Hello readers! Sorry I haven't been as attentive to this blog lately. I have been, over the last few weeks, currently relocating to New York to begin my Masters program in Religion at NYU. Well I officially moved in on Sunday and let me tell you, my interesting encounters with the American Dharma have not stopped. The first morning I was in New York I ran into a Muslim women in a Abhaya texting on a Sidekick (god bless her too...it was SO hot out), and since then I've seen just about everything: giant statues of John Paul II, Hare Krishnas with bead bags, an incredibly large statue of Gwan Yin, Ramadan fast breaking at the Mosque on the corner of my street, my roommate explaining the concept of Purim to a farmer's market vendor, and a very strange store front Hindu temple. Needless to say, I think there's a lot to see and experience here and thus I am starting a new segment called "Dharma in the Big City" which will include, but won't be limited to, chance encounters, photos, and site visits. When classes start, there probably will be a lot more book reviews and theoretical reflections (I appologize in advanced, its due to the theory classes!). I don't have the internets at home yet, so for now, I'll be signing off from some random NYU student lounge.
Until next time!
PS- If you would perhaps like to contribute to this blog as a guest, let me know. It might be nice to not hear my opinion every once in awhile. haha.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Monday, August 17, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Vicaarana: Are We All Hindu Now?
First I wanna give a special thanks to my friend Aditya for posting this article on his facebook. So, in her article We Are All Hindu in Newsweek Magazine, Lisa Miller claims that America is not *really* a Christian nation, but actually a *Hindu* nation. Not that we are all becoming Hindus, but rather, because Americans are starting to encompass, perhaps subconsciously, Hindu Dharmic beliefs including the famous quote from the Rig Veda: "The truth is one, though sages call it by many names". As much as I can see where this is coming from, I have to put up a small argument that it depends where in America you are. On the coasts, I totally believe it. I've grown up my whole life in the Northeastern US, I went to school up here, and I am going to more school up here. I have met plenty of people from the West Coast who practice, as the author cites, Dr. Stephen Prothero's term "cafeteria style religion". I will even cite myself as guilty of this (look at the name of this blog, after all). I've met the "spiritual, not religious" and I've met the agnostics who just don't know, and those trying to create some sort of meaning. I went to college, after all, and worked in religious life, the spiritual seekers were widespread and hungry for something that wasn't their Mama's religion (often shying away from THAT word, of course). But as many of these people and views of religion in America appear, there are still plenty of the "Christian nation" to contend with (as much as Newsweek has repeatedly insisted we are a Post Christian nation). The Christian political stances on abortion, LGBT marriage rights, and a host of other issues are too hard to ignore. (On a side note, I'm also currently reading Jeff Sharlett's The Family which furthers my belief that we are far from being a post Christian nation. Woah. Its crazy.)
But despite all this, I understand the point being made, things aren't like they were. Americans now have choices and new interactions with Diaspora communities and different faith traditions that were never made available to them in the past. Even death, Miller points out, is being treated differently as more and more people, Catholics included, leave behind that old adage of body and soul = self and go for cremation for their remains (How very Hindu indeed!). So, while I don't think there's gonna be a whole rush of people to begin installing murthis (images) of Sri Rama at their new local Mandir (temple), some of the underlying philosophical ideals of the Hindu tradition are, I can agree, starting to slowly grab hold of the American subconscious.
On the other side of the coin, as Americans are becoming more Hindu, are Hindus becoming more American? It could be argued that some of the American freedom and individualism ideology is equally grabbing hold of the South Asian Hindu diaspora psyche. So how does this new Newsweek article fair for the other side? Does it make more Americans aware and accepting of their likeness to Hinduism, or does it continue to morph the continually Americanizing Hindu tradition as it makes the transformation from India to American culture. Eventually does everyone meet somewhere in the middle? Where does culture and tradition go after we make that sort of jump to the everyone's happy little bit of everything religion, or can we just accept everyone's religion as is and live together? The author claims a little bit of both is happening, and I've seen it around me, however, as I said before, I'm living in a Northeast coast world, and I wonder if these claims are true of the whole country.
But despite all this, I understand the point being made, things aren't like they were. Americans now have choices and new interactions with Diaspora communities and different faith traditions that were never made available to them in the past. Even death, Miller points out, is being treated differently as more and more people, Catholics included, leave behind that old adage of body and soul = self and go for cremation for their remains (How very Hindu indeed!). So, while I don't think there's gonna be a whole rush of people to begin installing murthis (images) of Sri Rama at their new local Mandir (temple), some of the underlying philosophical ideals of the Hindu tradition are, I can agree, starting to slowly grab hold of the American subconscious.
On the other side of the coin, as Americans are becoming more Hindu, are Hindus becoming more American? It could be argued that some of the American freedom and individualism ideology is equally grabbing hold of the South Asian Hindu diaspora psyche. So how does this new Newsweek article fair for the other side? Does it make more Americans aware and accepting of their likeness to Hinduism, or does it continue to morph the continually Americanizing Hindu tradition as it makes the transformation from India to American culture. Eventually does everyone meet somewhere in the middle? Where does culture and tradition go after we make that sort of jump to the everyone's happy little bit of everything religion, or can we just accept everyone's religion as is and live together? The author claims a little bit of both is happening, and I've seen it around me, however, as I said before, I'm living in a Northeast coast world, and I wonder if these claims are true of the whole country.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Today In American Dharma: Corruption Thy Name Is New Jersey
(And it breaks my heart)
So, as I often do, I surfed around some news sites to remain aware of the world around me and I saw there had been an arrest of 44 officials in a corruption scandal in New Jersey. I was saddened to hear of more corruption in my beloved state, but not surprised. Not at all. Those things are true about New Jersey...corruption...corruption from the North that comes to vacation on the Shore (where I live)... not to say we are totally innocent down here...but that's usually the way it goes (this case was no different, choosing the Shore town of Deal as the vacation home). There was one kick to this story that I just wasn't expecting... and it wasn't that the corruption had to do with money laundering and spare parts (kidneys to be exact), but that out of the 44 people arrested, many of which were unsurprisingly mayors, 5 of the 44 were Jewish Rabbis. Really?! And not just any Jewish Rabbis, Hassidic (Ultra Orthodox) Jewish Rabbis. But there were the pictures of Rabbis with dark locks and full beards, dressed in black suits with widebrim hats in handcuffs. 3 from Brooklyn (you are not so innocent NY) and 2 from Jersey.
Why do I bring it up besides my kind of uncalled for shock (there have always been corrupt "men of god" scattered throughout the centuries).. I guess it just continues the growing nature of religion in this country (or at least in some of it): individualism. The clergy and organized religion are corrupt, many will say. We are spiritual and not religious...religious institutions are bad. Priests touch little boys and rabbis launder money and kidneys to Israel! Right now I am reading Anne Rice's Servant of the Bones, which was written in 1998, and she issues the same cry (this was prior to her return to the Catholic Church, of course): be careful of men with too much power high in religion. They are dangerous. She sites Jonestown and also the issue of Japanese subway poisoning to create her notorious character of Gregory Belkin, the messiah of the Temple of the Mind.
As it all continues to go down, as more and more priests, rabbis, preachers, imams, gurus (Satya Sai Baba sex accusations anyone?) are caught in acts of corruption and sexual mishaps, can we, as Americans trust these leaders with our souls and spiritual journeys? One has to wonder how much longer the trust can last as things like this continue to happen, or will soon it be every spiritual journey for itself? Or is that just my East coast perception?
44 Charged by U.S. in New Jersey Corruption Sweep
Officials lambast NJ corruption after 44 arrested
So, as I often do, I surfed around some news sites to remain aware of the world around me and I saw there had been an arrest of 44 officials in a corruption scandal in New Jersey. I was saddened to hear of more corruption in my beloved state, but not surprised. Not at all. Those things are true about New Jersey...corruption...corruption from the North that comes to vacation on the Shore (where I live)... not to say we are totally innocent down here...but that's usually the way it goes (this case was no different, choosing the Shore town of Deal as the vacation home). There was one kick to this story that I just wasn't expecting... and it wasn't that the corruption had to do with money laundering and spare parts (kidneys to be exact), but that out of the 44 people arrested, many of which were unsurprisingly mayors, 5 of the 44 were Jewish Rabbis. Really?! And not just any Jewish Rabbis, Hassidic (Ultra Orthodox) Jewish Rabbis. But there were the pictures of Rabbis with dark locks and full beards, dressed in black suits with widebrim hats in handcuffs. 3 from Brooklyn (you are not so innocent NY) and 2 from Jersey.
Why do I bring it up besides my kind of uncalled for shock (there have always been corrupt "men of god" scattered throughout the centuries).. I guess it just continues the growing nature of religion in this country (or at least in some of it): individualism. The clergy and organized religion are corrupt, many will say. We are spiritual and not religious...religious institutions are bad. Priests touch little boys and rabbis launder money and kidneys to Israel! Right now I am reading Anne Rice's Servant of the Bones, which was written in 1998, and she issues the same cry (this was prior to her return to the Catholic Church, of course): be careful of men with too much power high in religion. They are dangerous. She sites Jonestown and also the issue of Japanese subway poisoning to create her notorious character of Gregory Belkin, the messiah of the Temple of the Mind.
As it all continues to go down, as more and more priests, rabbis, preachers, imams, gurus (Satya Sai Baba sex accusations anyone?) are caught in acts of corruption and sexual mishaps, can we, as Americans trust these leaders with our souls and spiritual journeys? One has to wonder how much longer the trust can last as things like this continue to happen, or will soon it be every spiritual journey for itself? Or is that just my East coast perception?
44 Charged by U.S. in New Jersey Corruption Sweep
Officials lambast NJ corruption after 44 arrested
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Bodhaka: The Year of Living Biblically
So, since I'm a grad student (and a dork), I read a lot of books concerning the subject of religious studies (both for class and in my free time, because I am a dork), and so I thought it only wise to begin a new segment for this blog: Bodhaka In keeping with the use of Sanskrit words, I decided to use the word Bodhaka ( बोधक ), which means informative, as the name for my book review segments because I hope that you will find my opinions and book suggestions informative and useful, and also because I like the alliteration between Bodhaka and book.
So, the first book I thought I would feature in this segment of Bodhaka is a book I finished a few days ago called The Year of Living Biblically One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible (2007) by A.J. Jacobs. This is a more fun than scholarly book, but I still think it is bodhaka (probably not really how you use that in a sentence, but work with me! haha).
The Year of Living Biblically is exactly what it sounds like, the author, Mr. AJ Jacobs, who also wrote a book about how he read the entire encyclopedia from A-Z, attempts to follow the Bible as litterally as possible in the hopes of better understanding what it means to do just that: live your life according to the Bible. The book takes you on a year long quest as Jacobs grows a rediculous looking beard, attempts to keep pure on the New York City subway, and interviews all walks of Biblical adherants including, but not limited to, Hasidic Jews, the Amish, Creationists, and Evangelicals from Lynchburg, Virgina (the home of Jerry Falwell's Libery University; Jacobs visited prior to Falwell's death in 2007).
The book is humorous, including an amusing encounter with a Hasidic chicken sacrifice, and also grounded, as you see the author's own humble attempts to be a better person and a better father to his children. This book was written more for a public audience than a scholarly one, but it still addressed some great issues such as how comunities of Biblical literalists live in the US and what their place in our communities are, and also the question of the possibility of following the entire book word for word, when every translation is just a little bit different. I have to say, in addition, I admire Jacobs' attempt to connect with his own Jewish roots and to use the Hebrew Bible, in addition to the Christian Bibles, and to also consult the Talmud and Jewish scholars and Rabbis, as well as Christian scholars and Rabbis. I think it really gives the book a unique perspective, that, I, personally was not expecting. I honestly thought this book was going to be centered around Evangelical Christian communities, but I was plesantly surprised at Jacobs' attempt to include a broad range of the Judeo-Christian literallist experience.
The book, of course, is not without its flaws, but most of them are acknowledged as part of the burden of the task at hand: the impossibility of following every word of the Bible all day everyday. You have to pick and choose because there are just too many rules, and Jacobs does just that, dedicating the first 7 -8 months to the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament in Christian speak) and the last 2- 3 months to the New Testament (including an interesting interaction with some Red Letter Christians).
Overall, I thought this was a light and fun read about one aspect of the Judeo-Christian experience in America. Bodhaka beach book! (oh the alliteration!)
So, the first book I thought I would feature in this segment of Bodhaka is a book I finished a few days ago called The Year of Living Biblically One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible (2007) by A.J. Jacobs. This is a more fun than scholarly book, but I still think it is bodhaka (probably not really how you use that in a sentence, but work with me! haha).
The Year of Living Biblically is exactly what it sounds like, the author, Mr. AJ Jacobs, who also wrote a book about how he read the entire encyclopedia from A-Z, attempts to follow the Bible as litterally as possible in the hopes of better understanding what it means to do just that: live your life according to the Bible. The book takes you on a year long quest as Jacobs grows a rediculous looking beard, attempts to keep pure on the New York City subway, and interviews all walks of Biblical adherants including, but not limited to, Hasidic Jews, the Amish, Creationists, and Evangelicals from Lynchburg, Virgina (the home of Jerry Falwell's Libery University; Jacobs visited prior to Falwell's death in 2007).
The book is humorous, including an amusing encounter with a Hasidic chicken sacrifice, and also grounded, as you see the author's own humble attempts to be a better person and a better father to his children. This book was written more for a public audience than a scholarly one, but it still addressed some great issues such as how comunities of Biblical literalists live in the US and what their place in our communities are, and also the question of the possibility of following the entire book word for word, when every translation is just a little bit different. I have to say, in addition, I admire Jacobs' attempt to connect with his own Jewish roots and to use the Hebrew Bible, in addition to the Christian Bibles, and to also consult the Talmud and Jewish scholars and Rabbis, as well as Christian scholars and Rabbis. I think it really gives the book a unique perspective, that, I, personally was not expecting. I honestly thought this book was going to be centered around Evangelical Christian communities, but I was plesantly surprised at Jacobs' attempt to include a broad range of the Judeo-Christian literallist experience.
The book, of course, is not without its flaws, but most of them are acknowledged as part of the burden of the task at hand: the impossibility of following every word of the Bible all day everyday. You have to pick and choose because there are just too many rules, and Jacobs does just that, dedicating the first 7 -8 months to the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament in Christian speak) and the last 2- 3 months to the New Testament (including an interesting interaction with some Red Letter Christians).
Overall, I thought this was a light and fun read about one aspect of the Judeo-Christian experience in America. Bodhaka beach book! (oh the alliteration!)
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Happy Independence Day from American Dharma
So today is Independence Day (the 4th of July in colloquial) and what better way to celebrate than talking about my favourite figures in American history and American Dharma: Thomas Jefferson. (All who know me in real life have thus given a large groan due to their knowledge of my absolute unabashed love for Thomas Jefferson. They saw this coming). Why is Thomas Jefferson so special in the context of this blog? Well, aside from his importance to this day (aka penning the Declaration of Independence), he was an interesting character when it came to religion. My other major was archaeology and I used to love to say that Thomas Jefferson was the first scientific archaeologist, but he may as well have been among the first American religion scholars (well perhaps I wouldn't go *that* far with the latter! haha). He did have an interest, however, in religion; that much I can say for certain is true.
Most Americans, if they know anything about the religions of the Founders, know that many of them, particularly those from the Southern states like Washington and Jefferson, were Anglican Christians (the modern day cake or death Church of England). Still others proclaim many of the founders to have been Deists (from Wikipedia: " a religious and philosophical belief that a supreme God created the universe, and that this and other religious truth can be determined using reason and observation of the natural world alone, without the need for faith". Its a very Enlightenment era- vibe kind of religion. Jefferson's deism could be argued with one of the books he "wrote" (I use that term loosely in this case): The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (aka the Jefferson Bible). He didn't so much write the book as he took a razor blade to the New Testament and carefully cut out any mention of miracles (including the Virgin birth), thus leaving only the moral teachings of Jesus. He believed that this, more than the popular Christianity of the times, "outlines of a system of the most sublime morality which has ever fallen from the lips of man.".
On the more political front, for those who argue that America was founded as a "Christian Nation" (see previous posts), Jefferson could be considered the first opposition to that idea. Jefferson is the modern day founder of everyone's favorite phrase "the separation of church and state". It could be thought that this notion was the direct response to the Church of England and the state support it got from America's former Mother Country. Jefferson first enacted this idea in 1786 for Virgina, thus freeing the state from paying tribute to the Anglican Church and he further proposed (with his good buddy James Madison) the Bill for Religious Freedom, claiming that no one should be forced to follow any religion that wasn't their choosing. Perhaps this could have been influenced by the privacy in which Jefferson regarded his own piety (or lack thereof to some) and his own personal (unorthodox at the time) views on Christianity and Deism. In this same regard, Jefferson would continually support the Establishment clause of the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights which states the same: that the US cannot establish a state religion and everyone has the the freedom to choose there own. Todays pluralism can thank Mr. Jefferson (directly or indirectly aka via his friend Mr. Madison who penned the Bill of Rights while Jefferson was absent in France as the ambassador for the US).
Despite all this free exercise and anti-religious establishment-ness flying around, the Federalist party during the 1800 elections still felt free to slander Jefferson as anti-religious and a death the providence of America (and all sorts of other fancy slanders which are as similar as the Obama is a Muslim / Obama is a Christian with a crazy preacher claims from the 2008 election). Thus religiously, the rather private Jefferson became on of the first victims of the still on-going battle of Christian v. Secular nation.
But after stating all this about Thomas Jefferson, his relationship with the American Dharma, and his influence in creating American Pluralism, his crowning achievement remains what we celebrate today. Some say his human rights proclamations are the influence of Enlightenment thinkers such as John Locke and 18th century Deism, others say they are Christian rights, but regardless... in 1776 on July 4th in Philadelphia, a group of men in the midst of war signed a statement that claimed,"...We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness...". This is the American Dharma, and all else are just the different flavors.
Happy Independence Day. Now go shoot off some fireworks!
Most Americans, if they know anything about the religions of the Founders, know that many of them, particularly those from the Southern states like Washington and Jefferson, were Anglican Christians (the modern day cake or death Church of England). Still others proclaim many of the founders to have been Deists (from Wikipedia: " a religious and philosophical belief that a supreme God created the universe, and that this and other religious truth can be determined using reason and observation of the natural world alone, without the need for faith". Its a very Enlightenment era- vibe kind of religion. Jefferson's deism could be argued with one of the books he "wrote" (I use that term loosely in this case): The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth (aka the Jefferson Bible). He didn't so much write the book as he took a razor blade to the New Testament and carefully cut out any mention of miracles (including the Virgin birth), thus leaving only the moral teachings of Jesus. He believed that this, more than the popular Christianity of the times, "outlines of a system of the most sublime morality which has ever fallen from the lips of man.".
On the more political front, for those who argue that America was founded as a "Christian Nation" (see previous posts), Jefferson could be considered the first opposition to that idea. Jefferson is the modern day founder of everyone's favorite phrase "the separation of church and state". It could be thought that this notion was the direct response to the Church of England and the state support it got from America's former Mother Country. Jefferson first enacted this idea in 1786 for Virgina, thus freeing the state from paying tribute to the Anglican Church and he further proposed (with his good buddy James Madison) the Bill for Religious Freedom, claiming that no one should be forced to follow any religion that wasn't their choosing. Perhaps this could have been influenced by the privacy in which Jefferson regarded his own piety (or lack thereof to some) and his own personal (unorthodox at the time) views on Christianity and Deism. In this same regard, Jefferson would continually support the Establishment clause of the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights which states the same: that the US cannot establish a state religion and everyone has the the freedom to choose there own. Todays pluralism can thank Mr. Jefferson (directly or indirectly aka via his friend Mr. Madison who penned the Bill of Rights while Jefferson was absent in France as the ambassador for the US).
Despite all this free exercise and anti-religious establishment-ness flying around, the Federalist party during the 1800 elections still felt free to slander Jefferson as anti-religious and a death the providence of America (and all sorts of other fancy slanders which are as similar as the Obama is a Muslim / Obama is a Christian with a crazy preacher claims from the 2008 election). Thus religiously, the rather private Jefferson became on of the first victims of the still on-going battle of Christian v. Secular nation.
But after stating all this about Thomas Jefferson, his relationship with the American Dharma, and his influence in creating American Pluralism, his crowning achievement remains what we celebrate today. Some say his human rights proclamations are the influence of Enlightenment thinkers such as John Locke and 18th century Deism, others say they are Christian rights, but regardless... in 1776 on July 4th in Philadelphia, a group of men in the midst of war signed a statement that claimed,"...We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness...". This is the American Dharma, and all else are just the different flavors.
Happy Independence Day. Now go shoot off some fireworks!
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