Reading Notes: Tiny Tales from the Mahabharata, Section D

Notes:

I cannot believe that I have finished the last section of the Tiny Tales from the Mahabharata! I do like this story slightly more than the Tiny Tales from the Ramayana. 

I really enjoyed the story where Krishna tested Karna's generosity. I found it heartwarming that even as Karna was dying, he still wanted to give what he could. If I changed the plot to where Karna decided to not be so generous, it would make the story kind of a thriller. Like what will the brahmin do to Karna now, as he is slowly dying? I think I could change it to a horror story.

One story that I found shocking to read was when the Kauravas raided the Pandavas' camp at night. I cannot believe the Kauravas killed everyone in the camp. I found it to be very disturbing when it was later mentioned that Draupadi and the Pandavas' sons were murdered by the Kauravas who thought that they were actually the Pandavas. I would retell the story where the Kauravas bring chaos to the camp and kill everyone but later find out that the entire camp was just an illusion to distract the Kauravas so that the children and the soldiers could escape.

I was amazed at the story of Yudhishthira finding the Kauravas in Heaven. Out of all the people, I would think that the Kauravas would end up in Naraka instead of the Pandavas. I totally forgot that the land of Kurukshetra was sacred. It is kind of ironic how the Kauravas, who started the war, are in Heaven, while the Pandavas, who were trying to stop it in the first place, ended up in Hell. It would be cool if Yudhishthira had an option to choose one person to save. I would go into detail listing the flaws and benefits in each person and then make a decision. It could be like a game and all the demons would be betting on who Yudhishthira would pick and then when Yudhishthira picks, everyone would be shocked.

The Kurukshetra War. (Source: Wikipedia)

Bibliography: Tiny Tales from the Mahabharata, Laura Gibbs