Reading Notes: Rumpelstiltskin

There once was a poor miller who had a beautiful daughter
The miller found himself in a conversation with the king
The miller told the king that his daughter could spin straw into gold
The king believed the miller and summoned the miller's daughter to his castle

The miller's daughter was put in a room full of straw and the necessary tools
The king stipulated that she should turn all of the room's straw into gold before morning, or else she would be put to death
Once inside the room, the girl was sad and began to cry, because she didn't know how to spin straw into gold like her father said she could

Come evening time, a little man came in to see what was wrong
The man heard about the girl's problem and offered to spin the straw into gold for something in return
The girl offered a necklace she was wearing
The little man agreed and went to work

The following morning, the king was happy
The king assigned the girl an even bigger room of straw to complete before morning
The girl made another deal with the little man but instead had to give the man the ring off her finger
The man completed the task

The following morning, the king was pleased with what the miller's daughter was able to produce.
The king put the girl in an even bigger room but offered to marry her if she could complete the same task, but with more straw

The girl made another deal with the little man but instead had to promise the man that she would give him her first-born once she is queen
The king saw what she was able to produce the following morning
The king decided to marry the miller's daughter

The king and new queen had been married for a year when the queen begot a child
The little man came for his payment
The queen was not agreeable to fulfilling her side of the deal
The little man took pity on her and said that she could have three days to try and figure out his name, and if she could, then she could keep her child

The queen spent the next few days trying to figure out the little man's name
She sent out messengers, inquired within the city, and almost anything possible to figure out the little man's name

Fortunate for the queen, on the third day, a messenger came with a report of hearing a man singing to himself in the woods
The song that the messenger heard contained the little man's name

The little man came a third and final time to see if the queen had come to know his name
The queen provided the name from the song her messenger had heard: "Rumpelstiltskin"
Rumpelstiltskin shouted with anger and stomped his right foot so hard into the ground that he fell in up to his waist

The little man then grabbed his left foot with both of his hands and ripped himself up the middle in two

The miller's daughter and the little man. Source

Bibliography: D. L. Ashliman, The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales, Source

Extra Reading: Mythical Horses

Going into this CrashCourse video, I had never read into or learned much about horses, whether mythical or normal everyday ones. This CrashCourse was rather relatable in that it mentioned familiar names/things such as Achilles, Pegasus, Michaelangelo, and even unicorns!

Towards the end of the video, however, the host, Mike Rugnetta, pushes the topic of horses and how they were written about even further. He contends that the modern day version of mythical horses and the many epics that contain them would be something like the Fast and the Furious franchise! This first made me laugh. After I thought about it for a second, it actually began to make a lot of sense. 

Do we humans praise the things that do so much for us? Is that what our modern fascination with cars is? Why do we go out of our way to pour so much time and effort in these modes of transportation that should be there to primarily perform its function? Envision medieval music videos with artists that show off their mightiest and most beautiful STEED. Imagine how goofy and relatable that would be. Comparisons like this really make me think about overall human nature and the ways we never change.

Imagine this scene with medieval horses... haha. Source

Bibliography: CrashCourse, Mythical Horses: Crash Course World Mythology #37, Source

Reading Notes: Death's Messengers

Long ago there was a giant walking along a path when a stranger jumped towards him and said "Stop! Not one step further!"

The giant said, "You, a creature that I could crush between my fingers, you want to block my way? Who are you that you dare to speak so boldly?"

The stranger introduced himself as "Death". Then, he said, "No one resists me, and you too must obey my orders."

The giant refused.

The giant and Death began to wrestle. It proved to be a long and violent battle. 

The giant finally got the upper hand and defeated Death, leaving him collapsed by a stone. 

Death was so weak he couldn't get up.

Death began to think about the implications his absence would have on Earth.

Out of nowhere, a young man walked down the same path.

The young man saw and gave help to Death; Death regained his strength.

Death asked if the man knew he was, and the man said no.

Then, Death said he couldn't make any sort of exemptions for the young man but still promised to send his messengers before the young man's death, rather than the usual abrupt extraction.

The young man was happy and saw this as a good thing; having a sign before his death would be helpful. 

Eventually, the time had come for the man's departure from the world of the living.

Death tapped his shoulder and told the man to follow him.

The man protested saying that he had not received any signs.

Death listed off the litany of signs/messengers he had given/sent: fevers, dizziness, gout, ear-ringing, toothaches, darkened eyes, nightmares, sleep paralysis, etc.

The man finally understood and surrendered to his fate.

The Angel of Death. Source

Bibliography: D. L. Ashliman, The Grimm Brothers' Children's and Household Tales, Source

Reading Notes: THE DRAWING OF THE SWORD

There was a time when England was without a king-- King Uther Pendragon had died.

One day, a large stone was noticed in a churchyard. In it, a naked sword was lodged. About it was written, "Whoso pulleth out this sword is by right of birth King of England." 

People were intrigued and determined to pull the sword from the stone. Even mighty knights tried. The sword did not budge.

The lords of the kingdom decided to put on a tournament to see who could attempt to win the sword.

Among the participants who signed up were Sir Ector, his son Sir Kay, and his foster-son Arthur. The day before the tournament, Sir Kay had taken his belt off and forgotten about it. 

Come the day of the tournament, he didn't have his own sword. En route to the tournament, he begged Arthur to go back home and fetch it for him. 

When Arthur reached home, no one was there to let him in, as everyone had left for the tournament.

Arthur rode away angrily. He sent out to get the sword in the churchyard and give it to Sir Kay.

Arthur grabbed ahold of the sword once he reached the churchyard and pulled it out with ease.

Arthur gave the sword to his foster-brother, Sir Kay. 

Sir Kay presented the sword to his father, Sir Ector, and said that he was the rightful king. Sir Ector was in shock and eventually found out the truth.

Sir Ector worked with Arthur to determine if Arthur had truly gotten the sword of his own accord. Arthur's ability to wield the sword was tested, which served to confirm his royal ancestry. 

Sir Ector begged King Arthur to make Sir Kay the seneschal (governor) of all his lands. Arthur agreed. 

Eventually, all came to know of Arthur's ability to wield the sword. Rich and poor knelt before him. 

Arthur was knighted, given his crown, and sworn in. 

Excalibur. Source

Bibliography: Andrew Lang, King Arthur: Tales of the Round Table, Source

Extra Reading: Serpents and Dragons

I did this week's extra reading on serpents and dragons! I have definitely heard and read about these awesome creatures all throughout popular media. Shows, movies, books, etc. are all great examples of these mythical animals in today's culture.

In this CrashCourse, it talked about the two animals, their origin of sorts, and how they are portrayed across cultures. I had no idea that certain myths had them beginning as snakes, then evolving later into a bull-headed, winged, dragon with eagles' feet. And then, of course, that was later tied to that same myth's account for humankind's creation. So, yeah, I guess the two were connected in this way. I am giving a poor description; the actual video explains this much more gracefully.

One interesting tidbit that caught my attention was that dragons were/are fastidious! Especially with how they are depicted in The Hobbit films, lying on mounds of gold and treasure, I wouldn't think dragons to be neat and tidy. I suppose this is just another difference of portrayal across cultures. But nonetheless, it went further and mentioned that the way to irritate dragons and cause them to fly around haphazardly was to put tiger bones near them! I was surprised to learn that such a large, intimidating animal would be perturbed by mere tiger bones. 

I wonder if dragons are present in Indian myths. I haven't seen much of them! Source

Bibliography:

CrashCourse, Serpents and Dragons: Crash Course World Mythology #38, Source

Extra Reading: Epic of Gilgamesh

For this week's extra reading I chose to watch the CrashCourse video on the Epic of Gilgamesh! I had heard of the name before but had no idea what his life story/epic would be about, the morals therein, and the reasons why it became a popular myth.

A new concept that I learned about with this video was the monomyth, or hero's journey. Being introduced to the parts of a typical hero's journey was a cool treat; none of the components of it were surprising or foreign to me. Learning that those components were collected together and called a single thing was great to hear. This definitely eases the burden of recalling all the parts of a hero's journey and gives us a cleaner way to allude to them all. For this alone, I'm already glad I watched this video.

However, monomyths were not the only thing covered in this video. The main purpose of the video was to summarize and present the ancient Epic of Gilgamesh. The main takeaway from this video, for me anyway, was ways that one can learn from mistakes and grow past perceived limitations. Therein lies what made Gilgamesh a hero, regardless of his inability to acquire immortality. As humans, we can choose how we perceive the things that are thrown at us. I'm a firm believer that what you make of the things that happen to you is much more important than the actual things that happen to you. This falls in line with the idea that you should grab life by the horns and make it your own. Like Gilgamesh, no matter what we lose or what obstacles we have to face, we must continue to press on and not sacrifice our own happiness. That's all we can really do. 

Apparently, there are parallels in Gilgamesh's epic and The Bible! I'm curious to see how similar some parts may be. Source

Bibliography:
CrashCourse, The Epic of Gilgamesh: Crash Course World Mythology #26, Source

Reading Notes: Turtle and Thunder

There once was a turtle that was continually getting hit by something or some animal. Unsure of what it was, he decided to find a friend who would help defend him. 

He set out into the woods in search of someone that could help him. 

He yelled out, "Who will help me?"

Deer replied, but broke his horns on a tree when trying to prove his skill.

Turtle called out again. Bear replied but was very clumsy when asked to show his power in fighting a tree.

Turtle asked once more, "Who will help me?"

A collection of smaller voices said "We will!" Turtle went closer to the tree stump where it was coming from and saw that it was a gathering of turtles.

Turtle said, "You're the very people I am looking for."

Turtle brought them back to his home.

However, Turtle being unable to house all his little friends, he had to leave them outside. One day a big rock came rolling along in their area and killed Turtle's friends. 

Turtle ran outside to see who/what it was and heard from his neighbor that it was the Thunder Bird. 

Ever since that day, Turtle has stayed underwater when a thunderstorm was present.

I wonder how big our big turtle friend from this story was. Source

Bibliography: Katharine Berry Judson, Myths and Legends of British North America, Source

Extra Reading: Indian Pantheons

For this week's extra credit reading I've chosen pantheons! While looking over the list, I quickly was drawn to the one on the Indian pantheon. Before going into the CrashCourse video on Indian gods and goddesses, I didn't have a whole lot of knowledge about Indian mythology. However, this overview of it all was quite enlightening.

One of the main distinctions the authors are quick to convey is that Indian mythology is different from other types in that plays a role in a living belief system: Hinduism. Indian mythology is the foundation for the aforementioned religion for more than 900 million adherents. With this in mind, it's safe to say that it's a whole different monster of its own. 

A couple of other things that were very clarifying were the explanations for avatars and how different gods and goddesses were known for different things. Coming from a monotheistic belief system, it is already a massive hurdle to wrap my head around all these gods and goddesses. But to throw a wrench in the gears and say that they're each known for various things made it all so much more complicated. This is why understanding the role of avatars in Hinduism and Indian mythology was a big relief. I had never known that certain deities were reincarnated into what became other popular deities within Hinduism. Finally learning that a neat family tree of sorts could be made and referred to made the whole idea of diving into Indian deities and mythology a lot more doable. 

Overall, I am glad that this video was made, as it has greatly helped me wrap my head around Indian mythology. Now, time to watch it 100 more times to catch every tiny little thing about the Indian pantheon.

Bibliography:
CrashCourse, Indian Pantheons: Crash Course World Mythology #8, Source

This CrashCourse video talked about Durga, a badass warrior goddess, as seen above. Source 

Reading Notes: The Burning of the World

This is a Cree story about how Earth was burned, but only three people along with a handful of terrestrial animals survived. No details about aquatic animals are mentioned. The people who had survived were a man, his mother, and sister. The man was the one who came to know of the world ending in fire. His father didn't survive because he didn't think the planet would be engulfed in flames, because he was at odds with his son.

The man created a bow and arrows. He shot an arrow in each cardinal direction, and the land where each arrow landed became a corner of a square of earth that would be untouched by the impending fire. The man told everyone that he wanted to save to find themselves in the square area of land when the fire came if they wanted to survive. Many chose not to come, as they didn't believe him.

The fire eventually came. The man and his father were still fighting, so this is how and why the father died.

The fire thrashed freely on Earth but was eventually put out by the water. Thus, a new cycle of life had to begin again with the surviving animals, 3 humans, and the recently burnt land.

Of the animals that survived on the patch of ground with the man, his mother, and his sister, there were a beaver, rabbit, squirrel, bear, caribou, and deer. These are all the terrestrial beings that survived.

The man took it upon himself to be the new ruler of these animals and named them according to their behavior during this time period.

The beaver was placed in water for obvious reasons. The rabbit was placed on land because its legs were too long and wouldn't function as well in water, despite its pleas to be an aquatic animal. The squirrel's wish to be a bear was denied because it was too loud. The squirrel ended up crying so much that its eyes became bright and swollen. The bear was named as such because he was nice, wise, and quiet. An animal amongst them wanted to be a caribou, but none of the animals could remember who. Lastly, the deer was made because it was so swift and could outrun all its pursuers. (I'm assuming cheetahs weren't around.)

After all this, the man put a mark on all the animals to be able to identify all of them. He then named his mother Robin because she was friendly, her sister Golden-winged Woodpecker because she was beautiful, and himself Blackbird because he would only come every spring.


Bibliography: Katharine Berry Judson, Myths and Legends of British North America, Source

I wonder how common stories of world-ending floods are in various cultures! Source

Reading Notes: Sun Wu Kung: Battle with Notscha

Notes
-The Lord of the Heavens (LOTH) heard of Sun Wu Kung's disrespectful exit
-LOTH dispatched Li Dsing the pagoda-bearing God and his third son, Notscha (N) to bring SWK as a prisoner

-The two set out to SWK's camp

-They send in a warrior of heaven

-SWK easily bests the warrior

-SWK says “What a bag of wind! And he calls himself a heavenly warrior! I’ll not slay you. Run along quickly and send me a better man!”
-N saw this and moved in to try the great SWK

- SWK says “To whom do you belong, little one? You must not play around here, for something might happen to you!”
-N yells back, “Accursed ape! I am Prince Notscha and have been ordered to take you prisoner!”
-N swung his sword toward SWK
-SWK says “Very well, I will stand here and never move.”
-N became angry

-N transformed himself into a three-headed god with six arms, in which he held six different weapons
-SWK laughed and said “The little fellow knows the trick of it! But easy, wait a bit! I will change shape, too!”
-SWK also turned himself into a figure with three heads and with six arms and swung three gold-clamp rods
-Much fighting ensued. Round after round

-The fighting was very rapid and looked as if its combatants were using 1000 weapons, with there being a constant flurry of attacks
-30 rounds later, the match was still even

-SWK came up with the idea to pull one of his own hairs and have it act as a fully functioning decoy

-The decoy continued to fight in SWK's place, seamlessly
-SWK slipped behind N
-SWK gave him such a blow on the left arm with his rod that his knees gave way beneath him with pain
-N had to withdraw in defeat
-N reported back to his father  Li Dsing of his defeat
-Unsure of what to do, they returned to heaven

-LOTH bowed his head in near-defeat and sought to think of whom he might send to defeat the monkey king
-The Evening Star recommended that LOTH appoint him as "Great Saint Who Is Heaven’s Equal", an empty title
-LOTH heard this and was agreeable
-LOTH sent the Evening Star to summon SWK
-SWK came at once to heaven
-SWK was happy to receive his new title
-LOTH told him that his rank was very high and that he must not cut any further capers

Bibliography: R. Wilhelm, The Ape Sun Wu Kung, Source

This depiction of Sun Wu Kung really does make him look like a demon! Source

Reading Notes: CrashCourse--Theories of Myth

I never thought the discussion of the theories of mythology would be one that I'd enjoy. One of the first things that struck me was Plato being the first philosopher to throw myths and folktales under the bus by establishing the notion that by their irrationality they were false. I've always held sort of the same beliefs, but I didn't realize it was Plato that put these same thoughts into motion way back when. I just figured most people could see the duality of myths with their pleasant fiction but also their non-fictional morals, lessons, truths, etc.

The second bit that struck me was the part on Jung and Freud holding the beliefs that myths were just an extension of our unconscious. Hearing it be presented this way just made sense. They believed that myths served to express what one's conscious was too afraid/unable to express. And so, the subconscious relayed the same message in a roundabout way via myths. As a psychology major I'm always thinking more and more about people's thoughts and the reasons why they do what they do. I may not totally subscribe to these two psychologist's other beliefs, but I think this one regarding myths could have some weight to it.

Bibliography

CrashCourse, Theories of Myth: CrashCourse World Mythology, Source

Plato, a great philosopher. Source 

Reading Notes: Sun Wu Kung: Geared Up

Notes

-Sun Wu Kung was visiting the nearby dragon-king and dragon-queen
-He demanded they give him a weapon worthy of his strength and ability
-Given a weapon that was 7,200 pounds, Sun Wu Kung said that was too light

-Dragon-king said that he had nothing heavier or mightier

-Sun Wu Kung insisted that he look around again

-Dragon-queen, done with Sun Ku Kung, told the king to give him the great iron rod 

- this iron rod was used by Great Yu when he ordered the waters and determined the depth of the seas and rivers

-Dragon-king thought it was inappropriate to give Sun Wu Kung (SWK) a sacred weapon

-Dragon-queen did not let up and wanted to be sure that Sun Wu Kung would be pleased and leave

-SWK tried the iron rod out, fitted with golden clamps on either end

-SWK determined that it was too heavy and that it ought to be shorter and thinner

-Without even asking, SWK exercised his supernatural powers to shrink the iron weapon down to a more appropriate size
-SWK was overjoyed and beat about in the sea with the rod. The waves spurted mountain-high and the dragon-castle rocked on its foundations. 

-Dragon-King trembled with fright

-SWK was not fully appeased; a set of fitting armor was still necessary
-Dragon-king said that he had no armor for SWK
-SWK said, "I will not leave until you have obtained one for me.” 

-SWK began to swing his rod

-Dragon-king in his fright pleaded for SWK to not hurt him 

-Dragon-king said that he would call in his brothers from all the other seas

-They convened and decided to appease SWK again

-The king's brothers brought forth the magical, golden armor

-SWK received it, thanked them, and then happily left

-SWK greeted his ape children who stood in awe of his weapon and armor

-SWK told them the secret of the rod and showed them its effects

-SWK then set his empire in order, now that he had adequate armor and a fit weapon

Sun Wu Kong with his iron rod. Source

Bibliography: R. Wilhelm, The Ape Sun Wu Kung, Source

Reading Notes: How Raja Rasalu Killed the Giants

Notes
-Raja Rasalu arrived at a town

-He was welcomed by a grieving, worried mother

-The mother had just lost 6 of her 7 sons via a tribute to a neighboring pack of giants
-She was worried that she was about to lose her 7th, youngest son now

-Time came for the new day's tribute and the mother was chosen yet again to sacrifice a young man, her son 

-Raja Rasalu reassured her that he would take his place as tribute

-Raja Rasalu went on his way along with the other offerings to confront the giants

-As one attempted to eat his prized horse as they approached, Raja Rasalu quickly swiped off the giant's arm

-The giant quickly fled to alert the rest of his giant family

-All the alerted giants quickly ran to the astrologer giant to see if Raja Rasalu was truly born into the world and not just a myth

-They received confirmation that Raja Rasalu was indeed real

-Before the giants could flee in many directions, Raja Rasalu confronted them and demanded that they come forth

-One giant got brazen and stepped forward and questioned Raja Rasalu's identity

-Raja Rasalu proved his abilities and slew multiple giants in doing so

-A pack of 7 giants came forth and challenged Raja Rasalu's identity again

-Raja Rasalu again proved his capabilities and slew those seven with a single arrow

-One giantess remained and fled to a cave

-Raja Rasalu had a statue made in his likeness to stand guard over the cave 

-The giantess was trapped inside the cave and starved to death

-This is the story of how Raja Rasalu slew all the giants

I wonder if giants have always had a reputation for causing ordinary humans mayhem and needing supernatural intervention.
Battle of Hercules and the Giants, Source

Bibliography: Flora Annie Steel, Tales of the Punjab, Source

Reading Notes: The Tale of King Rhampsinitus

Notes
-There was a wealthy king

-He wanted an impenetrable chamber for all his riches

-One of the builders created a weak spot so that someone could enter undetected

-The same builder had two sons who he told the secret weak spot to as he was dying

-After the builder died, his sons went forth to find the secret way in and steal as much of the king's treasure as possible

-The king saw this and decided to set up traps in the chamber of riches
-Time and again the brothers came and stole more riches

-One time in particular, one of the brothers entered and got caught in a trap and wouldn't make it out.
-He instructed his brother who was waiting outside to come in and behead him and leave his body, as to keep his identity a secret from the frustrated yet intrigued king who would find his body in his chamber of riches

-Saddened, the unrestrained brother complied and left just as he came...with his brother's head under his arm

-The king the next morning marveled at what he saw, and the ingenuity of these treasure theives
-He ordered that the headless body be presented in the town square to see if anyone would come to mourn the individual, ultimately allowing him to ID who it was
-The two sons' mother was deeply in mourning
The mother had the son who survived go and find a way to get the body down of her other son

-The living son went to do as he was demanded, but found two guards standing watch
-He had a wagon full of wine with him
-He opened the wineskins, leaving them to spill and spill in front of the guards
-Acting distraught and genuinely shocked, the guards took advantage of the opportunity to drink to their heart's content.
-The son decided to cut his losses and share with the guards as much as they wanted
-The guards fell asleep due to their drunkeness
-The son was able to retrieve his brother's body and return it to his mother

-The angry king was still intrigued by these cunning robber(s)
-The king decided to offer a pardon and a great reward to the man who had so successfully eluded him time after time.
-The son set forth to appear before the king in his palace, and give account of his actions
-The king was impressed by his ingenuity
-The king then offered him the great reward of taking his daughter's hand in marriage

Head in a treasure chest. Source

   
Bibliography
Donald Mackenzie, Egyptian Myth and Legend, Source

Reading Notes: The Death of Osiris

Notes
-Osiris returned from his mission, there was much rejoicing in the land
-There was a royal feast
-Set, Osiris' brother came along with his conspirators
-Set brought an ornate chest that was made in the shape of Osiris' body
-The people of Osiris were at the feast were captivated by it
-Set announced that it would be gifted whoever fit its proportions
-None of the people thought there was any foul play

-People got into the chest one after another, but to no avail--no one fit
-Osiris finally came forward and laid down to realize his body perfectly
-Quickly Set's minions sprang forward to shut the lid and nail the chest closed
-The orate chest now had become the coffin of Osiris, as he breathed his last breath
-People were confused and merrymaking had been replaced by sorrow
-Set told his followers to throw the chest into the Nile in the dark night
-The current of the Nile took it all the way to the great ocean
-Set ascended the throne of Egypt
-Tyranny prevailed as Set was an unfair and vengeful ruler

A depiction of Osiris. Source

Bibliography
Donald Mackenzie, Egyptian Myth and Legend, Source

Reading Notes: Homer's Odyssey, Part A

Notes

Title: Odyssey: The Moly Defeats Circe

-Odysseus anxiously approached Goddess Circe's house

-Welcomed in by Circe

-Circe brought out luxurious arrangements for his arrival

-Circe presented him with a wine mixed with drugs

-Odysseus drank it 

-Circe lunged at Odysseus with her wand, commanding that he be cast out to his lowly men

-Odysseus was immune/not affected by the drugged concoction
-Odysseus rushed at Circe with his sword as if to kill her for her deceit
-Circe evaded the attack
-Circe began questioning who he was, because of its lack of effect on him. Slightly intrigued
-Circe then realizes that she is dealing with Odysseus, the one who she was told about from other ppl
-Circe told Odysseus to sheathe his sword and join her in her bed as to rebuild trust via lovemaking 

-Odysseus expressed his concern in trusting her when she had his men turned into pigs

-Odysseus made her swear an oath to not hurt him by the gods

-Circe swore the oath and began prepping Odysseus

-Odysseus was showered with more fancy arrangements, was given a relaxing bath (-weariness), and food to eat and drink  

-Odysseus denied the food

-Circe asked why he wasn't eating, reaffirmed that she had sworn her solemn oath to not harm him

-Odysseus expressed his insecurity/distrust and wanted her to free his men first before he expressed any tender emotions, be it eating of her food or sharing her bed with her

-Circe then freed all the men

-The men returned to Odysseus full of tears and gratitude

-Circe felt pity for what she did

Head of Odysseus, Source

Bibliography
Tony Kline, Odyssey: The Moly Defeats Circe, Source

Week 2 Reading Overview

Choose from CLASSICAL and/or BIBLICAL units for Weeks 3 and 4.
Week 3: Saints and Animals
Week 4: Homer's Odyssey

Choose from MIDDLE EASTERN and/or INDIAN units for Weeks 5 and 6.
Week 5: Ancient Egyptian Myths and Stories reading A
Week 6: Ancient Egyptian Myths and Stories reading B

Choose from ASIAN and/or AFRICAN units for Weeks 7 and 9. [Week 8 is review week.]
Week 7: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung reading A
Week 9: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung reading B

Choose from NATIVE AMERICAN units for Weeks 10 and 11.
Week 10: Native American Hero Tales reading A

Week 11: Native American Hero Tales reading B

Choose from BRITISH and/or CELTIC units for Weeks 12 and 13.
Week 12: King Arthur
Week 13: Robin Hood

Choose from EUROPEAN units for Weeks 14 and 15.
Week 14: Dante's Inferno reading A

Week 15: Dante's Inferno reading B

I am super excited to read about the Odyssey, King Arthur, and Robin Hood! Those are some pretty well-known stories that are commonly alluded to, so I'm curious to dive into all of those texts. Also, just having taken a Native American music course online, I hope to see that I've retained at least some material from that.

We don't hear a lot of references to Egyptian gods or goddesses, so I wonder if any names will ring a bell in those readings! Source

Reading Notes: The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts, Part B

Notes
Title: The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe

An uncaring human couple no longer wanted their child. They wrapped their son up and abandoned him by a mountainside to be found. As it turned out, a wolf mother was going on her evening stroll after taking care of her wolf pups when she came across this human baby. She sympathized for the helpless little one as she had her own at home, and the thought of them being abandoned and hungry was a disheartening thought. The wolf mother took the baby home to be raised with her wolf pups.

The baby, who came to be known as Ailbe, adapted well to the wolf mother and her children out in woods. Ailbe's growth was seemingly uninhibited--he grew strong, tall, and handsome. But, one day a hunter came around and snatched Ailbe up. Realizing that he was raised in the woods like a wild animal, the hunter felt that him and his wife could take better care of Ailbe. Ailbe did not find relief in this. He wanted to stay with his wolf mother and wolf brethren. Nonetheless, the hunter and his wife ended up being a prince and princess that lived in a grand castle. Ailbe grew up in wise, human teachings and eventually obtained the title of bishop as well as a palace in his town.

 Many years later, all the lords of nearby lands met together for a great hunt. As the cries of many animals rang through the woods. Ailbe's wolf mother, old and gray, came to plead for her life. Ailbe received her and his brethren. He pardoned them from the hunt and ensured that no hunter would harm them. Ailbe then invited her wolf mother and her children to come eat at his table as they wished. In doing this, he returned the same love, respect, and care which she gave to him in his time of need. They were now a reunited, happy family again.

Bibliography
Abbie Farwell Brown, The Book of Saints and Friendly Beasts, source

Wolves are such beautiful creatures! Source

Reading Notes: Jataka Anthology - Unruly Monks

Unruly Monks is a set of two parables told by Buddha to instruct disobedient monks how to act and the consequences for their lack of action.

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THE SELF-WILLED DEER

Chars: Master (Buddha), unruly Brother (monk), Brahmadatta (Buddha?), Kharadiya (the Bodhisatta, sister of Brahmadatta), Nephew (son of Kharadiya),

Plot: One day when Brahmadatta was in Benares, Kharadiya bore a deer son that she wanted wanted to learn the way of the deer from Brahmadatta, the deer child's uncle. Nephew no-showed to training x7 and then got caught in a deer snare.

Mother Kharadiya came to complain to Brahmadatta to only learn that her son had not attended the training and that his demise was his own doing.

Brahmadatta said:
"For when a deer has twice four hoofs to run
And branching antlers armed with countless tines,
And when by seven tricks he's saved himself,
I teach him then, Kharadiya, no more."

The hunter then came and received his reward.

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Buddha then made the parallel that he was the deer teacher/uncle and the foolish deer/nephew was the unruly monk.

Buddha then uses another story for a noisy monk that was loud and expressive out of turn.

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NOISY OUT OF SEASON

Chars: Master (Buddha), unruly Brother (monk), Brahmadatta the Bodhisatta, Kharadiya (sis of Brahmadatta), Nephew (son of Kharadiya),

Plot:

Young Brahmins had a chicken that was a nice chicken. This nice chicken crowed at appropriate times and woke the Brahmins up to begin their studies. When this chicken died, they sought out a new one. They found one in a cemetery. This chicken in particular had no sensible crowing patterns, as it crowed throughout the day. Because of this, the Brahmins' in their pursuit of knowledge were affected. As a result, they killed the chicken. Their teacher instructed them:

"No parents trained, no teacher taught this bird:

Both in and out of season was he heard."

Despite the pain, sometimes we all need to go our own ways first before we can see the correct path. Stubborn Salmon: Source

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Author: Robert Chalmers, Title: Unruly Monks, Link: https://sites.google.com/view/jatakas/unruly-monks