PERFORMANCE VIDEO HERE
Saturday, January 2, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Ham Salad
Hamsa, fingers up, with pomegranates*.
Hamsa or hamesh (five) hand (Hebrew) it is an old amulet for magical protection from the envious or evil eye. The fingers can point up but usually point down. Right, whatever.
In the Jewish tradition, fishes are symbolic of fertility and abundance. Also there is a strong association between fishes and festival of Purim.
Purim is a holiday celebrating a miracle of Jewish survival. Purim comes from the word pur which means lots or dice. The Myth of Esther says that upon receiving permission to annihilate the Jewish people, Haman cast "lots" for the best timing to execute the Jews. He failed. All Jewish holidays celebrate some miracle which shows YHVH's involvement. Unique to the Purim miracle (in the Megilah), Yod Heh Vav Heh is nowhere to be found. But this lore follows a common motif. (1)
Where's the Buddhist Connection?
The Hamsa is a celestial bird that is the vehicle of Indian deities, a transport between heaven and earth. It most often is translated as gander [male goose] but it is not ordinary. Mythologist Joseph Campbell, titled one of his books Flight of the Wild Gander - referring to this Hamsa.
The Kalavinka is the same bird morphed into a Buddhist version whose voice is described in part 16 of Ashvaghosha's Acts of the Buddha as being clear and harmonious in tone. Thus are the voices of monks who recite Dharma. The fingers in Hamsa (symbolizing transport of Dharma) pointing up are associated with revealing Dharma (teachers) or Abhaya Mudra while the fingers pointing down are associated with ‘receiving the Dharma’ (students) or Varada Mudra.
Since the OT was, for the most part, written during the reign of King Josiah and formalized during the time in which Seleukos II was spreading Buddhism in Judea, it is reasonable to see the adaptation of yet other Hindu/Indian/Buddhist ikons. Daniel, for example, is relatively modern (2) and the fellow is a vegetarian.
*In Buddhism the pomegranate is one of the three blessed fruits (the other two are the orange and the peach). It represents 'the essence of favorable influences' in Buddhist art. easy source
2. "It is generally acknowledged that Daniel was written around the crisis of 167 BCE..." A PDF
Hamsa or hamesh (five) hand (Hebrew) it is an old amulet for magical protection from the envious or evil eye. The fingers can point up but usually point down. Right, whatever.
In the Jewish tradition, fishes are symbolic of fertility and abundance. Also there is a strong association between fishes and festival of Purim.
Purim is a holiday celebrating a miracle of Jewish survival. Purim comes from the word pur which means lots or dice. The Myth of Esther says that upon receiving permission to annihilate the Jewish people, Haman cast "lots" for the best timing to execute the Jews. He failed. All Jewish holidays celebrate some miracle which shows YHVH's involvement. Unique to the Purim miracle (in the Megilah), Yod Heh Vav Heh is nowhere to be found. But this lore follows a common motif. (1)
Where's the Buddhist Connection?
The Hamsa is a celestial bird that is the vehicle of Indian deities, a transport between heaven and earth. It most often is translated as gander [male goose] but it is not ordinary. Mythologist Joseph Campbell, titled one of his books Flight of the Wild Gander - referring to this Hamsa.
The Kalavinka is the same bird morphed into a Buddhist version whose voice is described in part 16 of Ashvaghosha's Acts of the Buddha as being clear and harmonious in tone. Thus are the voices of monks who recite Dharma. The fingers in Hamsa (symbolizing transport of Dharma) pointing up are associated with revealing Dharma (teachers) or Abhaya Mudra while the fingers pointing down are associated with ‘receiving the Dharma’ (students) or Varada Mudra.
Since the OT was, for the most part, written during the reign of King Josiah and formalized during the time in which Seleukos II was spreading Buddhism in Judea, it is reasonable to see the adaptation of yet other Hindu/Indian/Buddhist ikons. Daniel, for example, is relatively modern (2) and the fellow is a vegetarian.
*In Buddhism the pomegranate is one of the three blessed fruits (the other two are the orange and the peach). It represents 'the essence of favorable influences' in Buddhist art. easy source
2. "It is generally acknowledged that Daniel was written around the crisis of 167 BCE..." A PDF
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
