1/22/09 - The last chapter to our travels in our World Religions class finally came to a close yesterday when we visited the Isthmus Zen center in Madison, Wisconsin. This experience was by far one of the best experiences I was able to relate to. During the first weekend of our J-term I was able to experience a silent retreat in Princeton, IL at the brothers of St. Johns. Though this silent retreat was not a part of the class it will be an important piece of the puzzle that will allow me to tie it all together, especially with the Buddhist religion.
At the Zen center we all entered a room which had pillows on the ground that were laid down in the shape of a circle. With our shoes off, we all found ourselves sitting in a comfortable position; I tried to sit in half lotus so that I could be more balanced out. There were certain elements to the session that was taking place. The first mediation that was going to take place was an evening bell meditation, this was a meditation where a solo was chanted and a bell was hit. During this time one would have to remain still and concentrate on the sound and vibrations, letting it slowly penetrate into your being while becoming one with the sounds. The next part of the session was the chanting of the Heart sutra, we went through the sutra at a pretty good pace and concentrated on what we were saying. It was a good chant and a great way to meditate but I wasn’t to ecstatic about this way since I was lost have the time. The last version of meditation that I participated in was the silent meditation. This was the one I enjoyed the best even though there were a few things that changed the idea of what I have already done.
In this silent meditation we were required to sit in a comfortable balanced position, preferably a lotus or half lotus. We kept our eyes open, while looking at the ground in front of us at a 45 degree angle, and we concentrated on something similar to a koan. Our koan was “who am I?” and with this question we were to reflect on the answer, letting our thoughts enter our mind and letting our thoughts leave our mind without chasing them around. In Zen we all try to find our Buddha nature, everything that we will come to know is already inside of us but meditation allows us tap into what is already there and see the world in a different perspective, our true nature.
The silent part of this reminded me a lot of what I was trying to do on the silent retreat. I was trying to silence all the distractions which were within my mind and listen through the perfect form of communication with God. The idea is that nothing can be added to God because He knows it all, what can we add to God that will make Him greater? Nothing. So there is no need to prayer to him by telling Him what is on our minds, He knows all of that, we pray in silence that we might hear just a bit of what He has to say to us. It was said to me that silence is only pure love of the Father gazing down up you. With this thought I enjoyed the experience at the Zen center because when I was able to feel that presence on the silent retreat, I knew what the dharma teachers were talking about when they said that they saw the world differently. Though we are from different religions we still had the same type of experience.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
A Hindu Encounter with the Senses
On 1/16/09, I had my next encounter with my fourth religion, Hinduism. We traveled far and wide and my class found ourselves in Aurora, IL at the Hindu temple that is on the outskirts of town. I was also excited to go back to Aurora because it is my home town. With this visit to a Hindu temple I was impacted in a different and special way, this is why I decided to name the title of this post “A Hindu Encounter with the Senses.” I would like to put emphasis my experience of my senses at the temple.
Upon driving up to the temple, I realized that this was going to be like no other experience like I’ve had before. The temple’s design is what led me to believe these things because there were a variety of articulate and detailed patterns and designs consisting of elephants and gods along with many other things. When I entered my eyes viewed a long dining hall which was connected to another area used for performances and gatherings. It was the dining hall where my sense of taste experienced the powerfully hidden secrets of the Hindu tradition. After the quick bite to eat of spicy rice, we began to receive our tour of the temple. Our shoes were removed and we continued to the upstairs area where there was soft and comfortable carpet under our feet. Immediately there was a different sense in the air with it being a location that was very fragranced and quiet. Around the upper level I saw that there were many little rooms which could fit about 5-8 people each. In these rooms were black statues of the gods that the Hindu’s worship. It was amazing how beautifully adorned everything was, and it was even more interesting how they actually treated these statues as those they were living being, giving gifts, baths, put to sleep, woken up, etc…
The best part of my experience was when I was able to participate in a Hindu blessing done by a trained priest. I first put my hand above a flame, which the priest held forward, and I placed my hands upon my eyes, this signified a certain type of power which the god Vishnu was giving. I then proceed to hold out my hand where teaspoon of very fragranced holy water was put into my right hand, I drank it. Following that a larger silver bowl was place on the top of my head signifying the blessing of Vishnu since he was unable to move out of the statue and then i finished off the blessing with a few almonds that were given to me.
To me the whole experience was an insight to the way all the religions worship differently and in different spaces. Everyone from Christianity to Islam to Hinduism has their own sacred space, their own sacred rituals, and their own unique way to connect to God. This trip was something different but insightful.
Upon driving up to the temple, I realized that this was going to be like no other experience like I’ve had before. The temple’s design is what led me to believe these things because there were a variety of articulate and detailed patterns and designs consisting of elephants and gods along with many other things. When I entered my eyes viewed a long dining hall which was connected to another area used for performances and gatherings. It was the dining hall where my sense of taste experienced the powerfully hidden secrets of the Hindu tradition. After the quick bite to eat of spicy rice, we began to receive our tour of the temple. Our shoes were removed and we continued to the upstairs area where there was soft and comfortable carpet under our feet. Immediately there was a different sense in the air with it being a location that was very fragranced and quiet. Around the upper level I saw that there were many little rooms which could fit about 5-8 people each. In these rooms were black statues of the gods that the Hindu’s worship. It was amazing how beautifully adorned everything was, and it was even more interesting how they actually treated these statues as those they were living being, giving gifts, baths, put to sleep, woken up, etc…
The best part of my experience was when I was able to participate in a Hindu blessing done by a trained priest. I first put my hand above a flame, which the priest held forward, and I placed my hands upon my eyes, this signified a certain type of power which the god Vishnu was giving. I then proceed to hold out my hand where teaspoon of very fragranced holy water was put into my right hand, I drank it. Following that a larger silver bowl was place on the top of my head signifying the blessing of Vishnu since he was unable to move out of the statue and then i finished off the blessing with a few almonds that were given to me.
To me the whole experience was an insight to the way all the religions worship differently and in different spaces. Everyone from Christianity to Islam to Hinduism has their own sacred space, their own sacred rituals, and their own unique way to connect to God. This trip was something different but insightful.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Encounter with the Muslim Faith
So with the start of my second week of classes during J-term I found myself diving into what it really means to be a Muslim. With the the study of Islam comes a visit to a Mosque, more specifically a Mosque in Cedar Rapids. Today, 1/13/09, we went on a one and a half hour trip to Cedar Rapids to visit this Mosque. Keeping in mind that I have just study the religions of Christianity and Judaism, I was really excited to see what Islam had to offer in relation to the last two religions.
Even though we had spent the entire day before talking about Islam, I was still really excited to get many of my questions answered by the individual answering them. Today, I grew a little more enlightened by the religion and I came closer to understanding how beautiful a religion can became to the believer and to an individual like myself who believes in something else. With Islam being the third stop our my World Religions course, it was the next stage for me to really understand how all of the religions of the book are related.
So about this Mosque, it was surprising to me that almost ever religious building be had was very built for the community. the Mosque had a place to pray, a community center, areas to teach school, a kitchen for food!, a gym for recreation, and may other things. What I really notice was that the Mosque did not have any sacred spaces. It did have a room to where the community could pray together, but overall the Mosque did not have anything similar to a Church and it's tabernacle or the Ark in a Synagogue. The religion of Islam was something that held the sacred closer to the individual, the person was where all the ritual, space and time happened, this is mostly because the Muslims take a more active approach to their "submission" to God.
Overall, I enjoyed the visit to the Mosque and I enjoyed really learning so that in have way my growth in knowledge of this religion led to the destruction of misconceptions.
Even though we had spent the entire day before talking about Islam, I was still really excited to get many of my questions answered by the individual answering them. Today, I grew a little more enlightened by the religion and I came closer to understanding how beautiful a religion can became to the believer and to an individual like myself who believes in something else. With Islam being the third stop our my World Religions course, it was the next stage for me to really understand how all of the religions of the book are related.
So about this Mosque, it was surprising to me that almost ever religious building be had was very built for the community. the Mosque had a place to pray, a community center, areas to teach school, a kitchen for food!, a gym for recreation, and may other things. What I really notice was that the Mosque did not have any sacred spaces. It did have a room to where the community could pray together, but overall the Mosque did not have anything similar to a Church and it's tabernacle or the Ark in a Synagogue. The religion of Islam was something that held the sacred closer to the individual, the person was where all the ritual, space and time happened, this is mostly because the Muslims take a more active approach to their "submission" to God.
Overall, I enjoyed the visit to the Mosque and I enjoyed really learning so that in have way my growth in knowledge of this religion led to the destruction of misconceptions.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Encounter with a Jewish Synagogue
On Thursday 1/9/09, my adventurous J-term class sent me to Madison, Wis. to visit the Beth Israel Center and Synagogue. This opportunity was extremely insightful to me in understanding the practices of certain rituals and beliefs within Judaism. Though the entire opportunity of touring the center and listening to all the meanings and symbols which everything stood for was amazing, there were definitely several things that stood out from all the rest.
The synagogue itself was an interesting sight to behold, it was something different yet understandably familiar to me because of my Catholic background. Many people might say that a church and a synagogue are different, but in my eyes I see the two having many things in common which are necessary to the space in which one may worship. In the synagogue, a few things that were required for them to have were mainly traditional, historical, and practical. At the center of attention was their "Ark" in which behind it's curtains held their most precious and valuable key component of all of Judaism, the Torah. (The equivalent to the Catholic Tabernacle) The synagogue also had a perpetual light behind a decorative stain glass window, and altar for the Torah to rest, a sky light to let in the required natural light into the synagogue, and several other things. Much of my experience was learning how much the items in the synagogue were used for services. It still amazes me that Judaism is a closely related to Christianity through our Old Testament ties, and because of this I find Judaism to be the initial support or foundation of what I believe in.
Another thing that was very insight from our visit to the Beth Israel Center was the ways they interpret their laws and regulations. It can be understood that in any religion their will always be a fight over the actual meaning of a text, whether one takes the text literally or they find a away to interpret them in a different way. At the Center I came to understand that this is also a issue in which many Jews struggle with. Laws, such as Kosher laws, can be very vague in the Torah. Many times, depending from what sect of Judaism you belong to, Rabbis interpret the meaning of the Torah differently. This allows for a constant change of laws and it also allows for more and more laws to be added to the rules which they already have to follow. I found this process to be interesting because it could allow both a positive and negative affect throughout all of Judaism.
Overall, the experience that I had today and the Beth Israel Center was priceless. It became another opportunity to learn, understand, and appreciate what other people believe in, as well as allowing my self to grow closer to my own faith and beliefs.
But until next time, take care....
Emilio
The synagogue itself was an interesting sight to behold, it was something different yet understandably familiar to me because of my Catholic background. Many people might say that a church and a synagogue are different, but in my eyes I see the two having many things in common which are necessary to the space in which one may worship. In the synagogue, a few things that were required for them to have were mainly traditional, historical, and practical. At the center of attention was their "Ark" in which behind it's curtains held their most precious and valuable key component of all of Judaism, the Torah. (The equivalent to the Catholic Tabernacle) The synagogue also had a perpetual light behind a decorative stain glass window, and altar for the Torah to rest, a sky light to let in the required natural light into the synagogue, and several other things. Much of my experience was learning how much the items in the synagogue were used for services. It still amazes me that Judaism is a closely related to Christianity through our Old Testament ties, and because of this I find Judaism to be the initial support or foundation of what I believe in.
Another thing that was very insight from our visit to the Beth Israel Center was the ways they interpret their laws and regulations. It can be understood that in any religion their will always be a fight over the actual meaning of a text, whether one takes the text literally or they find a away to interpret them in a different way. At the Center I came to understand that this is also a issue in which many Jews struggle with. Laws, such as Kosher laws, can be very vague in the Torah. Many times, depending from what sect of Judaism you belong to, Rabbis interpret the meaning of the Torah differently. This allows for a constant change of laws and it also allows for more and more laws to be added to the rules which they already have to follow. I found this process to be interesting because it could allow both a positive and negative affect throughout all of Judaism.
Overall, the experience that I had today and the Beth Israel Center was priceless. It became another opportunity to learn, understand, and appreciate what other people believe in, as well as allowing my self to grow closer to my own faith and beliefs.
But until next time, take care....
Emilio
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
On 1/6/09, I was able to finding myself Encountering the Religious Tradition of Christianity, more specifically Catholicism. I myself am a practicing Roman Catholic, but the experience of visiting the St. Francis Xavier Basilica and the Trappist's New Melleray Abbey was quite an insightful experience which opened my eyes to the fact that even within the same faith tradition, rituals and practices may and will differ from one another. Upon visiting the Basilica I was amazed at how much history affected the environment within the basilica. Upon entering you could see that there was much detail on the walls, ceilings, floors, altars, doorways...it was pretty much decked out from head to toe with statues, pictures, and many other important items. The structure of the church definately had the basic requirements that most churches have, the main altar and tabernacle being at the main focal point. The space of the Basilica was remarkable at catch the history of the church and it's beginning footsteps that were iniatiated by Christ. At first i was overwhlemed by the amount of detail that was everywhere, but eventually it became eyes for me to point everything out.
The other location, the Melleray Abbey, was dramtically different to the Basilica. For all of the Monks that where there, they practice a life of simplicity in which they try to strip themselves of all the layers which the world has put onto themselves and they try to reveal the true people God intended them to be. Their Chapel was amazing natural to the point that it became easy for the eyes to look at. The walls were made of stone and plain, there were no stain glass windows, no statues, and nothing that was unnecessary to worshiping the Lord. They lived a life a natural beauty, and through this lifestyle they discover the plan which God had for them and all of creation.
After looking at both of these locations, I gained a lot of personal insight. Even though I understand that our history is important to know, the Basilica carried itself as being to busy, and the nautral atomosphere of the Abbey was the perferred one by me.
Until my next adventure...Emilio
The other location, the Melleray Abbey, was dramtically different to the Basilica. For all of the Monks that where there, they practice a life of simplicity in which they try to strip themselves of all the layers which the world has put onto themselves and they try to reveal the true people God intended them to be. Their Chapel was amazing natural to the point that it became easy for the eyes to look at. The walls were made of stone and plain, there were no stain glass windows, no statues, and nothing that was unnecessary to worshiping the Lord. They lived a life a natural beauty, and through this lifestyle they discover the plan which God had for them and all of creation.
After looking at both of these locations, I gained a lot of personal insight. Even though I understand that our history is important to know, the Basilica carried itself as being to busy, and the nautral atomosphere of the Abbey was the perferred one by me.
Until my next adventure...Emilio
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