HOLIDAYS OF HOPE, HOLIDAYS OF COURAGE

The days are getting shorter, the light is getting weaker, trees look skeletal and humans get scared.  Perhaps that’s why we have some of the holidays we do at this time of the year.  There are three happening in the next two weeks – Halloween, All Saints Day, and Diwali – all from different traditions – all about life over death, good conquering evil, and the hope and courage that knowledge brings to us as we face our world.

In all of our fun and flagrancy, we tend to forget the serious roots of Halloween – which is originally the Celtic holiday of Sah-ween.  It is a time, as my Wiccan friend, Grove Harris wrote in the Huffington Post:

“...when some experience the veils between the living and the spiritual realms as thin, [it] is a particularly good time for opening to messages from loved ones who have died and crossed over.”

The lit pumpkins, the bon fires – perhaps even the wearing of costumes of what scares us – help us to deal with and conquer our fears.

On November 13^th begins the Hindu holiday of Diwali, also a festival of lights.  There are candles lit, fireworks, and stories related to Diwali.  One is from the Ramayana, the story of how prince Rama tries to get back the love of his life, Sita, who had been kidnapped by an evil demon.  Even though things look most hopeless and bleak, in the end, the good guy wins. 

In the Catholic Church November 1st is All Saints day.  This is a day to honour those special men and women recognized because at great personal cost – often death -- they stood up for their religion.  The next day, November 2^nd, is All Souls Day which in Mexico is called El Dia de los Muertos.  Like Halloween, it is a time to reconnect with ‘those [loved ones] who have died and crossed over.’

I think the message of all these traditions is that even though it looks like dark days, bad times and death will take over, they don’t.  Life and light, hope and courage win out.  And if you think that’s just a lot of wishful thinking, let’s remember some souls who, despite all odds against them, and at great personal cost, changed the world for the better.

I’m thinking of people like Mahatma Gandhi who took on the whole British Empire, which at that time owned ¾ o the world!  His work led to India’s independence from Britain, the change in the caste system, the civil rights movements in the U.S. AND South Africa, and is influencing environmental sustainability and justice movements around the world today.

Think of Dr. Wangari Maathai, who, despite personal and political problems, threats of assassination and harassment from the government of Kenya, headed an organization that planted 45 million trees in Kenya, empowered women in her country, and became the first African woman to win the Nobel Prize.

Over the summer I read a book that I recommend to everyone.  Written by two NY Times reports, Nicholas Kristoff and his wife, Sheryl Wudunn, it is about the oppression women around the world still find themselves in because of things such as sex trafficking, health inequities, lack of education or control of their own lives.  It is, in that respect, a deeply troubling book.  But it also greatly inspirational as they tell of every day women who stand up in their communities – again, against GREAT odds -- and fight against the injustices around them, there by changing the world. 

No one said changing the world was easy or without fears.  While we celebrate the accomplishments of Martin Luther King, we usually don’t know that he was scared.  In his book Stride toward Freedom, he describes his sitting at his kitchen table late one night, ready to give up on changing the country in order to protect his family after another threatening phone call.  He wrote that he spoke to God and said:

 ‘I am here taking a stand for what I believe is right.  But now I am afraid.  The people are looking to me for leadership, and if I stand before them without strength and courage, they too will falter.  I am at the end of my powers.  I have nothing left.  I’ve come to the point where I can’t face it alone.”

In 1969, at the height of the Vietnam War, a government whistle blower, Daniel Ellsberg publicized what are called the Pentagon papers leading, eventually to the end of the Vietnam war and the demise of Nixon’s term as president.  With the full force of the U.S. government against him, Ellsberg was on trial and faced 40 years in prison for what he did.  But as his son, Robert Ellsberg, wrote: movingly in a blog for the Huffington Post (06/19/11) about his father:  “he wanted us to receive lessons that might be the only legacy he could leave us: the importance of following one's conscience; the value of a life dedicated to truth; the message that there are things in life that are worthy of the greatest sacrifice.”

So, at when the days are getting darker and colder, when perhaps we might fear what’s ahead – whether with the weather or the political situation –these holidays are there to remind us that good does conquer evil and, as MLK said, the “arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.” 

THE BIOLOGICAL DIMENSION OF RITUALS

Ninian Smart identified seven dimensions that he sees as fundamental to all religions.  I would add (at least) one more:  the biological.  Long before developmental psychologists, neuroscientific MRIs or scientists examined the meditating minds of Buddhist monks, religions recognized and utilized biology to transform adherents.

Most obvious is that religions around the world have mark the onslaught of puberty and the higher level thinking of the brains prefrontal cortex with initiation rites for boys and girls.  Traditions recognize that biologically this might be a good time to challenge the changeling physically and mentally to both bring their hubris down a few pegs (think of the 7^th and 8^th grade boys you know!) and make them aware that they are now part of a larger society.  In turn, ritual practices stimulate physiological responses in the adolescents so that -- on a gut (and brain, chemical, limb) level -- they learn their lessons.  Indigenous cultures separate boys from the community with dramatic rituals that trigger biological responses.   Put a boy in a dark, smoky hole such as a kiva for a period of days or months, or use painful bodily scarifications such as circumcision and there will be mind/body altering experiences

There are other rituals that clearly have a biological component to them as well.   Singing, drumming and music certainly affect the arousal system of the body as well as certain parts of the brain.  Fasting creates a chemical change in the body by affecting glucose levels and slowing the metabolic rate.  This can heighten awareness and improve the immune system.  The use of potent plants -- either in the form of wine or hallucinogens -- effects the neural systems and perceptions of the brain and body. The physiological effects of meditation have been studied by scientific researchers for over 30 years now and results show that everything from blood flow to the immune system is improved with meditation.

"Meditators showed greater activation in the left anterior region of the prefrontal cortex, a region that CN researcher have previously found to be associated with positive emotional states….the meditators developed significantly more antibodies in response to a shot of flu vaccine than did the control group.  Furthermore, the meditators who demonstrated the greatest increase in left-side brain activation also produced the strongest immunological response." (Bulkeley, The Wondering Brain p. 156)

But what about holidays?  Could there be a biological aspect to holidays?  I say yes.  Humans are, like most animals and plants, chronobiological creatures.  Our bodies and our minds are affected by time, by light and by dark.  For our health and wellbeing we need both light and dark.  In fact, Seasonal Affective Disorder or SAD is a depression caused by the lack of light in the winter months of northern climates.  Our bodies regulate the secretion of mood altering hormones such as serotonin and melatonin through the pineal gland located in the brain (between the eyes and referred to in Hindu yoga as the third eye or sixth chakra/energy center) based on the amount of light we receive optically.

So perhaps it is not just metaphorically that, as the days become shorter and darker in the winter, we turn to festivals of light.  The Jewish celebration of Hanukkah, the Christian holiday of Christmas, and the Hindu festival of Diwali all focus on the use of lights.  Perhaps it is for biological reasons.

In late February, early March when the days begin to get longer and trees are juicing up by producing sap, Jews celebrate Purim, the festival when everyone dresses up and tells the story of Esther and goes wild and crazy when Haman’s name is mentioned.  Hindus celebrate Holi, a holiday when everyone goes wild and crazy throwing coloured water at each other.  Latin countries celebrate Mardi gras, also a wild and crazy time of costumes and colour.  In many Asian countries it is the time of the New Year with Fire crackers (except in NYC) and dragons dancing in the streets.

​All of those holidays involve a great deal of colour and movement.  They all involve people “acting out” in ways that they might not normally do or being who they might normally be.  It causes our eyes to constantly be moving and stimulated in different directions and by unusual sights and colours.

​We know our eyes convey to us a great deal of information which triggers physical and emotional responses.  We all might remember that last year a number of people all over Japan went into epileptic-like seizures when they watched a bright and rapid animation scene on TV. Some psychotherapists have begun to use a treatment called EMDR, which stands for 'eye movement desensitization and reprocessing'.  This therapy tool is being used to help people who have experienced trauma -- abuse, war, rape.  By directing the eye to look quickly in different directions, the licensed therapist can help the patient unclog the reenacted experience so that it becomes less fearful and less painful by being more observed and less felt.  Apparently, it is an amazingly effective means of treatment for many people.

​Perhaps when you stimulate the eye through the rapid movement and brightness of colours that come with the holidays, you stimulate the release of internal juices – emotional and biological responses.  Maybe the pineal gland suppresses the melatonin we’ve created during the long, light-starved winter, increases the serotonin which makes us happier and allows our bodies to “wake up” to the coming of spring.

​Even rituals that have become less religious and more commercial, such as Valentine's Day have a biological component.  Studies show that the colour red arouses the senses, increases the appetites, and quickens the pulse.  Chocolate, with over 300 chemicals, contains one that acts in ways similar to marijuana, giving the user something a kin to a pleasantly mild high.   Researchers also claim that male sperm and testosterone levels are higher in February. (Tjoa, Yutaka)  Is it any wonder that February is the month of wooing with red and chocolate?

​New technologies in the neurosciences are allowing us to see and substantiate what religious traditions have long known.  Ritual practices are both a reaction to and a stimulant for biological transformation of human beings.   The more that we "re-cognize" the porous nature of our lives, the more we will appreciate the ancient wisdom of religions.

Bulkeley, Kelley, The Wondering Brain: Thinking about Religion With and Beyond Cognitive Neuroscience, New York: Routledge, 2004.

Morinis, Alan, “The Ritual Experience: Pain and the Transformation of Consciousness in Ordeals of Initiation”, Ethos © 1985 American Anthropological Association

Tjoa WS, Smolensky MH, Hsi BP, Steinberger E, Smith KD.​”Circannual rhythm in human sperm count revealed by serially independent sampling.”

Fertil Steril. 1982 Oct;38(4):454-9., PMID: 7117573 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Yutaka Motohashi, Shigekazu Higuchi and Akira Maeda “Men's Time, Women's Time -Sex Differences in Biological Time Structure”. Applied Human Science. Vol. 17; 157-159 (1998)

WHEN I THINK OF HOME

Synchronicity is when a number of coincidental events take place in time.  Last week I decided I wanted to do a Matters of Spirit on the Wizard of Oz and I downloaded a couple of my favorite women singers with songs to help me out.  Then someone made a reference to the Wizard of Oz, then someone else, and on Friday I found out AP has been studying it!

So… as they say in Yiddish, it is beshert – it is meant to be – that I talk about the Wizard of Oz, the story of a young girl swept away from home to a magical land where everything is strange, and -- with the help of a scarecrow, a tin man and a cowardly lion – faces dangers, kills witches, and finally gets home understanding life quite differently than when she left.  It’s what Joseph Campbell called the Hero Cycle: the leaving home, having adventures, facing challenges and coming home with new wisdom.  

(2:47) Somewhere over the rainbow:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWeF5Zv_pzs

Human beings in different times and places often wish for something like Dorothy:  the longing for something beyond – and better – than what we have.  In religious terms it is the transcendant that which is above and beyond the everyday realities of life – call it enlightenment, or moksa, call it heaven, or the pure land, call it the call.  And like Dorothy, religious people, and spiritual seekers in general, have made pilgrimages, physical and spiritual  journeys that deeply change who they are.  Gilgamesh seeking immortality made such a journey, the Buddha leaving his father’s palace to seek an end to suffering made such a journey.  Jesus, Lao Tzu, Rama and Sita, Muhammed, all made such a journey.  Harry Potter, Stephen King books, Magic cards and even the last seaon of Lost recognize the hero cycle.  

But even us every day people can experience the journey of the hero cycle.  I don’t mean when we take a nice trip or a vacation, I mean when we embark on a journey where we leave our comfort zone, our known world and travel to the unknown.  Because there, in the words of the poet W.H. Auden:

“You will see rare beasts, and have unique adventures.”

Lions and tigers and bears – Oh my!  Sometimes it’s scary to be out of one’s comfort zone, to be away from everything that’s familiar.  To be alone, to be aware of one’s frailities and vulnerabilities.

(3:44) Janis: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYHJ_A8qnXw

It is the trial by fire that tempers the heart.  It is the pain that gives us understanding and compassion.  It transforms us, changes us radically in ways we don’t expect.   And while we ultimately face the challenges of our lives alone and the change takes place inside us, we also recognize the need for support, for community, for friends.

(2:39) Bette Midler: “Friends”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8Iwmcs1hps

Finally, with new knowledge and quite a different view of ourselves, of others and the world, we do go home:

Itunes: (3:30)

WHEN I THINKOF HOME (from The Wiz)

                        by

          Charles Emanuel Smalls

When I think of home, I think of a place
where's there's love overflowing
I wish I was home, I wish I was back there
With the things I've been knowing

Wind that makes the tall grass bend into leaning
Suddenly the raindrops that fall they have a meaning
Sprinklin the scene
Makes it all clean

Maybe there's a chance for me to go back
Now that I have some direction
It sure would be nice to be back at home
Where there's love and affection

And just maybe I can convince time to slow up
Givin me enough time, in my life to grow up
Time be my friend
And let me start again

Suddenly my worlds gone and changed its fate
But I still know where I'm going
I have had my mind spun round in space
Yet I’ve watched it growing

And oh, if you're listening, God, please don't make it hard
To know if we should believe the things that we see
Tell us should we try to stay or should we run away
Or would it be better just to let things be,

Livin here in this brand new world
Might be a fantasy
But its taught me to love,
So its real, real, real to me

And I've learned that we must look
Inside our hearts to find
A world full of love
Like yours, like mine

Like home!

THE TRAIN MOVES ON

Sometimes it’s the everyday stuff that teaches you the most. A number of years ago, I learned that life – life is like a subway car.  Here’s why:

When I lived and worked in New York City, I daily took the local subway from 96^th street down to 42^nd street.  One day, at 86^th St. an older man got on, drunk at 8 am. He made a huge scene. Everyone in the car was pretty rattled by it.  The police escorted him off at 72^nd St. and the train moved on.  By the time we got to 42^nd St, with people coming and going, only a few of us still on the train remembered or even knew about the old man. 

So what did I learn from that ride about life:  that life moves on.  People get on, people get off, we have vivid experiences, momentous experience s and then life moves on.  Some people, some experiences are remembered -- by some, until they leave -- and the rest are forgotten.  It happens in history, it happens in our personal lives.

A student came in to see me a few weeks ago to because he realized that when his class graduates, no students will remember a young man, a year older than they and dear to many of our hearts, who committed suicide in their sophomore year.  Further, he realized that a student from their own grade, also dear to many, would be unknown to any student when the class behind them graduates.  The train moves on.

The same thing happens in history.  Who remembers Charlemagne or Mansa Musa -- only a few and then, only because it's on a test.  Another student of mine, also a senior, came to the shocking realization that the freshman in the school, unlike the seniors, didn’t know where they were on 9/11.  They were too young.  It was a history book event to them, not a lived experience. The train moves on.

And yet, we don't want to forget those who mattered to us, those who made a difference in our lives.  Think of someone who has meant something to you or played an important role in your life.  Think of that person again.  I bet it was someone who was good to you.  Who cared about you.  And I bet you did not choose that person because of their SAT scores, their business acumen, nor what school they went to.

Because we don't want to forget those who influenced us profoundly, and because we want to 're-member' them for ourselves and for those who come after us, humans have memorial services or holidays.  In the Shinto tradition of Japan there's Obon which, like the Day of the Dead in Mexico, honours and brings home the souls of family members who have died.  The Akan in Africa have rituals of libation in which they feed and include the ancestors because they play an active role in the community.  Christians remember the dead on All Saints Day and All Souls Day. Jews light a candle on the Yartzeit, or anniversary of the death of a loved one.  It is our way of keeping them -- or their memory -- on the train with us..

There are people of history who still touch our lives, who still speak to us and are, in a sense, with us, seem to be the ones who started -- or revolutionized religious traditions.   The Buddha, Moses, Jesus, Confucius, Muhammed to name a few.  And why is it that after all these years, and all the bad things that have been done in their name, they're "still on the train?"

I think it's because each in their way was aware of our short time on earth and how best to use it.  Not a one of them was "successful" in the way we usually mean the word.  They were not corporate or empire leaders.  They were not graduates of the top schools of their days.  The Buddha and Moses, both brought up as princes in royal families dropped out and wandered about.  Confucius, successful as a teacher, was never in his lifetime able to market his ideas to a kingdom.  Jesus associated himself with a ragtag group on the lower levels of society and Muhammed, the most successful of them business wise, gave it up, questioned his sanity and put his life in danger.

But each one of them encouraged people to be kind, to be loving, to be compassionate.  Each one had a golden rule and each one spoke of taking care of each other and of those less fortunate.  That, they said, is the essence of real success.  For that they are remembered.  For that any of us will be remembered.

One of the greatest spiritual leaders in my time was truly a modern prophet:  Martin Luther King. And in one of his speeches he said that at his funeral he would want the following:

I'd like somebody to mention that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to give his life serving others. (Yes)

I'd like for somebody to say that day that Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to love somebody.

I want you to say that day that I tried to be right on the war question. (Amen)

I want you to be able to say that day that I did try to feed the hungry. (Yes)

And I want you to be able to say that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked. (Yes)

I want you to say on that day that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison. (Lord)

I want you to say that I tried to love and serve humanity. (Yes)

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. (Amen) Say that I was a drum major for peace. (Yes) I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter. (Yes) I won't have any money to leave behind. I won't have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. (Amen) And that's all I want to say.

If I can help somebody as I pass along,

If I can cheer somebody with a word or song,

If I can show somebody he's traveling wrong,

Then my living will not be in vain."

                                                                                    (The Drum Major Instinct)

Life is like a subway train.  How are you going to spend your time?  How will you be remembered?