Brainstorming for Indian Epics Topics

1). Possible Topic: Love stories and Epic couples. One topic that really stood four to me was the love stories/epic couples. Since the central theme in Ramayan in about Rama and Sita's love, I really think I could develop a story about them. I thought about doing a comparison of Rama and Sita to Dasaratha and Kaikeyi. Both couples are key players in the development of the story from Rama falling in love with Sita to Rama's banishment.
Research so far: I looked at the Wikipedia sites for Sita and for Kaikeyi which gave me more background information on both characters. I thought that it was interesting that Sita's name means furrow in Sanskrit. What really attracts me towards Kaikeyi is the fact that she is the cause of Rama's banishment. I would like to make a story of her thought process before she confronted Dasaratha to banish Rama.

2). Possible Topic: Animal Characters. Because I love animals, I started exploring the storybooks that included animal characters. I really thought about writing a storybook over the elephant or monkey characters. Then I looked into the reincarnations of Vishnu and that appealed to me because Vishnu was reincarnated into several different animal characters such as the tortoise and the boar.
Research so far: I looked further into the Wikipedia articles of Vishnu's reincarnations. Narasimha, the reincarnation that is half-man and half-lion, is known as the Great Protector. He is known to protect those in need and for defeating the demon Hiranyakashipu.

3). Possible Topic: Brothers and Sisters/Mothers and Fathers. The theme of brotherhood really stands out to me because I'm close to my younger brother. One of my favorite characters in Ramayan is Lakshmana because of his loyalty to Rama. Lakshmana left his kingdom to follow Rama is his banishment which really showed nobility and devotion. I'd like to compare the brotherhood between Rama and Lakshmana to the bond between Ravana and his younger brother Vibhishana. I found it shocking that Vibhishana left Ravana to support Rama who was considered as the enemy. There is an opposite parallel between Lakshmana, who sacrificed his kingdom for exile with Rama, and Vibhishana, who betrayed his brother by joining the foe.
Research so far: I read the Wikipedia articles for Ravana and Rama. Ravana is described as a monster with nine or ten heads that kidnaps Rama's wife. Rama serves as the reincarnation of Vishnu who is destined to defeat Ravana in battle. The two characters remind me of a balance between good and evil. It's not surprising that the brother of the evil character leaves him to join the good side.

Rama with his bow. Source: Wikipedia

 

 

4). Possible Topic: Karma. I have heard of karma in every day life, but I don't quite understand what it means. Because it is so unfamiliar, I think this would be a great time to explore the origin and meaning of karma. From my understanding, karma is a concept where if one does good deeds then one shall receive good actions and vice versa. If an individual has good karma, then he must be involved in good deeds. However, if an individual has bad karma, it is because he was involved in deeds.
Research so far: According to the Wikipedia page, karma literally means action. This means that for every action there is a consequence or a re-action. There are different laws and theories that involve karma such as the ethics, consequences of good and bad actions, and rebirth. In Hinduism, many believe that there is a link between karma and rebirth. For example, good karma in the current life will guarantee a better future life.