Topic Brainstorm

Festivals

Hindu culture is rife with festivals and celebrations. As someone who has always enjoyed going to festivals, this felt like a pretty natural way to start exploring Indian culture. I have noticed there are a very large number of festivals associated with different phases of the moon during different months in the Hindu calendar. There are also different New Year's celebrations for different calendars and for different parts of Indian culture. There are a large number of these events, and any one of them could be an excellent setting for a story. One of the most interesting I found was Tulsi Pujan Diwas. It is celebrated on December 25th every year, and is celebrated to gain spiritual and health related benefits through the process of cultivating a Tulsi plant.

Tulsi Plant

Rakshasas
A Rakshasa is a demon. There are a great many in Hindu mythology, and play many different roles. The biggest trait to note about Rakshasas, is that they are by and large man eaters. However, there is mention of Rakshasas being heroes, albeit vastly outnumbered by the number of appearances as villains. In particular the Ramayana and the Mahabharata showcase a large number different Rahshasas, and will be a good resource for their traits and behaviors. A great many Rakshasas seem to have been defeated by Bhima, a hero in the ancient stories. Bhima could easily be used as a protagonist fighting any one of the numerous Rakshasas. I wouldn't mind writing a story that involves one of the Rakshasas, and I think I could have some fun tying them in somewhere.

Nagas
I've only ever vaguely heard about Nagas before, so I was curious and decided to do some research here. In general, they are great snakes and can be found associated with certain dieties in both Hinduism and Buddhism. In Buddhism at least, the Nagas mentioned appear to be mostly good natured, or purely neutral, and several serve or protect Buddha, such as Mucalinda, the king of the serpents, who sheltered Buddha from a great storm during his meditation. I'm not entirely sure yet how I would incorporate Naga into a story, but they may be useful as side characters, or tools for plot development. I would possibly use Vasuki if Shiva were a character in a story, as he wraps around Shiva's neck as an ornament. Shiva is a central character in many stories, so it wouldn't be too hard find material to pull from.

Animals; Natural and Supernatural
Aside from Nagas, Indian mythology and the stories that unfold within it hold a veritable menagerie of creatures. There are many stories that involve turtles, crocodiles, monkeys, horses elephants, and more. Additionally, there are mythical beasts that appear. More likely than not, the stories I write will use animal characters as I find them better for my own writing style than human characters. I could even use Vishnu as a character since he has several animal incarnations. Alternatively, I can use Prajapati for a plot element, as he is the lord of creatures.