It's Halloween, and that means another costume. This year I was worried how I was going to put one together in unknown territory, then I asked my ever-helpful driver if there happened to be anywhere in Jaipur to buy costumes or masks. Indeed, he knew of a place with 5 or 6 shops. After S and I got completely lost in the labyrinthian bazaar, our driver found us and led us to a place that had exactly the costume I had in mind: Hanuman, the Hindu god also knows as the Monkey King. It was a great costume complete with a large tail and a plastic mace to wield at any enemies. Here's a very short rundown of some of his talents.
Hanuman,
the mighty monkey that aided Lord Rama in his expedition against evil
forces, is one of the most popular idols in the Hindu pantheon. Believed to be
an avatar of Lord Shiva, Hanuman is worshiped as a
symbol of physical strength, perseverance and devotion. Hanuman's tale in the
epic Ramayana
- where he is assigned the responsibility to locate Rama's wife Sita abducted
by Ravana, the demon king of Lanka — is known for its astounding ability to
inspire and equip a reader with all the ingredients needed to face ordeals and
conquer obstructions in the way of the world.
So he rocks, and frankly, I rocked my costume yet another year. I hosted a Halloween party for my class and they had a blast playing some traditional games and wearing some costumes as well. I sent to a local baker Betty Crocker's recipe for pumpkin spice cake, and he whipped up a very nice batch of bars for me, although he told me over the phone he wasn't sure they would be very well received by the Indian palate. He was very wrong, and several people want the recipe. They were delicious, and went well with the samosas the college also provided. Happy Halloween to all!
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| Hanuman the Monkey King |
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| Class Photo of Halloween Party 2012 |
So tomorrow will you also celebrate dia de los muertos with your class? Or did you do the whole Halloween mythology "American Style" via the Headless Horseman?
ReplyDeleteWhat fun,,, we did our Spook walk at 8:15 and the kids wore their costumes to school. Quite fun and really glad it was an early out. :) Lots of Ninjas this year, that's a change. You look great... quite elaborate, well done another year. Happy Halloween All!
ReplyDeleteExcellent costume. That mask is intense!
ReplyDeleteI love that your local baker tried to warn you off the pumpkin bars. I just made a batch a few weeks ago (Paula Dean's recipe) and then were marvelous.