Week 12 Reading Diary: Ardhanari’s Secret

One of my favorite ways to learn in this class is videos. I think I enjoy this especially because in an online class sometimes it is nice to be able to learn in ways that more resemble a classic learning setting. Although this class has taught me to be proactive in critical reading and analysis, it is still nice to be able to be taught through visuals and audio such as in a video.

For this reason, I decided to continue my study of the 7 Secrets of Hindu Calendar Art videos. I definitely recommend these videos as I have found them to be highly engaging and informative. The main idea of Ardhanari’s Secret is that God is stillness within, goddess is movement around. One thing I found interesting is that the male trinity is associated with verbs, which include creating, sustaining, and destroying (this last one really caught my attention) while the female trinity is associated with nouns, including knowledge, wealth, and power. Because the gods can create, sustain, and destroy, they are doing and, therefore, active. The goddesses, on the other hand, are passive. From this a patriarchal society would see women as passive objects, the one to whom things are done. Their attributes – wealth, knowledge, and power – can be created, sustained, and destroyed.

There is another side to this argument though and that is that the gods and goddesses are dependent on one another. Just as a female holds life within her, she cannot reproduce without the activity that a male provides. Obviously this brings to surface the ever-debatable question of gender superiority. But I don’t think that is the point. I think that the point is that both genders are equally important because whether active or passive is better, does not matter. What matters is that both are necessary for life and progress. This made me think of a quote that I saw earlier this morning: 

"The worst enemy of life is not death but stagnation. Movement will set you free.” – Andrea Balt 

From this, I once again gather that if it is movement that will set us free, we must, both male and female, work together in balance. This idea of balance is important in Eastern cultures. For example, these ancient Hindu ideas of gods and goddesses align perfectly with the Chinese philosophy of yin yang (one of my favorites!):

Yin and Yang. Source: PreventDisease.com.

I also wrote about these ideas of balance in my Week 11 Reading Diary: The Churning of the Ocean. In this story of Vishnu, evil, as in the asuras, and good, as in the devtas, both occupy the earth and thereby bring balance to it as in the yin and yang. This is Vishnu’s concept that detached engagement brings order. I think this encourages toleration – that we shouldn’t feel the need to change others who are different than us but that we should accept them and live peacefully on this earth, a very Eastern concept. I would really like to learn even more about balance and the yin and yang because I truly believe it is essential for a happy life. I think that the source of the above image, PreventDisease.com, says a lot about how essential balance is to a happy life. Another picture on this website made me laugh, so I included it as well:

Source: PreventDisease.com.

Week 12 Reading Diary: Bhagavad Gita

For this week's reading diary, I read the Bhagavad Gita provided by the International Gita Society. The Bhagavad Gita is one of the most important Hindu scriptures and was originally written in Sanskrit. It is actually part of The Mahabharata, which is one of the reasons I enjoyed The Mahabharata so much.

My yoga teacher training has familiarized me with the Bhagavad Gita. This text is especially important to yogis because of its synthesis of the yogic ideals. It is even referred to as the “Yoga Handbook.”

At the beginning of the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 1: Arjuna’s Dilemma provides just that: the internal conflict that Arjuna is having to deal with. Also in this chapter, Krishna is introduced as Arjuna’s charioteer. At this point in history, war was the norm – this is the way everything was dealt with, and Arjuna made this radical observation – why are we causing pain to those we love and respect over material things?

This image depicts Arjuna and Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita. Source: WordPress.

The book continues to spill over with Arjuna’s beautiful revelations. The second chapter, Transcendental Knowledge, reads “It would be better indeed, to live on alms in this world than to slay these noble personalities, because by killing them I would enjoy wealth and pleasure stained with their blood.”

The Bhagavad Gita then goes on to describe those paths a person must take to reach self-realization, which he defines as knowing “one’s relationship with the Supreme Lord and His true transcendental nature.” These include:
1. Path of Service
2. Path of Renunciation with Knowledge
3. Path of Renunciation
4. Path of Meditation

These paths culminate in self-knowledge and enlightenment. Many yogis live by this literature, following these paths in order to eventually reach enlightenment. The Bhagavad Gita could even be considered one of the world’s first self-help books.

Week 11 Review

I feel like all I want to start all of my Week in Review posts with an "I'm so stressed because..." Is this just because it's Sunday and I am suddenly thinking about everything coming up in the next few days? I am not sure nonetheless, I never in my life want to take eighteen hours in one semester again. Ever.

Stressed. Source: Relatably. 

Growth Mindsest Challenge

For this week's Growth Mindset Challenge, I chose to evaluate schools for growth. One program that the University of Oklahoma offers that I just recently discovered is the Design Your Own Major. I think it is great that individuals can choose between multidisciplinary studies or the planned program in order to get exactly what they want from their education. It is true that not every person will fit the mold of the typical student and therefore they shouldn't be required to try to fit the standardized education standards of that same person. You can read about it more at the University's website here. I also included an image that I think depicts these ideas well:

Source: Pinterest.

Learning by H.E.A.R.T. Challenge

For this week's Learning by H.E.A.R.T. Challenge, I chose a time management strategy called the Pomodoro technique. This week's to-do list seems never-ending so I am going to put this technique to work and will get back to you next week to let you know it went. One thing I was wondering is if there is any specific reason why you should take a longer break between every 4 pomodoros?

Pomodoro technique. Source: Learning by HEART

Tech Tip: Known Profile

For this week's Tech Tip I created a Known Profile, which you can view at this link.

I made my avatar an image of a turtle for two reasons:

1. This is the theme of my storybook. 
2. I am known as a turtle by many of my friends because they think I move slowly... and I do but I like to live this way. 

Sea Turtle. Source: Scuba Tom.

Week 11 Reading Diary: The Churning of the Ocean

For this week’s reading guide I am going to study a variety sources in order to learn more about the god Vishnu. Kurma is Vishnu’s turtle avatar who happens to be the main character of my storybook.

I started out my research on Vishnu by watching Vishnu’s Secret, the 6th video in the series 7 Secrets of Hindu Calendar Art by Devdutt Pattanaik. The main idea of Vishnu’s Secret is that detached engagement brings order.

Next, I read the guide to The Churning of the Ocean, which provides the story behind Vishnu’s avatar Kurma. As the story goes, Durvasa received a floral garland from an apsara, which is some kind of feminine spirit similar to an angel. Durvasa gifts this garland to Indra, king of gods. Indra then gives the garland to his elephant Airavata who tramples it (see Indra and Airavata in the image below). Known for his short temper, Durvasa is enraged by Indra and Airavata’s lack of reverence for the ethereal garland and dispels the strength of the gods. This causes the natural world to grow weak.

Indra on his mythological white elephant, Airavata. Source: Wikipedia. 

The natural world is occupied by both devtas, or gods, and asuras, or demons. Because Durvasa has taken away much of the gods’ strength, the asuras are able to take control of the natural world. Amrita, the nectar of immortality, makes the devtas immortal and comes from the “ocean of milk.” Likewise, Sanjivani Vidya allows the asuras to wake the dead. This makes their powers equal but opposite – thus, detached engagement brings order. Vishnu and the devtas repair the world by churning the “ocean of milk,” but Mount Mandara begins to sink. Vishnu turns into his turtle avatar Kurma, who becomes the base of the mountain on which the world sits.