Reading:
The Ramayana: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic by R. K. Narayan
The story of Rishya Sringa reminds me of the first episode of Dragonball, when Goku meets a girl, Bulma, for the first time.
The fights Rama has with demons seem very anti-climatic. Thataka and her sons are given a pretty long backstory only to be taken out almost in a single hit. Although, after reading the introduction, this might just be from Narayan's writing style, worth looking into.
The story narration seems to have a lot of very sudden events, from Rama's point of view, either preceding or following a flashback with an explanation. There is also a huge of amount of hyperbole. Everything is thousands of years old or taller than the clouds.
I think the story of how Rama very quickly goes from being crowned to being exiled is interesting. It seems like the King tried to be a little devious, and almost, immediately his chickens came home to roost.
I think this quote goes well with the King's story, I also like how this is a form of foreshadowing for the flashback, about the King shooting a young man, that comes later.
"A word given is like an arrow, it goes forward. You cannot recall it midway. . ." -- Rama
I really liked the imagery of Vishnu embodying a small man to trick Mahabali into giving up his lands. It's also a very classic God in the guise of a beggar story. Odysseus pulled a similar trick, and I think I remember a story about a ruler/god/prophet trying to enter a palace as a beggar.
Kooni reminds me of Gollum from Lord of the Rings. Her outside seems to reflect her inner personality. She is like the devil on Kaikeyi's shoulder. If Kaikeyi is the trickster of the story, then she is the trickster's trickster.
Reading the first part of Rama's journey reminded me of a quote by Lao Tzu:
| "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Lao Tzu made at Cheezburger.com |
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