Body and Soul in Italy
Catholicism has a rich tradition of integrating sensory experience with religious worship. This Italian ad campaign, however, looks to a more Eastern tradition for its holistic imagery.
June 27, 2008
May 31, 2008
Karma Kids and the World Science Festival
I'd planned to be out of town at a conference all weekend, so I didn't make any arrangements to attend NYC's World Science Festival, which is being ably chronicled over at Science Fair. Alas, the events I'd wanted to see are sold out, and in my infinite wisdom the very time I'd chosen to drop by the Street Fair at Washington Square Park was during the thunderstorm. Still, it was cool to see the little kids with their galactic face paint--as well as the Park's atheist protestor who, given the immediate context, seemed a bit redundant.
On the way to the Fair, I had a religious experience of another sort, this time at the Madison Square Park Kids Fest. The event announced as I walked through: Karma Kids Story Time Yoga. Which got me thinking of the question I'd ask if I were a precocious Karma Kid--namely, if reality is an illusion, why do I have to go to school?
May 15, 2008
Yoga for sex workers in India with the Sanghamitra collective
Via Yoga Journal, a fascinating look at the Sanghamitra sex workers collective . . .
In Indian mythology, Sanghamitra is the beautiful and wise daughter of Emperor Asoka, and the solitary motivation for his transformation from ruthless despot to a peaceful disciple of Buddhism. Sanghamitra, the providential name chosen by the women, is predestined to signify extraordinary change in their lives, toward a better, brighter future of hope and well-being.
Maya, the President of Sanghamirta, rose and made a speech welcoming those of us gathered in the room. Each office member stood and placed a beautiful purple scarf around our necks.
And how a Westerner ended up teaching yoga in India:
When I asked them if they'd like to try yoga, they giggled and clapped like little girls—perhaps feeling like they were being naughty or breaking a law. Apparently the practice of yoga doesn't make its way past India's deeply-established tradition of sex and discrimination. Unfortunately, the people who could really benefit from its healing and emancipation properties were denied because of their place in society.
I knew yoga's health benefits might not interest them. And since most of the women are Hindi and devotion is an intrinsic part of their culture, I spoke about how we can use our bodies as an expression of our devotion. I explained how each gesture, including the placement of the hand, the expansion of the lungs, and the turn of the spine, is an offering. I told them that yoga practice is a living ritual and an embodied prayer.
May 12, 2008
Pink crochet ganesh
From seeleyst--cheap!
May 07, 2008
Ravana motorcycle helmet ad
Osocio is a blog that is essential reading for folks interested in do-gooder design. Above: a brilliant (literally) ad from India featuring the ten-headed Ravana. The tag line:
"Unfortunately, you have only one head. Please use a helmet."
May 02, 2008
Statue of Liberty bindi
April 30, 2008
India law goddess-dammerung
Worlds collide for me in this post from Spicy IP, which keeps track of intellectual property developments in India, which, among other things, discusses the recurring trope of analyzing legal evolution in terms a shift from Lakshmi (the goddess of wealth) to Saraswati (the goddess of knowledge).
April 20, 2008
Hanuman Action Figure
Just got back from the New York Comic Con, an Olympus of modern myth. I'll have more to say when I'm not catching up on school work, but for now, here's one item from a cool company I saw while there: the Hanuman action figure from Kridana.
April 04, 2008
Lord Krishna checks his voicemail
A finalist in the Smithsonian Magazine photo contest.
February 14, 2008
The ecumenical sinfulness of Valentine's Day
Joanna Sugden has the scoop, complete with this social-enterprisey analysis from a moderate Muslim blog:
Newspapers are featuring ads for flowers and articles on various Muslims worldwide with their panties in a bunch about any holiday not explicitly mentioned in Sahih Bukhari. But in all the conspicuous consumption and harrumphing, the ones that Muslims should really be focused on get lost in the shuffle as usual. Many of the trappings of Valentine’s Day have ugly and sometimes bloody pasts that no amount of red satin can hide. The items we exchange as gifts are often produced by workers who are paid little or nothing, live in wretched conditions, and face cruelty and danger in their work. Yet in the denouncing of this holiday, even the holier than thou forgot the poor and the oppressed.
January 26, 2008
From Magic Squares to Sudoku
One old model of secularization theory posits that an abundance of choices in the spiritual marketplace can create a spiritual aporia--there are so many viable choices that it can be hard to pick just one, thereby leaving us with nothing.
Whatever the value of that theory in understanding society, it sure applies to this site in regard to the C.B. Gardner Witches Mill Collection that's been selling on eBay, which has so many cool pieces that I've been dithering over which one to post. Be sure to click over to another of my favorite daily reads--AltReligion--for the scoop.
Why did I pick the image above? Well, it's a magic square, a wonderful example of a spiritual icon now reincarnated in a pop secular form. For an illustrated history of the link between magic squares and sudoku, check out this article from Plus as well as this fun page from EMAS Portsmouth, which integrates mathematical training with cultural traditions.
January 16, 2008
The cosmic dance of Varuna Djani
From India, a divine ad for Varuna Djani. "Varuna has used diamonds of the best quality in this line inspired by water, which incidentally is also what her names stands for. Water, the elixir of life and a major component of this earth, also symbolizes continuity and purity."
January 15, 2008
Hindu Super Mario tattoo
A wonderful creative mashup by Jason Lambert of Eye Candy Tattoos. It may seem like an odd combination, but the commonalities between Hinduism and Super Mario have actually been a topic of discussion for some time.
January 08, 2008
Sacred cutting edge
Sacred Cut Metal Designs is a multifaith spiritual marketplace with designs that represent a diverse range of spiritual traditions. This informative article from a local paper explains reason for the name: they custom-cut each piece with "holy water and sacred sand"--"customers can request that any refinable liquid, sand or herb that is meaningful to them be used to make their jewelry."
Because the aim is to promote peace and goodwill for all people, Sacred Cut has pieces from a wide range of traditions and beliefs, such as Christian crosses . . .
and Stars of David
and Oms.
But what really sets Sacred Cut apart is the following item, which links the sacred number 7 with a truly divine name:
December 09, 2007
Naked pagan Krishna hippies build a pyramid near Stonehenge and dance for Prem Nawat
Here's a blast for the past via WFMU. Watch it without the sound off and you can feel how alien the styles in this 1971 video now appear. Listen to the sound for for a fascinating spiritual syncretism: magnetic fields, Stonehenge, dowsing, pagan ritual, laser-beam visions and Hare Krishna.
Judging from the switch from robes to suit and tie, spiritual speaker Prem Nawat doesn't do all the much speaking nowadays in front of naked hippies chanting in a field.
December 03, 2007
Hanuman and the Green Ent
Via Andrew Sullivan: "Pande Beratha (C), dressed as a tree, takes part in an anti-deforestation campaign along with two others outfited as Hindu god Hanuman near the venue of the UN Climate Change Conference 2007 in Nusa Dua, on Bali island, 03 December 2007." NPR has a lot more, including a picture of Greenpeace's secular bear:
November 25, 2007
Forbidden Hindu shoes
These shoes depicting Lord Rama were withdrawn from the market in 2005 following Hindu protests. The manufacturer did, however, refuse to apologize, unlike a company that had previously sold shoes branded Vishnu and Krishna.
October 03, 2007
Erect banana Buddha, religious realism and the Palad Khik
Is this statue a hate crime?
Police in the UK are investigating that very question. The rationale: this statue, a depiction of the Buddha with banana-and-egg genitalia that is part of artist Colin Self's intentionally provocative The Trilogy: The Iconoclasts, violates the U.K.'s Racial and Religious Hatred Act of 2006. While the investigation continues, the gallery has agreed to display the piece with its back to the window.
This police inquiry provides additional evidence that the West is moving toward an age of enforced Religious Realism. By realism here I don't mean accuracy, but rather an idealized depiction, akin to the stirring portraits of Soviet dictators and robust peasants in the Socialist Realism of Stalinist art. Whether the motivation is regard for diversity or fear of offense the effect is the same. The only permitted visual depiction of religion is one that portrays its subject as noble and pure.
What do we lose? A world without profane religious art is a world that has lost touch with its own religious history. The originators of our enduring religious traditions weren't afraid of a sacred sphere rife with blasphemy and body parts--they reveled in the contradictions, and if we acknowledged their legacy as it was and not as we would like to be, laws such as the one described above would not exist.
Case in point: the palad khik, traditional religious amulets from Thailand. Although palad khik may sound exotically new age, the name actually refers to a surrogate penis. The amulets--crafted by monks in the shape of a penis and adorned with sacred invocations and spiritual imagery--make the so-called iconoclasm of postmodern art seem rather tame.
Yes, we could legislate a world where the only sacred penis is one that we revere, but c'mon, that would just be silly.
HT: the always fun and informative Alt Religion!
August 26, 2007
Religious literacy on ice
Today's New York Times Magazine has a feature highlighting the famed ice Buddha sculpture at Megu, a local restaurant. The accompanying photo:
August 03, 2007
Hindu keychain
This keychain features an icon from a temple procession in India. Click here for a more complete description of this keychain, said to bring good luck. For only $2.95, that's a bargain for the luck alone.
June 20, 2007
Bill Clinton: Hindu convert?
A blast from the past--a tabloid account of Bill Clinton's secret Hindu agenda:
If you were wondering what former president Bill Clinton was wearing on his right wrist when he was hawking his new book on '60 Minutes' and Oprah recently, it's a Hindu nada-chhadi (often called an auspicious thread).
All male members of the Hindu community who have passed through the religious ceremony of Bratabandha are supposed to change the sacred thread – Janai. "Janai is a sacred cotton thread worn, and it is believed that the thread will protect them from evil spirit," said Hari Ram Joshi,a cultural expert. "And it is necessary that the thread must be purified by chanting mantras," he added.
March 27, 2007
Shopping for jewelry in New Delhi
This 2005 article from Forbes is a helpful guide to the history, customs & geography of jewelry in India, particularly New Delhi.
March 07, 2007
Dolls of India and Hillary Clinton
Every time I here that such-and-such American invented social enterprise a few years, I hurl laugh. People have been creating innovative businesses for a higher purpose for centuries; without them, we wouldn't even have such nifty devices as the number zero or double-entry bookkeeping.
As a nod to this rich history, today I want to highlight Dolls of India, a site that sells Hindu figures and jewelry. It also has informative histories describing the items they sell. To the left: Lord Shiva with Goddess Parvati.
And in completely unrelated news, while prepping for a meeting (and writing this post) I've been listening to the recent Fresh Air interview with Dan Gilgoff, who has a new book called The Jesus Machine chronicling the rise of James Dobson. Click here for the interview and scroll over to minute 26 for a description of how Hillary Clinton started wearing a crucifix in the last election to win support from Christian voters.
February 05, 2007
Kumbh Mela, the World's Largest Act of Faith
What holds the world's record as the largest gathering of people coming together for a common purpose? Well, I answered Wrestlemania, but it looks like I was wrong.
The Maha Kumbh Mela (Great Festival of the Urn) is a spiritual festival held every twelve years near the Indian town of Allahabad.Pilgrims gather here from all over India and around the world: gurus, spiritual leaders and their devotees, and ascetic sadhus who emerge from their solitary forest retreats and mountain caves.
They come to the sangam - the sacred confluence of three rivers: the Ganges, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati.
On special set days everyone takes a holy dip, a ritual believed to guarantee release from the cycle of rebirth - literally a short cut to the state of purest bliss... nirvana.
Sounds interesting, no? Well, the documentary below isn't the source of the above quote, but it is about the same ritual, and it sports an abundance of interesting religious adornment. So grab some nectar, sit back and relax to watch the Google video that's rocketing up the charts, "Kumbha Mela -- The World's Largest Act of Faith":
January 13, 2007
Just another day in the big city
"today a very old indian cab driver with a long white beard sang me hindu love songs from the 1950's and translated each line into english for the duration of our 110 block ride. he then gave me a quarter "for luck" and these two bracelets, and made me promise to be "one of his brides."
got to love new york."
Sun god & elephant earrings
June 20, 2006
June brides
Bollywood. Cricket. Weddings?
Click here for more on Hindu wedding ritual, which the reporter describes as "the third greatest passion of Indians around the world."
June 04, 2006
Good vibrations
This is a vibrational prayer box from Rudrakasha.com. The wearer places a small written copy of a prayer into the prayer box and clips it to a piece of jewelry. The intended result: the prayer's positive vibrations influence the wearer's life.
The Rudrakasha site explains more. It also has a blog devoted to yoga and the Hindu Lord Ganesha--which, among other things, explains just what an enlightened soul should do when someone brings a "gooey yummy pastry" into the break room!
June 03, 2006
Everybody Feng Shui Tonight
"We want our house to be designed as per Vaastu Shastra guidelines . . . "
And what are those? Click here for an overview, or check out the sites of these VS consultants.
Not surprisingly, the pursuit of spiritual harmony in design has given rise to disputes between conflicting beliefs; here's how one group tries to create a happy Oneness from the rivalry between Vaastu Shastra and Feng Shui.
May 02, 2006
Platinum Puja
What's a puja? The Smithsonian describes this Hindu rite here. It's in the news in India because one of the country's renowned comediennes, Manorama, performed a puja while presenting a specially-crafted platinum Ganesha to a temple.
And in related news, Goldie Hawn charms India with her divine giggle.
April 22, 2006
Victoria Who?
Queen Victoria uses her cross pendant to ward off a werewolf in the latest UK episode of Doctor Who. For spoiler-filled reviews detailing another connection to the BofG, click these links.
April 20, 2006
Coolstones
The latest in the series of Metals and Crosses is up at Coolstones, the blog of Anne Maa Designs. This entry includes a piece utilizing a Hindu depiction of the Seven Sisters.
March 29, 2006
Midweek Meditation
Halfway through the work week and getting a bit worn out? Many churches try to help by holding a midweek prayer meeting, which gives people a chance to connect, encourage and recharge.
While the midweek meeting particularly thrives within more conservative churches, that is not always the case. The picture above shows a rosary used in Wednesday meetings at San Francisco's Ebenezer Lutheran Church, a feminist community of faith. The gold figure on the end is a woman, but it is not Mary or a saint--this is a Goddess Rosary.
At herchurch.org, the Church provides an extensive explanation of the theology behind the Goddess Rosary, from female metaphors of the divine to reconstructionist Christian feminism. It also describes in depth the midweek rosary prayer meetings, where people recite this variation on the "Hail Mary":
Hail Goddess full of grace.
Blessed are you
and blessed are all the fruits
of your womb.
For you are the MOTHER of us all.
Hear us now
and in all our needs.
O blessed be, O blessed be. Amen
And blessed art thou, Jennifer Rose Emick of About.com's excellent Alt Religion site, for sending this link!
CONTROVERSY EXTRA: Although the Goddess Rosary has been around for a while, it has recently become a cause celebre among more traditional Christian sites in the blogosphere. Is the use of goddess imagery in Christian feminism "rank heresy"? If the problem is borrowing from "pagan" imagery, is mainstream Catholicism's devotion to Mary any more orthodox? And is laughing at people and calling them "kooky" the hallmark of Christian love?
I report. You decide.
March 28, 2006
The Temple of Elvis
Q: What do Bunker Hill, Gettysburg and Elvis Presley's Jungle Room all have in common?
A: They're all federally recognized historic sites!
Yep, that's right. Yesterday Graceland, Elvis Presley's stately manor, officially became a National Historic Landmark. Secretary of Interior Gale Norton and Presley's ex-wife Priscilla flew in to mark the occasion with an elaborate ceremony, which will no doubt help boost business at this flagging tourist trap public awareness of Graceland's importance to our nation's history.
While this is indeed a moment that should lead all of us to reflect on how our lives "changed irreversibly because of Elvis" (quoth Norton), the event also reminds of the superficiality of honors accorded in the secular realm. For a sign of real devotion, we need only look to the work of the man pictured above.
As this story from The Hindu relates, Gajarajan is an Elvis fan in India who has made Presley an object of religious devotion. He first garnered international attention in the mid-90s, when he placed a picture of Elvis next to other gods in a Hindu shrine. Elvis, Gajarajan claims, was a reincarnation of the divine warrior Karna. Now Gajarajan is working toward construction of an Elvis temple.
Mojo Nixon was right--Elvis truly is everywhere.
March 09, 2006
Legends of the Silver Screen
Lord Hanuman, the Hindu monkey god who was the subject of one of yesterday's posts, is often described today as an ancient "superhero," a description that well suits his role in Hindu sacred epics. However, if you are a fan of American movies--in particular, Indiana Jones--you may have heard of another superhero from the Hindu faith.
The picture above may look like authentic Hindu art, but it is actually a prop from Indiana Jones & the Temple of Doom. The figure to the left is Sankara, a venerated Hindu philosopher (c. 8th century BCE) who in a famous story met Lord Shiva while traveling to the holy city of Varanasi.
And here is where the movie goes Hollywood on Hinduism. According to tradition, in the meeting Shiva and Sankara discuss theology, after which Sankara utters five eloquent slokas (prayers) and goes on to become India's foremost exponent of a rational and scientific faith, laying the foundation for an India unified by peaceful persuasive discussion. In the movie, Sankara acquires five magic rocks that give him mystical superpowers in the fight against evil.
Sure, that's not exactly faithful to the source, but did anyone really want the film to end with Indy & his arch foe debating nondualist Vedanta theology?
In any case, the movie does have one accurate touch: embellishing Shiva with jewelry. One aspect of Hindu deities is that they embody creativity, and Hinduism represent this quality by adorning statues & pictures representing the gods in ways that are positively divine.
March 08, 2006
Seoul Food
If you're in Seoul, South Korea, and want to see some historic Hindu & Buddhist jewelry, check out the new exhibit of Indonesian treasures at the National Museum of Korea.
The Cycle of Violence
This morning we looked at the ouroboros, a historic symbol of the cyclical nature of life. As the news from India illustrates, however, the recurring cycles of our history are not always peaceful, let alone something to celebrate.
Yesterday, worshippers gathered at the Sankat Mochan temple in Varanasi, India's holiest city, to honor the Hindu monkey god, Lord Hanuman. Explosions rocked the temple and surrounding areas, killing at least twenty and wounding dozens more.
The leading suspect in the bombing is an Islamic terrorist group. Hindu nationalists blame the government's recent "soft" policies--the subject of this recent BofG post--for emboldening these terrorists to strike.
The roots of the violence go even deeper, however--this is but the latest instance of a recurring cycle of Hindu/Muslim violence--violence that often centers around sacred shrines.
Why so many attacks on temples and mosques? A fundamental reason lies in an unlikely source: the law of charity. Many sacred sites in India have long been embroiled in competing legal claims, with each side claiming the site was long ago irrevocably dedicated to their own religious purposes. With the secular law failing to resolve the matter in the group's desired way, some see violence as the only way to restore the rule of law.
In Book V of the Hindu epic Ramayana, Hanuman helps his monkey army free a distant captive by building a bridge across the Indian Ocean. If only he could build a bridge between the warring parties in this seemingly intractable conflict of laws!
March 07, 2006
Mystery of the Missing Necklace
The word was that nominee Felicity Huffman was going to wear this necklace to the Oscars. But then when she appeared on the red carpet, her neck was conspicuously bare.
Why did she decide not to wear this jewelry? Could the reason lie in a Hindu curse? Click here & on the picture for more clues.
February 23, 2006
Tattoo You
A charity auction isn't the only measure the Pope could take to counter criticism that his lavish fashion sense is too materialistic. He could also replace his expensive bling with a far cheaper tattoo.
As this newspaper article observes, religious tattoos are on the rise in the U.S., from the Bible verses on Duke's J.J. Redick and to the Hindu lotus flower.
Just we have long worn clothing has as "an extension of the skin" both to warm our bodies and to define ourselves, many now freely using their skin as an extension of their soul. This should not come as no surprise. Back in 1964 Marshall McLuhan observed that
After centuries of being fully clad and of being contained in uniform visual space, the electric age ushers us into a world in which we live and breathe and listen with the entire epidermis.
The Bahai tattoo above represents the fundamental unity of all religions, but it could also symbolize what McLuhan referred to as the "all-at-onceness" created by electronic technology. People, places, objects, time--everything now flows together, smashing the divisions and taboos of the literate West. Which also brings with the supreme irony of our technological age--
by immersing us in a world in which every surface is a communications medium, computers and the Web have actually helped revive our tribal spirit.
January 19, 2006
Small Print Scriptures
They've done it again! The same couple that made the world's smallest Bible have now crafted a pendant inscribed with the entire Bhagavad Gita, which you can read easily when you put the pendant under a microscope.