Week 6, Reading Diary D, Public Domain Edition: Mahabharata, The Mongoose

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The Mongoose

Mahabharata Online: Public Domain Edition

Source. The Story of the Great War by Annie Besant (1899)

This was my favorite story! It reminded me of a biblical account about strangers/guests and ironically being in the company of angels. In this case a deity, so equally awesome in my opinion. I love that the cute little mongoose is the narrator! I usually do not like stories with the whole animal thing, but this story is cute. Almost as cute as the image of the mongoose. He has such a smug look on his tiny furry face. I can picture him telling such a great tale, with his own reasons for pointing out how the kings should be giving away more of their abundance. The Brahmin in the story the mongoose told has his entire family starving in famine and sacrifice their last morsels of food to a stranger. 

Week 6, Reading Diary C,Public Domain Edition: Mahabharata,Arjuna and Indra

Arjuna and Indra

Mahabharata Online: Public Domain Edition

Source. Indian Myth and Legend by Donald A. Mackenzie (1913)

  I found that I was not very drawn to any one particular story in this part of the readings. This story I liked more than the others though. I copied and pasted the part that caught my attention. I like that it is describing a place I would like to go and take a vacation. Tropical resort? Spring Break fever is on my mind!
Indra is the father of Arjuna and they are on Indra's turf where Arjuna is enjoying the lounge lizard life by night. Brilliant. Oh and studies like a Jedi during the day, of course. His divine family gave him a pile of celestial weapons to wield,  so he must learn to use the force!

Thereafter Indra transported his son to his own bright city, the celestial Swarga, where the flowers always bloom and sweet music is ever wafted on fragrant winds. There he beheld sea-born apsaras, the heavenly brides of gods and heroes, and music-loving gandharvas, who sang songs and danced merrily in their joy. And Urvashi, a fair apsara of faultless form, with bright eyes and silken hair, looked with love upon Arjuna, but she sought in vain to subdue him, whereat she spoke scornfully, saying, "Kama, god of love, hath wounded me with his arrows, yet thou dost scorn me. For this, O Arjuna, thou wilt for a season live unregarded among women as a dancer and musician."

Arjuna was troubled, but Indra said, "This curse will work out for thy good."

Arjuna abode in Indra's fair city for the space of five years. He achieved great skill in music and in dance and song. And he was trained also to wield the celestial weapons which the gods had given unto him.

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