Reading Diary: Indian Fairy Tales

Link to Indian Fairy Tales
Link to untextbook options


The Lion and the Crane
I know how they expect me to feel about this. Stupid ungrateful lion! I'll tell you why I feel exactly the opposite! This is how the food chain works. The greatest beast of the land, king of the animals, is supposed to thank a crane? Haha. Sounds like something a crane would say. That being said, the lion is probably pretty grateful, but that doesn't mean he should tell anyone or thank the crane.

Magic Fiddle
I thought this story was super interesting. I read through most of it before realizing the girl actually drowned there. The whole idea of the water source drying up and then filling and trapping her sounds horrific. I thought it was odd that no recourse was sought out by the original Yogi, and that it was never mentioned that she came out of the fiddle during the Yogi. Maybe he was a gross old yogi who she found creepy. I thought it was nice that everything worked out for her and that she didn't seek much revenge, even though her family caused her death.

Tiger, Brahman, and the Jackal
What a beautiful story. I knew as soon as the jackal (which is usually depicted as sly like a fox) was acting confused that someone would be ousted. I think all of the whining by the roads and the tree made me want to go out and cut a few down while trampling on the road. If they can't appreciate what a service they provide and understand they will never be appreciated, then they must be ignored! I found it interesting that the Brahman in this story was not the wittiest, and in some ways it seemed like he might have been the dumbest... or at least in a close second.

The Talkative Tortoise
I remember reading someone's adaptation of this story for the blog commenting assignment last week. I wish there had been more of a buildup to the tortoise's flight instead of the wild ducks inviting him to fly and then him falling to his death. My favorite phrase in the passage involves the tortoise "talking overmuch", which sounds a lot like something Hank Moody would say in the TV show Californication -- a newly discovered Netflix favorite for me. But I digress...

Pride Goeth Before a Fall
I must have read this passage over a undredhy times! Just kidding. I think it was really interesting how the traders used their code language to fool the robbers. One other image that came to my head was really funny -- whenever the merchants finally pounced on the robbers, there was a moment where a bunch of loin-cloth-clad men tackling each other. It would have looked much like the great Spartan wrestling of many years ago! I will probably write my storytelling assignment about this story and it will be written entirely in merchant-speak, so you have been warned!

Demon with Matted Hair
I wish my dad would give me a full thousand pieces of money for my education... Dad, do you read my blog? Does this demon have a crazy weave with dreadlocks? Maybe he just got the most wicked of perms. Maybe all he needed to offer the demon was some Head and Shoulders... we may never know.