Title: Mahabharata PDE Edition
Author: Vyasa
Year: 2009
Once upon a time, there was a magnificent king named Shantanu. He had spent many years in service of his kingdom, but wanted to find a beautiful, young wife to marry. As he strolled along the marvelous Yamuna River, he gazed upon a heavenly beauty named Satyavati.
Satyavati had a miraculous birth of destiny because she was inside of a fish when a fisherman was fishing. She was kept and raised as his own. Growing up, she had a fishy smell, and all of the friends made fun of her. Satyavati of returned home in tears because of the mean things that were said to her. She didn't understand why she was born with such a bad odor that never fades. She felt like an outcast, an ugly duckling, and that she has recently been completely misunderstood. Shantanu wanted to be with Styavati, but lost her in the thick of the forest.
One day, Satyavati came across a mighty brahmin named Parashara, who was awestruck by Satyavati's beauty. Parashara wanted Satyavati to be his wife, so he made a vow that she smell as a lovely perfume. Parashara and Satyavati had a fast romance and soon after meeting, they found out that they were having a baby! Satyavati was ecstatic to hear the news and couldn't wait to have the privileged of being a mother.
After nine months, Vyasa was born. Vyasa was a very mature man for someone his age, and continued to grow quickly in both stature intelligence. After he had grown into manhood, Vyasa left his mother and his friends to enter into the dark forest in order to test and hone his skills,
After Vyasa, moved far away, Parashara wanted to ensure that Satyavati felt safe and had the ability to reach out to him whenever he is needed. He was terrified in the fact he was moving away from his mother. He continued to thrive and prosper throughout his whole life, never forgetting each year to return to his mother to tell her about everything that has happened in the past year. Even to this day, Satyavati is visited every year by Vyasa. Pleasantries are passed back and forst, and Vyasa returns to his home.
Towards the end of Satyavati's life, King Shantanu once again saw her. He still desired to marry her, but discovered that he had already been married. Although Shantanu was a little jealous, he congratulated her on her beautiful son.
Author's Note: This story is loosely based off of the story when King Shantanu and Satyavati meet. It is meant to read as a bedtime story with a little bit of an unusual love and ending.
King Shantanu and Satyavati (image info)
I liked reading your story. It was short, but it didn't feel rushed. You did well in organizing your story. Good job! I liked how the outcast found love! It had a really good ending with the son still including his mother in his life. It was sad that the king never got to be with her, but at least she found true love! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHello Nathan,
ReplyDeleteNice read. I liked it how you made the story fast and quick. However, I felt sad for King Shantanu because he was unable to marry Satyavati. Also, it was sad that King Shantanu was waiting to marry Satyavati till the end. On the other side, it was good for Parashara that he married Satyavati , whom he loved. Great story.
Hi Nathan, my favorite thing about your story is that you kept it simple and quite close the original. I remember when I first read the original, I was overwhelmed by all the characters that I had just read about so I wasn't able to keep track of specific stories like the one of Shantanu and Satyavati. After reading your version, I was able to appreciate and understand the story and how it was important to the rest of the Mahabharta. Great job!
ReplyDeleteHi, Nathan!
ReplyDeleteI really like the premise behind your story. You definitely simplified the overwhelming nature of the Mahabharata, which I appreciated! I found the number of characters in the original story quite daunting. I thought it was really sweet that you mention Vyasa returning to Satyavati each year to apprise her of his year. I will say that the chronology of your tale was a little bit confusing, but after reading it a second time my disorientation cleared. Nice job!