Week 6 Reading Notes: Mahabharata Part B
Changing my notes for this week, I want to focus on a few stories that stick out to me so I can break them down in my own stories later.
Bhima and Hidimba: When the Pandavas escaped, they were forced out into the wilderness. Thankfully, they had grown up living in the wilderness already so they were somewhat prepared. In the forest, they encounter Hidimba, a rakshasa. Perfect for them (not), this was one extra hungry rakshasa, and what do they eat? Humans of course. Much like the rakshasa in the Ramayana, this one fell in love with one of our characters, Bhima. The rakshasas brother got irritated at his denial of his sister and his boasting of power. In the fight, Bhima actually drags him away from his sleeping family so he doesn't wake them up with the screams of battle!
The Burning of the Forest: Krishna and Arjuna were having a nice picnic by the forest when a brahmin who turned out to actually be Agni, the god of fire approaches them. He wants to consume the forest in flames, which he had tried before and failed, but the two would not let him have his wish so easily. In return, he would provide them an armament of celestial weapons similar to those that Rama used. The burning started a battle that ended with the death of the forest. Out of everything in it, there were only six survivors. This changes my perspective on Arjuna quite a bit.
Maya's Palace: One of the six survivors of the burning forest is Maya. Maya offers to build an emaculate palace for the brothers in return for saving his life from the fire. This lead to some comical mistakes by King Duryodhana, who thought crystals were a pool only to strip down and fall on the crystals. The next time he thought it was crystals but it was actually a pool!
From: PDE Mahabharata by multiple authors.
Bhima and Hidimba: When the Pandavas escaped, they were forced out into the wilderness. Thankfully, they had grown up living in the wilderness already so they were somewhat prepared. In the forest, they encounter Hidimba, a rakshasa. Perfect for them (not), this was one extra hungry rakshasa, and what do they eat? Humans of course. Much like the rakshasa in the Ramayana, this one fell in love with one of our characters, Bhima. The rakshasas brother got irritated at his denial of his sister and his boasting of power. In the fight, Bhima actually drags him away from his sleeping family so he doesn't wake them up with the screams of battle!
The Burning of the Forest: Krishna and Arjuna were having a nice picnic by the forest when a brahmin who turned out to actually be Agni, the god of fire approaches them. He wants to consume the forest in flames, which he had tried before and failed, but the two would not let him have his wish so easily. In return, he would provide them an armament of celestial weapons similar to those that Rama used. The burning started a battle that ended with the death of the forest. Out of everything in it, there were only six survivors. This changes my perspective on Arjuna quite a bit.
Maya's Palace: One of the six survivors of the burning forest is Maya. Maya offers to build an emaculate palace for the brothers in return for saving his life from the fire. This lead to some comical mistakes by King Duryodhana, who thought crystals were a pool only to strip down and fall on the crystals. The next time he thought it was crystals but it was actually a pool!
From: PDE Mahabharata by multiple authors.
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| The Pandava Brothers |
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