So I've been away this weekend and that's why you haven't heard from me. I don't have much to report. My mother saw me wearing a bindi and she simply asked what it signified and mentioned that she doesn't see Indian people wearing them in America. But she didn't get upset and she didn't ask me not to wear it, so that was good.
Anyway, this morning I was reading one of the blogs I've mentioned before, the Big, Bad, Blonde Bahu Blog and she is working on a magazine article about couples who are Interfaith between Hindu and Christian. If that description fits you, go ahead and send her a note!
I hope I'll have something new and exciting to tell you all soon.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Meditation
Meditation is a word of many meanings.
For some it is guided meditations, where people tell you about walking through a deep wood, for some it is thinking and deeply pondering problems, for some it is prayer, for some it is a mantra.
There are a lot of ideas about what meditation does. Some think it is just to relax, some think it is the most important key to becoming enlightened. Some think it can have a measurable effect and others don't. There are a number of people who attribute the dissolution of the Cold War to an increase in meditation.
My experience with meditation in Hinduism is the mantra-based kind.
The idea of a mantra meditation is that you are training your mind. We do not want to be slaves to our thoughts and our racing mind, we want to be the master of it. Thoughts are fine, they have their place, but it is better to have the control of mind to choose when to think and when to simply act. Practice would ideally make someone able to stop the chattering in the head that clouds our lives. The practice is to repeat a mantra silently over and over while sitting up very straight ("as though drawn by a string from above"). When thoughts come in, as they inevitably do, one gently brings one's attention back to the mantra.
The mantra itself can be a word or a phrase or a whole poem.
I'm going to start by telling you about my own experience with meditation and then tell you more about it's history and varieties.
My parents have meditated since before I was born. They meditate for half an hour at dawn and half an hour at dusk, every day, without fail. I have never known them to miss it, no matter where they are. My mother sits on a chair, and my father uses a wooden meditation bench. He times the half hour on his watch.
When I was a young child I was fascinated by this practice and terribly curious. I wanted to know what the mantra was. But my parents wouldn't tell me. They said it was a sacred word, not to be spoken out loud except during the initiation ceremony. Saying it out loud would dissipate its spiritual energies. I was desperate to know what it was.
My mom tells me that I used to make my Barbie dolls meditate.
I started taking classes when I was ten in preparation to being initiated into meditation. At 13, the ceremony was performed. An official initiator flew to America from England. We cleaned the School building and put fresh flowers everywhere. A number of people were being initiated. I brought a basket with fruit, a white cloth, and some other items to present to the initiator. I was brought to a room where he started chanting the mantra and motioned for me to join him. For five minutes or so we chanted the mantra, a single word, over and over. Then I went to a second room to practice with an older practitioner. We silently meditated for ten minutes.
After that I was expected to meditate for half an hour in the morning and half an hour at night, ideally as close to dawn and dusk as possible.
At first I was completely thrilled to have taken this step toward being an adult member of my community. I excitedly told my best friend's family about it at dinner at their house. Her much older cousin told me that the only reason that they said the mantra was "secret" was that they didn't want me to know that everyone in the organization had the same mantra.
I was pretty shocked that she wanted to stamp on my pride and excitement. I guess she was just nervous that this was a cult situation. But I already knew that everyone had the same mantra, it was selected for the School by a Chankaracharya in India. I was unfazed by her negativity.
However, I soon found that the rules were a burden. I hated the pressure and expectation of how often I should be meditating. It was so, so hard to sit still for 30 minutes at a time when there were so many other things I could be doing. I was guilted about it frequently, told that meditation was the most important practice and the only thing that would lead me to my goal of enlightenment. It became something my parents nagged me about. Every day: "Have you meditated yet?" For the most part, I stopped completely, only doing it when on retreats or at the School.
I had a resurgence of meditation after a girl in my freshman college dorm was killed in a car accident. I was terrified of dying and I knew that meditation was what I was supposed to be doing with my life.
Since then I have stopped again. My parents always said that it "works in the dark" and so I should not expect results from meditation, but I have little motivation to do something that isn't bringing me any particular satisfaction or joy. In fact, it mostly calls to mind memories of sitting outside at dawn, freezing cold, and trying not to nod off and fall of my chair in front of a strict tutor.
I still use the mantra to try to help me fall asleep and I meditate for a few minutes as part of my puja in the mornings.
My mind is far from calm, so it might be worth finding a meditation technique that really can control my mind. There are others available.
The meditation I was taught is called Transcendental Meditation. In the form it is done today, it was invented by the Maharishi in the 1950s (though he claims that its origins are 5,000 years old).
In the 1960s and 70s the Maharishi traveled the Western world. The founder of the School was initiated in England at that time. He was so impressed with the technique, that he founded his School on it.
For this type of meditation you must be initiated. It is considered dangerous to choose your own mantra because you don't know the subtle vibrations of those sounds and what effect they might have on your psyche.
On the other hand, a wonderful teacher named Eknath Easwaran has encouraged everyone to create his own meditation practice. The thing I love most about Easwaran is that his voice is so calm and clear and full of joy. Everything I read of his leaves me feeling at peace and like life is really a delightful game. Art has left some links to his material, so I'm reposting one of those links on Easwaran's meditation technique.
He encourages people to choose a passage that is meaningful to them, a prayer or a poem from any tradition. Please read and enjoy his page about meditation: http://easwaran.org/page/101 There is an organization of his followers called the Blue Mountain Center in Northern California. I went to one of their retreats once and had a delightful time. http://www.easwaran.org/page/220
I've always been uncomfortable with the guided meditations, but some people find them very relaxing and helpful. Yoga teachers are often good resources for this style.
Buddhists often meditate for many hours at a time and I don't know how they do it! We were told that the hour a day was the correct measure, but there are many monks who think there should be a lot more meditation.
Some traditions use mala beads to count mantras, similar to a rosary.
Meditation is something that has loomed so large in my life and now I'm not sure that it deserved such an exalted place. I think it is valuable and is part of my "spiritual arsenal" as it were, but not the most important thing. To me, the guilt and pressure associated with it negated whatever positive effect I might have gotten. I may go back to it now that I am removed from that pressure, but I also may not. I'm not sure yet.
Since all I know well is TM and I've had just a little exposure to other forms, I am curious to do some more research about the history of meditation in Hinduism. I'll let you all know what I discover!
I think I will soon write a post about Sanskrit, the language of all the holy books of Hinduism, and what people believe about it.
For some it is guided meditations, where people tell you about walking through a deep wood, for some it is thinking and deeply pondering problems, for some it is prayer, for some it is a mantra.
There are a lot of ideas about what meditation does. Some think it is just to relax, some think it is the most important key to becoming enlightened. Some think it can have a measurable effect and others don't. There are a number of people who attribute the dissolution of the Cold War to an increase in meditation.
My experience with meditation in Hinduism is the mantra-based kind.
The idea of a mantra meditation is that you are training your mind. We do not want to be slaves to our thoughts and our racing mind, we want to be the master of it. Thoughts are fine, they have their place, but it is better to have the control of mind to choose when to think and when to simply act. Practice would ideally make someone able to stop the chattering in the head that clouds our lives. The practice is to repeat a mantra silently over and over while sitting up very straight ("as though drawn by a string from above"). When thoughts come in, as they inevitably do, one gently brings one's attention back to the mantra.
The mantra itself can be a word or a phrase or a whole poem.
I'm going to start by telling you about my own experience with meditation and then tell you more about it's history and varieties.
My parents have meditated since before I was born. They meditate for half an hour at dawn and half an hour at dusk, every day, without fail. I have never known them to miss it, no matter where they are. My mother sits on a chair, and my father uses a wooden meditation bench. He times the half hour on his watch.
When I was a young child I was fascinated by this practice and terribly curious. I wanted to know what the mantra was. But my parents wouldn't tell me. They said it was a sacred word, not to be spoken out loud except during the initiation ceremony. Saying it out loud would dissipate its spiritual energies. I was desperate to know what it was.
My mom tells me that I used to make my Barbie dolls meditate.
I started taking classes when I was ten in preparation to being initiated into meditation. At 13, the ceremony was performed. An official initiator flew to America from England. We cleaned the School building and put fresh flowers everywhere. A number of people were being initiated. I brought a basket with fruit, a white cloth, and some other items to present to the initiator. I was brought to a room where he started chanting the mantra and motioned for me to join him. For five minutes or so we chanted the mantra, a single word, over and over. Then I went to a second room to practice with an older practitioner. We silently meditated for ten minutes.
After that I was expected to meditate for half an hour in the morning and half an hour at night, ideally as close to dawn and dusk as possible.
At first I was completely thrilled to have taken this step toward being an adult member of my community. I excitedly told my best friend's family about it at dinner at their house. Her much older cousin told me that the only reason that they said the mantra was "secret" was that they didn't want me to know that everyone in the organization had the same mantra.
I was pretty shocked that she wanted to stamp on my pride and excitement. I guess she was just nervous that this was a cult situation. But I already knew that everyone had the same mantra, it was selected for the School by a Chankaracharya in India. I was unfazed by her negativity.
However, I soon found that the rules were a burden. I hated the pressure and expectation of how often I should be meditating. It was so, so hard to sit still for 30 minutes at a time when there were so many other things I could be doing. I was guilted about it frequently, told that meditation was the most important practice and the only thing that would lead me to my goal of enlightenment. It became something my parents nagged me about. Every day: "Have you meditated yet?" For the most part, I stopped completely, only doing it when on retreats or at the School.
I had a resurgence of meditation after a girl in my freshman college dorm was killed in a car accident. I was terrified of dying and I knew that meditation was what I was supposed to be doing with my life.
Since then I have stopped again. My parents always said that it "works in the dark" and so I should not expect results from meditation, but I have little motivation to do something that isn't bringing me any particular satisfaction or joy. In fact, it mostly calls to mind memories of sitting outside at dawn, freezing cold, and trying not to nod off and fall of my chair in front of a strict tutor.
I still use the mantra to try to help me fall asleep and I meditate for a few minutes as part of my puja in the mornings.
My mind is far from calm, so it might be worth finding a meditation technique that really can control my mind. There are others available.
The meditation I was taught is called Transcendental Meditation. In the form it is done today, it was invented by the Maharishi in the 1950s (though he claims that its origins are 5,000 years old).
In the 1960s and 70s the Maharishi traveled the Western world. The founder of the School was initiated in England at that time. He was so impressed with the technique, that he founded his School on it.
For this type of meditation you must be initiated. It is considered dangerous to choose your own mantra because you don't know the subtle vibrations of those sounds and what effect they might have on your psyche.
On the other hand, a wonderful teacher named Eknath Easwaran has encouraged everyone to create his own meditation practice. The thing I love most about Easwaran is that his voice is so calm and clear and full of joy. Everything I read of his leaves me feeling at peace and like life is really a delightful game. Art has left some links to his material, so I'm reposting one of those links on Easwaran's meditation technique.
He encourages people to choose a passage that is meaningful to them, a prayer or a poem from any tradition. Please read and enjoy his page about meditation: http://easwaran.org/page/101 There is an organization of his followers called the Blue Mountain Center in Northern California. I went to one of their retreats once and had a delightful time. http://www.easwaran.org/page/220
I've always been uncomfortable with the guided meditations, but some people find them very relaxing and helpful. Yoga teachers are often good resources for this style.
Buddhists often meditate for many hours at a time and I don't know how they do it! We were told that the hour a day was the correct measure, but there are many monks who think there should be a lot more meditation.
Some traditions use mala beads to count mantras, similar to a rosary.
Meditation is something that has loomed so large in my life and now I'm not sure that it deserved such an exalted place. I think it is valuable and is part of my "spiritual arsenal" as it were, but not the most important thing. To me, the guilt and pressure associated with it negated whatever positive effect I might have gotten. I may go back to it now that I am removed from that pressure, but I also may not. I'm not sure yet.
Since all I know well is TM and I've had just a little exposure to other forms, I am curious to do some more research about the history of meditation in Hinduism. I'll let you all know what I discover!
I think I will soon write a post about Sanskrit, the language of all the holy books of Hinduism, and what people believe about it.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
How to be a Stranger
So my copy of How To Be a Perfect Stranger came the other day. I mentioned it before, it's a reference book of how to behave when attending religious services for different religions and denominations that you might find in North America.
I eagerly flipped to the Hinduism section and I'm a little skeptical of what I found there.
I think this book is a great idea, but I wonder if including so many different religions and sects made it difficult to research thoroughly.
It looks like they consulted only one Hindu group for the information in the section. There is useful stuff, but all of it could be found in a Hinduism for Dummies style book.
The thing that surprised me most was the section on what appropriate attire is for attending a Hindu function at a mandir.
It said that women should dress casual, open toed shoes are fine, and there are no rules about wearing hemlines that cover the knees.
I have a hard time believing that anyone would think it's okay to go into a mandir with a skirt whose hem is above your knee. In many cases, Indians are more uncomfortable with bare legs than they are with bare stomachs. If you go to a mandir in a short skirt, you are certainly going to feel out of place. You are also somewhat likely to be sitting on the floor. The text also doesn't mention that seeing Western clothing of any kind at a mandir is pretty unusual. Sure, if you're just a guest and visitor it's probably fine that you don't have Indian clothes, but I would highly recommend a long skirt!
The other thing I thought was odd was that the clothing section didn't mention that you will be taking your shoes off. That's where I would go to look for this kind of information. It does say that open-toed shoes are okay, but it doesn't say that you'll take them off before going into the sanctuary area.
It does say this eventually, in a little sentence under general tips. I think that could easily not be seen and it's very important.
So, all in all, the book is a great idea, but I'm not confident that I could follow it's suggestions and be appropriate for all religious services, as it promises.
*************************
Today I stopped at the bank before work and I was waited on by a young woman of Indian descent. She asked me if that was a bindi I was wearing and I told her it was. She said, "I like that." I smiled, but gave no explanation. It was nice. I hope that my wearing it will inspire some young people. I hope that this young woman and others like her start to see it as something they can do, not just something their mothers and grandmothers do. :)
I eagerly flipped to the Hinduism section and I'm a little skeptical of what I found there.
I think this book is a great idea, but I wonder if including so many different religions and sects made it difficult to research thoroughly.
It looks like they consulted only one Hindu group for the information in the section. There is useful stuff, but all of it could be found in a Hinduism for Dummies style book.
The thing that surprised me most was the section on what appropriate attire is for attending a Hindu function at a mandir.
It said that women should dress casual, open toed shoes are fine, and there are no rules about wearing hemlines that cover the knees.
I have a hard time believing that anyone would think it's okay to go into a mandir with a skirt whose hem is above your knee. In many cases, Indians are more uncomfortable with bare legs than they are with bare stomachs. If you go to a mandir in a short skirt, you are certainly going to feel out of place. You are also somewhat likely to be sitting on the floor. The text also doesn't mention that seeing Western clothing of any kind at a mandir is pretty unusual. Sure, if you're just a guest and visitor it's probably fine that you don't have Indian clothes, but I would highly recommend a long skirt!
The other thing I thought was odd was that the clothing section didn't mention that you will be taking your shoes off. That's where I would go to look for this kind of information. It does say that open-toed shoes are okay, but it doesn't say that you'll take them off before going into the sanctuary area.
It does say this eventually, in a little sentence under general tips. I think that could easily not be seen and it's very important.
So, all in all, the book is a great idea, but I'm not confident that I could follow it's suggestions and be appropriate for all religious services, as it promises.
*************************
Today I stopped at the bank before work and I was waited on by a young woman of Indian descent. She asked me if that was a bindi I was wearing and I told her it was. She said, "I like that." I smiled, but gave no explanation. It was nice. I hope that my wearing it will inspire some young people. I hope that this young woman and others like her start to see it as something they can do, not just something their mothers and grandmothers do. :)
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Opposing Views
I wanted to clarify for a moment what I said in the last post. I am not criticizing Christianity here at all, I was criticizing the idea that if something is good for your baby, it would be in the Bible.
Therefore, anything not in the Bible must be bad for your baby...?
I mean, if you follow that logic, you shouldn't use strollers, cribs, or bottles because none of those things are in the Bible. Right?
It leads me to a question about accepting different viewpoints. The GIRL in this scenario and the WOMAN are my Facebook friends, I do not know MAN at all. I have since removed WOMAN as my Facebook friend because her status updates are always prayers. As in: "Dear Lord Father, I would like this and this to happen. In Jesus name." Not even "In Jesus' name" or "In Jesus's name," no "In Jesus name." So I started not seeing much point in keeping in touch with her (I worked with her during my two month stay in Arkansas).
But part of me feels like it's wrong to silence someone for having another viewpoint.
Not that I'm preventing her from saying whatever she wants, I'm just removing myself from a place where I have to hear it.
I know some people who purposely read and listen to the media produced by the "other side" in order to either get better perspective or to find better arguments against them, but I just can't do it.
As I've said before, I have a hard time with Christianity intruding on my life as it is, so is it wrong to eliminate the sources where I can?
Do I have a duty to continue to keep avenues open to hear things that upset me? I don't think I'm strong enough to. I just get so frustrated and upset and it sticks with me all day, wishing I could find some way to communicate why "If it were good for your baby, it would be in the Bible" doesn't make any sense!
I don't like feeling this way. I think I am going to try not to put myself into situations where I am likely to hear things that will bother me.
But will I grow and learn if I shut out opposition?
I welcome opinions on this...
Therefore, anything not in the Bible must be bad for your baby...?
I mean, if you follow that logic, you shouldn't use strollers, cribs, or bottles because none of those things are in the Bible. Right?
It leads me to a question about accepting different viewpoints. The GIRL in this scenario and the WOMAN are my Facebook friends, I do not know MAN at all. I have since removed WOMAN as my Facebook friend because her status updates are always prayers. As in: "Dear Lord Father, I would like this and this to happen. In Jesus name." Not even "In Jesus' name" or "In Jesus's name," no "In Jesus name." So I started not seeing much point in keeping in touch with her (I worked with her during my two month stay in Arkansas).
But part of me feels like it's wrong to silence someone for having another viewpoint.
Not that I'm preventing her from saying whatever she wants, I'm just removing myself from a place where I have to hear it.
I know some people who purposely read and listen to the media produced by the "other side" in order to either get better perspective or to find better arguments against them, but I just can't do it.
As I've said before, I have a hard time with Christianity intruding on my life as it is, so is it wrong to eliminate the sources where I can?
Do I have a duty to continue to keep avenues open to hear things that upset me? I don't think I'm strong enough to. I just get so frustrated and upset and it sticks with me all day, wishing I could find some way to communicate why "If it were good for your baby, it would be in the Bible" doesn't make any sense!
I don't like feeling this way. I think I am going to try not to put myself into situations where I am likely to hear things that will bother me.
But will I grow and learn if I shut out opposition?
I welcome opinions on this...
Ah, Facebook...
This is what I get for having Facebook friends from my time in Arkansas:
GIRL: So...I bought this prenatal yoga DVD a few months ago...I finally decided to try it this morning...that woman is crazy!! She's dressed in some all white dress and head wrap telling me I have to chant and do yoga to make my baby happy...
WOMAN: Now I aint no ramedass or anything but like that :) but i dont think yoga is the key to keeping your baby happy or it would be in the bible lol!!!!
(Note incorrect spelling of Ram Dass)
GIRL: Haha!! I only watched til she started chanting! Then I got scared!!
WOMAN: my point exactly!!!!! lol oh comprimise and chant Jesus is Lord!!! lolol
(Reading the Bible over and over must not actually help you learn anything about spelling)
ME: I don't think the Bible has any tips on child rearing. Of course, if we only did what was in the Bible, we would have very different lives, like no cars, for example.
MAN: Carolyn needs to read her Bible more! Lots of Child rearing stuff in there and what has that got to do with cars? (Seriously? He couldn't understand why I mentioned cars? Pretty simple point of logic I'm trying to make here.)
ME: I'm not Christian, but I have read the Bible. Not many kids in it.
My point is that we don't only do things that happen in the Bible. If we did, we'd all be shepherds. Something not existing in the Bible is not a reason not to do it. Even Christians do many, many things that are not in the Bible and there's nothing bad about that. Cars aren't in the Bible, but we drive them and that's fine, right?
By the way, GIRL, I agree with you about the chanting. I am Hindu, but I find the chanting on exercise DVDs really creepy!
(Okay, I admit I turned a bit nasty at this point) Actually, here's what I learned about kids in the Bible: It's good to murder your children if you think God wants you to (Abraham) and playing favorites is a great idea (Joseph)
(And he got nasty right back) MAN:I worship as a Christian and don't believe in worshiping animals. Matter of fact Carolyn,I think God put animals on earth so we could have steak with our mashed potatos and chicken with our curry!
ME:Worshiping animals is a total misunderstanding of Hindu principle, by the way, so now you just sound ignorant.
I'm only saying that it's totally okay to do things that don't happen in the Bible, Christians do all the time and that's NOT a criticism, it's just how things are. The Bible didn't specify every behavior for all time and there's nothing wrong with that.
Is this coming across like I'm saying it's a bad thing, like you're not a good Christian or something because that is not at all what I'm saying. You do everything the Bible tells you to, that's great. You also do other things that the Bible doesn't mention, that's fine. You don't do things the Bible tells you not to, all good. Do you see what I mean? There's nothing not Christian about doing some things that the Bible never mentions.
**********************************************
Still waiting to see if MAN responds. Facebook is going to give me an aneurysm one of these days.
GIRL: So...I bought this prenatal yoga DVD a few months ago...I finally decided to try it this morning...that woman is crazy!! She's dressed in some all white dress and head wrap telling me I have to chant and do yoga to make my baby happy...
WOMAN: Now I aint no ramedass or anything but like that :) but i dont think yoga is the key to keeping your baby happy or it would be in the bible lol!!!!
(Note incorrect spelling of Ram Dass)
GIRL: Haha!! I only watched til she started chanting! Then I got scared!!
WOMAN: my point exactly!!!!! lol oh comprimise and chant Jesus is Lord!!! lolol
(Reading the Bible over and over must not actually help you learn anything about spelling)
ME: I don't think the Bible has any tips on child rearing. Of course, if we only did what was in the Bible, we would have very different lives, like no cars, for example.
MAN: Carolyn needs to read her Bible more! Lots of Child rearing stuff in there and what has that got to do with cars? (Seriously? He couldn't understand why I mentioned cars? Pretty simple point of logic I'm trying to make here.)
ME: I'm not Christian, but I have read the Bible. Not many kids in it.
My point is that we don't only do things that happen in the Bible. If we did, we'd all be shepherds. Something not existing in the Bible is not a reason not to do it. Even Christians do many, many things that are not in the Bible and there's nothing bad about that. Cars aren't in the Bible, but we drive them and that's fine, right?
By the way, GIRL, I agree with you about the chanting. I am Hindu, but I find the chanting on exercise DVDs really creepy!
(Okay, I admit I turned a bit nasty at this point) Actually, here's what I learned about kids in the Bible: It's good to murder your children if you think God wants you to (Abraham) and playing favorites is a great idea (Joseph)
(And he got nasty right back) MAN:I worship as a Christian and don't believe in worshiping animals. Matter of fact Carolyn,I think God put animals on earth so we could have steak with our mashed potatos and chicken with our curry!
ME:Worshiping animals is a total misunderstanding of Hindu principle, by the way, so now you just sound ignorant.
I'm only saying that it's totally okay to do things that don't happen in the Bible, Christians do all the time and that's NOT a criticism, it's just how things are. The Bible didn't specify every behavior for all time and there's nothing wrong with that.
Is this coming across like I'm saying it's a bad thing, like you're not a good Christian or something because that is not at all what I'm saying. You do everything the Bible tells you to, that's great. You also do other things that the Bible doesn't mention, that's fine. You don't do things the Bible tells you not to, all good. Do you see what I mean? There's nothing not Christian about doing some things that the Bible never mentions.
**********************************************
Still waiting to see if MAN responds. Facebook is going to give me an aneurysm one of these days.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Ishta-Devata
Dhurga recently mentioned Isha-Devata in the comments. Simply put, this would be one's personal God.
There are many, many, many Gods in Hinduism. Each has different qualities and different personalities. The idea is that out of all those, there will be one that will speak to you and seem well suited to your spiritual growth. Often that is also based somewhat on family or regional traditions and maybe your birth chart.
For my branch, it is traditional to pick from the "five forms" that Shankara picked as the principle forms, uniting all branches. One of these forms is selected for main worship, but the other four are still worshiped also and all are seen as manifestations of the same Ultimate Reality, Brahman. The five are Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Devī, and Sūrya.
A murti (statue, idol) is used for worship. It is believed that the mind needs a physical form to focus on. Sometimes in Smartism, the five forms are represented by five stones. For more dualistic branches, the worship of the murti is more like the Catholic communion. The God has actually come and inhabited the statue.
Sometimes if a great sage is thought to be an avatar of God, he or she might also be worshiped as one's Ishta-Devata. I mentioned before that some believe Jesus to be an avatar of Vishnu and I came across an interesting article articulating some about why and how Jesus is chosen as an Ishta-Devata at times. I know we had one person comment to say that this is impossible, but I am not in the habit of dismissing the beliefs of others and I am unwilling to say that it wouldn't be possible for Jesus to have been an avatar.
I've heard about this phenomenon of Indians adding Jesus to their alters from both perspectives. I knew of a girl in college who loved India and was also an evangelical Christian. She frequently went to India to work on converting people (which completely horrified me, but I didn't know her personally). I was told that a problem she often had was that Indians seemed to have a hard time understanding that they couldn't just add Jesus in. Jesus had to replace ALL Gods and only he could be worshiped. The article above sees this as possibly just a survival technique, to keep Hinduism alive while compromising with Christianity. I'm much closer to the perspective of seeing Christianity trying to destroy Hinduism.
Some believe that it doesn't matter which God you choose, all lead to moksha. However, some branches believe that only particular Gods will. For Vaishnavites, only a form of Vishnu will work (Rama, Krishna...).
To find one's Ishta-Devata some believe that you must go by astrology. Others just find that one in particular speaks to him. It can be something chosen oneself or chosen for you by a guru. This form of God will stay with you all your life.
So, what is my Ishta-Devata?
Shiva, in the form of the nata raja.
It wasn't always clear to me. When I was a kid I was fascinated by Krishna. I loved how different he was at different points in his life. I liked the teenage Krishna best, with the gopis worshiping him.
I was initiated into mantra-based meditation when I was 13. Ideally, one's mantra would be connected to one's Ishta-Devata, it would be a way of calling on that God. The organization I grew up in does not believe in Ishta-Devatas. A mantra was chosen for the entire organization to use and given to us through a Chankaracharya in India. It is a sound connected to Rama.
Despite these moments with other forms, the little bronze nata raja statue that I bought at the new age shop in my town clicked with me in a way that the others hadn't. I spent long periods of time just staring into his tiny face, and entranced by the grace of his arms.
I started dance five years later.
Nata raja still sits in the central place on my alter. A couple years ago my mother gave me a Krishna statue, remembering how much I loved Krishna as a child. That image just never had the same effect on me.
As soon as I look at my nata raja, I feel calmed and centered and I feel as though there is fire in his eyes.
No one gave me that form to worship, I chose it (or it chose me).
There are many, many, many Gods in Hinduism. Each has different qualities and different personalities. The idea is that out of all those, there will be one that will speak to you and seem well suited to your spiritual growth. Often that is also based somewhat on family or regional traditions and maybe your birth chart.
For my branch, it is traditional to pick from the "five forms" that Shankara picked as the principle forms, uniting all branches. One of these forms is selected for main worship, but the other four are still worshiped also and all are seen as manifestations of the same Ultimate Reality, Brahman. The five are Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva, Devī, and Sūrya.
A murti (statue, idol) is used for worship. It is believed that the mind needs a physical form to focus on. Sometimes in Smartism, the five forms are represented by five stones. For more dualistic branches, the worship of the murti is more like the Catholic communion. The God has actually come and inhabited the statue.
Sometimes if a great sage is thought to be an avatar of God, he or she might also be worshiped as one's Ishta-Devata. I mentioned before that some believe Jesus to be an avatar of Vishnu and I came across an interesting article articulating some about why and how Jesus is chosen as an Ishta-Devata at times. I know we had one person comment to say that this is impossible, but I am not in the habit of dismissing the beliefs of others and I am unwilling to say that it wouldn't be possible for Jesus to have been an avatar.
I've heard about this phenomenon of Indians adding Jesus to their alters from both perspectives. I knew of a girl in college who loved India and was also an evangelical Christian. She frequently went to India to work on converting people (which completely horrified me, but I didn't know her personally). I was told that a problem she often had was that Indians seemed to have a hard time understanding that they couldn't just add Jesus in. Jesus had to replace ALL Gods and only he could be worshiped. The article above sees this as possibly just a survival technique, to keep Hinduism alive while compromising with Christianity. I'm much closer to the perspective of seeing Christianity trying to destroy Hinduism.
Some believe that it doesn't matter which God you choose, all lead to moksha. However, some branches believe that only particular Gods will. For Vaishnavites, only a form of Vishnu will work (Rama, Krishna...).
To find one's Ishta-Devata some believe that you must go by astrology. Others just find that one in particular speaks to him. It can be something chosen oneself or chosen for you by a guru. This form of God will stay with you all your life.
So, what is my Ishta-Devata?
Shiva, in the form of the nata raja.
It wasn't always clear to me. When I was a kid I was fascinated by Krishna. I loved how different he was at different points in his life. I liked the teenage Krishna best, with the gopis worshiping him.
I was initiated into mantra-based meditation when I was 13. Ideally, one's mantra would be connected to one's Ishta-Devata, it would be a way of calling on that God. The organization I grew up in does not believe in Ishta-Devatas. A mantra was chosen for the entire organization to use and given to us through a Chankaracharya in India. It is a sound connected to Rama.
Despite these moments with other forms, the little bronze nata raja statue that I bought at the new age shop in my town clicked with me in a way that the others hadn't. I spent long periods of time just staring into his tiny face, and entranced by the grace of his arms.
I started dance five years later.
Nata raja still sits in the central place on my alter. A couple years ago my mother gave me a Krishna statue, remembering how much I loved Krishna as a child. That image just never had the same effect on me.
As soon as I look at my nata raja, I feel calmed and centered and I feel as though there is fire in his eyes.
No one gave me that form to worship, I chose it (or it chose me).
Thursday, July 1, 2010
I'm going to learn Spanish!
I know you're thinking, where did that come from?
:)
I can't talk much about the details, but I've been offered a chance to test out a new product from Rosetta Stone, whose products I adore. It will be for Latin American Spanish and last 1-3 months.
I'm excited to test out how much I have learned about learning language from my Hindi adventure. Hindi will take a back burner for these few months while I see just how much Spanish I can pick up in that time. Spanish would certainly be a useful language to know and though I haven't had any interest in it since I was eight years old, I may as well see how far I can get since it's being offered to me for free.
Lack of vocabulary is the main thing holding me back in Hindi right now. I'm picking up bits of grammar as I read and reread Teach Yourself Hindi, so what I need is just a lot more words to work with.
My vocabulary right now is about 500 words and I'm working intensively on vocabulary growth. Each new word has expanded my understanding of the movies and tv shows and books so much.
I've read that a native speaker usually has a vocabulary of 10,000 words, using about 3,000 of them on a daily basis (we all have our favorite words and phrases that we turn to again and again, though we understand other people's favorite words and phrases). So, I have a long way to go before I'm going to be able to fully understand and communicate.
I'm trying to learn 10 new words each day, which feels a little overwhelming to me, but seems to be on the low end for the impressive people on How-To-Learn-Any-Language.com
I think this little break will help me get a clearer perspective on just how much Hindi I have learned and I can return to it refreshed. I have not yet decided whether I will keep up with a little bit of reading and watching in Hindi while I'm doing the Spanish. I don't know if that will confuse me but I also don't want to lose the progress that I've made in Hindi.
I've reached that point in language learning where each new thing learned feels like such a tiny drop that it will never help! I read somewhere the idea that the first ten words you learn in a language are so exciting and you feel like you're making great progress, but then when you're going from 520 words to 530 words it feels like no progress at all, just a drop of water in the ocean. It's hard to stay focused and motivated when you feel like you're at a standstill.
For fun, for anyone who knows Hindi (or is learning) I found this free Hindi Scrabble Game to download. It's very challenging for me, since I know so few words. It's really a cool program and I wrote to the man who created it to thank him. I hope that he'll have success with this and make other games in Hindi.
Hindi Scrabble Game
:)
I can't talk much about the details, but I've been offered a chance to test out a new product from Rosetta Stone, whose products I adore. It will be for Latin American Spanish and last 1-3 months.
I'm excited to test out how much I have learned about learning language from my Hindi adventure. Hindi will take a back burner for these few months while I see just how much Spanish I can pick up in that time. Spanish would certainly be a useful language to know and though I haven't had any interest in it since I was eight years old, I may as well see how far I can get since it's being offered to me for free.
Lack of vocabulary is the main thing holding me back in Hindi right now. I'm picking up bits of grammar as I read and reread Teach Yourself Hindi, so what I need is just a lot more words to work with.
My vocabulary right now is about 500 words and I'm working intensively on vocabulary growth. Each new word has expanded my understanding of the movies and tv shows and books so much.
I've read that a native speaker usually has a vocabulary of 10,000 words, using about 3,000 of them on a daily basis (we all have our favorite words and phrases that we turn to again and again, though we understand other people's favorite words and phrases). So, I have a long way to go before I'm going to be able to fully understand and communicate.
I'm trying to learn 10 new words each day, which feels a little overwhelming to me, but seems to be on the low end for the impressive people on How-To-Learn-Any-Language.com
I think this little break will help me get a clearer perspective on just how much Hindi I have learned and I can return to it refreshed. I have not yet decided whether I will keep up with a little bit of reading and watching in Hindi while I'm doing the Spanish. I don't know if that will confuse me but I also don't want to lose the progress that I've made in Hindi.
I've reached that point in language learning where each new thing learned feels like such a tiny drop that it will never help! I read somewhere the idea that the first ten words you learn in a language are so exciting and you feel like you're making great progress, but then when you're going from 520 words to 530 words it feels like no progress at all, just a drop of water in the ocean. It's hard to stay focused and motivated when you feel like you're at a standstill.
For fun, for anyone who knows Hindi (or is learning) I found this free Hindi Scrabble Game to download. It's very challenging for me, since I know so few words. It's really a cool program and I wrote to the man who created it to thank him. I hope that he'll have success with this and make other games in Hindi.
Hindi Scrabble Game
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