Arjuna is in his early twenties. He is attending college to
get his degree in Mathematics. He comes from a poor family and is struggling
very hard to manage his tuition. He lives a thousand miles away from his
parents.
Krishna is a friend of Arjuna. He is the noble one among all of the other friends of Arjuna. Krishna is a very calm, knowledgeable and
smart person.
This is the story about Arjuna. Arjuna is struggling in his
life. He has to manage all the expenses of his life on his own. He wants to be
with his family, but they live far away from where he lives. Arjuna is always
missing his home and family and wants to be with them. He is always in a deep
battle within his mind. His mind wants him to leave everything that he has where
he is, and go live with his family. He wants to give up in his life. He is sad
and unhappy about his situation. He also thinks that he is not utilizing his
time properly and should be with his parents rather than by himself for
pursuing his dreams. He doesn’t know if he is doing the right thing in life.
Krishna knew about all of the emotions that Arjuna was going
through. He wants to help Arjuna overcome his situation. Krishna then decides to meet
Arjuna, and then drives to Arjuna’s place. After getting to Arjuna’s place, they
both sit down on a sofa and start talking.
Krishna: Arjuna, I know your situation. I can totally understand you and what you are dealing with in your life with. Let me help you!
Arjuna: Krishna, there is no one that can help me beside my
parents. I want to be with them.
Krishna: Listen! You are here for your dreams, right?
Arjuna: Yes.
Krishna: You do not have any other college that can offer
you the quality education that this college provides, correct?
Arjuna: Yes.
Krishna: The path that you have chosen for yourself is what
god has planned for you. This is your destiny. Life is about doing what you are
here for. It is just a matter of time and you will be with them eventually. It is your Dharma. You are here to do what you have to. So, don't think twice about it.
Arjuna: I know I have to fulfill my dreams but what about
my parents? They are old and they need me to take care of them. If anything
happens to them while I am here I would not forgive myself.
Krishna: Where there is a start, there will be the end.
Where there is life, there will be the death. But do not take me wrong here. The
life we are living is just a small part of the life that comes after this.
We have a soul and our body. Our soul is the one that describes who we are. We all are beautiful and so is our soul. This body is just a medium that shelters our soul. When we die, our soul departs our body and finds a different body to shelter in. Think of it as a living soul and a non-living body. Soul never dies. We never die, Arjuna.
We have a soul and our body. Our soul is the one that describes who we are. We all are beautiful and so is our soul. This body is just a medium that shelters our soul. When we die, our soul departs our body and finds a different body to shelter in. Think of it as a living soul and a non-living body. Soul never dies. We never die, Arjuna.
Arjuna: Really??? But I think I am not doing the right thing
by staying far from my parents.
Krishna: Are you worried that something bad would happen to
them because you are here?
Arjuna: Yes!!!
Krishna: In life you have to do what you have to do. You
should never wait for the results. Having said that, I am not telling you to do
bad things and a crime. I mean to say that you are doing what you are because
it is what you want to do. You should never be worried about what will happen
in future or worry about what future holds. Do your best, do it from your
heart. All that awaits is the heaven, at the end of this life.
Arjuna: I get it now. Thank you, Krishna. I owe you a big
time.
Krishna: Do not thank
me. This is what I was here to do and you don’t owe me anything. I didn’t come
here to help you thinking I would benefit from you. I am here to show you the
right path.
 |
| Therapy Session Source: Link |
Author’s
Note:
This week I have decided to write a story with the storytelling
style of Therapy session. In the Mahabharata Arjuna doesn’t want to fight his
own blood. So, he wants to back up and not fight. During this event, Krishna
comes to the rescue of Arjuna and gives him a life lesson about why he should
fight. Krishna helps Arjuna calm his mind and fight for what is right. Krishna
also enlightens Arjuna about what life is and what we are here for. I am writing a
story of a character who is troubled and needs help. I have kept the name
Arjuna as the troubled character and Krishna as the one who tries to help
Arjuna. I have also tried to bring the situation of Mahabharata and compare it
to our life. This is the story of a normal human being and his thoughts and
fight within himself.
Bibliography:
title of the story: PDE MAHABHARATA
Story Link
author: Various authors
Hello Shristi! I’m really excited to be back on your blog again (this is a first time I have had a repeat)! I enjoyed the fact you had it set up as a therapy session. It was new and a refreshing look at the relationship for both characters. It took me a minute to catch on, when Khrishna talks about the soul (Which is probably me being deedadee), it just seemed to get muddled together, again probably because of me. The choice of using Khrishna as the therapist was a stroke of genius, because I often saw him as a therapy figure for the characters in the actual story.
ReplyDeleteShristi,I thought this was an excellent story about Arjuna and Khrishna being in a therapy session. This allowed for the reader to get inside the mind of Arjuna and understand how he is feeling. I would have never thought of doing this type of story but it definitely worked out great. I found Khrishna to be a very important role model for the Pandavas so I felt the addition of him as the therapist was perfect. I look forward to reading more of your creative stories!
ReplyDeleteHello Shristi,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your retell story. It was a great story and the set up. I liked the image you used that fitted perfectly with the setting you chose to tell in the story. It was a nice setting of having a conversation and it was a therapy session from which Arjun learned and figured the right path. I liked the choice of Khrishna being the therapist because that was how it was in the original Mahabharata. In addition to that, Khrishna was considered an important character in the original Mahabharata story. Overall, it was a nice comparison with the original Mahabharata using both of the characters Arjun and Khrishna. I was nice that you focused on these two characters. This was not the first time I am reading one of your blogs. Great story! I am looking forward to read more of your retell stories and blogs. Thanks for sharing.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very imaginative and interesting story. I think you put a lot of time and thought into your project. I have had a chance to read some of your earlier works. This was a great idea using the therapy session to tell your story. Arjuna did love his parent’s in the Mahabhara readings. So it is understandable that he would want to take care of them in his old age. I like how you blended the original readings in with the current times of going to college. Arjuna is fighting for something that is right and honorable this time. Khrishna tries to get Arjuna to see that this is just the cycle of life. Khrishna was a good role model and was a good choice to play the therapist. The author’s note was a good overview of what you were trying to achieve. You did a great job!
DeleteHello Shristi!
ReplyDeleteI have to start by saying that I really love the layout of your blog, the clean lines and the colors are very vibrant and aesthetically pleasing.
I thought that you did an excellent job writing this story. It seemed very current and relatable and I think that your writing style has a great flow to it. The idea of creating Arjuna to be like a normal every day person that we could encounter was a really great technique to allow the reader to understand what Arjuna is going through. I thought that your idea to write the story in the view of a therapy session was so unique and I actually found the story itself to be quite funny! I love that you implemented a life lesson to your story as well! I think it is so great when you are reading a story and you can take away from it something that you are easily able to implement into your own life! That was a genius idea!
I love how you created a story of the characters Arjuna and Krishna going to college. I always enjoy seeing how people modernize these old stories. I liked how you introduced us to Arjuna’s character before jumping right into the dialogue – that was very beneficial to me as a reader. I also used the therapy session for a storytelling style and really enjoyed it!
ReplyDeleteHi Shristi,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your story, and I love that you maintained the poetic side of Krishna in your story. I really like the role that you gave Krishna in your story. You did a great job!
I found some grammatical errors while reading your story. For example,
He lived a thousand mile(s) away from his parents, and
…amongst all of the other friend(s).
I have found that this is something that I really have to work on, and I usually come back and reread the stories after I submit them days later, that way I have a fresh outlook on the published post.
You may want to consider putting the paragraph describing Arjuna in italics since it is not a spoken dialogue between the characters, but a narration given by the author; in addition to breaking the story up. The dialogue is “mashed” together. If you add text breakers, it will be easier on the reader’s eyes.
But overall it was a great read and I really enjoyed it!
Hey Shristi! I’m from the Mythology and Folklore class and decided to read some Indian Epic portfolio stories this week and I loved getting to read your story, “A Norman Life.” I love how realistic your story is because a lot of college students and their families cannot always afford expensive out of state tuitions. Also, a lot of college students struggle being away from home and their families! (I know I definitely did!) I love that Arjuna had Krishna because Krishna is such a good friend! A good friend in college makes all the difference! I know my friends helped me through my freshman year and now I love OU and never want to leave!! I also liked how you used therapy session like format for your story! I thought you did a fantastic job with this portfolio story and I hope you have a great rest of the semester!
ReplyDelete