Hindu Symbols

Here is an overview of a few important Hindu symbols.  Together they are powerful and the basis of the faith itself.  They are not necessarily directly connected, but because they are all part of the Hindu faith they are part of the whole

 

Remember the definition of religion:

 

A system of symbols which acts to establish powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting moods and motivations in men by formulating conceptions of a general order of existence and clothing these conceptions with such an aura of factuality that the moods and motivations seem uniquely realistic.

 

Om:

This is a sacred sound and greatest mantra in the Hindu faith.  Om, which can also be spelled Aum has three sound within it (a-u-m) which add to the meaning.  The three parts symbolize, the three worlds, the three major gods, and the three sacred scripts of the Veda.  In the Hindu faith they believe in a three realms of the world: The Bhuloka, the Antarloka and the Sivaloka (the earth the ether and the heaven).  Because Om encompasses the three realms, it embodies the spirit of the Universe.  Indian beliefs include the idea that God created sound and molded the universe out of that sound.  Om is the foundation of sound.  The three major gods in Hindu faith are known as Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva.  These three are known as the Hindu Trinity.  Brahma is the creator, Vishnu is the preserver, and Siva is the destroyer.  Together they make the world run in harmony.  The three major scripts of the Veda are the Rg, Yajur, and Sama.

 

Bindi:

 

The Bindi is a dot worn on the forehead right above the nose.  It is a type of Tilak (we will get to that later).  Married Hindu women traditionally wear the Bindi.  Is symbolizes the energy of women and is said to protect her and her spouse from evil. However, today, it has less of a religious meaning and has a more decorative connotation.  Now, unmarried girls are wearing elaborate Bindis as form of jewelry.  This is just an example of the changing times.

 

Linga:

 

This is a very odd symbol.  Some people may actually find it vulgar.  It is a representation of a phallic organ resting upon a female sex organ.  Together they represent fertility.  It is a powerful symbol of temples of Siva.  The symbol is revered and honored with gifts of flowers and food.  This is to please Siva, for Siva is the destroyer.

 

Lotus:

 

The Lotus flower in Hindu faith symbolizes beauty and non-attachment.  The Lotus floats on the water, stays pure and does not become tarnished.  Hindus believe in reincarnation.  People’s souls are reborn because they want to be reborn.  The pleasures of the earth are obviously great and people become attached to them and want to experience them.  After many rebirths, hopefully one will learn to not become attached to the pleasures and thus not need to be reborn.  Once someone has reached this point they have found their true self (the immortal soul).  At this point everything vanishes and they will vanish.  The lotus represents the principles that Hindus strive for.

 

Pratik:

 

This symbol comes out of a Hindu religious movement that was started in 1955. Ananda Marga Pracharaka Samgha (AMPS) was the name of the movement.  This name has to do with the “path to bliss.”  The upward triangle symbolizes external actions.  The downward pointing triangle represents the mindsets and internal actions, such as self-realizations.  The rising sun represents the advancement of ones spirituality while keeping the external and internal work in balance.  The swastika represents the good fortune that one receives through spiritual achievement.

 

Swastika:

 

The right hand swastika is a symbol for Vishnu and the sun god Surya.  The left hand swastika is the symbol for the goddess Kali and darkness.  The right hand swastika is mainly used to bring good fortune.  It can be seen in building designs, weddings and other major festivals.  This is a perfect example of how the Hindus incorporate their many gods into everyday life to remind themselves the right way to live.

 

Tilak:

This symbol is very similar to the Bindi.  It is a mark on the forehead.  The Tilak for a man is a straight line and a dot for a woman.  The slight differences in lines or dots help distinguish between the different sects of Hinduism.  The Tilak is made out of clay or ash, which give many of them a reddish color.  The Tilak is applied everyday to very serious Hindus.  All Hindus wear a Tilak whenever they visit a temple (even non-Hindus are given one when they visit a temple) and on special religions ceremonies (weddings).  The mixture that the Tilak is made from cools the forehead and helps mediation for it makes one more focused.

 

Trihsula:

 

This is the sign for Shiva the most revered deity in the Hindu faith.  The three prongs stand for the three part of the Hindu trinity:  Creator, Preserver and destroyer.  It also represents the three most important powers.  It is a symbol for Will, action and wisdom, which are all three traits that one must possess so that they will no longer desire the pleasures of the earth and vanish for they have freed their soul.

 

Yantra:

 

This is a very sacred symbol that represents the universe.  It is similar to the Mandala sand paintings that Buddhist monks make.  They both symbolize cosmogenic development.  Cosmogenesis is the knowledge of the development of the universe.  It has to do with the idea that there are seven levels of intelligence (we are at the lowest when we are enthralled with the pleasures of the world).  The absolute is the center of the Yantra is the absolute truth.  The outer edges are the material world.  These are made in two-dimensional or three-dimensional images or shrines.  The places they are made in are very sacred grounds and an elaborate ritual takes place in which a deity’s power is put into them.  They are then meditated upon to have visions of the unseen (absolute truth). 

So how do these fit into the definition?  The Om creates a long lasting mood and a general order of existence.  When anyone meditates with this mantra, they are reminded of how everything came to be and through thinking about this, they will reach knowledge of their true self.  The Bindi and the Tilak create motivations in men and women.  Evey time one sees another wearing a Tilak, they are reminded that should worship and strive to find their true self so that can cease to exist.  The Linga creates an aura that makes the moods and motivations uniquely realistic.  This reminds people of fertility and birth.  Through this comes reincarnation and the striving to rid oneself from the pleasures of the world.  The lotus also creates motivation for the people to strive for their true self.  The flower grows above mud and stays free of the filth just as people want to live above pleasures and be free of them.  The Trishula also creates motivation for it symbolizes the traits one must have for them to be free of the material earth.  The Praktik make the moods and motivations more real for it is a very recent symbol.  It shows how things can change with the world just as people need to change their ways to become free.  The Yantra has the most power.  It creates and order of existence.  It symbolizes the whole path one follows to free themselves from the world.  Together they all work in harmony to make the Hindu religion real and have followers who believe.

 

Baha'i Temple: Chicago

The Baha’i Temple in Chicago is a very amazing place.  The architecture is an interesting part that helps symbolize the religion within the design.  The French architect, Louis Bourgeois, who planned the building was a brilliant man who made the building reflect the religion.  The bell-shaped dome part of the temple has 9 different supporting “ribs.”  The number 9 in the Baha’i faith represents completeness, wholeness and unity.  They also represent the hands of all religions joining together as one under the on true God, which is a strong theme in Baha’i.  There are also nine entrances into the temple.  Many symbols are engraved into the temple.  The Cross, the Star of David, the crescent moon, the wheel and other ancient symbols that have been associated with God can be found around the building.  The most important symbol in the building can be found in the interior Dome.  It is an Arabic calligraphy symbol, which reads “O glory of the all Glorious.”  The gardens and fountains around the temple give it a serene and peaceful feeling.  The flowers of the garden represent the people of the world as part of the whole.  Again, we have that theme of unity.  Every Baha’i temple around the world has these characteristics.

 

In the words of Louis Bourgeois  “This temple, coming from the realm of Baha’i is the great bell calling to America.”

To watch some video footage check out this site:  

http://www.bahai.us/bahai-temple-visitor-information 

Creating a Religion

Check out this site on how to create your own religion in 10 easy steps (kind of funny).

 

http://www.apath.org/creating_religion.html

 

Here is my own religion using these 10 easy steps:

 

1) Create a God or gods:

 

The one God that everyone will follow is known as the God Spenderon.  It has “spend” in the name to symbolize our consumerism and the “eron” makes him sound powerful like Megatron form transformers.

 

2) Make the God in charge of something people already focus on:

 

The God Spenderon is in charge of how everyone spends their money and obtains riches.

 

3) Make people think of it frequently:

 

This is easy, for in America we are a consumerist society.  We just have to instill the same systems everywhere else.  Basically make the whole world the same capitalist country that we are.

 

4) Make it easy to buy into this faith:

 

Install the idea that every time one spends money, especially excess money on useless goods, that they are paying (pun intended) homage to the God Spenderon.

 

5) Make it Ambiguous:

 

The God Spenderon doesn’t need your money, but wants you to spend it.  He, being a God wants everyone to be like him so that they have everything and never need to spend again.  This of course is impossible but possible at the same time, because Spenderon has great power.

 

6) Establish standards on how God should be referred to:

 

People must call their God The Merchant Spenderon. It must always be capitalized, for in all monotheistic religions, God is capitalized. And, you must use a Dollar sign for the ‘S’ in Spenderon when writing the name.

 

7) Make some symbols.

 

The main symbol for the religion of spending will obviously be the dollar sign.  This will be strange to other countries that do not use U.S. currency, but one we make the world like our society everyone will buy in and it will all make sense.  The cent sign will be used for the “devil” of this religion for it is such little money and always annoying to find pennies and nickels to pay off the last part of your good that you are buying.

 

8) Create an opposing force;

 

The opposing force will be known as The Caring Conserverous.  People know how hard it is to conserve, but never want to.  It is always in the back of people’s minds (just like the evil devil) to conserve, but if they believe in my religion they can overcome these urges.  The cent symbol symbolizes the little amount of money that could be spent.  The Caring Conserverous wants everyone to not spend money.

 

9) Create story of how things came to be:

 

I need to create a story of how this religion came to be.  During the time of great civilizations, the invention of money was brought to the table.  With this people became greedy and created a consumerist mindset.  In doing so all the minds of people forged the God Spenderon, in the fires of coin making.  The God Conserverous had been around before the invention of money to help people store enough food for the winters.  One day these two met and became good friends. They understood that they needed to live in balance so that humanity could survive.  However, because greedy people crated Spenderon he was also greedy and wanted to take control.  First, he created extremely greedy kings and leaders, so that people would start to follow their mindsets.  He induced the industrial revolution, which made money a powerful thing.  Now people were spending more that ever.  However, the Caring Conserverous retaliated with the Great Depression.  But people persevered and came back to the spending ways.  These two gods influence the economy.  All the spikes are due to Spenderon and all the dips are due to Conserverous.  So now choose which side you want to worship.

 

10) The big reward:

 

When everyone dies and goes to Millien (heaven), they are judged. Just like many other religions.  However, they can only get in if they have bought enough items to make them worthy.  If you have spent enough money to make you way into Millien, you are reincarnated so that you can spend more money.  However, if you haven’t, they you are banished to Debtell (hell) to suffer forever without spending money, because you have none.

 

So there you have it SPREAD THE WORD!!

 

 

 

 

Beginning the Baha'i Faith

The Baha’i faith came from the messenger of god know as Baha’u’llah.  It was a long process.  He was thrown into exile into various countries such as Istanbul and Egypt.  This was very hard for him to keep the people who believed in his teachings together so that the faith could progress.  Baha’u’llah is the most recent of messengers to come to earth.  His predecessors, Buddha, Abraham, Mohamed and Jesus to name a few have all taught each other and lead to one another which has now lead to the Baha’i faith.  Therefore the Baha’i faith embraces all religions of all people.  It is important to know the founder of a religion, for the reason of questioning.  By knowing the life of a founder, one can know the true reason for rituals and other parts of the religion so as to make certain that the religion is the right choice for them.

Rastafari and Reggae

Dark Angel by Tribal Seeds:

 

Dark angel

Descending from the sky

Come to darken I night

She wiped away the years I cried

Which way does this angel...

 

Stride, yea now

I was in a rampage

Dwell in my lonesome

Talking to the ears of no one

Dwell in deep depression

Sad. In desperate need of someone

Building up mental sufferation

Asking for deliverance of just one girl

One to come cross my path and proceed on my road

 

Dark angel

Descending from the sky

Come to darken I night

She wiped away the years I cried

Which way does this angel...

 

Said I have her, said I had her

Said I want her, just don't need her

When you receive what you crave, you still wont be satisfied

The questions still roll in my mind

Yet I wouldn't leave her for false assumption

Don't want the company of depression

She's the one who answered the call

Lift I to my feet when my knees gave to the fall

And it was just one girl

It was just one girl

To hear I, hear I call

 

 

This is a song by the Rastafarian influenced band tribal Seeds.  It definitely has some of the symbols of the Rastafarian religion in the lyrics.  They say I instead of me in many places, which is part of the Rasta lingo.  The title might at first glance be of a negative connotation, but the “dark” in Dark Angel actually is a good thing for black is good to the Rastafarians. There is the feeling of a simple life with the line “if you receive what you crave you still won’t be satisfied.” The dark angel darkens the night and makes things better for the person in the story the lyrics are telling.

 

Another thing that is interesting about this band is that none of the members are black.  In fact they are all white which would be evil and bad in the Rastafarian religion.  This is an example of traditions changing.  Back in the day, this would not have been accepted, but as the generations pass, the Rastafarian religion is branching out to everyone.

Bob Marly And Rasta

Check this video out about the Rastafarian people:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCUy48bt3B8            

 

            The video showed a variety of symbols for the Rastafarian religion.  I noticed the colors red yellow green and black within all of the dress and housing of the people.  The color black was embraced as a good color rather than the evil that it normally stands for.  The people wore the letter R around their neck to symbolize the right.  There were also many drawings of the symbol R/X, which means right over wrong.  They wore red turbans to preserve the dreadlocks that help the people not forget their African roots.  The Rastafarian people have some very unique rituals.  They rise at 3 in the morning to read psalms and worship.  They also carry out Shabbat, which is taken from the Jewish religion and is a day of rest from worship.  There was also a quick clip of a man puffing on a Doobie, which is also a very strong symbol in the Rastafarian religion.

 

            My view of the Rastafarian religion has not changed much since seeing this video.  In comparing my view as seen through Bob Marley.  The Rasta colors, dreads, right over wrong and weed are all associated with this religion.  However, I did not know how dedicated the people were to their religion.  The turbans and the rituals make the religion more real to me.  I had a view of a laid back group of people but they actually take it very seriously.

Serpents From Heaven

I think that everyone has heard of the theory that the earth will end in 2012.  There are many theories on how, but the most popular is the idea that an asteroid or comet collision will destroy our home.  There is evidence that there is a tenth body that orbits our sun (the eight planets, Pluto and Planet X).  Planet X is supposed to have a wide elliptical orbit that helps explain the variance in earth and the other planet’s orbits.  This is very similar to the type of orbits that comets have.  The theory is that this Planet X will destroy earth.  So, what does this have to do with religion?

 

In what is now modern day Iraq, there was a plethora of tablets dug up that are thought o be the oldest scriptures.  There is one that has a chilling message of a great flood that will end earth.  One tablet has a detailed star map that includes a tenth planet known a Nibiru between mars and Jupiter.  The writings tell us that the information came from the Annunaki, (aliens).  These are reptile like creatures that came to earth from planet X or Nibiru.  They came to earth to mine material for their planet and created more men for slaves.  This idea that fiery reptile like creatures from the sky created man is not foreign to many cultures.  In Japan emperors are descendants from dragon gods.  Australian natives have in their stories a reptilian race that rules humans.  China has the teachings of a serpent queen interbreeding with man.  Some of the Middle Eastern cultures believe that a serpent race created man.  The Mayans teach that their people are decedents of the serpent.  There are many other examples but here are just a few.

 

This is evidence of many religions coming together over a vast amount of cultures just as the belief in the god of Israel came to the Ethiopians.

 

If you want to watch more here is the video where I got all of my info.  I checked the sites the creator of this video gave at the end and they seem pretty legitimate.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIiwSeew0KI&NR=1