Week 4: Famous Last Words

This week was pretty great and as it's getting closer to the weekend, i'm hoping to get a lot of homework done so that I can have tons of fun celebrating my mom's birthday without worry of getting behind (again). Schoolwork wise I was a little frazzled this week, so i'm trying to avoid that happening again.

So, here are the things that made me happy this week:

1. Breakthrough at Calm Waters
• This week I had an amazing experience in my Children I Grief Group at Calm Waters that just blew me away! The children in that age group are 3-5 years old, though the group is composed of mostly 4 year olds. This means that facilitation with them is difficult because they have short attention spans and cognitively have trouble accepting and dealing with grief as well as with trying to articulate their feelings. Usually you are lucky to get 1-3 word answers from the kids as they fidget or scan the room searching for a toy that strikes their fancy. This Monday’s group, however, was different. Every child (all 7 of them) in that group opened up about why they were there and how they felt about what happened. They would say, “my daddy died” or “my mom is dead” then they’d come give me a hug or look down at the floor and pick at the carpet. Then, when they had to say how they were feeling that evening, most of them chose the “sad” picture and said, “Tonight I’m sad/happy/etc. because…” even though they were not told to expand upon their feelings, only identify them. It was incredible and truly a testimate to how well their parents are doing with keeping lines of communication open and fostering a child who understands that talking about their feelings is okay. I mean after all, these 7 little kids opened up about losing their loved ones to two people they’d only met once before. I simply couldn’t believe it and felt so honored and pleased that they felt safe enough to tell me what they did. 

1. Got my first two research methods quizzes back and I made 100s on both!
2. My roommate and I went to yoga at the Houston Huffman Fitness Center and it was wonderful!
3. Went for my third fill
• I went in to get another fill this past week and was ecstatic to see the scale drop even more! I had lost 11 pounds in the 3 weeks it had been since my last fill! My P.A. was so pleased with my progress that she decided not to add any more saline because I was doing so well that she didn't want to jinx it. 
4. Paying it forward 
• The other day I took a care package (a backpack with a blanket, a tee shirt, some food, personal care items, water, and a note from me) to the homeless man that is always panhandling at the place where I turn after exiting the highway to get to my practicum site. He was so grateful and couldn't believe that I gave him a backpack because he had one and it got stolen just the day before. I walked away feeling pretty happy, but that feeling grew 10x when I came back around to get on the highway in my car and I saw the man i'd given the bag to walking up to another homeless man and sitting down with him to share what i'd given him. He had so little, yet he shared it with those around him. 

Things to look forward to this weekend:

1. Mom's birthday celebration! 
• I'm taking Mom to get her nails done and her eyebrow pierced before my roommate gets off work. Then we are all going to go to dinner before checking in at the Grand Hotel and Casino where we will gamble a little and have some drinks before dozing off in a gorgeous room
2. Getting some sleep

To wrap this up, I leave you with a photo I took of Naala when I went home to get my fill. Hope you all have a great weekend!

Naala hates having her picture taken

My photo from 9-7-14

Storytelling for Week 4: Perception

It's All About Perception

The Story of Guha

Their arrival was sudden. Chariots, wagons, and carts pulled by hoofed beasts, snorting and stamping their disapproval at the dogs weaving between their legs and throughout the bustling caravan. The men carried familiar flags, those of Ayodhya and changed or sang praises of Shiva as they made their way further and further into my forest. I watched them from the trees at first, observing and wondering what their arrival might bring. The men and their companions slowed to a stop and immediately began setting up camp. They raised fancy tents, lit fires, tied off their beasts, and prepared gifts to be given as sacrifices to Shiva.

I watched, growing concerned about the intentions of my unexpected guests. Then, they unveiled a statue which upon further investigation turned out to depict Shiva. They made various sacrifices and offerings before returning to camp. I followed them back and revealed myself, offering my welcome and good will. I received them graciously, but asked why they had come. They were brahmanas who'd been sent by Vasishtha to "reform"  me and my people by teaching us to worship the glory of Shiva. I remained courteous and gave them many gifts, but made sure to inform them that I only worship ONE god, and that god is a tree.

Shiva Statue Temple Murdeshwara (2008)

Found on Wikipedia

Even after I explained my views, the brahmanas remained persistent; they bombarded me day after day with stories of the strength, power, and glory of Shiva. I couldn't help but get... frustrated. So, to work out some of that tension, every night after hunting I would visit the statue and give it a good, solid kick. I endured the brahmana's and their mission to "reform" me for what seemed like forever. The forest changed from one season to the next and all was the same: hunting, drinking, avoiding the brahmanas, and kicking Shiva. Things did change though when the rains came and flooded my beautiful forest. Ganga rose up and soaked the ground, rising higher and higher until it was up to my waist! The brahmanas fled to higher ground, leaving the statue of Shiva alone and half underwater for days at a time.

They may have abandoned their deity, but I wasn't going to. No matter what, rain or clear skies, high waters or relatively low waters I was going to kick that statue. I waded in every night in order to kick that statue. It was a daily ritual that I looked forward to and one day when I was unable to approach the statue directly due to a pack of wolves surrounding it, I remained dedicated to my cause. I climbed the closest tree to the statue and waited for my chance to get that kick. I waited all night, growing hungry and cold, but the wolves remained. I tried to eat some green nuts but they were awfully bitter! So, instead I sat back and tried to get comfortable because it seemed like I was looking forward to a long night. I shivered from the cold, my body violently shaking so hard that leaves, dew, and bitter green nuts fell from the tree to rain down on the statue. This continued throughout the night with me not getting any sleep and not being able to get down.

Finally, at dawn, my men came searching for me and scared off the wolves. I climbed down slowly, angry that I had not been able to complete my nightly ritual of kicking Shiva. My anger grew and became directed at the brahmanas. After all, I wouldn't have gone through all of this if it weren't for those idiots! I rushed their caravan, my men screaming and howling. The brahmanas were terrified and ran like children back to the skirt of their mother. We chased them all the way back to Ayodhya where I met King Dasaratha and was crowned an official king!

After my official crowning, we marched back to my forest where life went on as it had before the brahmanas arrived. We resumed our hunts and ran joyfully through the forest until one afternoon when I got really sick. I couldn't move. My skin felt like it was on fire and being pricked by thousands of small needles at the same time. Sweat poured down my face and my eyes sunk in creating deep, dark circles around them and giving my face a hauntingly skeletal appearance. I couldn't eat or drink and was not getting any better. Then, the terrible fever consumed me. I died and not long after did Yuma's messengers come to retrieve my soul. However, their efforts were thwarted by a small, mean-looking dwarf (who turned out to be Nandin, guardian of the wild). He told them to stop by order of Shiva and so they did.

I looked to the dwarf, entirely bewildered. Why would Shiva send him for me? Have I offended him? Fear crept up in my throat as I accompanied Nandin to Earth. We landed on the soft grass and just seconds later I was blinded by a white light. When it subsided, I looked around and found that Nandin had taken his true form, that of a white humpy bull and was advancing towards me. I backed up slowly as the great white bull took me into his jaws and carried me off. He delivered me to Shiva, but before I could ask any questions or figure anything out, Yama appeared. He asked Shiva why he had taken my soul (a sinner's soul) and left an empty place in hell. Shiva simply replied that I was the one person who was truly devoted to saluting him. He recalled the night I spent in the tree saying that I had watched over him all night without sleep and gave him the food that I needed. He also said that I had showered him with water and given him ornaments of leaves to appease him. However, the most telling part to Shiva of my devotion was that I drove out the men who were pretending to love him. I showed him who was truly devoted.

Yama accepts this answer and returns to his kingdom, leaving me in total awe with Shiva's interpretation of my misfortune. I almost went to correct the god, and reveal my true intentions but decided against it. Instead, I took the blessings of Shiva and was incredibly grateful when Shiva instructed Nandin to return me to my body. I guess every situation really does have multiple sides...


Author's Note:
I chose this story because it involves shape-shifting which I plan to do my storybook about. Plus, Guha seemed like a lively, charismatic character and his story was pretty funny. I chose to do it from Guha's point of view just to mix things up and try to get into the character's head. I didn't change much from the original story, just added details and obviously changed the narrator/storytelling style.

Week 4: Reading Diary A- Beginning Buck's Ramayana

Ramayana by William Buck

Part 1: The Prince of Ayodhya 

Born as a Man

• Valmiki, the poet
• searched all over the world, looking for open friendship, happiness, and hope but found none so he went alone in the forest where he sat, not moving- so still that white ants built an anthill over him
• sat inside the anthill for thousands of years 
• Narada, the inventor of music
• asks Valmiki for help and he says, "Just name me one honest man and I'll move" (Buck, 5)
• Narada says, "Rama!" and explains that he is the king of Ayodhya & by his command, his Queen Sita was being brought into the forest to be abandoned 
• Unless Valmiki comforts her, she plans to drown herself in the Ganges- killing not only her, but her unborn sons
• What did she do to be banished? Nothing. Sita is innocent but Rama has to do this because his people talk against her
• Valmiki breaks free of the anthill
• Valmiki hasn't regained his faith in humanity because the first real thing he sees after all this time is a bird being killed senselessly by a hunter
• Brahma visits Valmiki (4 days later)
• Brahma's appearance= old man w/ red skin, white hair, 4 arms, & 4 faces on 1 head. He is holding a ladle and rosary, a waterpot, and a holy book 
• Brahma tells the poet to use his ability to create poetry to tell Rama's story- Rama's life would be revealed to him and none of his words would be untrue 
• Valmiki's writing process = pg. 8
• Valmiki makes Ramayana and Sita's 2 sons were born (Kusa & Lava)
• Valmiki teaches them the Ramayana and when they were 12 they knew all of it by heart and would sing it to a lute and drum 
• they sang it at Rama's festival- then every day for a year 
• Dasaratha, Rama's father
• he was Lord of the Earth, Lord of Men, a Solar King
• Former king of Ayodhya 
• Ayodhya, capital of Kosala 
• people wore elegant clothes, life was joyful, mansions lined the streets, flowers grew all over, there were rows of shops, pale white palaces, lordly trees, music, rattling chariots
• a "matchlessly brilliant city with lots of food and wood and water" (Buck, 10)
• filled with warriors; unconquerable 
• Dasaratha wanted sons, so he summoned Sumantra (his charioteer) and Vasishtha (the royal astronomer) to make a sacrifice of fire to the gods (specifically Indra) to gain their favor and bless him with sons
• Indra, Rain God/King of Heaven
• furious and covered in blood, he hisses upon hearing their summons and surveys his kingdom
• "It was a hopeless ruin." (Buck 11)
• The garden was uprooted, crushed, & buried under soot & cinders, the palaces were now just broken stones and tiles, the Ganga ran red with blood, fires & smoke lingered all around
• Indra had just fought the Battle of Heaven against Ravana, the demon king
• Indra storms up to Brahma's palace and blames him for the destruction of his home 
• Brahma reassures him that all will be well & tells him to visit Narayana
• Narayana, Soul of the Universe/ Lord Vishnu 
• Narayana pledges to kill Ravana and will take the form of a man on Earth
• The ceremony performed by Vasishtha for Dasaratha is on pg. 15 
• Dasaratha receives a bowl of sweetened rice with milk that has been blessed by the gods- he is to feed it to his wives so they will bear sons
• Dasaratha's wives and sons:
• Kausalya gave birth to Rama (who quickly became the kings favorite)
• Kaikeyi gave birth to Bharata
• Sumitra gave birth to Lakshmana and Satrughna 
• When the 4 princes were 16 years old, Visanitra (a recluse) came to Kosala because the forest where he lives is riddled with evil Rakshasas making it unsafe and keeping him from performing holy rites/rituals

The Thorn in the World's Side 

• Rakshasa Creation story (starts on pg. 20):
• Brahma was reborn from a lotus that grew out of Narayana's navel in his sleep
• Brahma saw lots of water and feared it would be stolen so he created 4 guardians; 2 mated pairs- he told them to watch the water and not let any of it get lost
• these 2 couples were the first Rakshasas and Yakshas
• Narayana then rescued Earth from underwater and Brahma made the 5 elements, the worlds, food, and other races
• The rakshasa couple lived on Earth and the female bore a son who she abandoned on a deserted hillside 
• Lord Shiva found the baby demon and grew him to be as old as his mother as well as the gift of flight (2 gifts that stayed with the Rakshasa race)
• That baby Rakshasa was Sukesa who married Gandharva and had 3 sons: Mali, Sumali, and Malyavan\
• The 3 Rakshasas went to Viswakarman (the heavenly architect) and asked him to build them a glorious, beautiful home- he built Lanka City for them 
• Under these 3, the Rakshasa race thrived, but soon there were too many to fit in Lanka and they began going across the sea to eat human flesh 
• Narada, heavenly sage 
• was hanging out in the Dandaka forest trying to play a song, when he was interrupted by a Rakshasa 
• he told the demon to be quiet and the demon swallowed him whole, but Narada burned up the belly of the demon who spat him out 
• Narada began to sing his song of a not so peaceful life/end to the the Rakshasas
• Panchajanya, Garuda, and Narayana attacked Lanka
• Narayana beheaded Mali before Sumali and Malyavan fled wounded and burning to the underworlds beneath the ocean
• Narada set down his flute, his song was over and there were no more living Rakshasa on Earth- Lanka City was empty.
• The demons lay in wait underground in the Naga kingdoms, gathering resources and waiting for a chance to return 
• Pulastya, one of Brahma's Mind-Born sons
• lived alone in the Himalayas on a hill where he could relax and watch the world go by
• little girls liked to play there too, but after they had disturbed him 108 times, he put a curse on them: If any girl plays there again and he catches them, they will become pregnant!
• the daughter of Trinavindu (a hermit) had not heard the curse and came to the hilltop looking for her friends, but with a simple look from Pulastya she turned pale and ran home to her father 
• He could tell she was pregnant and wondered why. She didn't know, she had not done anything, but Trinavindu thought on it and knew what to do: he offered his daughter to Pulastya as alms for Pulastya's happiness. 
• Pulastya accepted her and they had a son named Vishrava
• Vishrava then married a brahmana's daughter and they had a son named Vaishravana 
• Brahma made him the Lord of Treasures and Riches  and Wealth (because he told Brahma he wanted to always be generous) took the Yakshas and befriended their king Manibhadra who he gave a mind-driven chariot named Pushpaka 
• Brahma also gave him immortality and all of the wealth of 3 worlds and kingdoms over kings 
• Brahma did not, however, give him a place to live so Vaishravana made the empty Lanka his home 
• Malyavan and Sumali watched from the Nagas as Vaishravana flourished in their home of Lanka and brought all of his riches there
• Sumali tells his daughter Kaikasi to go to Vishrava and get sons like Vaishravana 
• Vishrava took her for his 2nd wife she gave birth to 4 Rakshasas: 3 sons and a daughter
• Ravana was born first
• he had 10 heads, 20 arms, black skin, fangs that curved up from his lips, and 20 red eyes
• Next was Kumbhakarna
• a giant with ears shaped like big earthen waterjars and a height taller than a house
• After him came Surpanakha (the daughter)
• Last to be born was Vibhishana 
• the 3 brothers sat in a mountain forest contemplating the absolute immensity of life- they entered eternity 
• At the end of every 1000 years, Ravana cut off one of his heads and threw it into a fire as a sacrifice. When 9 of his heads were gone and there was only 1 day before he would cut off the last one, Brahma appeared. He showed up, stopping Ravana from cutting his own throat 
• Brahma tells him to ask for a boon because his pain and will are strong and terrible- he feels awful for him
• Ravana wishes to be unslayable and never defeated by the gods/anyone from heaven, Hell's devils/Asuras/demon spirits, underworld serpents, Rakshasas, or Yakshas.
• Brahma grants this boon and gives Ravana back his 9 heads 
• Brahma then tells Vibishana to ask for a boon. She wishes to never forget Dharma in peril, pleasure, comfort, or distraction.
• Brahma grants her this as well as immortality 
• Brahma was going to then ask Kumbhakarna to ask, but was interrupted by the wind which told him not to give him anything because he'd eaten 7 Apsarasas and 10 Gandharvas as well as many saints
• Brahma called on Saraswati, the Goddess of Speech to capture the giant's words before telling him to ask for his boon. Kumbhakarna asked to sleep for half a year. He immediately fell into a deep sleep
• Sumali then came up from underground and embraced Ravana who sent him to Lanka 
• Sumali told Vaishravana to leave Lanka because they wished to rule it once more. Vaishravana asked his father what to do. H was told to leave Lanka as it was, take his treasure and move to the Kailasa Hill north of the Himalayas on Silver Mountain 
• Ravana moves into Lanka and the millions of Rakshasas who had multiplied underground followed him
• Maya, an Asura (former god of old)
• her daughter = Mandodari (daughter of illusion)
• Mandodari's mother (Hema) left soon after her birth
• Ravana declares himself her servant
• Maya tells Ravana that she must give her daughter away and that she wishes to give her to him
• Ravana and Mandodari are wed and a few days later, their son Meghanada was born and matured into an adult- he could change his form & appearance at will
• Then, Ravana and Vibishana carried their brother Kumbhakarna to Lanka where they built a palace over him 
• Ravana chose the demon Prahasta as his general and an army was gathered- then the Demon King, his General, and his son flew off to "rape the worlds for days at a time" (Buck, 32).
• Ravana attacks his brother Manibhadra, the Yaksha King, who surrenders
• Indra curses Ravana and vows that he will be stopped.
• Nandin, Shiva's white bull is grazing in a golden reed forest when Ravana and Prahasta approach.
• Nandin turns into a gnome and tells them to leave, but instead Ravana picks up the Wood of Reeds and shook it
• Shiva trapped Ravana who began to sing such beautiful songs that Shiva let him go- Ravana returns to Lanka to rest before heading back out to take over the kingdoms of men 
• Ravana reaches the city of King Arjuna of the Thousand Arms 
• In the city are 4 gods who took on the forms of animals upon hearing of his arrival:
• Indra = peacock, Yama (the death lord) =  crow, Vaishravana = lizard, & Varuna (king under waves) = swan
• Story of how those animals came to be how they are on p. 36
• Ravana decides to worship Shiva before fighting, he approaches the king whose guards ask that the two wait until the morning to fight because the king is drunk and playing with his women
• Pulastya heard Arjuna's roar and came to Ravana's aid, asking Pulastya to let him go . Arjuna complied and Ravana returned to his chariot in shame 
• Narada comes in and tells Ravana to attack someone worthy of his efforts: Yama, the Death Lord for example- he goes to Death's kingdom and tells him to surrender, so Yama does 
• Ravana's Further Conquests:
• Naga Kingdom
• Defeated Surya, the sun and Chandra, the moon
• Attacked Indra's heaven (Amaravati)- Indra's elephant (Airavata) wounds Ravana, Ravana's son Meghanada captures Indra and is given the new name Indrajit (conqueror of Indra) by Brahma as well as the gift of a fire chariot drawn by 4 tigers that moves at will and gives him better luck in battle. It also makes him invisible to anyone except other demons.

Taste This Water

• Vishwamitra wants help killing the Asuras, so Rama and Lakshmana become his students. He taught them 2 mantras for strength, how to use heavenly weapons, 
• Then, they travelled to Vishwamitra's hut and he instructed the brothers to protect him for 6 days and nights, then on the 7th day, be more alert as the day goes on and the sacrifice draws to an end (sacrifice to Agni the Fire Lord)
• On the 7th evening 2 Rakshasas, Maricha and Subahu, swept in attempting to ruin the rite
• Rama shot 3 arrows into Maricha's heart, knocking him unconscious 
• Lakshmana killed Subahu with one shot 
• At full dark, the sacrifice was completed- the three travel to Janaka's country where they came upon an ancient ruin covered in vines- it was the empty retreat of Gautama that had been cursed
• Ahalya's story is retold 
• Sita and Rama are married

Prof's Reading Guide A
Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way

Poster Tech Tip

For the week 4 tech tip I chose to learn about making motivational or de-motivational posters using Automator. It's a pretty fun little tool, and I usually like the de-motivational posters because some are really fun but I decided to make one that demonstrates what I have been trying to maintain: positivity.

Good luck to everyone this week!