The Beginning
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It all started with the births to our
parents, Vishrava
and Kaikasi.
All four of us, Ravana, Kumbhakarna, Surpanakha, and I were born on the
same day, me being the last one. Rakshasas
have the unique gift of growing to adulthood as soon as they are born,
so we instantly became large in stature. My brother Kumbhakarna
took this gift to its limits as he did not stop growing until becoming
a giant among the group. It did not take me long living with my
siblings to understand I was quite different from them. All three
seemed obsessed with material things and power, while I on the other
hand became instantly devoted towards righteousness. I spent my
time in worship
of
the gods who created us, and in study.
Ravana seemed to be the natural leader of our group, maybe because he was the first born, maybe because he was born with ten heads, but he definitely took charge. I remember many days where Ravana spent his time coming up with a plan to achieve more power. My sister, Surpanakha, spent her time very vainly using her powers to improve her looks, while Kumbhakarna spent his time filling his incredible hunger. I was displeased with how my siblings spent their time, except for Ravana, who intrigued me. One day while studying, Ravana approached me, seeking guidance, and I filled his head with worship and sacrifice to the gods. I really thought I had broken ground with him when he started a plan of sacrifice to the god Brahma. Every thousand years Ravana chopped off one of his heads and burned it in a sacrificial fire. Being that he was born with ten heads this seemed like a very gruesome but creative sacrifice. I actually stood in amazement as I watched him perform the ritual every thousand years. He got the attention he was requesting during his last sacrifice, when the great Brahma himself appeared to us. He granted Ravana a great power to keep him from making the ultimate sacrifice in cutting off his last head and thus killing himself. Ravana took him up on this offer and wished to never be destroyed by any god or demon in existence. Ravana will later regret not adding humans to this list. Brahma granted this megalomanical wish and restored Ravana's heads, giving Ravana just the key he had been working so long for.
This started our journey out of our home and into an adventure with Ravana. We followed our brother into a campaign of conquering the heavens and establishing a palace on the island of Lanka. The palace I live in today rest upon the sight of the original. I rebuilt the new palace upon the foundation of the old, much like the island itself. This was how I first arrived on the island, quietly following my very powerful brother. I kept up my devotion and gave my opinions when appropriate, but none of my siblings seemed to listen. They were all self-absorbed and hungry for the power over all living things in the world. In hindsight, I wish I tried harder to change their minds as I watched them all succumb to the addiction of power.
Living in the palace was difficult for me, and I took much verbal abuse from my siblings. Every once in awhile, some advice I would offer sunk in. I like to think that my influence among the group saved some lives, even when they took so many. They spent so much time enslaving the gods or disrupting the sages, I tried to change their minds. It seemed so petty to want power over everything. Even if they disagreed with me or verbally attacked me, none ever laid a finger on me. I guess I should be thankful for that. One such life I saved finally sent me against my family and changed my life forever. First I have to backtrack and tell you about the great war Ravana waged with the all powerful Rama...
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Author's Note: Part one of my storybook is a brief history of the characters. This piece introduces the siblings and sets up the early environment of how they interacted together. This is different from the Buck's version because it comes from the point of view of Vibhishana. Much of the plot is true to the story but this approach gives the insight of the main character in my storybook. I found it interesting to write from the good brother point of view, and to add details that I thought might round out the character within my version. Vibhishana is also unique in my version because he has the power of hindsight, where he can reflect directly on events he is retelling and hint how they could have been different. I had to analyze how it might feel to live with these evil characters for thousands of years, and I tried to establish that Vibhishana might be the conscience of the group. Many bits of information are omitted from this piece for brevity. I only told the pieces I thought might quickly establish the characters and their relationship to each other. I also had to work a quick way into the battle in Lanka and a transition into part two. Looking back at the title and original theme for this storybook, I wanted this portion to introduce some of the conflicts between the characters, because this is the root of the nightmares that plague Vibhishana in the introduction.
Ravana seemed to be the natural leader of our group, maybe because he was the first born, maybe because he was born with ten heads, but he definitely took charge. I remember many days where Ravana spent his time coming up with a plan to achieve more power. My sister, Surpanakha, spent her time very vainly using her powers to improve her looks, while Kumbhakarna spent his time filling his incredible hunger. I was displeased with how my siblings spent their time, except for Ravana, who intrigued me. One day while studying, Ravana approached me, seeking guidance, and I filled his head with worship and sacrifice to the gods. I really thought I had broken ground with him when he started a plan of sacrifice to the god Brahma. Every thousand years Ravana chopped off one of his heads and burned it in a sacrificial fire. Being that he was born with ten heads this seemed like a very gruesome but creative sacrifice. I actually stood in amazement as I watched him perform the ritual every thousand years. He got the attention he was requesting during his last sacrifice, when the great Brahma himself appeared to us. He granted Ravana a great power to keep him from making the ultimate sacrifice in cutting off his last head and thus killing himself. Ravana took him up on this offer and wished to never be destroyed by any god or demon in existence. Ravana will later regret not adding humans to this list. Brahma granted this megalomanical wish and restored Ravana's heads, giving Ravana just the key he had been working so long for.
This started our journey out of our home and into an adventure with Ravana. We followed our brother into a campaign of conquering the heavens and establishing a palace on the island of Lanka. The palace I live in today rest upon the sight of the original. I rebuilt the new palace upon the foundation of the old, much like the island itself. This was how I first arrived on the island, quietly following my very powerful brother. I kept up my devotion and gave my opinions when appropriate, but none of my siblings seemed to listen. They were all self-absorbed and hungry for the power over all living things in the world. In hindsight, I wish I tried harder to change their minds as I watched them all succumb to the addiction of power.
Living in the palace was difficult for me, and I took much verbal abuse from my siblings. Every once in awhile, some advice I would offer sunk in. I like to think that my influence among the group saved some lives, even when they took so many. They spent so much time enslaving the gods or disrupting the sages, I tried to change their minds. It seemed so petty to want power over everything. Even if they disagreed with me or verbally attacked me, none ever laid a finger on me. I guess I should be thankful for that. One such life I saved finally sent me against my family and changed my life forever. First I have to backtrack and tell you about the great war Ravana waged with the all powerful Rama...
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Author's Note: Part one of my storybook is a brief history of the characters. This piece introduces the siblings and sets up the early environment of how they interacted together. This is different from the Buck's version because it comes from the point of view of Vibhishana. Much of the plot is true to the story but this approach gives the insight of the main character in my storybook. I found it interesting to write from the good brother point of view, and to add details that I thought might round out the character within my version. Vibhishana is also unique in my version because he has the power of hindsight, where he can reflect directly on events he is retelling and hint how they could have been different. I had to analyze how it might feel to live with these evil characters for thousands of years, and I tried to establish that Vibhishana might be the conscience of the group. Many bits of information are omitted from this piece for brevity. I only told the pieces I thought might quickly establish the characters and their relationship to each other. I also had to work a quick way into the battle in Lanka and a transition into part two. Looking back at the title and original theme for this storybook, I wanted this portion to introduce some of the conflicts between the characters, because this is the root of the nightmares that plague Vibhishana in the introduction.
Bibliography
Ramayana by William Buck (1976).
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Ramayana by William Buck (1976).
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