Week 2 Reading Overview

I have chosen to use R.K. Narayan's version of Ramayana because I already bought the book and I knew that the likelihood of me enjoying this book was rather high, especially after reading the Bhagavad Gita last year! I also bought a used book, rather than a new one, to be a bit more environmentally friendly. The first comic book was titled was about Hanuman and I chose this one since I have heard of this name but never knew the meaning or the story behind it. Hopefully in this course that can be clarified. The second one I choose was titled Krishna and Narakasura and the reason for choosing this one was its cover/design on the comic. The statement along the top of the comic saying "arrogance vs confidence" captured my eye most. As for the videos, I was most happy to see Aldous Huxley's video part of the youtube playlist. I have read a few of his books in the past and plan to read various religious texts before reading his book perennial philosophy. Besides my interest in him as an author, the dancing Shiva and its meaning relating to the world deeply interests me. Although I didn't grow up with such a symbol, the meaning behind the dancing Shiva is quite clear and evident as described by Huxley. The second youtube video I chose was titled Masterpiece: The Hindu Deities Shiva and Parvati. I chose this after watching the first video and finding myself curious about Shiva. The sculptures from this period are utterly beautiful and extremely remarkable. It was also interesting to see how different the representations of Shiva are back then compared to modern history. 

Above is a photo of the Dancing Shiva. I chose this one because of the psychosocial, spiritual, and cosmological aspects it incites in me while looking at it. Shiva may be a person of interest for me this semester. 

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