Thursday, April 8, 2021

Giants, Grawp and Ghatothkacha!

 I remember watching the movie "Honey I blew up the kid" in primary school. A scientist accidentally transforms his toddler into a gigantic size and it wreaks havoc all around. I have a vivid memory of the climax scene where they blow up the mother as well in an attempt to pacify the poor distraught child!

Creatures of enormous height have always fascinated us. Didn't King Kong vs Godzilla just hit the theatres? And who can forget the awe we had watching the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park? Has any of you watched a show called Giant Robot?

Giants are a quintessential part of every folklore. In Harry Potter, Hagrid is the keeper of the grounds and keys and he is huge because he is half-giant and half-human. He has a half-brother(no more halves, I promise) who is entirely of giant origin called Grawp. Giants are depicted by Rowling to be of loud and barbaric nature who often attack and slay each other. In fact Hagrid himself, though a lot more civilized has quite a lot of messy behaviors including the food he eats. The giants are not on very good terms with the magical world. In fact in one of her pages, JKR imagines mountaineering accidents to be actually the works of an angry giant disguised by the press.

We have a good share of giants in our Indian mythology too and demons and demonesses that are massive and scary.

The Mahabharata is an important text and a huge epic containing innumerable interwoven stories. An important event and the culminating story in the book is an 18 day war fought between the righteous Pandavas (They are 5 sons of king Pandu hence called Pandavas) and the evil guys, their cousins , the Kauravas (100 brothers and cousins of the Pandavas by birth).

Bhima, the second of the Pandavas and the son of the wind-god Vayu . During times when they had to stay in forests he is attacked by a demon called Hidimba whom he vanquishes and slays. Hidimba's sister Hidimbi falls in love with him and marries him. This human-giant(or demoness) couple has a son called Ghatothkacha. This giant plays a crucial part in the Mahabharatha war. Though he is killed, he causes extensive loss to the enemy by assuming his biggest form and falling on them in his final moments.

There is a beautiful temple in Manali in the state of Himachal Pradesh amidst the lower ranges of the Himalayas dedicated to Hidimbi and her son Ghatothkacha. 


PhotoCredit: Yours Truly :)

                                                      

Given a choice what would I want? Being a huge giantess or someone miniscule like Thumbelina I wonder! What would be your preference and why?

  

21 comments:

  1. Being a giant should be fun, and so much easier for traveling ;)

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    1. I agree besides the fact that it would be tough fitting into any airline

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    2. No need of an airplane if you are a giant, go and travel by foot ;))

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  2. I read about this temple only last year. Didn't even know there was special temple dedicated to them.

    To answer your question, I'd probably be a Thumbelina. :D

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  3. I'm happy inbetween thank you, although I have big feet and a small nose! A really interesting and informative piece.

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    1. When you say big feet, I am reminded of the Hobbit, have you read the book ?

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    2. I have and they do bear a certain similarity!

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  4. As someone who often feels invisible or vulnerable, I'm torn between wanting to be a giant so that people would have to take notice, or being a thumbelina so I could live in slightly more secure obscurity...

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    1. Sometimes its those that feel invisible that make beautiful impacts on the life of others ...

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  5. Hello,
    I’m visiting from A2Z I think I might have to be a Thumbelina simply because she would be small and unnoticed to go anywhere. Goliath was the Giant Philistine from Gath... He was huge!
    Hope you’ll visit me in my Garden as I could use some help with weeding.
    Cheers,
    Crackerberries

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    1. Hi I think I already read the blog post on your garden and left my comments too ... will visit again for sure

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  6. Giants often get bad press. Have you read the Narnia books? Some nasty giants in Silver Chair, but a couple of good ones in other books, Rumblebuffin in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, and Wimbleweather in Prince Caspian.

    Really enjoying the way you're blending Potterverse, Indian mythology, and observations about your life. It's a long time since I've studied Indian mythology. I must get back into it.

    David - @BreakerOfThings from
    Fiction Can Be Fun
    Saying hello as part of the #A2ZChallenge

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    1. Narnia , I have seen the movies but have not read the books ...But movies can never replace what impact books have .... will check them out some time ...

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  7. Although I agree with Keith that inbetween is fine, thank you, my choice between giant and small is Thumbelina. Imagine photographing honey bees face-to-face inside a flower or swimming in a raindrop.
    https://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com/
    G is for Green Flash at Sunset

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    1. There is a Tamil movie song called Chinna Chinna Aasai which is all about such small wishes... She sings that she wants to touch the moon and kiss it and to change into a jasmine flower ....if you need to photograph honey bees how cute and small would that camera be ?

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  8. The binaries we create and how we operate between them
    Here from AtoZ https://poojapriyamvada.blogspot.com/2021/04/hitoritabi-newnormal-a2z.html

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  9. Thank you for sharing about this temple; I would love to visit Manali some day and will keep this temple in mind for that trip.
    As for picking one of the two, I think I am perfectly happy as I am; but if forced to choose, it would be Thumbelina. :)
    21 Great Gifts For the Poetry Lover In Your Life

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  10. Never heard of this temple! ... Well I would like to be a miniscule. Why? It's much easier to manage.

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  11. Hmmm... interesting question. I think I would prefer to be small. I am fairly tall & broad and already feel quite clumsy enough, I think gianthood would be dreadful what with all that bumping into & breaking stuff! ;)

    A-Zing from Fiction Can Be Fun
    Normally found at Debs Despatches

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    1. I agree. All people above normal size will have those problems I guess.

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