Lord Shiva goes anime!

Wow! Anime is surely booming since the last few decades, and with that, cultural/spiritual anime as well. And - as an avid Shiva lover - I'm very pleased to find out that there soon will be an anime about Lord Shiva.

Yup! Last June, Toonz Animation India, a company that was commissioned to make the animated X-Men by Marvel, declared that they are making an anime about Lord Shiva, Ruler of Animals, the Great Cosmic Archer, the Yogic Lover, and He who has melted my heart (well, Shiva has 1,008 names altogether, beat that, Batman and Superman!).

Here's the excerpt of what Animationxpress said about the production titled 'The Tales of Lord Shiva'; click here for the complete article.

After the mythological flick The Return of Hanuman, Trivandrum based Toonz Animation India is coming up with a 2D mythological television series titled Tales of Lord Siva. The series is targeted at all age groups and in particular at children in the age group of 9 to 12. The studio is currently in talks with major broadcasters.

"We will begin broadcasting in English and plan dubbing in other languages soon. We are looking at broadcast in India, as well as places in Asia such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malayasia, etc." Creative Director for Tales of Lord Siva, Renju Ramesh told AnimationXpress.com.

The series, based on incidents from Lord Siva‘s life, has been conceived, designed and directed entirely at Toonz. The 22x13‘ picture book animation series will have two or three short stories every episode. A group of 40 to 50 artists are working on the series which is expected to be on air within the next six months. /.../

The visuals in the series are enhanced by powerful music and rendition by renowned Hindustani classical singer-composer Pandit Ramesh Narayan who is a beloved disciple of Pandit Jasraj. The show has generated a lot of interest from national production houses and broadcasters.

Wheee! In six months since last June... meaning that it should be ready by the year end, or early next year! Hopefully so; I can't wait to see it! Here's the sneak peak from Toonz Animation channel from YouTube, enjoy!



Oh, but while waiting for 'The Tales of Lord Shiva', we can also enjoy this other one below. Another anime titled 'Shiva, the God of Love'. Man, I LOVE the title! Watch for His eyes as He meditated on the snow. He was quirking - so damn funny and cute! Om Namah Shivaya...



Pic: Lord Shiva and Lady Parvati, copyright by Toonz Animation India

‘Shiva’s Fire’: The words are dancing like Lord Shiva’s tandava

It’s hard to describe this novelette in a few words; I just admire it too much. First of all, I’m very fond of Lord Shiva, and it was my original driving factor to buy the book. Second, the book is about a twelve year old girl (named after Lord Shiva’s cosmic consort, Parvati, of all names!) who is very fond of dancing, and always wants to dance. The third: well, I’m weak towards India-themed books, for the spices, curries, and the jingling of payal (anklets) are usually mixed with spirituality at a certain level.

This book did not disappoint me at all. It took me a while to read it, for I had many things to do, and perhaps because the story did not pick at a quick pace anyway. But after the first chapter, everything flew quickly and amazingly. I was particularly amazed at how Suzanne Fisher Staples brought Shiva and His tandava (dance) to life through many levels: from the sandalwood statue that had captivated little Parvati since her first day in this world, through the veena that suddenly humming in every time Parvati lit a fire, and through Parvati’s determination to dance. Having learnt Bharatanatyam myself (though, alas, I am by no means a devoted Devadasi), I am familiar with various dancing terms in the book. The book went further to evoke my longing for dancing, as I read how Parvati suffered through all physical and mental difficulties to perfect her dance. Learning Bharatanatyam is not easy, let alone mastering it!

Rachel Weisz reloaded: Hypatia of Alexandria!

There was a woman at Alexandria named Hypatia, daughter of the philosopher Theon, who made such attainments in literature and science, as to far surpass all the philosophers of her own time. Having succeeded to the school of Plato and Plotinus, she explained the principles of philosophy to her auditors, many of whom came from a distance to receive her instructions. On account of the self-possession and ease of manner, which she had acquired in consequence of the cultivation of her mind, she not unfrequently appeared in public in presence of the magistrates. Neither did she feel abashed in going to an assembly of men. For all men on account of her extraordinary dignity and virtue admired her the more.

The passage was taken from Wikipedia, and it was in turn cited from Socrates’ Ecclesiastical History (ca 439 AD). I’ve been in love with Hypatia since I learned about her 1-2 years ago through Carl Sagan’s Cosmos series and also Wikipedia. She was this strong woman who died protecting the Library of Alexandria from riot (and the thousands of ancient documents within it) during the 4th AD, and – though she and the documents perished – her name was forever etched and marked by history. 

The Old Peace Treaty between Tibet and China at Jokhang Temple, Lhasa

A regular reader (if any) of this blog would have known by now that I am very pro Tibet. I am an avid fan of Dalai Lama, and – despite His Holiness’s willingness for possible (or impossible?) autonomy with China – I am still pro Free Tibet. Yet, I do not hate China or the Chinese. I have many Chinese friends, and I am an avid watcher of Chinese/Mandarin/Kantonese movies or DVDs. It’s just… Tibet is more than a political issue to me. To me, it is a spiritual issue. Like Indonesia, Tibet is one of the last citadels for glorious ancient civilisations, and thus deserves a respectful treatment of an independent nation, free to shape its own future without anyone’s interference.




Sadly, it is not what is happening nowadays. Nowadays, my dearest Dalai Lama lives in exile, and he has to fight for the Tibetans from outside Tibet. That did not stop him from writing great books, including Freedom in Exile (1990), which is basically his excellently written autobiography. And from this book, I shall quote several paragraphs of an old peace treaty between Tibet and China in 821-822 AD. The original inscription can be found (if not yet destroyed) at the entrance of Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet. I quote the translation verbatim from Freedom in Exile (pp 42-43):




QUOTE

The Great King of Tibet, the Miraculous Divine Lord, and the Great King of China, the Chinese Ruler Hwang-ti, being in the relationship of nephew and uncle, have conferred together for the alliance of their kingdoms. They have made and ratified a great agreement. Gods and men all know it and bear witness so that it may never be changed; and an account of the agreement has been engraved on this stone pillar to inform future ages and generations.

Belated happy birthday, my dear Motherland…

The waves escalated from 2.5m to 4m in a mere few seconds as our boat captain manoeuvred the dolphin-watching boat amidst the flux of the ocean. Earlier, he had spotted the dolphins (well, at least one of them) playing along the waves about a kilometre eastward. It’s no use; the waves were too high. Immediately, he reduced the speed, steered the wheel starboard, and let the boat surfed the waves like the tip of a wine bottle on the high water. We lost the dolphins, but we were safe and sound. The boat did not tipped over as I feared mere seconds ago.

“It’s too dangerous,” our captain declared. “We have to go back.” None of us disagreed with him. In fact, we just nodded together and murmured ‘yes’ in unison. It was indeed too dangerous to go further. Life is precious, we have to go back to try another day.

I did not mind returning back to port either, for in that few seconds, my heart seemed to stop as my mind recalled another event in another part of the sea a few weeks ago, when my boat toppled over and sent six of its passengers (including me) tumbling down the sea. It was a scary thing, but we were safe and sound after the fiasco. Yet, fiasco is still a fiasco. In another word, not again, mate!

So, when in a few seconds our boat wobbled and eventually steadied itself this time, I found myself praying that I would not go through such adventure again. And thank God, we reached the harbour safe and sound.

But why do I have to go through this story? For at the very same morning, four handicapped divers were struggling to hold the Red and White flag, Sang Saka Merah Putih, Indonesia’s national flag, in the depth of Sanur sea in Bali. I did not have to be there to know that they would suffer strong currents and winds. Yet, they strived, survived, and succeeded in holding the Merah Putih under the water, even taking pictures with the flag. Kudos to them.

I’m not saying that my dolphin boat ‘lost score’ to the handicapped divers. No, we had to return to the port that day. The trip must be aborted. We had at least three children with us that day, children that might not survive accidents. But I knew that I would return again the next day to find our animals amidst the ocean waves. Because I love the oceans and the dolphins. I love doing it.

And the handicapped divers… ah, they could abort the mission for safety reasons. But nay, they did not. They chose to hold still and fight the currents, trying as they might to uphold the national flag. For their love of their country, which is my motherland as well.

I guess, I’m writing this because last 17 August 2008, was Indonesia’s birthday. Like the dolphin boat, too often now Indonesia is facing dangerously strong waves and winds that risk splitting or boat/nation into pieces. But that does not stop the fellow Indonesians, men and women, to move forward for a better Indonesia. True, we might have to pause, recalculate our strategies and ways to achieve the goal. We might have to wait for the wind to abate, or strengthen our anchor against the wind. But never does that mean that we stop for good.

For, like the handicapped divers, we know that the ultimate force that drives us through the entire plights and miseries towards a better Indonesia… is none other than our love to our motherland. A beautiful Indonesia that accommodates various different ethnicity, religions, traditions, races, etc, as long as they are within the corridor of love. As long as we keep on walking under the umbrella of Pancasila, our true national philosophy that guarantees and accommodates differences. For what are differences, but different facets of One Universal Truth?

I believe in love. I believe in humanity. I believe that, more than this little dolphin girl will keep coming back to the sea to find her dolphins and whales, more than the little sea turtle hatchlings that struggled and tumbled down before returning back to the sea where they belong, more than the handicapped divers that kept upholding the national flag underwater, this country will survive the waves of life. More than that, this country will celebrate her life as a whole independent loving nation. The One Nation of IndONEsia.

Happy 63^rd birthday, dearest Indonesia. May the light of the universe be with you always.

Pic 1: The Great Wave off Kanagawa (Kanagawa Okinami Ura), by Hokusai, created between 1823-1829 (Wikipedia)

Pic 2: Sang Saka Merah Putih (Indonesia’s national flag), with colourful Galungan penjors. Only in Bali you will find penjor with the Merah Putih flag...

My Sister's Keeper: what a great read!

I just finished reading Jodi Picolut’s My Sister’s Keeper this afternoon after two-days reading it (the good side of having cold is that you are entitled to bed rest and reading novels)… and I LOVE IT! 

Now I understand why so many Picoult readers love her work; though the WW run might be an exception. And now, since I’ve read two Picoult novels (Song of a Humpback Whale and My Sister’s Keeper), I think I need to add my two cents, since I disliked Jodi’s run on WW so much (gas station, Diana not knowing how to order coffee… etc etc, though Nemesis’ comment on Diana getting bugs into her eyes while flying was pretty funny actually). It’s a matter of fair play. I didn’t like Jodi’s run on WW; most definitely not. But I love her other work, and that too, I shall admit.

So, go back to MSK. When Picoult’s WW made me winced and frowned, My Sister’s Keeper kept me from sleeping and doing anything else (thank God for the cold…). Jodi Picoult delivered such excellent narrations and characters; I fell in love with some of them almost instantly. Her trademark way of delivering novels in several voices (in this case, at least seven) had grown on me since reading her first novel (Song of a Humpback Whale; an okay one, but definitely not her best). Anna, the teenager who kept donating parts of her body to her sick sister Kate, emerged as my heroine. Campell Alexander, Anna’s attorney, became her side kick, though in reality he’s much older than her. I also feel for Anna’s father, Brian, who tried his best to be a good father, albeit difficult as it was. What I could not really decide is Sara, Anna’s mum. Sometimes I feel for her, but generally speaking, I think Sara’s decisions to make Anna donating her blood, bone marrow, etc for Kate’s health are very selfish… at least controversial. I mean, she coerced Brian to agree to have a genetically-engineered baby to save Kate’s life. Sure Kate’s life is extended long enough… but what of Anna’s freedom of choice? It is very understandable that Anna then decided to bring this matter to a family court, for she felt that her medical independence had too often been compromised.

I’m in love…

This time, the story starts when my “Book of Shiva” arrived from Amazon.com. I picked it up, brought it to my ashram to read while waiting for the full-moon class starting… and was captivated by He whose matted hair contained the flows of Mother Gangga.

I don’t know what to say about “The Book of Shiva”, other than I am renewing my love to Shiva. I mean, I love and adhere to all aspects of the Trinity, and I bow to the power of Vishnu to preserve the world (next time, there will be a post about Lord Krishna. God willing). But Lord Shiva… I don’t know. 

There’s something within that Hermit of Kailash that amazes me. Perhaps His matted hair, from which Mother Gangga flows. Perhaps His hermit stage. Not His snake… not His snake… (I respect snakes, but only because they’re part of the ecosystem, thank you very much).

But one thing for sure that makes me admire Shiva: His love to Lady Uma/Parvati. So beautiful, so sweet… A while ago, I wept the first time I learned that He too was broken hearted when Sati (the previous incarnation of Parvati) died. Now, after reading the story again here, my heart was crushed again.

J.K. Rowling's amazing commencement speech at Harvard Uni!

I'm grateful to my routinely visited procrastination site www.phdcomics.com for their link to JK Rowling's commencement speech at the Harvard University graduation this June 2008. It's indeed uplifting and very wisely spoken (not to mention very witty). The title is

The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination

Thanks to The Daily Snitcher, these are the direct links for part 1, part 2, and part 3. And these are some quotes:

Dance of Life

Full moon was waning up in the sky, but its silver light still graced me as I saw several items of Indian dances last night. In Bali, at the Bali Art Festival. Little Balinese girls danced Bharatanatyam with an Indian woman (she's the dancing teacher here), a Javanese woman danced Kathak, ... and ten Indian women and men were supposed to dance an Odissi-Kathak-Bharatanatyam-Balinese drama called 'Bali Yatra'. It was beautiful... but the beauty will have to come later as I tell you what happened as the Javanese woman danced the Kathak.

She was swirling around with her white dress, blossoming as a white lotus as suddenly... the lights went off! Off, darkness all around in the little theatre. A local transformer exploded (power overload), and hence shut down the electricity for the entire building. The beautiful Javanese woman stopped for a while... and then she retreated to the back stage. It seemed that the next dance would have to be cancelled.

People were going home, understandably. Half an hour passed, and I was about to go home when they announced that they moved the dance show to an open stage 5 minutes walk from there.

I went there out of curiosity; just to see if it's worth the wait. I waited for a few more minutes before they resumed the show, an hour after the power outage.

And by the Gods... it was worth the wait.

I've never seen an Odissi dance before. Have you? You should. Bharatanatyam is gorgeous, classical in many senses. Kathak is poetic. But Odissi mix elegance with sensuality of the dancers in their ways of swaying here and there, like Apsaras we see on the temple walls. Suddenly, I could see the ancient dancers performing their services outside the temple garden. What was it like back then, I knew not. All I know was that I was so damn lucky to be able to witness the show. I need not go to India... the show was brought to me here. The Shaktis were with me. Still with me.

It was a complicated drama dance, a mini opera with lots of scenes. The ten dancers had to change costumes more than five times each person, and God I would have fainted midway if I were them. They had to struggle to adapt to new stage, new lighting, new sound system, and oh what a crowded open stage it was, in a mere 20 minutes! The dancers and music had to compete with other performances in the vicinity, and it was hard for them. So hard. But they endured, and they showed the best of them.

I don't know them, but I'm proud of them. And I was happy that I stayed till late to see them. It was worth it.

[On a side note, and as a positive critique, I think they could leave out the part where the Odissi dancers performed Panyembrama, a classical Balinese dance to welcome guests. I think it was amazing that they tried to do that, and over a length of time the Odissi dancers might reach the Balinese pakem (dancing standards), but for this show, the Panyembrama item could be dropped. Or better, replace the gorgeous Odissi dancers with real Balinese dancers who master the Panyembrama dance the way the Indian dancers master their Odissi par excellence. And this realisation just dawned on me that moment: Odissi (and Bharatanatyam, to that extent) have different head movements to the Balinese one. Their eye expressions, though similar, are different too. The Balinese dance - as I observe so far - have more subtle yet still lively expression; there is a benchmark there that is too subtle for Odissi. By the same token, the dynamic movements of Odissi (and Bharatanatyam) would be too fast and forceful for Balinese dancers. And yet, when appropriately combined, a group of Odissi/Kathak/Bharatanatyam can perform well with a group of Balinese dancers. I've seen my old dancer team (Indian Cultural Center Bali & Indonesian Art Institute Bali, under the tutelage of Ms. Nandini Krishna) doing such a collaboration with Ravi Shankar's Manggalam. It was amazingly vibrant and invigorating. I guess in the end, every dancer has to determine her/his own style, unique way of dancing, and she/he should stick to it. But this critique by NO means lessen my respect to the dancers last night. They still did amazing job out there.]

You know, an aware dancer will always pray before dancing, either by touching the earth/ground, looking at the sky and moon, or others. He or she will seek permission first before the performance. It's something wonderful, something beyond words, when you dance and you know, you can do that only because the whole Existence permits you to do that. It's your gift to the Universe, and you are blessed with it.

I haven't resumed my Bharatanatyam dancing lessons for months, and I missed the dances. I guess, I shall be back dancing again.

And I guess... now and then, life presents you a power outage, and your dance has to stop for a while. But real dancers will try to find ways to resume their dance; in whatever situations, no matter how small their audience may be. It's the dharma, the way of life for a dancer... to dance, even with no witness. Even if the witness is just the waning moon above.

So I thank the Universe, and the dancers and their entourage tonight, for presenting me with the dance tonight. It was a Dance of Life, and I was blessed to see it.

And I know now what to answer if someone ask me why I – a Balinese girl – learn Bharatanatyam. Well, first, I also dance Balinese dance, but I won’t claim that I’m the expert. You can see hundreds of Balinese dancers far better than I am on the island. Second, dance is an art… and art goes beyond the boundaries of nations and ethnicity. Art is beauty, and beauty has no boundaries.

Pic 1. A Kathak dancer from Indtravel.com ( not the one I saw tonight)

Pic 2. Odissi dancers from flonnet.com ( not the one I saw tonight)

Pic 3. A Majapahit Apsara, from the Arts of Asia (November-December 2000) and Wikipedia (I want to invite one of those celestial nymphs to my house. Can I?)

My two favourite manga girls!

I just got warped back to my childhood when I loved watching certain series of manga. Not that I don’t love them now… just pretending not to have time anymore :-D

But this week’s ‘contemplation’ dragged me into Sailor Moon Universe again, and I remembered that I used to – and still – love Rei Hino, the Sailor Mars! (FYI, Sailor Pluto (Setsuna Meio) and Sailor Saturn (Hotaru Tomoe) are my other fave Senshi). But actually, the first manga girl I ever love is Oka Megumi of the Voltes V series. I first saw her when I was just a teenager, and I fell in love with her and her long green-blue hair (and her pink bow!). I think she’s amazing, pretty, and she’s great; having excelled in Japanese martial arts, including ninja stuffs. I have to ‘fess that I would love to buy an action figure of Megumi. Too bad that the Voltes V lines was drown over the Voltron merchandises, though Voltes was much well-packed and well-written than Voltron (I can’t even buy the English-subtitled DVD for Voltes!).

So I pondered why I love those girls. I know at least that Megumi inspired me to grow my hair long and Rei taught me to keep them long (though never as beautiful as those gorgeous manga girls). But why do I love them?

Perhaps… because they are a blend of uniqueness. Take the gorgeous Rei Hino, for example. Rei is a Shinto priestess (gotta love that red hakama!). Yet, her spiritual living does not reduce the excitement of a young girl with sharp snappy tongue who will often, and with most unlady-like fashion, bugs Usagi Tsukino (Sailor Moon) to no end. But take note: Rei is also a loyal friend and a warrior who would give her life to protect Usagi.

Hey, have I mentioned that Rei’s gold tiara with red gem resembles Wonder Woman’s tiara? And her red heels and red dress just echo Diana’s signature colour? Love it, love it, love it! I know what to wear for the next Halloween party. Sailor Mars.

And what about my first manga girl: Oka Megumi? This wonderful site mentions that: “Megumi is an energetic, lively, and lovely girl. She always wears red ribbon on her greenish blue hairs. Megumi is trained in the secret way of Ninjutsu and she becomes a Kunoichi (female ninja). She can fight using various kinds of weapons, like long sword (katana), chained sickle (kusarigama), but her favorite weapon is the throwing star (shuriken).” Plus that she’s also well-informed and well-practiced in traditional arts. Superb girl! Not to mention her lovely red boots and skirts.

Gosh, I love Rei and Megumi! They can kick ass, but they’re also very much into traditional knowledge and spirituality. Lovely. I guess, that’s why I love them so. They are the Japanese Wonder Girls.

Pic 1: Rei Hino Sailor Mars, from Wikipedia

Pic 2: Oka Megumi Voltes V, from Voltes V Shrine

Pic 3: Rei Hino Sailor Mars, from this site

Pic 4: Oka Megumi Voltes V, from Voltes V Shrine