Hinduism: Meaningless Rituals?

Most religions (and maybe all religions) have some degree of ritualistic behavior. But many people of faith love to point to people of other religions and mock the rituals that they follow. Human nature I guess...

If you ever go to a Hindu temple, one of the rituals you might notice is people circling the inner sanctum of the temple. This is one that I myself have always wondered about. Most religious rituals have (or had) some meaning or significance. Some rituals have lost that relevance and some others have been mindlessly practiced for so long that people have forgotten their meaning. So one time I asked our priest about this one...

So said the learned priest: When you visit the temple, you come with a lot of baggage. Your day to day life, your stresses, your hopes and desires, your anger and frustrations. In this state of mind it is very difficult to really feel the presence of God or to make a connection to your own spiritual self. Circling the inner sanctum of the temple, or doing pradakshina, is a method to unwind yourself from it all before trying to reach out, or in.

Typically you do three pradakshinas before praying. During the first one you should attempt to unwind and disconnect your mind from your worldly possessions. During the second you should attempt to unwind and disconnect from all your relations and relationships. Finally, during the third you should attempt to unwind and disconnect from your own ego and sense of self. When you have successfully disconnected from all this can you really connect with God.

Does this mean that if you cannot manage to disconnect some day then prayer is futile? I asked. Not so, said the priest, your prayer is still heard, you just may not be able to hear the response due to the noise.

Prologue to a Series on Hinduism

The priest at our local Hindu temple is a very learned man. He is younger than me, but has dedicated his life to God and has studied the Vedas for many years. However, in spite of being steeped in very deep religious philosophy, he has the knack for explaining complex religious concepts simply enough for our ABCD children to understand. This is very useful for parents like us who feel that having a connection to their roots is very important for kids to understand their identity and to be grounded in their adult life.

Last time we were at the temple he explained a couple of things about Hinduism to our kids and promised to explain more next time. I plan to blog about these in a series here for others that may be looking for similar information for their kids.

Can't Dream for Others

Although I've suspected this, maybe even known this, it has been reaffirmed for me multiple times in the recent past. Even though the dream you have imagined for someone else may be perfect for them. It may be something that they really want but just are not ready for, or have not realized yet. Dreaming for someone else is a fool's errand; dreams by nature are a personal thing and unless the dreamer and dream are one, it cannot be fulfilled.

So how does this work when related to parenting? Don't all parents have dreams for their children? I believe that they do, but really what  parent can do is to help the child construct and clarify their own dream. From that point on, unless the child adopts the dream and makes it their own, it remains a dream that the parent has for their child as opposed to the child's dream that they will take to fruition.

Different scenarios, but same principle. So if you are involved in a dream for someone else, beware, all you can do is help articulate the dream. At that point you need to let go or you will be left with a sense of failure for something you never had any control over in the first place.