Indian Epics

Edit: This story is now listed on my portfolio site. Diana stood outside of Herr Schneider's estate, pondering her options. Steve had said that this was a crucial diplomatic mission, and breaking into the compound would put all of his hard work in jeopardy, but she had to get in somehow. He had spent so much time and energy just getting Schneider to agree to meet, and Wonder Woman causing a scene on the German's estate with multiple witnesses and would break the already fragile peace negotiations. Diana, Princess of the Amazons, Daughter of Hippolyta, and the Pride of Themyscira, had been posing as Steve Trevor's secretary for three years now. Had her mother found that her cover in the world of men was essentially an aide, she would have been disappointed and indignant that the heir to the Amazonian throne was taking meeting notes and fetching coffee. It had turned out though, that the only way to stay close to Steve and be privy to all the missions he went on was to be hi...

I read the stories of Shaibya and Promila. This is a depiction of Shaibya with her child.  The story of Shaibya seemed to have a lot more references to modern day locations than many of the other stories. I appreciate when authors include the old and modern names of places because it creates more of a connection to the stories. It also stood out to me that this story had a personified Debt - it made it much more similar to modern fables and tales, and even reminded me of the Christian allegorical book A Pilgrim's Progress. This is the first time I have noticed that a vice was named and interacted with a character directly, rather than just being described as coming from within, or being a main characteristic of another character. A depiction of Promila. This story stood out to me because it was the first one where the main female character is glorified for NOT being docile and quiet. She was worried about her husband, so she donned armor and went and told Rama tha...

I read the stories of Sakuntala and Savitri, both incredible women. A depiction of Sakuntala in the river. I found the story of Sakuntala interesting at first because, unlike the others, the story goes on for a few pages without even mentioning her. This is of course because she had not yet been born, but in the other stories the main character appears much sooner. I thought also, how heartbreaking it was that her mother left her as a baby to die, since she could not go back to heaven with a human child. The story of Sakuntala is much closer to some of the modern fairy tales we have today, and seemed to me to be told in a similar fashion. The way she's described as blushing and being teased when the Maharajah first comes and talks to her, and her interactions with the world seems more familiar than many of the other stories I've read. I love when these stories talk about the origins of something we still see today, whether or not they are accurate. This story held the...