- In Which Ravana Marries Rama- This story explores what might have happened if Ravana had decided to kidnap Rama instead of Sita. I found the story's lack of queer representation to be disappointing, so I decided to make a queer-focused story of my own.
- Battle of the Brothers- This story explores what might have happened if Arjuna and Karna had chosen to fight one-on-one instead of starting an entire war to settle their differences.
- Brahma Gets Bored- This story explores what might have happened if Brahma expanded the time loop in Shabari's residence in order to challenge Rama's reliance on celestial weapons.
Showing posts with label Portfolio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Portfolio. Show all posts
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Portfolio Directory
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Story: In Which Ravana Marries Rama
In Which Ravana Marries Rama
After Shurpanakha told her brother, Ravana, of Sita's beauty, he was intrigued. However, he was even more enthralled with his sister's description of Sita's husband, the incomparable Rama.
"I must have him," Ravana declared.
So, Ravana launched a devious plan. He ordered Shurpanakha to disguise herself as Sita and take an enchanted mango with her. This mango, awarded to Ravana for his austerities by Brahma himself, made the person that ate it fall madly in love with the Demon King. Back in the woods, Shurpanakha lured Rama away with whispered promises of yet another celestial weapon, and when he was in a grove deep in the forest, she materialized as Sita.
"Why have you come so deep in the forest, my love? I was merely enjoying a stroll when I came upon the most beautiful mango tree... look at this mango, my dearest. Is it not the fullest and most appetizing fruit that you have ever seen?" asked Shurpanakha-as-Sita.
"My love! You have ventured into the forest without protection! Why have you abandoned the safety of our home?" asked Rama.
"All in the pursuit of sustenance for my husband. Please, Rama, won't you eat this mango?" pleaded Shurpanakha-as-Sita.
*Rama takes mango and eats it*
*Rama is instantly transported to Lanka, where he falls at the feet of his now-beloved Ravana*
*Sita awakes from a long nap back in the forest as the figure of Shurpanakha looms over her*
"Hello Sita," crooned Shurpanakha. "Ravana has taken your husband for himself... if I can't have him, then no woman, especially you, can either!"
Shurpanakha then vanished into the night air, leaving Sita to languish in sorrow.
In Lanka, Rama and Ravana were enjoying their new life together. Bound by the power of Brahma's magic, Rama was smitten with his many-faced King, and Ravana delighted in the beauty of his new lover.
"My dear Ravana, how have I gone all of these years without your gentle embrace and sweet kisses?" Rama mused. "Your abduction of me from the temptress Sita was truly the happiest day of my life."
"Rama, you shall never need to see her wretched face again. We will live together and rule over all of Brahma's creation together. You were created to destroy me, but perhaps, in failing to do so, you will only help to build my vast power," Ravana theorized.
Unfortunately for Sita and the gods themselves, the magic of Brahma's mango could not be undone. Ravana spent his life expanding his kingdom to all the reaches of India, while Rama used the celestial weapons the gods had given him in pursuit of his beloved's plan for world domination. The gods, powerless to stop Ravana as he grew more powerful, left to find another land over which they could rule. Rama had broken the rules of fate on which the power of the gods rested, and with their omniscience shaken, they had little reason to remain in the land of their creation. Ravana was happy, and because of this, so was Rama.
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| Rama and Laksmana Attack the Demon Ravana Ramayana – Malwa, 1640 A.D. Source: Wikipedia |
Author's Note- The original source for this story is the scene in Saraswati Nagpal's Sita wherein Sita is abducted by Ravana. I wondered what it would be like for Rama to be abducted instead; I mean, if roughly 1/10 people are somehow queer, then statistically one of Ravana's heads has to be as well. I wrote this story because I didn't like the utter lack of queer representation in the Ramayana... there are so many wonderful opportunities for characters to experience same-sex attraction, but yet, there wasn't a single queer character. Instead, the story was largely heteronormative and based on gender roles. In addition, I found a certain irony in allowing Ravana to control Rama with one of the celestial objects that Rama was so impartial to throughout the story. If you've read the rest of my blog, you know that I despise the fact that Rama is basically given whatever he wants/needs in the form of magic weapons. I chose the image that I did because I almost re-imagined it as Rama and Ravana going out for a hunting party or something similar... Ravana is brandishing his weapons and asking Rama to choose which he likes best before they go continue their conquest of India.
Thursday, September 1, 2016
Story: Brahma Gets Bored
I’m pretty done with Rama, if we’re being honest. I was giving Vishnu the benefit of the doubt, hoping that he might be able to do something about our demon problem; ultimately, though, I realized that I just don’t like Rama. He’s got everything going for him and it’s just annoying. He’s kind, he stays bound by his own unique code of honor, and everyone seems to be giving him a celestial weapon. Why is everyone giving him a holy weapon? Flooding the non-celestial world with celestial weapons just seems like a mistake to me.
By the way, I’m Brahma, the god that keeps rewarding everyone for their severe self-restrictions and austerities. Not sure why everyone thinks that’s what I want them to do, but it’s pretty entertaining.
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| 15th-Century Statue of Brahma from Thailand Source: Wikipedia |
Anyways. Rama is currently in the hermitage that the women Shabari resides in. I don’t quite remember why the building is stuck in a time-loop, but I’m feeling bored. Being all-powerful and omniscient can get old pretty quickly, so let’s see how Rama can get out of this.
*Brahma instantaneously expands the scope of the time loop to include Rama, trapping him until such time as either Rama breaks free or Brahma gets bored*
Shabari was such a wonderful person to break bread with. I feel as if I have learned much from her, and I look forward to continuing my education as I move forward on this journey. Sleeping in the hermitage will be a special treat; if only Sita was by my side… O Sita, how beauteous she is! Anyways, it is time for sleeping.
*next morning*
I had the strangest sense of déjà vu this morning. I met a woman named Shabari, who keeps a deserted hermitage. I feel as if I’ve met her before, and yet I don’t know where. Perhaps a restful evening will clear my head.
*next morning*
I have the feeling that I am currently being tested by the gods above. I can only imagine what sin or indulgence I must have engaged in to deserve this trial! Alas, I shall rise to the challenge! Somewhere in my stockpile of magical weapons I should have something to help me out. After all, I’ve basically only gotten through all of these trials because I was using holy weapons! Now, let’s see what we’ve got here…
Ah! A magical key! I remember when, long ago, the gods foretold that I would have to use this magic key to escape from an endless time loop.
*waves key around in the air*
*time loop ends*
*Rama just continues on*
Brahma back. That wasn’t nearly as fun as I wanted it to be. Seriously, where does he get all of this magic stuff from? Who planned his life out? He might not be able to return to his kingdom for a bit, but otherwise, he has just about every possible heavenly boon he could want. I need to make sure his life is just a bit harder, because I really can’t handle all of this self-righteousness and moral superiority. Bleh.
Source: PDE Ramayana- Shabari
Author's Note- The original source for this story is the 40th story in the PDE of the Ramayana, discussing Rama's visit with Shabari. The hermitage that Shabari keeps in the woods is stuck in a time loop, and I thought it'd be fun to see what happens if the time loop ran amok or, more specifically, if Brahma expanded the time loop. I also decided to use it to express how frustrated I get with Rama for always finding the perfect solution at the last second. He has very few feats that he undertakes by himself... everything seems to be done with the help of some kind of magic weapon that is given to him by someone else. I think this concept is also replicated in a lot of stories, both epic and not. For example, Harry Potter almost always seems to succeed over Voldemort due to the sacrifice of someone else (Diggory, his parents, Sirius, etc). Elizabeth Bennett relied on Mr. Darcy to swoop in and save the day. Those stories were all slightly romantic at least... this one certainly was not, especially considering how Rama treated Sita near the end.
I also really enjoyed the concept of putting Brahma at the center of the story because he isn't a character that you hear from very often. In this story, even his omniscience is not enough to overcome the main problem of the story, which is that Rama gets whatever he wants through the use of celestial weapons. In this story, an interesting addition might be to question who is granting the celestial weapons their power if Brahma is not consenting to it. How does a god grant a celestial weapon? Is there a limit? Is the power of the weapon tied innately to the god, and if so, will a weapon granted by a powerful god overcome a weapon granted by a lesser one? All of these would be super interesting to explore.
Finally, I added Time Warp from Rocky Horror for two reasons: Rocky Horror is one of the queerest things imaginable (far more to do with the author than with the story) and the lyrics fit perfectly with the story.
Source: PDE Ramayana- Shabari
Author's Note- The original source for this story is the 40th story in the PDE of the Ramayana, discussing Rama's visit with Shabari. The hermitage that Shabari keeps in the woods is stuck in a time loop, and I thought it'd be fun to see what happens if the time loop ran amok or, more specifically, if Brahma expanded the time loop. I also decided to use it to express how frustrated I get with Rama for always finding the perfect solution at the last second. He has very few feats that he undertakes by himself... everything seems to be done with the help of some kind of magic weapon that is given to him by someone else. I think this concept is also replicated in a lot of stories, both epic and not. For example, Harry Potter almost always seems to succeed over Voldemort due to the sacrifice of someone else (Diggory, his parents, Sirius, etc). Elizabeth Bennett relied on Mr. Darcy to swoop in and save the day. Those stories were all slightly romantic at least... this one certainly was not, especially considering how Rama treated Sita near the end.
I also really enjoyed the concept of putting Brahma at the center of the story because he isn't a character that you hear from very often. In this story, even his omniscience is not enough to overcome the main problem of the story, which is that Rama gets whatever he wants through the use of celestial weapons. In this story, an interesting addition might be to question who is granting the celestial weapons their power if Brahma is not consenting to it. How does a god grant a celestial weapon? Is there a limit? Is the power of the weapon tied innately to the god, and if so, will a weapon granted by a powerful god overcome a weapon granted by a lesser one? All of these would be super interesting to explore.
Finally, I added Time Warp from Rocky Horror for two reasons: Rocky Horror is one of the queerest things imaginable (far more to do with the author than with the story) and the lyrics fit perfectly with the story.