No, there is always two sides to the story. 

Bhishma STOLE me and my two sisters from our home. First off, this moron had two half-brothers.Two. Brothers. For such a legend, this idiot could not count. If he forgot how many brothers he had, anyone would have been happy to tell him he had two brothers. I would have loved to remind him the he had TWO BROTHERS! So why in the world would he need the three of us? I tried to remind Bhishma that but again since I am a women, I was silenced. I could not overpower him and he would not listen to my pleading. Pleading. I hate just being able to plead. You would think that with all my pleading and the noise I was making would cause my father to rain hell down on Bhishma. But no, because men are scared of the son of Ganga. 

Anyway, after we got to Bhishma's home, I pleaded (again, because that is all I am able to do) with Bhishma to let me go. I was in love with someone else and my heart would never belong to his brother or him. Surprisingly, Bhishma apologized and let me go. I was so grateful that I forgave him for stealing me like the savage oaf that he was and went straight to my beloved. King Shalva would be so happy to know that I was still his. I was already planning the wedding in my mind when I got to his court. But I was so foolish to believe in a man. He rejected me. His excuse was that I was taken by another man and therefore I was tainted. It was dishonorable, my purity was in question, and all this other nonsense. He was saying it like I had any choice. I was A-B-D-U-C-T-E-D! I couldn't believed I loved this inconsiderate man.

So I did they only thing I could and I went back to Bhishma. If King Shalva wouldn't take me, then it was certain no other king would. Bhishma was my only hope to save myself since I was just a woman. But alas, Bhishma rejected me too. Something about an oath, I don't remember exactly because I stopped listening to him. The ringing in my ears drowned out his voice. I was done with this self serving monarch. No, I would not stand by and just plead this time. I will make Bhishma rue the day he crossed me. I will kill him myself. I will kill them all. 

Author's Note

My story is based off Amba's Ruin Epified video. One of Bhishma's half brothers die and so to make sure the kingdom has a future he goes to Kashi and steal the three princesses as wives for his surviving brother. Amba begs Bhishma to let her go because she loves King Shalva he lets her but he rejects her. He tells her that it would be dishonorable for him to take her as a wife as she was taken by another man. He tells her that her best chance is get Bhishma to marry her. Bhishma, of course, rejects her because of his oath that he made. She gets really angry and looks for a champion to kill Bhishma for her but no one does because they are scared of fighting him. She goes to the Sage Parshuram, who is the avatar of Vishu, and begs him to fight Bhishma. He instead goes to convince Bhishma to marry Amba. Bhishma refuses again and the sage gets pissed and they fight. They are evenly matched so the fight goes on for 23 days and the sage finally gives up because they can't kill each other. Amba walks away from the fight, vowing revenge. 

Epified: Mahabharata Episode 5: Amba's Ruin  

Reading notes Mahabharata:

Kunti shows Pandu baby Yudhisthira

I noticed that there was some differences when watching the Epified videos. Like the hermit that Pandu killed was a Rishi in deer form. I also was looking foreword to seeing how Epified would depict the more interesting parts of the story like the birth of the Kandavas. Some of these stories and forgot most of the details about and seeing them in visual form just made the already incredible epic much more interesting.

Epified Mahabarata Videos Part B

Reading Notes Mahabhararta: Part A

Still of Episode 5 - Amba's Ruin

I decided to watch the Mahabharata videos for this weeks reading. I am glad I did because one thing that the narrator explained was that the story was about how Karma works. For me, it opened my eyes to see the story in a different light. I am more of a visual person so when I was watching the retelling with the drawings, it was more intense for me than when I read it. I think that if I do a retelling that maybe adding more than one picture and maybe some music would enhance the imagery and feeling. 


Epified Mahabharata Youtubeplaylist

Reading Notes Mahabharata: Part D

Bhishma Laying on a Pillow of Arrows

As I was reading the Mahabharata, I was wondering when Amba's reincarnation would show up. We saw her a bit at the end of part C. Bhishma's death was sad in the sense that he literally died because Shikhandin was born a women and he refused to fight him and Arjuna arrows pierced him. Again, for people that are all about honor, I feel that that death and fight was dishonorable. I know that Bhishma is super old so it is surprising that he is able to such a great warrior and a formidable opponent for Arjuna. I also think that it is weird that Bhishma wants to stay alive until the solstice. Why would he want to experience the pain of his wounds or prolong the inevitable? He was just left there in the battlefield and no one thought to take him someplace else?
The ending of the epic made me panic a little bit. I was upset that the all the brothers and their wife fell except for Yudhishthira didn't get into heaven. Not only that but that the Kauravas were in heaven and Duryodhana was sitting on the throne. I was glad to see that it was just an illusion. It was a good twist ending to a great epic.

 Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913). 

Reading Notes Part C: Mahabharata

Draupadi and Krishna

I see a lot of parallels with the Ramayana and the Mahabharta. Both Rama and the Pandavas are both in exile. Even though they are begged to come back. Granted in the Mahabharata, a brother and a wife were the ones begging Yudhishthira to go back and fight for their kingdom, Yudhishthira refused. He had to do the honorable thing and live out the exile. I think that if I were to write about this specific part of a story, I would see if I could have the Pandavas meet Rama in passing in the forest.


Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913)