Week 7 Story: The Surprise Adoption

It was one of those warm evenings, where the weather was just right, all your favorite people were there, and you wish it would last forever. Except it really wasn't. It was pouring outside, and below freezing. The eldest son was complaining about not being able to go to a party, and work was really starting to stress out Brian out. But it was warm to him.

Oh, Bryan? He's a single father. Wife left him years ago with Roku, now almost twenty years old and still acting twelve. There he was again, complaining and complaining about how the weather shouldn't stop him from going to a party that was "inside, anyways." Roku didn't realize how much he was loved by his father, but it was probably because he did stuff like this.

The argument was disrupted by a deafening knock at the door. Who could be arriving at this hour, in this weather? He certainly didn't order take-out.

Brian went to go check, as Roku was still fixated on convincing his father to let him go to the party. He creaked the door open, but no one was there; then - he looked down. Five babies organized beautifully into a large basket with blankets enveloping them. He didn't have just one child anymore, he had six.

Let's fast forward a little bit, shall we?

Besides the surprise, confusion, and worry about what to do, Brian was actually content about the situation. He always wanted to add to his already minuscule family, and this was just bestowed upon him. Was his prayer heard? Over time he raised the kids on his own. He never had thought to figure out who dropped them off, because he had yearned for more company; and to raise a set of five as his own? This was a dream come true. He educated the children himself, was the best caretaker he could be, and they reciprocated this in the years to come. They grew older and older, completing high school just nearly. They loved him, and he loved them even more.

And they lived happily ever after.

Haha - no, not really, they didn't.

You see, Roku still exists, unfortunately. And he wasn't happy. To be the only child turned to one of six isn't a pleasant feeling. Sure, he was given more freedom as his father was busy all the time, but he didn't want that. He wanted his attention, his love; the freedom he was getting wasn't filling this hole. So he did the obvious - he got jealous.

He wanted to send a message that he had been waiting to send for the last couple decades after being essentially abandoned by his father. He was going to get back at them.

He had a "master" plan. He had already thought things through. Weed in the bag of the youngest son's, a weapon in the middle child's, death threats signed by the oldest son's, a "running away" letter from the youngest and oldest daughters. He wanted to get back at them, so he was going to frame them. He was shaking with joy after he completed his tasks.

It was one of those warm evenings, where the weather was just right, all five of your favorites were there, and you wish you it could last forever. And it really was. The sun was shining, all five of his "pupils" as he loved to joke with them, were there, a day before high school graduation.

The chatter was disrupted by an authoritative knock at the door. Brian got up and was met with several police officers; a warrant was shoved in his face and three proceeded in with handcuffs.

Crying, screaming, thrashing didn't help. The law was the law, and although innocent until proven guilty, for now, they were guilty just as much as they were innocent. All were in tears, except Roku. He giggled just far back enough where nobody noticed. He was so used to being not noticed anyways, right? Well not anymore. He got his father back, and this time for sure.


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Author's Note
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I based this story off of Mahabharata when Dhritarashtra raised five sons on his own and trained them as his pupils. In this story, as well, his eldest son became extremely jealous at the fact, and challenged them in many ways. I wanted to take a similar method of telling this story, and did so by telling it this way.

Based on:

Bibliography:
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It was one of those warm days

Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part D

Amba and her vow to seek revenge happens, which brings about Bhishma's death in her next life

After Bhishma's fall, Drona takes command of Duryodhana's armies. and he vows to make Yudhishthira his prisoner, and Arjuna vows to defend his brother even at the cost of his own life.

 Many warriors fall in the battle, but one of the most dramatic scenes is the fall of Abhimanyu, trapped alone behind the enemy lines. As you can imagine, the news of his son's death will be a bitter blow for Arjuna, and, with Krishna's help, he will seek revenge.

After Arjuna's loses his son Abhimanyu, Bhima will be next, losing his rakshasa son, the mighty warrior Ghatotkacha.

One of the great moral crises of the Battle of Kurukshetra has to do with the death of Drona: the Pandavas resort to trickery in order to bring about their old guru's demise.

After the fall of Drona, Karna at last takes command of Duryodhana's armies. It is also time for one of the most terrible oaths sworn by the Pandavas to come true: Bhima will secure his revenge for Duhshana's treatment of Draupadi all those years ago at the gambling match in Hastinapura.

Just as the confrontation between Achilles and Hector is the dramatic climax of the Trojan War. The confrontation of Arjuna and Karna the dramatic climax of the Battle of Kurukshetra

Karna is dead, but Duryodhana is still alive, and he has used his supernatural powers to take refuge beneath the waters of a lake.

Ashwatthaman, seeking vengeance for the death of Drona, will seek to kill the Pandavas while they sleep.

The consequences of Ashwatthaman's night raid on the Pandava camp, including the strange story of the gem in his forehead, a supernatural amulet which he was born with and which protected him all his life from hunger, thirst, poison, the attack of wild animals, and much more.

Bhishma fell in battle, but he had the gift of choosing the moment of his own death. He is waiting for the solstice, and before he dies he will instruct the survivors of the battle on how to rule the world that has survived.

Brief summary of the miraculous birth of Parikshit; Sunity Devee's account of Parikshit's mother Uttara and how she mourned her dead husband, Abhimanyu, Parikshit's father

Yudhishthira to claim imperial kingship by means of this ritual.

After the wanderings of the horse are over, it is time for the ritual itself, and Yudhishthira will now become sovereign king.

Vyasa will conjure up the ghosts of the dead warriors.

Krishna dies, persaged by his omens.

Now that Krishna is dead, the Pandavas and Drauapdi decide to end their time on the earth, leaving the kingdom in the hands of Parikshit, Arjuna's grandson.

In the end, the epic focuses on Yudhishthira and the final test he must face.


Bibliography:
Link

Mahabharata

Reading Notes: PDE Mahabharata, Part C

Like Rama, the Pandavas will now enter into a long period of exile in the forest and, again like Rama, during their exile they will encounter many sages who live in the wilderness, hearing stories and learning from them.

You won't be surprised that Krishna pays a visit to the Pandavas in exile. Despite his encouraging words, Draupadi is dismayed and rebukes Yudhishthira harshly, as does Bhima.

Arjuna, meanwhile, goes on another series of solo adventures. The first time he went out on his own was because of the exile imposed when he violated Draupadi's private time with Yudhishthira; this time, he will go out on his own to acquire the weapons the Pandavas will need at the end of their exile when they will, once again, have to face the jealous Duryodhana and his brothers. Arjuna is the son of the god Indra, but the god Shiva will also play a very important role in his life

Remember that Indra is Arjuna's father? In this next adventure, Arjuna will go to Swarga, Indra's heavenly abode, and there he will meet Urvashi. The consequences of this encounter will affect his life profoundly in the future!

With this episode, you will now return to Draupadi and the four Pandava brothers in exile who now embark on a journey to the Himalayas. They miss Arjuna and, finally, he rejoins them.

You might remember that at the end of the Ramayana, Hanuman remained on earth and was to remain on earth for as long as Rama's story was told... which means he is still here with us now! He was also on earth at the time of the events of the Mahabharata, and in this episode you will see his encounter with Bhima, who is Hanuman's half-brother: they are both sons of Vayu, the wind god.


Duryodhana's jealousy has not abated, and in this episode he will be humiliated in front of the Pandavas once again. Karna continues to be loyal to Duryodhana, and he now vows that he will kill Arjuna in the battle that will follow the end of the Pandavas' exile.


When Karna was born, his body was clad in golden armor and he had earrings that were a token of invincibility. Indra, Arjuna's father, is anxious to protect him from Karna, so Surya warns Karna that Indra will try to take his celestial armor and earrings. Indra does indeed manage to take these from Karna, but Karna will get something in return.

Life in exile is dangerous enough for kshatriyas, but of course it is far worse for a woman, especially a woman unguarded, as you saw in the Ramayana. Like Sita, Draupadi faces terrible danger in the forest.

As you may recall, the final year of the Pandavas' exile must be spent in hiding. The five brothers and Draupadi go to the court of King Virata, and they each enter into his service. Arjuna's disguise is one that fulfills the curse put upon him by Urvashi: he will become the eunuch Brihannala, a dancing teacher.

Remember when Draupadi was dragged into the assembly hall, and none of her husbands could intervene to help her? It will happen again now: the brother of Queen Sudeshna, Prince Kichaka, tries to rape Draupadi. and her husbands cannot even acknowledge her openly. In secret, though, Bhima defends Draupadi, and she will claim that the deed was done by her husband who is an immortal gandharva.

When Duryodhana and his allies attack King Virata and steal his cattle, the Pandavas will come to his defense — much to the surprise of the king and of his son, Prince Uttara. Be careful with the names here: Uttara ("Uttaruh") is the masculine form of the name, and Uttarā ("Uttarah") is the feminine form. Virata has a son name Uttara, and his daughter is named Uttarā.

Now that the Pandavas' exile is over, war with the Kauravas seems inevitable, especially after the terrible vows of vengeance sworn by the Pandava brothers. Krishna nevertheless attempts to avoid war and make peace between the factions

The relationship between Krishna and Arjuna is very intense, and that will become even more clear in this episode when, given a choice between Krishna alone and the whole army of Dwaraka, Arjuna is glad just to have Krishna by his side.

Krishna has acted as a peace broker before, and he will try once again. This time he will even manifest himself in his divine form as Vishnu, specifically, in the Vishvarupa, the All-Form. He will do the same again in an even more famous scene at the Battle of Kurukshetra, urging Arjuna to fight.

Karna's situation is both fascinating and tragic: as the war with the Pandavas draws near, he still does not know that they are his brothers. That, however, is about to change: Krishna reveals to Karna the secret of his birth and tells him to go to the Pandavas in peace, assuring him that they will not only accept him but regard him as their elder brother. 

The battle forces assemble, fighting either for Duryodhana and the Kauravas or for Yudhishthira and the Pandavas. You will see characters returning from earlier in the epic, such as Bhima's demon son Ghatotkacha (remember his marriage to Hidimbi in the forest, before he became Draupadi's husband?), and you will also meet new characters, such as Duryodhana's half-brother Yuyutsu, son of King Dhritarashtra and a woman belonging to the vaishya caste

The Bhagavad-Gita, or "Lord's Song," is the most famous part of the Mahabharata. When the battle is about to begin, Arjuna looks at the opposing side and sees his relatives and his gurus, and he despairs, but Krishna persuades him to fight. The reading here comes from the first two chapters of the Gita

 As the battle begins, Bhishma is the general of the Kaurava forces but, he does not feel the same loyalty to Duryodhana that Karna does, and he warns Duryodhana of the doom that awaits them.


Bibliography:
Link

The Lord's Song