Portfolio Index

The Tale of Roman and Sophia - Have you ever wondered what it would be like to fall in love with a stranger at first glance?

Padma and the Black Lake - Even in the wizarding world, childhood tales find a way into Padma's mind and in a way she didn't imagine...

Shikhandi & Bhishma: A Tale of Revenge: Revenge is never instantaneous. It can always come in the most unexpected of ways.

A Telling of Tales in Gryffindor Tower: A cold winter night can bring us close to the fire for some much needed bonding.

Parvati: Hopelessly Devoted to Shiva - The feeling of unrequited love can hurt more than anything, but the heart wants what it wants.

Week 13 Storytelling -- Parvati: Hopelessly Devoted to Shiva

Parvati and Shiva
Image Source: Flickr

*Below there is a video embedded to kind of add to the ambiance you could say. :) *


   This couldn't be happening to her, not after she felt some sort of spark with him. That look he gave her was unmistakable, and it wasn't just her imagination running wild. Lord Shiva looked at her with a tender love when their eyes met, and it was magical. But, just as quickly, that look vanished and was replaced with fury and Parvati could not understand why. Did she offend him? Was he upset for setting his eyes on someone that he felt was below him? She desperately wanted to know why he wouldn't let her in. Why did Shiva push these feelings away if they were in fact there? So many questions ran through Paravati's head as she stood rooted to the very spot where Shiva stormed off without saying a word to her. She stood there until her father came to the grove for his daily visit and asked her why she looked so defeated and confused. Without a word, Parvati simply embraced her father with such sadness and vulnerability that he simply brought her home. She ran to her room and sat in her favorite spot, the window sill overlooking the beautiful mountains. They were bathed in moonlight and the stars seemed dim, mirroring her spirits. Parvati began to softly sing, her voice full of longing and sorrow,

"Guess mine is not the first heart broken

My eyes are not the first to cry

I'm not the first to know

There's just no getting over you

You know I'm just a fool who's willing

To sit around and wait for you

But, baby, can't you see

There's nothing else for me to do?

I'm hopelessly devoted to you

But, now there's nowhere to hide

Since you pushed my love aside

I'm out of my head

Hopelessly devoted to you

Hopelessly devoted to you

Hopelessly devoted to you

My head is saying, "Fool, forget him."

My heart is saying, "Don't let go.

Hold on till the end."

And that's what I intend to do

I'm hopelessly devoted to you."

   After a few days of self-pity and much needed venting to her dear mother, Parvati was struck with a huge sense of determination. She would win his heart if it was the last thing she did. It didn't matter if it took years, she would find a grove and win him with her everlasting devotion and penance. Parvati realized that it was not her exceptional beauty that would win Lord Shiva's love, but her inner beauty and devotion. She spoke with her father and asked him to give her a grove in which she would fast and pray without end. Her devotion to Lord Shiva would win his love. And she set off on her mission, which would last her for years, but would most defiantly bring her the reward she was seeking.

"Hopelessly Devoted to You" by Olivia Newton John

From the movie "Grease" 

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Author's Note: Not going to lie, I had a serious case of writer's block. Seriously. It wasn't until Hopelessly Devoted to You by the amazing Olivia Newton John came on my Pandora station at work. Did I mention I absolutely love the movie Grease? It clicked! In the comic Parvati Shiva, Parvati shows unwavering devotion to win Shiva's love and eventually it does work after being put to the test by Shiva in disguise. Parvati goes into deep prayer, penance and fasting until Lord Shiva comes disguised as a hermit and begins to bad mouth himself to Parvati and asks her to stop her prayer and penance. Parvati becomes annoyed and offended that this stranger would speak ill of her love and asks him to leave at once. Shiva reveals himself to Parvati and proclaims that she has won his love. Although a love like theirs was destined to happen, since it was foretold by an old sage that Parvati would belong to Lord Shiva eventually. Her father was told this shortly after their initial quest to find her a husband. Of course Parvati's father wanted nothing but they best so he decided to wait until the prophecy came true. Eventually, the King got tired of waiting and decided to take matters into his own hands. Parvati and a couple of her friends were brought to Lord Shiva and were offered into his service while he prayed. That is how Parvati began to fall in love with Lord Shiva and this story began to blossom!

Check out the comic at the site here!
It can also be found at the Bizzell for check out!

Storytelling Week 10: A Telling of Tales in Gryffindor Tower



"Lava and Kishu engage in battle with Lakshmana"
Image Source: Wikipedia

It was a snowy winter evening and everyone was returning to their respective common rooms after dinner. It was a tiring day for the Patil twins. They had spent their entire Saturday in the little town of Hogsmead which lies within walking distance from the castle. They made their way up to the Gryffindor common room and after changing their clothes for more comfortable pajamas they went to sit in the big red armchairs nearest the warm flame.

In the chairs across from them sat Harry and Ron. It seemed as though they were discussing children's tales from both the magical and non-magical world. This piqued their interest and both Padma and Parvati looked at each other with a small smile. They've had their fair share of epic stories told to them since they were small children.

"...But you must have heard about Babbitty Rabbity and her Cackling Stump! That one was one of my favorites from the Beedle and the Bard. Mum used to read that book every night. I mean when I was a little kid of course!" Ron blushed slightly at the last remark.

"I haven't heard of that story. Hardly any to be honest. Just whatever I heard in grade school. Muggles have this book of tales by the Grimm brothers. And of course my aunt and uncle weren't going to read me stories. They liked to pretend I didn't exist at all," Harry said with a smirk.

"I bet you boys have never heard about the sons of Rama, Luv and Kush," the twins interjected in unison.

"Who asked you, Patil! We were having a private conversation!" Ron huffed and looked away.

"Don't get your wand in a knot, Weasley. You were speaking loud enough that I'm sure that we could be heard up in the dormitories!" Padma rolled her eyes.

"Are these magical tales?" Harry asked with curiosity.

"No, these are just traditional Indian epics that play a huge part in our culture. Padma and I would listen to them since we were small. As a matter of fact, our Mum sent us a few books that contain a collection of the stories. Of course our favorite involves a pair of twin brothers for obvious reasons." Parvati smiled at Harry after shooting Ron an annoyed glance.

"Go on! Let's hear it then!" Ron muttered under his breath.

"Okay, well, there was a king named Rama, who ruled over the kingdom of Ayodhya. All his subjects were very happy and prosperous under his rule. He was a gracious king who always sought to fix problems that any one of his subjects may have. He had a lovely wife named Sita, who ruled at his side."

As Padma began the story more and more of the occupants in the room began to listen attentively, some even coming closer to the twins and sitting on the huge rug by the fireplace.

"One day one of Rama's men came to report something that he had heard while on patrol. He heard a man berate his wife and state that he could never be a fool like Rama and allow his wife to stay after she had lived with another man. This news troubled Rama. Did his subjects see him as a fool? Should he send his wife away into exile even though she was to give birth soon? He decided that it would be for the best interest of his subjects and sent his brother Laxmana to take Sita far away. Laxmana did as he was told with a heavy heart. Sita eventually found her way through the jungle to a hermitage occupied by a man named Maharshi Valmiki. He took her in and she lived peacefully. Here she gave birth to Rama's twin sons, Luv and Kush. Maharshi Valmiki educated them to the best of his ability. They grew up incredibly strong and healthy. Maharshi Valmiki told the twins of all the adventures of Rama since they could speak, of course without revealing that their mother Sita played a large role in many of these tales. Instead they replaced her name with 'Vaidehi' since Sita is from a place called Videha. After hearing that Rama sent his wife into exile only because of some town gossip, the twins grew sad and always wondered what happened to this poor woman.

One particular day, the twins captured a pristine white horse that belonged to Rama. This horse was to be used for the very important horse sacrifice that took place every year. Laxmana saw the horse and demanded the twins return it at once. After they argued back and forth, a group of Rama's men confronted the twins in battle and clearly Kush and Luv were the victors. Rama then sent Laxmana to personally battle them. Laxmana fell to Luv and Kush's bow and arrows. Eventually, filled with curiosity, Rama went to see for himself these children who could defeat so many men. Once the twins were in front of Rama he demanded to know who their parents were. Kush and Luv only spoke of their mother, Sita. Rama blanched at the name and asked the twins to lead them back to their mother. He could not believe it! Right in front of him was his wife. The wife he sent away because of mere gossip. Humbled, he realized that these incredible twin boys were his own sons. He begged Sita to forgive him, but she was overcome with humiliation and grief and pleaded with Mother Earth to take her back into the Earth from which she was born. Saddened yet pleased to have met his sons, Rama took them back with him to Ayodhya to take their place as princes of the land."

Everyone in the room looked as though they were hanging onto every word that came out of Padma's lips.

"Bloody hell, that was alright!" Ron said sheepishly.

Padma and Parvati were flocked with questions from the other students about all the tales they knew. It was a very good way to end their night to say the least.


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Author's Note:
Phew! I had been playing around with the idea of the Patil twins kind of being storytellers and decided to use a comic book to bring it together. Of course the tale of Rama's twin sons has a little more detail in it but in order to meet the word limit (I finished at 999 words!) I had to kind of make to where I didn't delve into a lot of detail. Some things in the original tale also had a lot of background information as we all know. It was very difficult for me to try to do the story they were telling any sort of justice all while keeping the integrity of the plot. There is a lot more dialogue between the characters which makes gives the story more depth. The comic is most definitely worth the read and will give you another look at what became of Rama's twin sons other than what told in the Ramayana. I personally read the condensed modern version by Narayan and it didn't go into very much detail pertaining to the twins after Sita's exile.  Or, I should say, as much as I would have liked.

I based this story of a comic book that can be found in the Bizzell!

The Sons of Rama: Luv and Kush -- The Invincible Twins (Volume 503) by Amar Chitra

Storytelling Week 9 -- Shikhandi and Bhishma: A Tale of Revenge

Bhishma refuses to fight Shikhandi
Image source: Wikipedia

     It seemed everyone was in a deep slumber after the exhausting battle earlier that day. And a cloaked figure moved within the camp in the dead of night. No sound was made. Not even the rustling of leaves or the low howl of the wind disturbed the night. One lone man was awake during this eerily quiet night. He felt the dark figure approach his tent and he already knew who was coming for him. Without turning around he addressed the lurking shadow.

"I knew you'd come for me again, Amba. You've been hunting for me in every nook and crevice of the Earth. I've been waiting for you every night since you swore to destroy me."

The small cloaked figure stopped and removed her hood. Amba slowly walked towards Bhishma and stopped in front of him. Her eyes were downcast and void of any emotion. 

"I have wandered this Earth for years now. I've survived on nothing but air. I've stood still on a mountain top for over a decade on one toe, waiting for the voice of  a god to give me guidance. I became brittle and hard like rock. Eventually I became ice and snow upon that mountain top. I heard a voice advise me to gather wood and start a fire, and so I did as I was told. Once the flames looked like they could graze the tops of the clouds I submerged myself into the flames. I felt the flames burn my skin until I could feel no more pain. I no longer pertain to the living, Bhishma. That is one of the things I came to tell you. I am dead."

Bhishma looked at Amba with curiosity. After a few seconds curiosity turned into amusement. With a smile Bhishma said, "Does that mean that your desire to destroy me is extinguished? Have you finally done away with that resentment you hold for me? Will you finally allow yourself to be at peace?"

Amba's eyes momentarily showed a spark of anger as she looked up at Bhishma. She shook her head and with a small smile said, "I can never be at peace until I get what I desire the most, Bhishma. And as you know all I want is to exact revenge for what you have done to me. I may be dead but I will return to battle you in this great war. I will be reborn and return as a man. I will drive Arjuna's chariot and battle you until you are no more. My name will be Shikhandi and I will be your downfall. Remember that name, Bhishma. Shikhandi!"

As soon as the last word left her lips she faded away and with that the eerie silence of the night went with her. A soft breeze returned to graze Bhishma's face and the rustling of leaves could finally be heard and the chirping of crickets softly filled the night. He sat contemplating his encounter with Amba with great concentration until the rising of the sun. 

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Later that day, amidst the chaos of battle the thought of Amba left his mind as he fought against the Pandavas' soldiers. It wasn't until he saw a chariot coming towards him that he recognized Arjuna and another man in it. He couldn't recognize this young man but he looked an awful lot like...Amba.

"Shikhandi", he whispered. 

Everything around Bhishma seemed to move in slow motion. He couldn't bring himself to raise his arms against someone who once used to be a woman. To him that was Amba and he wouldn't dare strike her in battle. Bhishma saw Arjuna yell at Shikhandi to strike him with an arrow. With no will to defend himself or even deflect the incoming arrow, he saw Shikhandi shoot the arrow that would bring him his death. 

"This is it....." he uttered as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

And with that he felt the arrow piece his very heart and the world faded into black. 

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Author's Note:

What I liked about Peter Brook's film Mahabharata is that it goes a little more in detail about Amba's role in Bhishma's death in comparison to Narayan's Mahabharata. Perhaps in the online version of the Mahabharata it went into more detail but in the shortened modern version that I decided to read it didn't. Amba set out to seek revenge for Bhishma's refusal to marry her. She sought to marry him after the man she really intended to marry turned her away after she was won by Bhishma for Vichitravirya. Her true love felt like he would see Bhishma's wrath if he married Amba, even though Bhishma had set her free to do as she pleased. With Bhishma's refusal to marry her due to his vow of celibacy, Amba was destined to roam the world as an unmarried woman. She traveled the world for years and attempted to get many kings to champion her cause with no success for they feared having Bhishma as an enemy. In the film she comes to him in the dead of night during the war to tell him that she would be reborn as a man and be the death of him. I decided to expand on this scene and made a story out of it.

Peter Brook's film Mahabharata was released in 1989 can be seen via YouTube here.

Fun Fact:
The film was originally a stage play which circulated in 1985 and was a total of over 9 hours long!

Week 6 Storyteling: Padma and the Black Lake

By the time Padma had woken up it seemed as though everyone had already gone to the Great Hall for breakfast. This was strange because her sister Parvarti, usually waited for her so they could go down together. The Patil twins were inseparable, but today something seemed off, and Padma could not seem to put her finger on it. As usual, she got dressed in her muggle clothes since it was a Hogsmead weekend and walked down to the Gryffindor Common Room. There was one lone figure seated in front of the fireplace, and from the bushy silhouette of hair, it could only be Hermione, up doing homework on a Saturday morning. Padma mentally rolled her eyes and with a small smile she approached Hermione to ask if she was not going to go to the Hogsmead trip.

"I intend to, but while Harry and Ron decide to sleep their lives away in the meantime I am getting ahead on my Potions essay. I fully expect Ronald to ask to look at mine anyway, so might as well get ahead while I can. Can't have these boys failing everything! I do wish they were a bit more dedicated. But, I'm the crazy one, right?" Hermione said, shaking her head. 

After that brief encounter, Padma walked down the staircase to the Great Hall and could not help feeling that something was not as it should be. As she entered the Great Hall she was waved down by her sister. She took a seat, and asked where Luna and Ginny were. "Oh, they finished breakfast already and said they would meet us by the lake.Luna said she wanted to visit the Giant Squid before we headed into Hogsmead and I decided to stay and wait for you of course!" 

The pair made their way out to the grounds towards the lake and saw a couple figures down by the Black Lake. Not only that, but the lake seemed to be emitting a strange glow. Near the shore, there seemed to be a glowing object, causing light to dance on the waves as they lazily grazed the shore.  As they got closer they saw Luna and Ginny both on the ground, not moving. The glowing orb in the waters was almost hypnotizing, and Parvati seemed to forget her friends were unconscious on the ground next to her and ran to see what was in the cold waters. Before her fingers were submerged in the gentle water, a voice could be heard resounding from the waves. "Do not touch my lake! Not before answering me this riddle! I roam the woods of Hogwarts school. And my coat is a glowing white, but don't you dare drink my magical blood, or you will be cursed for the rest of your miserable life. What magical creature am I?"

Parvarti, mesmerized by the white orb at the bottom of the shore, paid no mind, almost in a trance-like state, and went to reach for waters. As soon as her fingertips made contact with the lake, she fell back, unconscious, before the scream could leave Padma's lips. Padma hurried over to her sister, panic and dread rushing through her body. Again she heard the eerie voice coming from the lake,

"Do not touch my waters! Or you will meet the same fate as your comrades. But, if you answer my riddle they will awaken from their slumber. Again, I roam the woods of Hogwarts school, and my coat is a glowing white, but don't you dare drink my magical blood, or you will be cursed for life. What creature am I? And do not keep me waiting lest I lose my patience and strike you down."

Her heart was almost about to pound straight out of her chest as she racked her brain. Padma was hit at once with memory of last week's lecture in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Thank Merlin for Professor Lupin! 

"Unicorn!" she yelled.

And with that, the white light in the lake disappeared, and she heard the girls next to her start to stir...

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"Padma! Wake up! We are going to Hogsmead, but I swear to you if we don't make it to breakfast I will give you something to cry about!" 

Parvarti was bustling around the dormitory trying to get ready while in a daze, Padma could not believe the dream she just had. It felt so real...

Exasperated Parvarti yelled, "Oy! What's gotten into you? Come on now, you have to get up!"

"I really should stop reading all of the books Mum sends us before bed...it gives me strange dreams", Padma said with a sigh. 

Loch Shiel, from scenes of Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban
Image Source: Wikiepedia

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Author's Note: 

So I decided to kind of incorporate a small amount of the wizarding world of Harry Potter into this week's storytelling. I'm still going to find ways to do this for my final project but, I had a lot of fun writing this! I just knew the Pandavas' encounter with the mysterious voice in the lake would kind of be fun to use since the Black Lake located on the Hogwarts grounds is known to have a slew of mystery behind it and even more weird creatures in it. Who knows?! It could have been a mermaid or even the giant squid! In the original story it was Yudhishthira's father in disguise, but here this strange being a magical creature that dwells in the lake. I decided to make it interesting by having one of the twins dream about this part of the Mahabharata. It would be cool if their parent's were to send them traditional Indian epics to read just to help cure their homesickness and to keep a part of their culture alive since they were away for a majority of the year at school. Of course they would have grown up hearing these tales I would assume. It would make sense, considering the Harry Potter stories are set primarily in the United Kingdom and there is a large Indian population.

I am reading Narayan's Mahabharata. 

Bibliography:

Narayan, R. K. The Mahabarata. London: Mandarin, 1978. 88-92. Print.

Storytelling Week 2: The Tale of Roman and Sophia

Roman was an adventurous lad, with the presence of authority and an intoxicating charm that could turn any sour mood into a much more pleasant mood.  Needless to say, he and his brother Lance were inseparable, and very much alike. Both were on a study abroad trip in Barcelona and had just arrived to soak in the splendor and rich history of this Spanish city.

An aerial view of Madrid
Source: Pixabay

As they were traveling to their hotel, they noticed the city abuzz with excitement, everyone dressed in their Sunday best, with colorful paper decorations along the walls of the buildings. Children were out in the streets with colorful ribbons and Spanish flags, waving them around in the most delighted manner. This was a very big environmental change from their hometown of New York City, where sometimes you wouldn't find the happiest of people on the streets, and just the big city environment in general. They were informed that the running of the bulls was that very day and the royal Spanish family would be coming to attend. "Well, what do you know? We came just in the nick of time to catch the excitement!" Roman exclaimed. They walked down the decently crowded street when suddenly he ran into a girl. Their eyes met, and it was as if the world around them had completely come to a stop. It was as if she had become the center of his universe, and nothing else but them mattered. But in that split second, she was hurried away before he could even utter an apology. Not to long after Roman was also rushed by his brother to get to their hotel so they could leave their luggage and join the festivities.

The girl who Roman bumped into in the street was none other than Sophia, the King's second daughter. She liked to wander the city without drawing too much attention to herself, dressing in clothes that wouldn't give away her status. Right after that encounter, she rushed back to her hotel before anyone could suspect that she'd been gone to long. Once there, she was not in her right state of mind. The ladies in charge of handling her could not for the life of them figure out why she was in such a downright awful mood. Nothing seemed to please her, and every attempt to do so failed miserably. Letizia, her governess and close friend since she was small, asked her what was wrong, and she was met with incoherent answers. It wasn't until they were alone that Sophia sighed and spoke with such tenderness of the perfect stranger she had just met while out on her stroll. "It's as if he stole a part of me, nana, what can I ever do? It's as if in that split second he stole my heart and with that my ease. He bewitched me with those smoldering eyes and I will never be able to take this dagger out of my heart. He is probably gone for good and I don't even know his name...."

With this she began to weep, and Letizia knew not what to do but exit quietly from Sophia's room and excuse her from the festivities with her parents. 

All throughout the day Roman was not all there, his mind lingering on that beautiful girl he encountered on that busy cobblestone street. Lance did nothing but question his lack of interaction. Surely, his brother would be more enthused being in such a grand city, and at such a festive time none the less! But he walked the streets in an absentminded manner, almost as if in a serene trance. Not sure what to do, Lance just shook his head and carried on with their trek to their final destination. Once at the venue where the run would begin, he saw the royal family assembled in a balcony dressed in their finest garments. Surely such fine clothing could only belong to royalty. The jewels in their crowns and tiaras glinting in the Spanish sunlight caused a beautiful array of tiny reflective sports to dance on the walls surrounding them with the tiniest movement.

King Felipe was eager to find a young man who was worthy of the hand of his second daughter Sophia. Royal bloodlines didn't matter to this king. All that mattered was the man that he was and his moral fiber.He will admit that he was a jealous father and nothing was ever good enough for his youngest. He'd had many a prince come from all over Europe asking for her hand and he found none with that spark to hand her over to. He had passed over many proposals that would secure strong alliances with Spain, yet none ever showed the true capacity to become a husband to his daughter. Many thought that with the king being as picky as he was, Spain would not see another royal wedding for quite a long time. 

Running of the Bulls
Wikimedia

As the event began and Roman saw the bulls race down the cobblestone streets, his heart stopped --he saw a young girl race out in front of the oncoming stampede, small enough to sneak past the barriers to retrieve her rogue puppy. With no thinking on his behalf, and to the horror of the crowd, Roman thrust himself over the barrier and snatched up the little girl, outrunning the oncoming stampede and right into an open alleyway. Finally they were both safe. His heart was beating so fast it was likely to burst out of his chest. He waited for the stampede to pass to return the crying child to the safety of her parents' embrace. Lance stood waiting for him and greeted him with an exasperated look on his face, the anxiety apparent on his chiseled features. The crowd on the other hand, welcomed him with cheers and applause. There were many hands patting him on the back as we walked towards his brother. 

After this, a man came to fetch Roman, and with Lance accompanying him he was presented to King Felipe in a private room. And with a smile, he asked Roman about himself, from his origin to what he was doing in Madrid. After a few minutes, he sent for his youngest daughter.

"Roman, there's someone I'd like you to meet...."

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Authors Note:

I don't even know I managed to get the jumble of ideas I had in my head into a coherent succession of sentences to be honest. I really loved the tale of how Rama met his wife Sita and the romance behind it. The 'love at first sight' aspect, I mean. I know I left it at a cliffhanger, but if we know the original tale, then we know how it all ends, right? I hope so. Well, I tried to give it a very modern twist. I guess that's the beauty of writing; everything is a figment of your imagination when it comes to storytelling. Anything is possible!
I thought it would be cool to incorporate the Pamplona bull run since I set this version of the story in Spain, considering it's a big event and important to the culture. It involves a great amount of festivities, similar to the scene in which Rama first entered Mithila, with its bright colors and the streets alive with the hustle and bustle of cheerful inhabitants. Overall, I chose this story because for this week's reading, this particular portion stood out to me, and as I mentioned before, it's a true romantic tale, even similar to something along the lines of Romeo and Juliet. It's not the same, but a great love story all the same. 

"The Wedding" by R.K. Narayan, from The Ramayana: A Shortened Modern Prose Version of the Indian Epic (2006). eBook.  

Narayan's Ramayana Reading Guide