KUMBH MELA, the Largest religious gathering on earth

Every three years there is a religious gathering in one of four places in India, which they rotate through religiously. Haridwar, Allahabad (Prayag), Nasik and Ujjain. This years Kumbh Mela is in Allahabad and it is the most attended and considered most auspicious of the locations. These gatherings last for 6 weeks, with 80 million pilgrims expected at the 2013 event.
The translation of Kumbh is pitcher, and mela meaning fair. It is said that droplets of nectar fell at each location while the pitcher was being carried by the Gods. Each of the cities is alongside the great Ganges (Ganga) river, or a tributary of each. In the Hindu religion the confluence of three rivers is called Triveni Sangam, taken from the Sanskrit word Sangama. To bath or even have these sacred waters touch you is very important to Hindu's as this confluence is very sacred. 
In Allahabad the confluence is of the rivers Ganges Yamuna and the invisible, mythical Saraswati River, which is linked to the Goddess Saraswati, whom used to be the goddess of water and has since moved more towards the goddess of knowledge, music and arts. Her name itself means "she who has flow". 

It is said that Lord Brahma, one of the three Gods of the Hindu trinity; ("Saraswati", "Lakshmi" and "Parvati" are helpers of this trinity, between Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva), performed "yajna" or purification at this site while creating the Universe, the name Prayag means just that "place of purification". 
Allahabad is famous for 12 Madho Temples which are named and located below Madho Temples (retrieved from the Official Kumbh Mela website, Feb, 2013)


Shareb Madho:- In the east of Triveni it is situated in the garden of "Chatanaga" which had been the place of "Vyas ji’. Shiv Puran was written here.
Adveni Madho:- Near the kothi of Ram Charan Agarwal at Daraganj, in the temple The idol of lakshmi Narain ji is there.
Manohar Madho:- In the temple of Darveshwar Nath, there is an idol of lord Vishnu, which is called Manohar Madho
Chara Madho:- Situated in Agnikor-Arail.
Gada Madho:- Situated near Chheoki Railway station.
Adam Madho:- Situated in village Deoria.
Anant Madho:- Approx Two miles away from Khuldabad.
Bindu Madho:- Situated in the vicinity of Draupadi Ghat.
Ashi Madho:- Situated in the neighbourhood of Nagbasuki.
Sankat Haran Madho:- Situated below Sandhya Vat.
Vishnu or Adh Madho:- Situated in Arail.
Vat Madho:- Situated near Akshyavat.

Other Temples

Zhuangzi Speaks, The Music of Nature, Translated by Brian Bruya

Born: 369 BCE Died: 286 BCE Zhaungzi, also known as Chuang Tzu was an ancient Chinese philosopher. He is considered to be the chief interpreter of Taoism and is also known for his skeptical philosophy.

My Favourite quote and one very often considered the most quoted is this:" I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly dreaming I am a man."

Zhuangzi
The Butterfly Dream

Our latest book read is Zhuangzi Speaks: The Music of Nature. This little book (comic book actually) is revered by Tao people everywhere. It is interesting, it reminds me of Aesop's Fables with little "morals" left after each story. I have a couple of favourites, one not being the decision of what is and isn't useless, I found that one trite. (Hui Shi's Giant Gourd) 

There are many lessons of nature and human nature to be learned from these stories, although they seem a little immature, this is likely just the translation itself. 
As mentioned above , The Butterfly Dream is my favourite, being able to discern from what angle we see things is very important, or then again, is it? Either way, his being the butterfly or the butterfly being him is good. 
As I read more through the book, I found I was intrigued by a few more stories: Being chosen to be thrown into the river as a sacrifice based on beauty...the beautiful woman is considered auspicious, yet in reality, how can this be when she will be sacrificed in such a way? But then again...when your body dies, your spirit and thoughts continue, thus Dao/Tao is reached, over and over again...she never really dies then, does she? 
The principals of man can be used for both good and evil. If one follows them in either path, one is still following them...should there therefore be no principals at all? 
I found this book interesting, amusing and at times very frustrating. Even though so many people follow these ideals, I do not think that making up little stories to cover up wrong doings makes them right, and yet this seems to be the theme in many of these stories. 
Makes me think rather hard about Tao and my belief in it as a way of life. Following nature is a "normal" state for man and beast, but when you use it for your own...as a ladder for success over others, I do not agree. 
Zhuangzi presents the meaning of the Dao into a few different elements, mainly being "the Way" which to me would also mean the path or road to enlightenment. As he speaks in these fables, the path seems clear that in order for life to be smooth and unending, the Way must be followed. 
Zhuangzi seems to see good and bad in all things, usefulness and uselessness, it is how we look at these differences that make or break the ideal. If something is too big to fit in a boat, it must ford through the waters, large enough to do it; however, if something is too small, it would surely be swept away by the waters, thus making it mandatory to take the boat. Either way, the other side of the river is reached. 
I believe that the way this was written/translated makes it easy for every one to understand what is being said, even when it appears to be going around in circles. 
I like the use of Confucius as a teacher in some of the stories/tales. I find the Dao much more involved with the inner thinking of man/woman, more to do with painstakingly looking at ourselves from many angles and referring back to the Way to compare. Confucius is much more about every day living, doing things in order to make the Way more understandable, easier to live within yourself. 
While Zhuangzi keeps to the thoughts of Wu Wei, the Non-doing of things. Natural things occur in a non doing way, plants grow, without doing anything. They are not in control of their whereabouts, (selves?) , if not in control, it is without effort that they grow. 

William Dalrymple's "Nine Lives"

We have had an excellent choice of books to go along with this class, the first one we have read is Nine Lives . Starting with 9 separate lives, interviewing them about the ancient and sacred religious beliefs in our current time. 
The Nun's Tale: This is a story of Jain nun whom knows from a very young age her calling into her attainment of moksha, spiritual liberation of Jains. It is their belief that bad karma can "stick" to your soul, and only through many different rituals, can you liberate your soul in order to stop the birth and rebirth of Karma. I really enjoyed this tale, impressed with her ability to make such a huge decision at such an early age of 12, dragged back and forth between home and the monestary until at 14, making her vows. The second life looked at in this book is called:
The Dancer of Kannur: This is the story of a Dalit (untouchable) man named Hari Das who
There is more of this one to come... just finding time :)

The Bhagavad- Gita

I have been reading the Bhagavad-Gita for class, discussing it yesterday in our small group and then as a full class. The discussion was interesting yet strange , I thought. I myself have some different ideas about the Gita, now that I have read more and discussed it with Dave, also. 
In looking at the ability to take action without paying for your actions, or my take on it, anyhow...certainly leaves you open for doing anything you truly believe in, which leaves it wide open for any psychopath to justify his or her actions. With no repercussions, killing your kin, your enemy, anyone, harming anything you want, and yet knowing the cyclic nature of reincarnation, being absolved of all. 

How can this be, I have been thinking , when all of Hinduism, Jainism and the hundreds of offshoots of these religions are foremost about love, for oneself, one another, and all living things. 
I looked through some pages today of similar teachings, ways of living and how you can do anything without fear at all. These pages were about Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler. The more I read both the Gita and about it's apparent abuse by these horrific monsters, the more afraid I became of the amount of people who, to this day, rely on this book. 
There is a Wiki page about the Russian trial of the Bhagavad-Gita located here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhagavad_Gita_trial_in_Russia

Jainism

Jainism : It's origins are in ancient India, around the 6th Century,  with one of the main beliefs being that no harm is to come to any living creature. 

"Friendship to all living forms, 

delight in the qualities of the virtuous ones, 

unlimited compassion for all suffering beings, 

equanimity toward all who wish me harm, 

may my soul have these dispositions, now and forever."

-- Jain prayer

The Jains believe in no harm to others and complete asceticism (characterized by a lifestyle of abstinence and denial of self pleasure, including family members, aesthetic belongings, monetary items, et al. )

The sacred person (or persons in this case) are the 24 Tirthankaras, "ford-makers", the religions itself centers on sacred images and mantras. Mahāvīra was the final  of the 24 Tirthankaras,  a sacred sage who is said to have established the

sacred tenets of the Jain.  He is referred to by many different names throughout India, eg: Vira, Sanmati, and Gnatputra to name a few. Mahavira thought that in order for the men and women to know the real truth, they must leave their homes and belongings and practice mahimsa, the 

 The Jain lead their lives in a way as to delete the "karma's" attached to their souls, and in doing so, reaching ultimate liberation. This is attained by doing good, treating other living beings with respect and if needed, working toward your own death in a ritualistic starving of the body. This starving of the body can take up to 18 months, as they slowly diminish the food intake, one by one, until they are only taking in water, and then renounce even the water. 
As Jainism as a religion is not about seeking happiness, eternal or otherwise, it is by itself in this type of religion that one wonders about penance itself. The basic ideals of Jains are to keep the world safe, all living things then are equal. The entire time is spent renunciating and paying a type of penance to get rid of the bad Karma's attached to you.

Hinduism1

Today I have chosen to work with Hinduism as my choice of religions to study/discuss. I have always been interested in Hinduism because of it's beginnings, or not beginnings, I suppose it could be said. There is no one single founder, no single scripture, and no commonly agreed upon set of teachings. 
        It is truly a religion of the people. Based on different stages in your life, different castes and different elements of where you are in your life, the teachings change and you follow certain paths (dharma) dependent on that. 
        Hinduism is the religion of the majority of India and Nepal, plus with non local members practicing, there are approximately 900 million Hindus. Closely related to Buddhism,  Jainism, and Sikhism in many ways, and being considered a way of life more than a religion, the four mentioned religions have very similar belief systems for karma and reincarnation. Karma can follow you through many life forms/incarnations and is meant to deal out what is earned as a earthly being. If you do wrong, Karma can follow you through your reincarnations continuing to make life hard for you, if redeemed by doing good though, Karma can then follow you continuing on with good health, wealth and general well being. 
        Hindus believe in one God, whom is then represented by thousand (hundreds of thousands) of deities whom emanate from this one God, doing the different types of work needed. 

Hinduism2

Hinduism: Discussion

Truth is one, sages call it by different names.  Hinduism is the 3rd most popular religion with around a billion followers. Approximately 81% of Nepalese are practicing Hindus. Colonial British rule and how it affected India; in 1858 through 1947, the British Raj (rule/reign) was in affect. During that time, the Brits called it the Indian Empire (as seems to be a commonality with Brits while in ruler-ship) During this reign, the Brits commonly changed the names of cities, counties and towns to more easily pronounced or just for loyal pride. In 1947 the Partition of India began, being parted by religious rule and demographics. On August 15th the partition began, as the Brit rule slowly dissipated, the country was then divided into particulars such as Pakistan, specifically for Muslims in the area,  (actually formed one day earlier, on August 14th), displacing 12.5 million people, leading to the loss of much life, with numbers varying from several hundred thousands to a million. There is approximately 1100 miles of Indian land between East/West Pakistan. East Pakistan seceded from the nation at this time, India took the side of West Pakistan, East Pakistan became Bangladesh, a country one fifth the size of Pakistan with a larger population. There is so much more about the partition that I am going to pay attention to and study more on, I found this very interesting and very under-rated in my short History studies.  (Cite: Dowling, Mike, "Pakistan and Bangladesh at mrdowling.com," available from http://www.mrdowling.com/612-pakistan.html; Internet; updated Monday, July 11, 2005 . ©2009, Mike Dowling. All rights reserved. 
80.5% of Indian peoples regard themselves as Hindus, Hinduism is a complete approach to life, finding nature and her Gods/Goddesses as very sacred, including Mother Ganges (river), Mother India (the land). It is a common belief that you are born  Hindu, not converted into one. Some people believe you can convert, but this goes against the  evangelization, proselytization and conversion thoughts of the old school Hindu belief. 
Hinduism does not have any one founder or doctrine it follows, which leaves it open to perception of how to solve any possible controversies which arise.There are four Vedas, the Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda and Atharva Veda. The Vedas are the primary texts of Hinduism. They also had a vast influence on Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhismere and are four very sacred texts. Other the books they do follow, The Mahabharata, which is one of the original Sanskrit epics, consisting of four different epic stories, stories that are a part of the Mahabharata are the Bhagavad Gita, the story of Damayanti, an abbreviated version of the Ramayana, and the Rishyasringa, often considered as works in their own right. The Bhagavad Gita is mentioned in another page of mine, as a separate study. The Ramayana is about Rama, another one of Vishnu's avatars, in which Rama's wife Sita is abducted by the kind of Sri Lanka and Rama's epic journey to retrieve her. This book, as many of the epics, are written in verse after verse of lines backing up the belief in human nature, human values and dharma. A brief explanation of Dharma - Moksha and the Trinity are as follows:

• Dharma, moral order of the universe
• Atman The individual human soul
• Samsara The cycle of lives
• Karma The law of action and reaction-connnects hinduism, jainism, buddhism
• Moksha Liberation from Samsara 
• The TRIMTURI (the trinity)
• Brahma- The Creator\Vishnu- The Preserver and Shiva- The Destroyer

Sometimes the key goal of reincarnation is to escape the over and over life and death, finally figuring out the answer, finally reaching Moksha The ultimate aim of Hinduism is to escape from the cycle of Samsara and to attain release or Moksha

There are considered 330 million Gods and Goddesses in Hinduism, all avatars of the Trinity. 

Hindu Time Scale http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_units_of_time

(retrieved from Dan's notes) :)