- I was right about Bharata being really upset.
- I wonder why no one is willing to kill women? Is there some sort of religious significance or is it just the culture?
- I guess that means Bharata is essentially the unwilling king-figure who walks into a world on fire.
Dashartha's Funeral
- The description of this funeral is really beautiful.
- I wonder if it really was customary to lie on the ground for ten days after the death of a monarch.
- I think the significance of this is to remind readers how important and well loved Dashartha was as a king which is why the whole world is said to darken at his death.
Rama and Bharata
- The important point here is being good on your word. Rama told his father he would honor his wish and so he will.
- Bharata realizes that Rama should be king but goes about convincing him all wrong.
- If Bharata is part of Vishnu reincarnated, how can he say there is no afterlife?
The Sandals
- Bharata has an incredible amount of loyalty for his brother to rule as an ascetic king in the woods.
- Does this mean that Rama will be able to rule when he returns?
- Will that be dishonoring his promise
- I think in my story the object will be a gift rather than a pair of sandals Bharata asks Rama to wear.
Anasuya
- I think this is meant to show how Sita, like her husband, easily wins favor and blessings from holy people.
- It also gives some cool insight into Sita's birth story.
Viradha
- I like this story because I feel like it's about the fact that sometimes defeat is a different kind of victory.
- Viradha was actually cursed to be the way he was. It was defeat that freed him.
Agastya
- Agastya is an interesting character. I find it fascinating that all the really holy sages they come across seem to already know so much about them.
- I plan to include an Agastya character equivalent to prepare Rama for war and warn him against overtaxing his wife.
Shurpanakha and Rama
- Rama is lauded as this peerless godlike virtuous man, but he clearly has human emotions and flaws too because he can be pretty cruel at times.
- Shurpanakha amuses me with the fact that she assumes that offering to kill his wife is the best way to win Rama's heart.
Lakshmana and Shurpanakha
- Shurpanakha is a succubus.
- This should be a lesson about being unnecessarily cruel.
- I wonder why they are so opposed to killing women but not men. They could easily have killed Shurpanakha, but instead they just disfigured her. Why?
- This is proof that Rama's training as a warrior has paid off and shows him to be valiant and indomitable.
- Lakshmana is very obedient to his brother. I wonder if it is because he was afraid of facing the demon army.
- It is clear that Ravana loves his family, if nothing else.
- Shurpanakha really is vindictive and persistent. She's already sent two of her brothers plus an entire army to their deaths just because Sita is Rama's wife.
- I didn't realize before that Maricha had good sense enough to leave well enough alone.
- He is wiser than I thought. I almost feel bad about the fact that he's probably going to die.
- Ravana definitely has no respect for other people's lives and experience.
- Sita is easily fooled it seems, and Rama is no better.
- Lakshmana should be lauded as the wise and loyal brother.
- More and more I'm wanting to write a spinoff about Lakshmana, but I'm not sure if I should write something like that as incredibly wont to say 'I told you so' internally or more sage and mature.
- Sita may be beautiful and loyal, but the way she is written makes it sound as though those are her sole redeeming characteristics.
- Ravana seems intent on dramaticism.
- He could have simply stolen her from the get go.
- Why did he think that a brahmin would be able to woo her away from her husband?
- Ravana is foolish and rash.
- I suppose Sita also has the trait of likability as it seems that all the forest creatures love her as well as men and demons.
- Jatayu sacrifices himself for a woman he owes nothing to. That's extremely heroic.
- I don't know how to feel about the fact that Brahma seems to have, in some way, ordained this kidnapping.
- Are monkeys just known for being good or is Sita offering that out on a hope that they are?
- So Ravana is both blessed and cursed by the same god of creation. I wonder that his misdeeds did not offer reason to revoke his blessings in the first place.
- Sita is resolute and unyielding, if extremely emotional.
- Lakshmana is far more put together than Rama in this situation.
- He offers actual helpful suggestions and helps them to make progress.
- Jatayu is truly selfless for using his last breaths to guide Rama in the right direction.
- There seems to be a pattern of good men being turned into demons, but I can't tell if being turned into a rakshasa is a punishment from the gods or if it is a curse not a result of wrongdoing.
- How does Kabandha know all this about Sita and Ravana?
- Shabari is an incredibly patient and devout woman.
- Her devotion must have shown Rama how important his coming was to the holy people of the land.
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