Reading Notes: Ravana Leela Part B

Notes: 

A word on my note-taking style and strategy.

Taking this class has permitted me to explore and experiment with different ways to take notes on what you’re reading. The utilizing these various, unique note-taking strategies are great for development of reading comprehension and other skill. I feel I have gained a lot from trying different ones. Now that I’ve tried out multiple, I feel like I have found what works best for me. That’s not to say I won’t try new strategies in the future, but for succinct and helpful notes on something like this book which I am using as a source for my storybook, I like to stick with what I’ve found works best.

For me, what works best is to take notes while reading, jotting down important names and places, copying my favorite quotes, and capturing my opinions that naturally occur. Having these first impressions to look back on can be very helpful. I also enjoy writing character traits, giving characters nicknames, or comparing the characters to others.

Today my notes will be simple. For each chapter I will write down a couple important things and my favorite quotes.

Chapter 5:

Kaikasi, daughter of Sumali, marries Maharshi Vishravasu, father of Kuber,because Sumali wants a child like Kuber on his side. Kaikasi is sent alone to Vishravasu and becomes pregnant with his child, after she convinces him, showing the reader her wittiness and persuasive abilities.

There’s a cursed mangrove she is prohibited from entering, according to Devaparni, Vishravasu’s first wife.

The two women become friends and she learns more about the mangrove. The story goes: during Krita-yug, a time when Brahma was upset with the rakshasas who had become arrogant and used their greater strength to abuse other creatures, He gave birth to a child named Pulastya, who was born with all of Brahma’s attributes. Pulastya chose the grove/hermitage/ashram for his place of meditation and it came to be called Rishi-Teertham. But because of the great beauty of the place, it attracted many girls who talked, laughed, and played, which disturbed Pulastya’s meditation, causing him to utter a curse that “if he so much as set eyes on a girl, she would become pregnant.” The curse was effective, as the women would have their reputations ruined if they got pregnant out of wedlock. But one day Raja Trinabindu and his daughter Maanini visited, unaware of the curse. Maanini became pregnant and her father asked Pulastya to marry her since she was unaware of the curse and thus did not deserve the consequences. The child they had was Vishravasu. 

The description of the grove is nice.

Chapter 6:

Kaikasi becomes depressed when Devaparni stops being her friend. She has a son, Dashagreeva, but no longer cares about his power. Kaikasi becomes pregnant a second time. 

“the child was more frightening than Dashagreeva/Dashamukha had been at birth. The boy had huge, unusually shaped ears. They looked like two huge pots attached on either side of his head. On account of this aspect, Vishravasu named him ‘Kumbhakarna’ meaning one with pot-like ears.”

A third child is born, this is Shurpanakha.

“So, Kaikasi had her third child. This was a girl, but her grotesque rakshasa features did nothing to lift Kaikasi’s spirits. Vishravasu maintained his calm and named his daughter ‘Surpanakha’, which meant one with large and wide fingernails and aptly described the girl’s special feature.”

They have their fourth child 

“The child was a gentle and peaceful looking son, and his birth was accompanied by the chirping of birds. There were other auspicious signs—peacocks danced in the gentle breeze and trees bore fragrant flowers and mouth-watering fruits. Vishravasu welcomed the baby in exactly the same manner as he had welcomed his other children and named his son Vibheeshana. Kaikasi wondered what the name meant, particularly since the sage had named his other three children on the basis of their particular and special physical traits. She, however, refrained from asking, for fear of hearing some dark facet of the gentle-looking child.”

The whole time Kaikasi misses her friend but then Devaparni returns and they make up.

Chapter 7:

This chapter shows the relationship between Kaikasi and her stepson Kuber. We learn that they are close and care for each other. I like this chapter.

 “Kaikasi, who had come to address Kuber as ‘Vaishravana’, just as Devaparni did, despite his title ‘Kuber’, was also overwhelmed by the affection he showered on his half-brothers and sister. Seeing them together filled Kaikasi with immense satisfaction and she secretly hoped that their association with Vaishravana would inculcate the higher values of life in her own children.”

“Kaikasi’s thoughts revolved around a comparison of her own children with her stepson. Physically also, the differences between them could not have been starker. Vishravasu’s firstborn son was a picture of perfection. He had chiselled features that radiated his inner beauty. His body glistened and his muscles rippled with good health at his every movement and there was a smile playing around his lips at all times. Much more than the way he looked and carried himself, Kaikasi was drawn by the manner in which he dealt with Dashagreeva, Kumbhakarna and Surpanakha—whose rakshasa lineage was underlined through their features. All three were huge, with wrestler-like physiques, as against the wiriness of Vaishravana. Dashamukha, despite his good looks, had an odd demeanour because of his ten heads. And his eyes reflected a determination that bordered on adamant. Worse, he showed an instinctive hatred towards his elder brother—an attitude that Kaikasi tried very hard to change. As for Kumbhakarna, his head was disproportionately small for the rest of his body on account of his unusually large and misshapen ears. But it gratified Kaikasi that he remained civil in his dealings with Vaishravana. He showed due respect and courtesy to him as an elder and appeared amenable to reason when his elder half-brother tried to resolve disputes among his younger siblings.”

“Surpanakha always had this effect on her. She was very different from all her brothers. Despite being a girl, she had no empathy for her mother. Dashagreeva and Kumbhakarna were more amenable to discipline than this girl. Surpanakha’s wild looks were perfectly matched with her wild ways, mused Kaikasi. Another reason why her daughter’s presence pushed Kaikasi into despondency was her uncanny resemblance to Sumali. The similarity was not just in looks and features, but in her gestures and habits also. Every time Surpanakha looked at her, Kaikasi felt that her father was questioning her about her mission to repossess Lanka.”

Chapter 8:

In this chapter, Kaikasi falls into a deep sleep and wakes up enraged with her husband. She accuses him of keeping her children from having great abilities. Her husband reveals that he knew all along why she wanted a child with him in the first place. She is shocked and questions why he went along with it. He tells her she is “a blessed person, chosen to play an important role in a larger cosmic sequence of events,’”

Then we learn about the backstory of Kaikasi’s children. “Dashagreeva and Kumbhakarna are Jaya and Vijaya, and they chose your womb to be born as Vishnu-haters,’ Vishravasu said.”

Vishravasu makes Kaikasi forget what she learned and this is how Devaparni reacts. 

“Devaparni shook off her husband’s hand.

 ‘Unfair,’ she said emphatically. ‘That is unfair to a mother. You cannot burden a mother with the details of her children’s past and future and not provide her with the wherewithal to guard and protect her children or give her some way in which to find solace.’ Devaparni’s eyes bored into Vishravasu’s, holding him accountable and beseeching him to take action.”

This causes “Vishravasu looked long and thoughtfully into his wife’s eyes. ‘I salute the mother in you. I will do what you want me to do,’ he finally said and re-entered the room. He placed the palm of his right hand on Kaikasi’s chest, feeling the steady beat of her heart. He bent over her and spoke softly into the sleeping woman’s ear. ‘Here is a mantra that will help you protect your sons from harm. Turn to Shiva and seek his grace. Chant his pancha-akshari mantra. “Om Namah Shivayah! Om Namah Shivayah! Om Namah Shivaya!’’’ he chanted into her ear.”