On Thurs 7 Aug 08 @9PM I had a deeply moving and spiritual experience when I lit candles and deeyas for Tibet. This was in unison with everyone in my time zone and done globally. I'd like to explore this and share my experiences with you and hear yours as we participate in universal collective prayer events together. I hope to work together with all the universe's beings as we move toward the ideal of Universal Collective Prayer.
Come join me in Universal Collective Prayer!
May God Bless Us All!
UCP-Universal Collective Prayer is produced by Meady's Musings Production . Copyright 2006-2011
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
Footnotes: a. Luke 2:2 Or This census took place before"
Christmas Eve Bread copyright Meady's Musings Production
Tonight on the Eve of Christmas 2010 as promised we have again been visited by our Brother in UCP-Deacon Greg Kirk to say for us a prayer! :)However technological difficulties made us lose the copy of the exact prayer and so he sent us a new one with renewed blessings just fresh from his Christmas Eve evening mass and is also in spirit with us tonight! So here it is along with what was our Christmas Prayer on the Advent calendar last year!
Tonight's Christmas Eve Prayer by Deacon Greg Kirk
Gracious God, You could not contain your love for your people. When your people did not or could not come to you, you came to us. A brilliant star is a symbol and reminder that your Son, Jesus, is the Light of the World. This Christmas may His Light and Love be born anew within us. Empower us to share this Light and Love with those around us. And may Peace finally reign in our world. Help us to share in the Divinity of Christ, the One who humbled Himself and came to share in our humanity. Amen THE CHRISTMAS PRAYER (first said in 2009) By Deacon Greg Kirk
The Season of Light
Christmas is Light, the darkness has been overcome by one who came to love. Christmas is more than decorating trees, exchanging gifts and gathering with loved ones. Christmas is an opportunity to embrace the Light - to open to the power, bliss and peace the Light brings.
Jesus of Nazareth desired to know the Light and live within its embrace so deeply, he became one with the Light. He left a path, a way, for you and I to share in this bliss. "Love God with all your being and love your neighbor as you love yourself." Jesus assured us that we are loved completely, unconditionally. He encouraged us to root our lives in the hope and promise of this Love.
My prayer this Christmas is for people everywhere to experience the Light and Love within them, to know more deeply of their beauty and dignity, to experience the Essence or True Self within and to find the freedom to be the people they were created to be.
Darkness abounds in our world, in many circumstances and ways. Embracing the Light -being open to every person's truth, daring to love others, especially the vulnerable and marginalized, causes the darkness to recede and the Light to shine more brilliantly.
Dare to be Light, dare to be Love. Dare to be one with the One who is Light and Love as Jesus did. You will find new possibilities and power. You will find yourself. And you will find yourself within the heart of God.
No one knows for certain it seems really when Jesus Christ of Nazareth was born...in fact the 'old church' it seems never really celebrated his birth...his death and resurrection were seen as more important a celebration and we here at UCP have to say with agree with that! But regardless of not knowing the date for centuries Jesus Christ's birthday has been celebrated on the 25th of December and really all December long as the Advent.
Now don't get us wrong readers...there is actually a very good UCP reason to us saying all of this...you see really Christmas is already UCP at its finest because it is really already just a mis-mash of traditions from all over the world and really people from all over the world of all faiths and races and this and that celebrate it in their own special way. Yes at the centre of the montage for the festival is Jesus Christ of Nazareth who is a being of great importance here on UCP...on planet earth and Universe wide. But really he isn't doing much in Christmas except lending his name to as he is still a baby at the end of the Christmas story as most know it. And you see it is more than likely the case that most of the stuff about his birth that is celebrated for Christmas is fictionalized around some of these references in the Bible:
Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Luke 1:35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy–the Son of God.
Matthew 1:23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).
Luke 2:9-12 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. (10) And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. (11) For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (12) And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”
Luke 2:13-14 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, (14) “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
Micah 5:2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. ”
Isaiah 9:6-7 (6) For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (7) Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.
But what really is important is this:
Christmas is a time of good cheer...of sharing and giving...compassion and loving... But we will let the writer that told Virginia that yes there was a Santa Claus tell you more here because really he did it so much better than we feel any of us on UCP can manage to chalk it up today so here he says it all...as he talks about the persona of one of the great fictionalized chracters associated with Christmas- Santa Claus who in spirit is Christ like and so in spirit for us here at UCP he does exist!
And really most of the goodness associated with Christmas is indeed behaviour that can be seen as Christ like...behaviour that Jesus Christ of Nazareth would have displayed throughout his life. Behaviour that we should follow as an example not just at Christmas time but all year true! So really we at Christmas time should not just celebrate his birth but his life and how he lived it and try to emulate it!
We here at UCP apologise for not issuing a blog on every day of the calendar but we hope you've been catching The Christmas Adventures of the Purple Elephant and the Little Mouse over on our parent blog Meady's Musings and hope to be regular from here on in...hopefully daily...and make sure to stay tuned for our special Christmas Eve prayer! :)
But on our posting today on Day 9 of the Advent calender we here at UCP would like to discuss the concept of the four Sundays of Advent! According to Christianity the Lord created the Heavens and Earth in six days and then on the seventh day he rested. This day in the Gregorian calendar is Sunday and traditionally for centuries and centuries is when Christians go to church. So just like there is the Advent Calendar all December long each Sunday in December is also an exciting countdown to Christmas and many churches mark the count down by lighting candles...I like how this site describes the whole ritual so here is an excerpt of it from the site Ken Collin's website:
"You light candles at the beginning of each service and snuff them out at the end.
* On the first Sunday in Advent, you light the first candle. Have your service, then snuff out the candle. * On the second Sunday in Advent, you light two candles, first the one from the previous Sunday, then the second one. Have your service, then snuff out the candles. * On the third Sunday in Advent, you light the two candles from the previous weeks, in the order you lit them before, then you add the third one. Have your service, then snuff out the candles. * On the fourth Sunday in Advent, you light the three candles from the previous weeks, in the order you lit them before, then you light the fourth one. Have your service, then snuff out the candles. You should get a stair-step effect, since each candle is a different length by now.
If you have a fifth candle in the center, then on Christmas Day you light the four candles in the order you lit them before, and then you light the center candle. Have your service, then snuff out the candles.
You notice how I emphasize snuffing out the candles at the end of each service? This has absolutely no liturgical significance whatsoever, but it is vitally important and you must not leave it out. It prevents the candles from burning your house down."
I recommend that you snuff out the candles, rather than blowing them out. The reason is that if you blow them out, you might spray hot wax over everything.
And here is a lovely video of the ritual...the candles are usually part of a wreath called the Advent wreath:
However just as ceremonial bathing on Kartik cleans us afresh to start anew...year after year on UCP we like to explore religious festivals from a new point of view...afresh...as if like babies we were exploring it for the first time...for as Jesus says you must make your heart like that of a child...then and only then can you enter the kingdom of his father! :)
So this year...2010...we've been exploring the Kartik Nahan again...looking at it this time from the point view of it being a ceremonial bath...for cleansing of sorts not really so much of the body but of the heart, soul and to some extent perhaps the mind...at least on the psychic level.
In one of the legends of Kartik it is said that when Lord Vishnu took the form of the Dwarf Brahmin Avatar or Vaman Avatar and then grew to large proportions after being granted three steps of land as dakshina with one step he then covered the whole earth and by the second step the entire material universe piercing the roof of the cosmos really with no where else for the third step to go so that King Mahabali in order to fulfill his promise offers up his head for the third step and is crushed by Lord Vishnu thus obtaining immortality for his benevolence in fulfilling his promise...as sides to this story if is said that through the hole in the universal roof Mata Ganga flowed finally entering the earthly plane! (See video below where the water that Bramha pours on the feet of Vaman Avatar can been seen as Ganga.)
So to touch her (Ganga) in her watery form is said to indeed be a very powerful thing for the devotee. Her water can cleanse devotees of all their sins...however even if you don't take this in the literal sense and only in the symbolic sense...let's still consider this today...if the water did have magical powers and so you could start over afresh and anew...freeing your mind of the past...how would you feel?...how would you be? Please consider this today as we here at UCP celebrate Kartik Nahan 2010!
Meady's Musings Production does not own this picture or its rights and a re-print of it can be bought on this site.
It's the funniest thing...discussing the festival of Diwali and how it's celebrated world over with a friend...I came to thinking...well in many parts of the world Diwali is celebrated as a many days festival and as such on one of the days depending on the part of India you are in or from where in India your ancestors came Govardhan Puja is performed.
Now our point of raising this here on the prayers is to do with some of the series we have had on here before...in particular the God series where we explored God as water but we didn't explore however God as rain did we?...but it is interesting and it is why we are bringing this up on the prayers now...God as rain or rainfall in Hinduism is personified as the God Indra...he is also God of Gods or Deva hi Dev or God of the God Kingdom or God of Heaven or King of Heaven i.e. svargaloka.
Now we can see how rain or rainfall can be personified as a deity on its own i.e. deified especially by peoples of the past and rural peoples of today as in an agrarian society one needs rainfall to get those crops growing and flourishing...and it's how our stories here on the prayers begin and tie in....
Govardhan puja is done to celebrate the great mountain and the act of Krishna while incarnate on earth lifting it to shelter a village form the wrath of Indra...as he was pouring down his rain...because you see he had made it that the farmers at the time had to pray to him to get rainfall for their crops but the thing is when the farmers had to spend this whole chunk of time preparing and praying to him...well they couldn't tend their crops. And so Krishna said to them:
"Why do this? You people are farmers and should be spending your time tending to your crops not praying for rain! LOL! Are you people crazy! LOL!"
But the people said:
"Oh Krishna but we must as if we don't Indra will get mad! Really mad and we will either not have enough rain to nourish our crops or either he will rain down his wrath on us and flood out all our crops."
"So Krishna went on and on expounding his view of Karma yoga...recall this post here...and he told the people he would deal with Indra and they should tend their crops."
Now Indra got mad...he did get really mad! And he rained and rained his wrath down...but Krishna the supreme being that he is...lifted up Goverdhan hill with his finger and shelthered the entire village...crops, villagers, cows and all! So hence Krishna is seen to have defeated or humbled Indra...who came and asked for forgiveness...so the lessons learnt are that although the elements and nature can be worshipped they are just part of the whole. And the Universal or Supreme One himself, her or itself in this case personified by Krishna in the end is incharge. And such a being does not act on pride nor requires grand prayers and offerings onto to him,her or it to perform their roles. It's what they must do...in the same way so too we have roles that we should perform well...i.e. perform karma yoga...right action...that is each of us have our roles to act out...and we should act them out as well as we can! Indra, you, Krishna and me and all of us here on the prayers! :)Because even the Supreme One personified here as Krishna never asked to be glorified for what he did...he was just doing his karma to preach to the villagers and then to lift the mountain to protect them from the wrong actions of Indra as he Krishna is the Supreme One and as such his role is to do these things! LOL!
So Karma Yoga it is! :)
But we all in the end like to give praise even though it's not needed so when the farmers had done tending their crops and like us...when we are done with our daily chores...they did join in UCP:Universal Collective Prayers and although Krishna and the hill were just doing their jobs...the villagers honoured the great mountain for sheltering them and Krishna for lifting it and there you have it they performed Govardhan puja! :) Prayers from the heart...not extortion (you see because Indra was saying if you didn't pray to him he'd not do his role and that was just wrong man!)...and prayers not instead of your other work but after all your work is done!
Don't mind the accents of the Hare Krishnas from ISKCON here in the Youtube vid below showing the Govardhan puja as even if their mouths form the Sanskrit and Hindi words kinda badly their hearts are in the right place...and they're Bhaktivedantas after all so that's all good! And the beautiful picture at the top of the blog is also an original ISKCON print if I'm not mistaken!
So we've decided to blatantly plagiarise a blog from another place to keep up with the Diwali celebs on the prayers...well with credit so it's legal...well not really plagiarise anyway seeing as it's really just a link back...but here is the cartoon from the top of the blog...
And since the cartoon speaks of Amitabh Bachchan we here at UCP thought we would just let you know of how he is in reality spending Diwali right now in India in his own words according to this article:
"Superstar Amitabh Bachchan when asked about his Diwali plans said, “”My father’s marked verse on the Ramayana shall be read, a gentle prayer shall go up for all, from all; sweets and bonuses shall be disbursed to staff by members of the family. There are now preparations on for Diwali, the lights for the house are being put up. The simple single toned white-yellow lights will be put all over the boundary and ceiling of the house and once up, they will be switched on when we shall finish our Diwali puja and light the first lamp.”
Well as far as we see Big B is going traditional way and we will definitely see the junior B with the Bachchan bahu celebrating Diwali."
And for sure in his own words with these twittering tweets from his Twitter account:
"# T175 -A united family is a model of unlimited strength ! about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -Just back from a family jamboree ! Nothing in the universe can ever be a bigger force than the coming together of family !! about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -The greatest joy of life is to live up to commitment ! Give all to receive all ! about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 - सुख शांति आप सब के जीवन में सदा बनी रहे . मंगलम मंगलम मंगलम ! about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -लक्ष्मी माता देवी का स्वरुप आप सभी के घरों मे प्रवेश हो . यही इस्वर से प्रार्थना है . about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -दीपावली की अनेक अनेक शुभकामनाएं . ये वर्ष, हर वर्ष आप सब के जीवन में खुशियाँ ही खुशियाँ लाये . आप सब का जीवन मंगलमय हो . नमस्कार about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -A most prosperous Deepavali to all ..may all the Gods and Goddesses shower their unstinted bounty on you .. be environment conscious ! about 6 hours ago via web
# T175 -It is remarkable how sufficient water intake can revive energy ... just did some gallons of it and feeling like conquering the world ! about 20 hours ago via web
# T175 -Up and about ... intake of water is minimal and need to improve that .. pooja in the house today ..and tomorrow .. love festivity about 20 hours ago via web "
Remember we said if we were having any particular Diwali fun here at UCP we'd come share it with you all...although in general we here at UCP are on a bit of a go easy until the launch of the Advent calendar for 2010. Well we've been having that particular fun and so here we go! Here's a UCP poem for ya...it was developed for a small Diwali function that we are a part of organising yearly and was read by a lovely lady there at the function! It's particularly about Diwali or Divali (as it is often spelt there)as it evolved in the country of Trinidad and Tobago which is the home of the Meady's Musings Production House that houses the producers of UCP! So although UCP normally spells Diwali with the 'w' throughout this particular ode you will see it spelt as Divali with the 'v'. Although UCP normally goes with the 'w' spelling to cater for the wider audience it banters too...after all it is UCP-Universal Collective Prayer and so not just for those in Trinidad and Tobago and most other parts of the Hindu world spells it with the 'w'.
So here it goes...UCP's Ode to how Divali evolved in Trinidad and Tobago as it came as a festival with the indentured labourers in the 19th century from India and then grew into a national celebration!
Divali-An Evolution
A UCP poem written in free verse or shall we say the dance that is UCP! :)
You came in the hearts of ancestors From a continent far away Your light burned brightly within those souls That occupied bodies that toiled and toiled
The Ramayan they read and often sang As your deeyas they lit to celebrate the return of Raja Ram For he is the hero of that great epic That Sant Tulsidas had spun
The Goddess Lakshmi on your special evening came To homes made of mud, bamboo and tapia grass Prayers were said and then deeyas were lit The villages came alive With a thousand lights and smiles One neighbour offerred food and drink to the other Gifts were unwrapped and new things begun
And so you came to them and then us Year after year after year And we continued to celebrate your arrival With good faith, reverence, cheer and prayer
The festivities began to spread Whole villages gathered To extol Shri Ram in the form of village theatre A leela is a story and a story is a leela So this story of Ram is Ramleela And some of us have done this leela a 100 years since this year
We continued to gather to celebrate you Bamboo bursting Small stages performers began to alight However on that one special night All the villagers still stayed at home To welcome the Goddess Lakshmi And to bright deeyas light
Then we became independent And the festivities continued to become more abundant Larger events were held Festivities came to towns Garlanded mayors sang songs of praise Your flame grew brighter As momentum for you grew and grew Oh Divali we so loved you So much so that in '86 in your name a village was born Divali Nagar it was named You see you now had your own village And wait that's not all...
Love for you continued to overwhelm us Every office and company started to sing your praise To celebrate you became the vogue Your name had spread throughout the nation You became a tourist sensation Everyone wanted to dress for you in Indian fashions
And today Oh Divali Your lights continue to burn brightly Not only in the hearts of a few But in the hearts of a nation For you, Divali this must be overwhelming To see your praise go on in weeks of celebration To see brilliant fireworks displays To have your own personal village To be celebrated across the nation
But one thing Divali I'm sure must make your heart the warmest Is that despite the evolution of you and us Your light still burns brightly within our souls We still as a people toil and toil We still welcome the Goddess Lakshmi to our homes And still special deeyas we light so bright As with loved ones with sit in prayer and celebration For on that special day named after you... It is Divali!
According to Ecclesiastes 3 of the Bible (King James Version): "1 To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3 A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4 A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5 A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6 A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7 A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8 A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. 9 What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth? 10 I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. 11 He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. 12 I know that there is no good in them, but for a man to rejoice, and to do good in his life. 13 And also that every man should eat and drink, and enjoy the good of all his labour, it is the gift of God. 14 I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him. 15 That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past. 16 And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there. 17 I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work. 18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts. 19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity. 20 All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again. 21 Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth? 22 Wherefore I perceive that there is nothing better, than that a man should rejoice in his own works; for that is his portion: for who shall bring him to see what shall be after him?"
This no doubt would have been the inspiration that was extrapolated upon by The Byrds in their 1960s hit 'Turn! Turn! Turn!' to come up with this lovely tune!
And here on UCP the time has come...to put an end to the God Series and to take a bit of a rest...have some time for reflection and meditation...perhaps this is like the Hindu or Vedic concept of a breath of Vishnu but not on such a large and grand scale of course! Just on our smaller scale...if we don't breathe in we can't breathe out...so if we don't rest, recuperate, reflect and meditate we cannot think, create and do!
So we are going to be away on UCP for a bit...also the Hindu calendar really is winding down now again...we just have Diwali and Kartik Snaan to go and we have enough content on here from over the years to keep readers entertained from our archives...but we will from time to time come on to add some fresh content if we have some particular Diwali fun for instance! But really readers can check in with our sister blog-Meady's Musings too as we are about to spend November as a Nanowrimo participant!
Of course we will be back 1st of Dec fresh and new...God and Universe willing to open our Advent calender yet again as we ring in the Christmas celebs for the year 2010! Boy time sure does fly in this dance we call UCP:Universal Collective Prayer! So we'll catch you here and there in November but please breathe in as we come back daily from 1st Dec! :)
We return to the elements once more on the God Series as we explore the concept of God as Water. We also join in with our parent blog Meady's Musings as they mark Blog Action Day 2010(by discussing water and the need to get it world over) and Global Handwashing Day!
First of all let's recall past blogs on UCP about the concept of water as deity...as we did this before when we marked the Hindu festival of Kartik Snaan where we spoke about how Hinduism worships water as the Goddess Ganga (also the name of the largest and most powerful river in India.)
Water is also seen as an important conduit between the divine and man in most major religions...for example in Christianity it is often used in Baptisms.
In Greek mythology water was also deified as in Hinduism but unlike in Hinduism it was seen as masculine taking on the name Poseidon when seen as a king...so Poseidon is the King of the sea! Poseidon has a similar counterpart in the Roman God- Neptune.
There is another subtle difference from in Hinduism as well...because in Hinduism Ganga is see as a Goddess but she is also the Water itself...where as in these mythologies i.e. Greek and Roman Poseidon and Neptune are Gods of the Sea. So they aren't exactly the water itself but have power over it and so can manifest some of its attributes but still not the water itself like how Ganga is!
And that difference although subtle makes all the difference to us on UCP. You see to deify the actual element itself as Hinduism does...it takes on a whole different meaning...it tells us how much this element means to man directly...it is man's very life blood...without it he could not live...yet it can also destroy man if it goes rampant in nature...and on the spiritual side it is man's conduit to the divine...Oh WATER! No wonder we here at UCP have written more than one ode to you and poets everywhere have saluted you...and will continue to do so for eternity!
Today on UCP we take a break from the elements although we have one more element to go...WATER! However we do so with good reason...you see our parent blog Meady's Musings along with its Purple Elephant and Little Mouse are celebrating Blog Action Day 2010 and the action on that day is well...WATER! It's about getting water to the world over! It's also Global Handwashing Day courtesy the people at Clean the World...so we are planning to join forces with them also on that day so on UCP we will celebrate God as WATER!
However it is also fitting to celebrate mother on the God series right now anyway as in Hinduism it's the festival of Nav Ratri...the nine nights celebration of the Mother as Divine!
Now we here on UCP since its inception have been surrendering to the Divine Mother...sitting on her lap...and even at times if necessary suckling at her breasts for nourishment...so we are no strangers here to celebrating God as Mother...so we need not even write a fresh post on this but merely dance forth and celebrate with her instead as we recall all our loving memories with her over the years! :) So let's crank up ours and one of the fav bhajans of all time by all Hindu fans of the Divine Mother as well...'Mein To Aarti Utaaroon' from the classic film 1970's film- 'Jai Santoshi Maa'!
The Divine Mother Leadership Series lasted for nine nights earlier this year as we celebrated each night of that Nav Ratri Festival with a post as follows: Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6 Day 7 Day 8 Day 9
Hanuman (the shadow of a hanging pendant) Meady's Musings Production 2010.
As we continue our look of the perception of God as 'the elements' on the God series today we look at the element of Wind! In Hinduism the God of Wind is called Pavan but he isn't as popular as his son...Hanuman who is often referred to as Pavan-Putra Hanuman i.e. the son of the Wind God, Hanuman. In keeping with the twists and turns that is Hinduism the God of Wind in Hinduism has other names than Pavan...here are just a few of them:
-Vayu -Vata from the root of the Sanskrit word for atmosphere vatavaran
So technically Hanuman could have been called Vayu-Putra Hanuman or Vata-Putra even! :) However he is most often called Pavan-Putra Hanuman!
Then there is the all famous Prana or vital breath in Vedanta! The Prana makes up one of the five organs of vitality or sensation in Vedantic philosophy. The five organs are listed as follows:
So they altogether represent the physiological organs: nose, mouth, eyes, ears and mind respectively.
So it seems what Hinduism is saying is without the wind we could not be alive...makes sense after all as us humans are aerobic beings i.e. we need to breathe in the oxygen from air to survive and also to be able to expel carbon dioxide as if it is accumulated in our body it would kill us! So there! :)
However Hinduism is also mystifying the Wind...making an ode to him...glorifying him in poetry...deifying him even...so you have the Wind God...and he even had a son who is way more famous than him...and it seems Hinduism attributed strength to the wind cause all his sons were mighty strong guys! :) You see Bheem from the Mahabharat is also said to be a son of Vayu...so you have Hanuman and Bheem...the strong guys...sons of the Wind! So it must be they got their strength from good ole 'elemental' daddy! :)
So UCP salutes you oh wind! And to do so we hail your famous son in the form of the Hanuman Chalisa and then follow it with a celebration of you in what we here at UCP like to call John Denverism....but I guess can be seen to as a form of religion that worships nature itself...well and I think that religion is called...well...Nature worship! So John play on...and sing your windsong!:)
Our last episode in the God series looked at God as Fire. We would like to continue on that trend and cover all the elements on the next few episodes of the series. As a result we felt it fitting to cover the element of Earth today since it is a Friday and normally based on Hindu centric views we usually surrender to the Divine Mother on a Friday and the Earth is always seen as Mother as well. We’ve never come upon a single religious or cultural view hence far that has seen Earth as Father...don’t know why really...although I can see why they’d see Earth as Mother but not sure why not Father as well...
But anyway let’s stick with the world traditions here and go along and explore the concept of God as Mother Earth!
We’ll start with Hinduism then...
The Earth is worshipped in Hindu rituals all the time and Hindus bow to the Earth in fact they often beg her forgiveness before they allow their feet to trample upon her each morning...just check out this lovely prayer noting this!
However UCP’s favourite concept of God being perceived as Earth is when in the Ramayan, Sita Maa is seen as born from the earth and eventually returns to her Mother...and this touching scene in the TV serial version of The Ramayan where she begs Mother Earth to open up and receive her again epitomises it for us!
As a whole we here at UCP can see why man as a whole even if it is seen from a scientific evolutionary path...divorce of all UCP and spirit...would hold great respect and awe for Earth. And why as a result worship of the Earth or its personification as God would have eventually developed. After all we live on planet Earth and it is from her we are nourished and it is where we are sheltered and eek out our existence. I guess it is why she is always personified as a her ...as a mother not a father...because she is seen as the ultimate nourisher...we are in a sense in our particular mother’s wombs as we stay grounded to planet Earth by gravity while she holds all of us in her womb....feeding us...sheltering us...Mother Earth is our foothold in this great and wild Universe! In fact some from the Production House have celebrated Mother Earth for Preserving Our Lives in the past at this Diwali Festival Show!
So next up on the God series is Wind! So we'll catch you then!
Before we go into the God Series today on UCP we thought we'd hail out all of those sharing in the Ganesh Fest this year...also known as Ganesh Ustav or Chaturthi or Chauth. As readers may know he is indeed one of our fav perceptions of God here on UCP and have often celebrated or played with him over the two years that this blog has existed. So today we thought we'd share the memories to celebrate Ganesh Ustav 2010! So here we go recalling all the times we had with good ole Ganapati or Ganesh and of course one of his kind is at the very heart of UCP because our parent blog is Meady's Musings and we all know a Purple Elephant and little Mouse live with us here at the Production House from where it all happens! :)
So as we sing and dance to this song take a look at our archive of all things Ganesh over the years...
UCP celebrates the end of the month of fasting that is Ramadan! And salutes all those who successfully completed this period of fasting. We hope it was a time well spent where spiritual questions were asked and lessons were learnt well while enjoying the time with Allah! This year Ramadan ends at a not so good time on the global landscape for UCP though...I mean all must have heard of the threat by an American pastor to burn the Holy Quran and how he is now playing around with the idea of 'shall I or shall I not' depending on whether a mosque/Islamic cultural centre is built at 'Ground zero'
Now UCP wasn't around in 2001 when the famous '9 11 bombings' took place but you can clearly see why we needed UCP then and still do now! It's a pity when men of the cloth in particular carry on like this...I mean why can't we all just get along and engage in UCP already! But in reality we here at UCP know that there are many who don't see prayer in all and any religion as part of a universal collective prayer and instead like to carry on as if one prayer is the only prayer and perhaps even go as far as to discount the prayer of another! And that's just sad...it's so sad that it makes having to do this blog post be the saddest blog post ever topping out in sadness over the blog post we had to do when there were bombings in Mumbai in 2008.
But UCP is about happiness not sadness and we really hope no Qurans are burnt tomorrow or at any other time...and we do hope that terrorist world over learn instead to engage in this thing we like to call UCP-Universal Collective Prayer! Because you know what? If they did dance forth like us in this thing we call UCP and explore it no matter what religion it was...well they'd not want to blow up things! And so our Eid Mubarak prayer and wishes is for all the world to realise and see that terrorists are simply terrorists...and people who engage in prayer are simply prayer givers and no one...no matter what religion they offer these prayers in...if they do it from their heart and soul in true communion with God however they perceive him or her or it to be would ever want to blow up things in this beautiful plane but would instead want to only create, create, create and dance forth in this thing we call UCP-Universal Collective Prayer! :)
So let's now celebrate Eid 2010 as we crank up the tunes once more! :) But we also put in a snip from the film 'My Name is Khan' in the hope that we here at UCP throw our two cents in the hat for if not 'religious acceptance for all' at least 'religious tolerance' on this Eid day 2010! :)
A Havan fire in a Hindu ceremony, Trinidad and Tobago Meady's Musings Production 2010
Worshippers at Jing'an Temple, Shanghai China Jun 2010. Meady's Musings Production 2010
Today on the God series we examine the concept of God as fire…from the Ancient Vedic Homa and Havan to the Old Testament’s fiery appearance before Moses to UCP’s recent visit to China where it was pyrotechnics galore…what’s man’s obsession with God like fire?
Well we here at UCP have been thinking…the gyan yoga caps on…not the bhakti ones…so we thought and thought and thought some more just like Winnie the Pooh and here is what we came up with after we thought even some more!
Well if we look at what fire is used for and if we go with what modern science tells us about the ‘evolution’ of man well if they were cave men…well they must have once they discovered fire’s presence first of all…either when lighting struck something and it burned or when a volcano erupted or a fire just burst out on its due to the searing heat focusing on dry wood for instance...well they must have been amazed! And I guess first they would have been scared of it but then they would have played around with it and realised that if they was its friend well hmmm...it could do loads for them couldn't it? Warm them from the cold...cook their food so it could taste better...melt some materials so they could join together...all sorts of things...but the fire had to be feared too...I mean it could burn you...kill you even...it could be a fierce beast let me tell ya! LOL!
So perhaps if we go on and on...in this analysis we could see how Man started to revere and at the same time fear fire...and so as a society evolved it's practices, rites and rituals would have incorporated this and made fire become an integral part of religions world over! Myth upon myth being woven around it...but hey this is not that sort of blog...it's UCP of course...we engage in Universal Collective Prayer here not analysis and speculation of how man and societies evolved! LOL! So let's get back to the UCP of it!
Well you see for whatever speculative reason it may be...Man for sure does revere fire and also fear it and it for sure forms major parts of practically all the world religions. In Hinduism it is seen as an integral portal between the divine world and the material/human plane on which we live. Contact can be made with God throught the Vedic Homa or Havan. In fact sometimes God even appears or manifests in the Havan! And they've also given fire it's on status as the God Agni. Man infact a whole line of Brahmins have even been dedicated to working the fire! Yep...the Agnihotri Brahmins. For sure I think the Hindus have to be one of the top rankers when it comes to perceiving God in the form or fire. However you see it in Buddhism and Catholicism in their rites and rituals too!
However to me the classic case of fire getting on 'bad' is in the movie, the Ten Commandents...I mean it is so clear cut here God coming as fire in the burning bushnell no doubt! :) To talk to Moses and look how 'bad' he gets on! Whoa! Moses had to be some brave man to stand up and take that message! :)
Baby Krishna in the Palm of My Hand! :) Meady's Musings Production 2010.
Krishna Janamashtami is always a big and reflective time for us here at UCP because it was on the day of that festival in 2008 in the Western Gregorian calendar that UCP was launched i.e. Krishna Janamashtami 2008 on 23 August 2008. So as a result today Krishna Janamashtami to Krishna Janamashtami again UCP is roughly 2 years old or just a little over two years old if you count by the Western Gregorian calendar! :)It was launched in a big way back then I, Meady the founder of all of this had a Satyanarayan katha at my home...you see I like my new found friends Lily and Xavier was searching for Sat or Satya...the truth...I wanted to reflect on it...explore it...and share my journey into it here with you...and I'm happy to continue to do this with you...so two years into the dance...here we are...here we are...here we are again! :) Happy Birthday Shri Krishna and Happy Birthday UCP! :) And to celebrate I recall the blogs from our first bday and our launch. And also crank up the tunes! :)
And hey look at my photos below and the one up above...I even cleaned out my little baby Krishna murti I bought in London years ago for this mega birthday bash...he can sit in the palm or my hand and yet he grew up to be the one from whose mouth the gita spewed forth! AMAZING GUY THIS KRISHNA MAN! :)
Baby Krishna with the Gita He Grew Up to Expound- Meady's Musings Production 2010
We here at UCP are sorry that we haven't be progressing the God series as quickly as we like but we seem to keep getting detained here, there and everywhere!Haha! Get it...just like God is here, there and everywhere! :) OK corny jokes aside...we really are sorry but our day job and other actual UCP events have us tired out by the time we come to the computer to write...so the blogs are in our head but we can't get the song and dance typed out here! Oh dear!
We are however going to try with all our might and prayer...Inshallah to get those blogs out to you next week though so look for these topics in the God series next week:
Wed: God in the form of fire Fri: God as the Divine Mother
However we had to come on here to let you know we've linked! A couple months ago while still on vacation in China we were contacted by Lily and Xavier who like us are exploring spirituality but in their own way. While we engage and explore this thing we call UCP-Universal Collective Prayer they have something going on to find and explore the truth and they call it the Truth Contest! What a cool name! :) It's not really a contest though. It is Lily and Xavier's attempt to well hey let me put it in their own words...here is what they wrote to me: "We are college students who run a website dedicated to seeking, defining, and spreading the truth of life. We have studied your website, and we like what you are saying..."
So hey...let's move forward with our dancing feet in this universe and explore the truth out there as we join in UCP-Universal Collective Prayer! They have linked UCP on their site here.
Welcome Truth Contest and Lily and Xavier...We've put up an official link to the Truth Contest on our side bar but you can link to them from this blog post as well by clicking here. Currently the top five topics that are being discussed on their blog are: The Present (universal truth) The Present (with religion) Truth Is The Way The God Memorandum Integrity
Hmmm...so as our God series unfolds we can see us interacting with them for sure! :)
Today as I launch the God series I approach you my readers in the same free flowing formless manner in which I perceive God! I don't know where I want this to go and I don't know what shape or form it will take or evolve or unfold into! ‘Neti neti!’- The famous Vedic Sanskrit two liner that announces ‘I am not this! I am not that!’ comes to mind and my estimation of it seems to suggest if ‘I am not this’ and ‘I am not that’ then perhaps I'm either nothing or everything!
So I launch the God series today with the discussion that God can be perceived as formless. Of the major modern religions I think Islam focuses on this formlessness the most! So much so that there is strictly no use of imagery or iconography what so ever when discussing God or Allah in Islam. However most Eastern religious traditions although on the surface may appear to be shrouded in iconographies also at their core embrace this formless concept or perception of God. My understanding is though that for instance in Hinduism it is believed that not everyone can perceive God as formless as their minds are not able grasp this and so they need more concrete things and manifestations to be able to grasp the infinite. Hence the Bhaktivedantic approaches where for instance God is perceived in the form of Krishna. Here the devotee is asked to focus on God in a particular form to start with but even then the devotee is eventually shown and expected to see when he is ready that God transcends this form.
However, like with most things in life, balance is the key and one can always argue that when is too much too much? Can a devotee on this path never end up seeing the forest from the trees and get lost forever in the world of iconography and fixation on a particular form! Hardly likely though at least in Hinduism since even then the devotee is usually exposed to a myriad of forms and so that alone should give a signal to him that God is not one particular form or shape. And then too in Hinduism the devotee has an eternity of infinite lifetimes to figure it out so what’s the hurry already? LOL!
Yet it can be said perhaps when one becomes a true bhakt they may tend to fixate on the one form and maybe…however the flip side to the discussion is…well is there a risk when we just go with the ‘cold turkey’ approach and see God as formless straight up like in Islam well do we then run the risk of never quite being able to connect with God in that manner as if we had transitioned from form to formless? That will always be an ongoing debate. I don’t see one as better over the other to me it is more for one to choose the path this is best suited for him or her. Or like in my case take a bit from each one and make your own mix!
But now on with the discussion about the perception of God as formless! As I told you I take a bit from this a bit from that and create my own mix. So I consider myself a Shiv Bhakt but in this case I see him clearly as explaining the concept ‘neti neti’ because when you describe the attributes of Shiv you see clearly that he is neither this…neither that…he is everything! So God is formless because he is everything?!
Now on with the dance that is UCP because who says I’m going to launch some academic discussion here without the song and dance after all then it just wouldn’t be this thing or dance I call UCP would it?! So here now in the words of one of my favourite Shiv things – the Rudra Ashtakam if you focus closely on the lyrics you will learn that he is everything!
The God series will continue on Friday when we will discuss the perception of God as the Divine Mother!
I bow to the Ruler of the Universe, whose very form is Liberation, the omnipotent and all pervading Brahma, manifest as the Vedas. I worship Shiva, shining in his own glory, without physical qualities, Undifferentiated, desireless, all pervading sky of consciousness and wearing the sky itself as His garment.
niraakaara monkaara-moolam turiiyam giraa gnaana gotiita miisham giriisham karaalam mahaa-kaala-kaalam krpaalam gunaagaara samsara paaram nato ham
I bow to the supreme Lord who is the formless source of “OM” The Self of All, transcending all conditions and states, Beyond speech, understanding and sense perception, Awe-full, but gracious, the ruler of Kailash, Devourer of Death, the immortal abode of all virtues.
I worship Shankara, whose form is white as the Himalyan snow, Radiant with the beauty of countless Cupids, Whose head sparkles with the Ganga With crescent moon adorning his brow and snakes coiling his neck,
The beloved Lord of All, with shimmering pendants hanging from his ears, Beautiful eyebrows and large eyes, Full of Mercy with a cheerful countenance and a blue speck on his throat.
I worship Shankara, Bhavani’s husband, The fierce, exalted, luminous supreme Lord. Indivisible, unborn and radiant with the glory of a million suns; Who, holding a trident, tears out the root of the three-fold suffering, And who is reached only through Love.
You who are without parts, ever blessed, The cause of universal destruction at the end of each round of creation, A source of perpetual delight to the pure of heart, Slayer of the demon, Tripura, consciousness and bliss personified, Dispeller of delusion… Have mercy on me, foe of Lust.
na yaavad umaanaatha-paadaaravindam bhajantiha loke parevaa naraanam na taavat-sukham shaanti-santaapa-naasham praslda prabho sarva bhutaa-dhivaasam
Oh Lord of Uma, so long as you are not worshipped There is no happiness, peace or freedom from suffering in this world or the next. You who dwell in the hearts of all living beings, and in whom all beings have their existence, Have mercy on me, Lord.
na janaami yogam japam naiva pujam nato ham sadaa sarvadaa sambhu tubhyam jaraa janma-duhkhaugha taatapya maanam prabho paahi apan-namaamisha shambho
I don’t know yoga, prayer or rituals, But everywhere and at every moment, I bow to you, Shambhu! Protect me my Lord, miserable and afflicted as I am with the sufferings of birth, old-age and death.
rudrastakam idam proktam viprena haratosaye ye pathanti nara bhaktya tesam sambhuh prasidati
This eightfold hymn of praise was sung by the Brahman to please Shankara. Shambhu will be pleased with whomever heartfully recites it.
Oh dear! We’ve not done as we planned or promised last week and that cannot be a good thing or a reader’s treat! We’ve not blogged on Tumultuous Thursdays about dreams and dreaming nor made fun of them on Funtastic Fridays...to be honest we really don’t know what to say…
But we aren’t almost even here this week too…the muse the muse always blame the muse…the Purple Elephant and the Little Mouse they are firmly planted though-Thank you! But the muse he is actually flashing right now as I speak or type! Not flashing as going naked after all he is a manicou so already au naturel so no…no…I mean he seems to be here for a second and then disappears another but he slips back and forth from here to not here so quickly that he almost appears to be going on and off like a blinking light! Oh dear!…I’m told it happens when you travel too often and in close succession across parallel worlds…there comes a time when you are neither here nor there or anywhere…oh dear! Unless perhaps you’re everywhere!
Luckily as of this morning… the Little mouse came to my door…he was perched on the shoulder of the Purple Elephant so he could reach up to the level of my ears so I could hear him. “Aaaaww!” was my first cry when he incredibly bashfully bestowed onto me a bouquet made of four purple flowers and three sunflowers with sprigs of this twig or the other all wrapped together in a bow and said,
“Miss Dubay this will make him stay for sure!”
then the Purple Elephant trumpeted unfortunately waking the whole house up! You see we have guests, not as many as last Christmas but quite a few monkeys are with us but they luckily weren’t in bad spirits and instead decided to have an early breakfast scratching their heads while they peeled their bananas as they also tried to solve the problem of my manicou muse for me! Mouse, elephant and monkeys all poured over the ‘Book of Words and Light’ where they read of the use of purple flowers, sunflowers but more so that the use of love and light and yep UCP-Universal Collective Prayer could help me! So we followed the book and then ‘poof’ and as I looked up from where I knelt with sunflower pollens glistening from my cheeks…there it unfolded before me…and Lo and Behold there was my muse again fully formed standing all solid, not blinking, safe and sound before me!
You see in all seriousness and reality I recalled that all my words and speech come from the Divine Mother upon whom I ought to surrender! It’s not like I’ve not done so time and time again in the past as I’ve often shared on UCP but of lately I think I needed to be reminded…reminded that she is the speech…in the form of the Vedic Goddess Saraswati she rides a swan and is the ‘vac’ which translated from the Sanskrit means the speech, the word…the spoken word…the voice… However she is also the Goddess of learning and so really one cannot have even any writing without her since when we type it comes forth from an inner voice…so I had lost my voice both inner and outer…but me and all the animals sat in UCP and surrendered onto the Divine Mother in the form of Saraswati who according to this lovely Vedic prayer sits in the middle of our palms…she was always there… if we only had looked to see! …with the Goddess Lakshmi at our finger tips and Govinda at the base of the palms...
So too in the words of Don Henley in the movie Michael…it came through our hands!
Don Henley - Through Your Hands Lyrics "You were dreamin'
On a park bench
'bout a broad highway somewhere
When the music from the carillon
Seemed to hurl your heart out there
Past the scientific darkness
Past the fireflies that float
To an angel bending down
To wrap you in his warmest coat
And you ask
What am I not doing
He says
Your voice cannot command
In time you will move mountains
And it will come through your hands
Still you argue for an option
Still you angle for your case
Like you wouldn't know a burning bush
If it blew up in your face
Yeah, we scheme about the future
And we dream about the past
When just a simple reaching out
Might build a bridge that lasts
And you ask
What am I not doing
He says
Your voice cannot command
In time you will move mountains
And it will come through your hands
Through your hands
So whatever your hands find to do
You must do with all your heart
There are thoughts enough
To blow men's minds
And tear great worlds apart
There's a healing touch to find you
On that broad highway somewhere
To lift you high
As music flyin'
Through the angel's hair
Don't ask what you are not doing
Because your voice cannot command
In time we will move mountains
And it will come through your hands"
So I post to you really today on a Wednesday but I will back track the blog post I’m about to do on Meady’s Musings and it will read as a Maniac Mondays post to keep with the format of the blog. While on UCP, I will be publishing as of today. So now I am all good thanks to the Goddess Saraswati and will continue my dreams and dreaming series on Meady’s Musings and today on UCP will launch that God series! Shiv it is as we launch that series! And on Meady’s Musings get those pillows out…it’s dream time! (Of course this post will appear as if it was done the Monday before)
As promised today on the prayers before we start our 'God' series we share some of the sights of two Buddhist temples we visited while in Shanghai. Both famous...but one more visited than the other...Jing'an Temple is highly visited by tourist and has its own Shanghai metro bus stop...while Longhua Temple is less visited and a bit less central...
The first five pictures are of Jing'an and the second five of Longhua. Over the next few weeks we promise to share more pics from these temples and other places of worship visited in the Shanghai from other religions!
All pictures copyright of Meady's Musings Production 2010.
What could be up to a 1,000 Buddhas we think! Longhua Temple, Shanghai CHINA June 2010. Copyright Meady's Musings Production 2010.
We come in the company of what could be a 1,000 Buddhas to apologise so you have to give us a chance! We had expected to restart our journey here into this thing we call UCP-Universal Collective Prayer at the end of June...however our production house...Meady's Musings Production seems to be in some difficulty...read their tale here! As a result we hope to be back in full swing over here on UCP by this Wednesday as we plan to share some Buddhist cheer and then launch later on as planned into the quest to find out who is God to you and you and you and I or me! Yes my fellow travellers and dancers into UCP we shall finally be launching our talks on the God concept!Yes indeed we will finally be starting the 'God' series as promised! Inshallah! See you then!
Posts
