Hanuman was half man, half monkey. That sounds pretty weird but he was actually quite handsome. He was not overly hairy like you'd think and his tail was sorta cool. He was a monkey king because of his great, strong powers. He was the only one that could get to Lanka over the ocean quickly and without having to use anything but his strength. So he bound like a monkey over the ocean to Lanka to try and find Sita.
He waited till night to look around Ravana's city for Sita. He went through all the houses and even looked in Ravana's bedroom while he was sleeping. It took him a while to find her but finally saw her sitting under a tree being guarded. He quietly snuck into the tree above her to try and tell her she was going to be rescued. Hanuman whispered to Sita, "Oh fairest maiden, Rama has sent me to find you." Sita looked up to see Hanuman sitting on a tree branch. At first she was frightened because she had not heard him get in the tree, but after a moment, something changed. She looked into his eyes and her heart nearly stopped. There were butterflies in her stomach.
What is happening to me? I haven't felt this way since... since... I saw Rama for the first time.
She couldn't pull her eyes away from him, but he finally interrupted her thoughts by asking, "Sita, would you like me to carry you back to Rama?"
Sita replied, "No, I can't let you do that. I am loyal and true to Rama and I would be unclean if I touched another man. Please send Rama to save me, there is not much time."
Hanuman nodded and quickly left to return back to Rama.
Sita waited patiently while Rama and his army marched to Lanka. One evening she heard yelling and clanking and knew the war had begun. Her guards would not let her leave her spot, so she sat quietly and listened to the battle sounds.
Finally after many hours it got quiet and then she heard joyous chanting. "Ravana is dead! Ravana is dead!" The guards left to go see what had happened. Sita ran towards the chanting to find her love, Rama. She spotted him through the crowd and bounded toward him, ready for his embrace. When she reached him, though, he did something she was not expecting. Rama took a few steps back and looked disgusted.
"What's the matter with you, Rama?" she asked.
"You have been in Ravana's power this whole time. How can I know that you have stayed pure all these years?" he questioned.
Sita was enraged. "Are you serious?! I have denied Ravana every time he has made a pass at me because you are my one true love. I would never dream of betraying you. I can't believe you would accuse me of being untrue."
The crowd around them all looked shocked. Nobody knew what to do. Sita looked around at all the faces staring at her and Rama and she spotted Hanuman. Her heart fluttered again. She knew now what she truly dreamed of.
Sita finally spoke again, "Rama, I refuse to be treated this way. I no longer want to be your wife. I have stayed true to you till now, but I have found another."
Everyone gasped and looked around to see who it was that she would leave the great and wonderful Rama for.
Sita simply smiled at Hanuman and everyone knew. He walked over to Sita and took her hand gently and then looked at Rama and said, "Don't worry, I'll take care of her. No matter what happened to her here."
Hanuman slung her on his back and they bound away from Lanka back to his palace where they would live together happily and have many children.
Rama returned home and told his family, to save himself from embarrassment, that Sita had been killed during battle. He never forgot her and never forgave himself for losing her.
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| Hanuman Finding Sita Under the Tree, Wikipedia. |
Author's Note
In the Ramayana, Sita does get taken away to Lanka by Ravana. Rama spends many years fighting various beings to get back to her. He, with the help of Hanuman and an army, comes to save her. Originally, Hanuman does go to Lanka by himself and Sita refuses to go with him because she does not want to touch another man, but she does not look at Hanuman in any sort of way. She only loves Rama. When the war finally ends Rama does initially reject Sita because he is unsure of her purity. She proves it to him, though, and she goes back home with him. Eventually people start questioning Rama for taking Sita back because they don't know that she remained pure. He exiles her to keep his pride basically but later finds her in the forest with two sons (that ended up being his). She proves her purity again by getting taken into mother earth and Rama sees her again in Heaven. I did not like the ending of the originally story at all. It was very frustrating to me that Sita keeps having to prove her purity to Rama after all the trouble he went through to save her. I liked the idea of Sita saying "screw you" essentially and finding someone else that will treat her better. I thought it would be ironic for her to go with Rama's closest friend in the war, Hanuman.
Bibliography
Sita Sings the Blues by Nina Paley, Youtube.
I really like the title of this story! I like the way that you describe Hanuman. It has some humor to it. I like where it says “his tail was sorta cool”. Adding that type of language to stories makes reading a lot more enjoyable for the reader!
ReplyDeleteI like how when you switched to the character’s point of view, the font also changed. This was easy for me to see that something is changing.
I enjoyed your story this week! Thanks for sharing!
Hi heather, this was a fun twist on the story. I like how you set us up in the very beginning paragraph to anticipate the upcoming love affair. I think we can all relate to the those butterflies you refer to in in Sita’s stomach. By calling on the reader’s senses, I think you get us to all relate to that first time we saw that special someone. That puts many of us in a nostalgic mood and makes your character very relatable. I liked how you doubled down on the butterflies in Sita’s stomach by adding the inner dialog with herself. She knew she should not be feeling this way when her heart was elsewhere. Sita still chose honor over following her desires, which would have resulted in her at least allowing Hanuman to carry her back. The story still maintains the integrity of the original story’s moral self-righteous message. There is something inside me that wished very much for Rama to get put in his place for having such a backward view on the honor of his wife when she was in such a powerless slate. I wonder what it would look like to sear the replay Rama had at the end when he realized he was over reacting?
ReplyDeleteWell this was an interesting twist to have in the story. I never expected this but I was always upset at how Rama treated Sita once she was freed. I loved how you changed the ending and had Sita leave him and the last comment that Hanuman made was just awesome. The way you wrote this story made it very relatable to all of us and the language you used made it more fun to read too. I liked how you also kept to the original story but also changed it up. Rama should not have lied to his family though. They should know what a jerk he was in not believing her and how she chose her honor and left him. instead. I mean its not like she chose to get kidnapped and stay with him for so long. How could he doubt her and if anything did happen it would have been rape because she would have been forced into it. He should not have questioned her honor over it. If he was as righteous as everyone said then he would have stayed with her regardless and set a precedent for his people. Regardless I really liked reading your story.
ReplyDeleteHi Heather! After reading this story, I was going like "ooooohh!" because this ending is oddly satisfying for some reasons. I did get upset when Rama doubted Sita at the end of the story, because it showed that the love between him and Sita was not strong enough for him to trust her. I also like Hanuman and I like the details you used to described him and how he got to Lanka in the first few paragraph. I am glad you also italized the text that indicated Sita's inner thought. Your paragraph and dialogues are well balance and easy to read through. I am glad that Sita found happiness in the end with Hanuman and was not exiled. I am also glad Sita decides to be bold and shows her anger (because she has the rights too!). Ah! I really like this plot twist. Good job and on writing this story and thank you for sharing. I really enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteHeather, I read your week 5 story: Hunky Hanuman for your portfolio because the title is what originally caught my interest. You definitely did add an interesting twist to the story that I would have not expected, except the title gave it away just a little bit. At the start of your story it seemed to really follow the same thing that actually happened where Sita only wanted to be with Rama but after Rama refused her, you made it where she gave up and chose Hanuman. I think that Hanuman is one of the characters that can be changed the most in the Ramayana and I actually chose him to be in one of my stories as well. I think that you did an excellent job putting the twist on this story and telling it. I do not really have any recommendations on how you can make this story better. I feel like you have already done a fantastic job.
ReplyDeleteHi Heather!
ReplyDeleteI loved this story of yours so much! I love the drama at the end. The ending of the original story bothered me just like it did you. I think your ending was great and so unexpected! (And Sita going for Rama's best friend was a nice touch.) Lol. But Sita did deserve someone better who she didn't have to continue to prove herself to, and I think Hanuman fit the criteria perfectly here! Your story is organized clearly and your writing flows beautifully! I also think you have the perfect amount of dialogue! I wonder what you could've done if you extended the ending a little bit longer. You could make it even more dramatic with just a little more interaction between Sita and Rama before Sita leaves him. Like maybe her giving him an ultimatum or I don't know, just a little more dialogue or arguing between the two before they split. Just a thought! This was a great story, and I look forward to your next.
Heather, I really enjoyed your take on the original. I would have never thought to change it in such a way. It is really creative. I thought it was kind of funny what you said in your author's note about Sita. It kind of reminds me of a modern day situation where a woman might be with a man who doesn't want to get married. She would try and try, but in the end he would never want to tie the knot. So, she dumps him and finds someone else who is interested in what she wants. I do not have any suggestions on the story you wrote because it was great and creative! But, if you wanted to modernize the story you created, I believe the plot I wrote above would be an interesting take on the original. Other than that small suggestion, I enjoyed the twist you added to one of my favorite original stories from this class. Nice job!
ReplyDeleteHeather, I loved your blurb and all the pictures you have on your Portfolio index. It definitely inspired me to add some photos to mine! How interesting, I never imagined Hanuman being handsome. I like that twist on the story makes him seem more human than animal. If it wasn't for the name of the story I would have never seen that twist coming! It's so awesome though how you had Sita stand up for herself after Rama accused her of being untrue to him. How fitting that she got another king too! I was, however, shocked that Rama lied to his family in the end. In the original story he was so honest, but this makes him seem more human and relatable. I completely agree with your author's note! It was very frustrating to me as well that Sita kept having to "prove" herself to Rama when she had done nothing wrong. Overall, great story! It was wonderfully written and very enjoyable to read.
ReplyDeleteThe alliteration in your title is very purposeful. It gives the reader a sort of quirky expectation for this story. I like how you portrayed Hanuman as handsome and unique for in most stories "blended creatures" are not depicted as attractive. I really like how you twisted Hanuman's original role and made him the savior and lover.
ReplyDeleteHi Heather!
ReplyDeleteWow, what an amazing story! The way you were able to create more of a modernized story with your usage of language, and then put a complete twist on the story captivated my attention. I really liked how detailed your scenes were, and the dialogue definitely made this story really strong. The ending is unexpected, especially when having read the original story, and I like the approach you took. The only suggestion I might have is maybe have an extended ending with more dialogue to give the ending a more dramatic feel instead of an abrupt ending. I like the detailed Author's Note you have included that explains the goals you had with this story, which you definitely achieved. Nice job! I really enjoyed it.