Reading Notes: The Jataka Tales of India, Part B

Bibliography:
Title: Jataka Tales
Author: Ellen C. Babbitt

The Golden Goose

• The moral of the story was that people shouldn't be greedy and cherish what they receive, rather than asking (or in this case, demanding) for more.
• I like that the feathers were gold in this story instead of the eggs since I believe that the goose that laid the golden eggs was ultimately killed in order to obtain more eggs.

The Stupid Monkeys

• This story definitely teaches you that you shouldn't give someone a task without teaching him/her how to do it beforehand! 

The Cunning Wolf

• Finally a story where the wolf wasn't the antagonist!

The Woodpecker and the Lion

• This story shows that when you don't know how to appreciate people, you will end up losing them.
• The lion in this story did not even say a word of thanks to the woodpecker and even said he was gracious enough to not eat him when the woodpecker helped him get the bone out of his throat. 
• Ungrateful lion!

How the Monkey Saved His Troop

• Wow, the King wanted to eat the monkeys as well as the mangoes.
• The monkey chief was so kind to let all the other monkeys climb on his back.
• I admire that the King was able to see the monkey's actions and decided to take care of him for the rest of his life.

The Hawks and Their Friends

• It's true that you should make friends because once you're in trouble, you have no one else to help pull you back up on your feet
• True friends are friends that will help you when you need them the most and sometimes, they're the hardest to find

The Foolhardy Wolf

• I think the lesson this story teaches is that one shouldn't overstep their boundaries
• This is kind of different than what I believe in. In a way, this is teaching someone to have a fixed mindset. To not try to become better than what they are. 
• The wolf was killed for trying to catch bigger prey after he grew big and strong. 

The Stolen Plow

• This story was a good one!
• I was confused at first as to why the village trader took the man's son and said the bird had carried him off, but then it made sense because the town trader had also told an outrageous lie as to why the plow was gone
• The village trader just wanted his plow back. 

The Lion in Bad Company

• Here, the wolf is the bad guy once again!
• I guess this story is telling us appearances can be deceiving. 
• The wolf tried to play the good guy and called the lion "Great Lion" to get on his good side but then played him and caused left him for dead.

Beauty and Brownie

• I think the lesson here is that you should listen to advice or instructions that are given to you.
• Because Brownie did not listen to his father's instructions, he nearly lost his entire herd.

The Elephant and the Dog

• This story was very cute! 
• I think the moral of this story is that you can make friends with anyone! Even an elephant and a dog were able to become such good friends that separation would cause them depression! 

Image from "The Elephant and the Dog" story.

Source: UN-Textbook.

Reading Notes: The Jataka Tales of India, Part A

Bibliography:
Title: Jataka Tales
Author: Ellen C. Babbitt

The Monkey and the Crocodile

• The monkey in this story is very cunning when he said he left his heart behind. 
• Why did the writer have to call the crocodile "stupid" though? He was just a little Crocodile.
• If his mother wanted to eat something, she should have gotten it herself rather than making her son do it since he doesn't seem to know much about catching monkeys!
• I didn't know that crocodiles closed their eyes when they open their mouth.
• I like that the little Crocodile was very persistent. He really wanted that monkey heart for his mommy Crocodile.

How the Turtle Saved His Own Life

• The king put fish into a lake where his sons would play around in? That doesn't sound safe for the fish at all if the lake was small!
• The poor turtle didn't do anything at all but the king wanted to have it killed. Wow.
• The king and his people were actually really foolish because they found the turtle in the water in the first place. If they put it in water.. it would just be like putting it back where it was living comfortably...

The Turtle Who Couldn't Stop Talking

• This story was kind of twisted. 
• I suppose the lesson here is to not talk too much or it else you'll gets in lots of trouble?
• Turtles are usually very smart in most stories, but in this one, the turtle was not smart at all!

The Ox Who Won the Forfeit

• I feel like the message of this story is to treat others with kindness and that being mean or demanding will not get you anywhere.
• When the man beat the ox, it was flabbergasted and didn't even move an inch, making him lose all his money.
• Once he apologized and spoke to it in a kind way, it drew one hundred carts for him and earned him lots of money.

The Foolish, Timid Rabbit

• This story felt like there wasn't a moral, but I thought it was kind of funny
• The poor little rabbit freaked out whenever a coconut fell on it and thought the world was breaking up. 
• Then every other creature it came across believed it and started running around too! 
• Luckily the lion was there.
• Maybe the moral of the story was that in some dire situations, we all need someone who is level-headed to help us out? haha

The Banyan Deer

• I felt that this was a great story about sacrificing yourself for another.
• In some cases, most people are not as merciful as the king, but luckily the king decided to stop hurting the deer after seeing the King's sacrifice.

The Princes and the Water-Sprite

• This was a good story!
• I like that there was a mysterious element to the story with the riddle given by the water-sprite to each of the princes.
• I felt like because the elder prince was able to answer the question right, he should be given the authority to rule after the king dies. 
• I wonder why the queen wanted the sun prince to become the king? 

The Ox Who Envied the Pig

• I'm not sure how this story teaches the value of hard work.. is it because the pig did not do much work, which is why the farmer chose to make a feast out of the pig instead of the oxen?

"The Ox Who Envied the Prince"

Source: UN-Textbook.

The Crab and the Crane

• The Crane was very deceitful in this story!
• I like that justice was served at the end with the crab killing the crane.
• This is another lesson that tells us what goes around will ultimately come back around aka karma will always get you back!

The Three Fishes

• I think those names are very deserving for each fish! 
• I noticed that in the intro for this story, there are versions of this story where not all of the fishes got away. Is it perhaps the "thoughtless" fish who got caught in the other ones? 

The Tricky Wolf and the Rats

• Why is it that lycanthropes are the characters who are always thought to be "wicked?"
• I think wolves are very honorable animals!
• This story seems like a spin-off of the little red riding hood story.
• The moral of the story here is not to be wicked and greedy.

Review: Borders in the Mind

"Borders? I have never seen one. But I have heard they exist in the minds of some people." image. 

Source: OU Class Announcements.

This is my favorite picture from the recent announcements on March 7, 2017. This is true. If the people of the world just took a moment to get rid of the prejudices and borders they create in their own minds, what a wonderful place the world would be.

Famous Last Words: Post Midterms and Spring Break Spree

Ahhhh~ The break that I've been looking forward to the most since the start of 2017. Spring break always comes as a nice breath of fresh air. The week before spring break was extremely hectic. I felt like I had so much to do, but so little time to do it. Although I am still pressed for time right now, it definitely wasn't as crazy as last week. Whew.

Since I didn't do much writing and reading this week for this class, I don't think I'll have much to say regarding the Indian epics, but let's just see what I can mentally conjure up. I enjoyed this week's reflection and evaluation assignments because I got to voice my opinions regarding various topics. I did do some casual reading over break. I read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Caraval over break. The former was a rather odd book, but slightly funny at the same time due to all the weird characters and stories. The latter was really interesting because there was mystery, magic, and romance all in one book--my favorite genres. I'm glad that I am getting back into reading because I used to be an avid reader before college started. I probably read at least 10 books a week before. It's crazy to think that I've read less than 10 books for fun (I don't count textbooks, although some textbooks are pretty enjoyable) the entire 4 years I've been at OU.

I got to catch up a lot in this class over break. I've done a bunch of extra credit assignments just to get ahead. It seems that if I keep this up, I should be done with this class by the end of Week 11. Yay for early endings!! Although this is one of my more enjoyable classes... Next week, I hope to have time to write a story THAT WILL BLOW EVERYONE'S MIND. Since I only have a few weeks left in this class, I'm going to make the best of it. Especially since I only have 1 story in my portfolio so far. Fingers crossed!

"Believe in yourself." Ant holding up a giant twig meme. 

Source: Memecenter.

EVENT NOTIFICATION

My sorority is hosting a Thai Tea Tuesday on campus on March 21st from 10am to 1pm! We are selling ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS Thai Tea drinks and everyone should come check it out! 

Extra Reading Post: Ganesha's Secret

Ganesha's Secret

• How can anyone with weird heads be gods? 
• Why is there more than one god. 
• The Hindu notion of divine is unique, it is not restricted to a single idea or deity. 
• Each deity is a jigsaw puzzle, that comes together to make an overall God. 
• The world is subjective, for each person there is a different "world"
• I think this is rather profound. If I could write a story about this, that would be really cool. 
• Each world is different, but what matters more? The answer is everyone's world matters. 
• stories, symbols and rituals communicate a myth 
• Many things in life cannot be explained by logic
• Different cultures have different answers as to what happens after death 
• maybe I can write about a story of different perspectives about death 
• Ganesha's head 
• implies power because the elephant is not prey to many 
• the idea of Ganesha is reinforced by the story of his birth
• Parvati married shiva
• while bathing, Parvati molded a doll and created a child that was born without the help of a man
• He was beheaded 
• Shiva gave the child the head of an elephant that was part of the land of immortality 
• Ganesha represents the union of two opposites: Shiva and Parvati

Screenshot by me. 

Bibliography: 

"7 Secrets from Hindu Calendar Art - Chapter 1 Ganesha's Secret" by Epified. 

Wikipedia Trails: from Wonder Woman to The Jade Emperor

1. Wonder Woman
• Wonder Woman is a superheroine in the DC Comic universe. She is a member (founding member) of the Justice League and a warrior princess of the Amazonian people. She was actually sculpted from clay and given life by Athena!
2. The Amazonian people
• They are a fictional society of superhuman, based on the Amazons of Greek mythology. They are made of only women that live on Paradise Island. 
3. Demigod
• This is a term for an individual who is a minor deity, a mortal whose parents are a god and a human being, or someone who has attained divine status. 
• In Hinduism, demigods are deities who were once humans and became gods. 
4. The Jade Emperor
• In Chinese mythology, he is the first god and is the monarch of all heavenly deities
• He is also known was the Heavenly Grandfather or the Great Emperor of Jade
• although he was the head of the pantheon, he was not responsible for creation itself.

Image depicting the Jade Emperor. 

Source: Wikipedia article Jade Emperor.

Growth Mindset towards... Relationships?

For this growth mindset post, I would like to talk about relationships. I was looking at the Growth Mindset Cats page and this really caught my eye. After being in a relationship that lasted a substantial amount of time and leaving it pretty recently, I have learned a few things about relationships and one of the most important things is: relationships require effort. Regardless of whether the relationships are platonic or romantic, I find that there's always a degree of effort that needs to be put in--but there needs to be equal amounts put in by both parties. A lot of people will end up leaving their partners after troubles arise, but few realize that it takes work to overcome these obstacles. The good thing is, after you do put in this effort, you can reap the benefits of having a long-lasting relationship where you can fully trust the other person and enjoy their company without fear of judgment because this person has seen your highest of highs and lowest of lows.

"Relationships require effort" meme of two cats being cute. 

Source: Growth Mindset Cats.

Learning Challenge: The Lotus

The quote for this happiness meme is from a Buddhist proverb, but I could not find who actually said it. I created this image from AutoMotivator.

Tech Tip Cheezburger

Here's my Cheezburger image!

Tech Tip Poster

This quote is one that I based from Louise Hay: “I do not fix problems. I fix my thinking. Then problems fix themselves.” The picture is a random picture generated from AutoMotivator.

Tech Tip: Embed Tweet

Are you a good listener? These four steps can help: https://t.co/5XHampUVE0 pic.twitter.com/zWTNz6TTfw

— TED-Ed (@TED_ED) March 11, 2017

Google Timer Tech Tip

I have recently started using a Google timer! Ever since I got introduced to the Pomodoro method of studying, I have been using this timer to stay on track! It's useful because it's very easy to configure and if I have my headphones in, it rings to let me know when I can take a break!

How I use it nowadays is to set my timer to 1 hour. I give myself 1 hour to finish a main assignment for one class. Once the timer is up, I move to another subject, and this way, I never get bored and can cycle through all my classes. It's a good feeling to see how much I can do in so little time and how much time I've got left as well!

Screenshot of my Google timer. 

Tech Tip: SoundCloud Embedded

Tech Tip: Sidebar Box

Hi guys!

I've added an HTML/Javascript sidebar box to my blog! I put my favorite quote in there if you guys wanna go and take a look!

Screenshot by me.

Tech Tip: Canvas Mobile App

My Experience: 

• The installation for the Canvas app on Android devices is quick and simple
• Look up "Canvas" in the Google Play Store and press "install."
• When you first log into the app, there is a small tutorial that tells you the main things you can do with the app, which is useful
• You can also get notifications from Canvas directly on your device!
• OMG THE LITTLE FLYING PANDA ANIMATION WHEN YOU SWITCH SCREENS IS SO CUTE
• For the most part, I think this app is very useful if you want to have quick access to Canvas when on-the-go
• it's actually much better than the D2L app ever was since you have access to every aspect of Canvas

Canvas App flying panda.

Source: Twitter.

Week 8 Growth Mindset

After pondering my mindset, I have come to realize that I compartmentalize a lot. In some classes, I tend to go above and beyond, but in others, I do the bare minimum. Looking at the different dimensions of growth, I feel like half of me is growth and half of me is fixed at this moment in my life. I wish I could say I had an entirely growth mindset.

I think my strengths in my classes are that I always try to do work that I will be proud of. Yet, I want to do it in a way that is the moment efficient so I can get it over with quickly, so sometimes, I have to give up quality for time. I think that comes with college though because you have to prioritize to make sure everything is at least done in a timely manner.

Due to the flexible nature of Indian Epics, I have the luxury of working at my own pace for the most part. I think this will help me build on my weaknesses because through this class, I can practice my internal motivation to do my best work. Like most, I am focused on the grades mostly. It's just that there are some fields that require a good GPA to get into the school (like med, PA, nursing, pharm, law, etc.). This isn't something that is necessarily good because there are people (like me sometimes) that will focus on getting the grade rather than retaining the information. As much as I love to learn, there has been more than one occasion where I have forgotten all of the material after an exam is over. I wish that wasn't the case, though.

I think for the rest of this semester, I will focus on doing things earlier. I already have been doing it a little. Whenever I have exams coming in the next week, I would try to finish my assignments a week early. I would like to do this all the time, however.

The 2% Mindset. 

Source: Growth Mindset Cats. 

Week 8 Reflections

1) Reading

I think I have been making okay choices with the reading. When I first chose the PDE version for the Ramayana, I didn't expect it to be so dense and hard to understand. Luckily, I wasn't too far into the PDE version before I switched to Narayan's version. Because Narayan wrote it like a novel, it was much easier to follow and I enjoyed it much more because the characters were explained and introduced while I was reading. The reading I enjoyed most definitely was the Ramayana. This story followed one trajectory that was really interesting. The Mahabharata was interesting too, with all of its twists, but I definitely liked the Ramayana much, much more. I have been keeping up with the readings for the most part, except for one week where I took a break from Indian Epics because I had a lot of exams to do. I also like to include what I think would be a good topic to write about, which makes it easier for me when I go back and look at what I was thinking whilst reading. As for the coming weeks, I am excited to read about the gods and goddesses and Buddhist jataka tales.

2) Writing

I have only written 3 stories so far, but I feel that I am doing okay so far. The most recent story, I had an idea of where I was going with it, but I kind of lost it at the end. I hope that after I revise it, it will turn into something I am really proud of. I had already known that I was a slow writer since the beginning, but I also learned that the more time a project takes, the less motivated I am to start early. This is a bad trait when it comes to writing because I am reluctant to do it due to my perfectionist personality. I hope to be rid of it soon. When I need ideas for writing, I like to go online and see what scenario ideas people have and how I can integrate those in my writing/stories. I would like to branch out more in the next few weeks. The past few weeks, I've been writing stories that are more or less on the same trajectory as the stories. I recently read a peer's story and she only took one line out of the story and wrote an amazing story out of it. I want to try that eventually.

3) Connecting
I really enjoy good stories. There are so many people in class with amazing writing skills and there are some that are about average. Some people have the tendency to make their stories a huge wall of text that makes it hard to digest the story. That is something I would like to avoid in my writing. I think I'm giving good feedback, especially when it comes to portfolio comments because they're longer and allow me to freely express my thoughts.

Me sometimes:

Source: Pinterest.

Week 7 Storyplanning: Bhishma's Invisibility Cloak

Since Bhishma was granted by the Gods the power to choose the day of his death, it reminded me a lot of "The Tale of the Three Brothers" in Harry Potter. One of the brothers was given an invisibility cloak made from the clothing of Death. It granted the person wearing it everlasting protection from Death and made him invisible from the eyes of all.

I want to write a story where Bhishma was given this cloak by the gods somehow and how Death was about to take his life but failed due to the magic of the cloak. Then when he chose to die, he would take it off and tell Death what had happened. Death would then express regret for ever making it in the first place.

The brother taking off his invisibility cloak and being taken away by Death. 

Source: Tumblr.

More information on Bhishma: 

• also known as Devavrata
• the 8th son of Ganga and Shantanu
• made a pledge of celibacy for his father's happiness
• Bhishma = "One who incites fear"
• He rejected Amba, who then swore to kill him for rejecting her
• I think it would be interesting to write a backstory on Amba, who purposely came back to life (as a man since she exchanged her sex with a demon) to get Bhishma back and fulfill her vow
• He died during the war
• "The next day, confronted by Sikhandi, Bhishma refuses to fight a woman, and he abandons his weapons. Against the rules of war, the Pandavas strike the unarmed warrior with thousands of arrows. There is no space on his body thicker than two fingers that is not pierced. He falls from his chariot, and lies fully supported by the arrows, with no part of his body touching the earth. Bhishma does not actually die until much later, at his choosing. He remains lying on a bed of arrows until the end of the battle.

Sources: 

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling. 

The Mahabharata Synopsis by Larry A. Brown