While I was in Delhi, we saw lots of monkeys! But these monkeys are causing problems in the city. The dilemma, though, is that in Hinduism the monkey is a sacred animal and should not be killed. NPR just reported on this problem and what Delhi officials are doing to take care of this problem...take a listen (it's less than 4 minutes long).
After 18 days in India, I definitely cannot claim to know everything about India, but I have learned so much about myself and this wonderful country. Some of the highlights:
The hardest part about the trip was seeing the poverty and the stray dogs. The streets are scattered with homelessness: 6 month old babies sleeping on cardboard next to their mothers, a mom and dad with their three children sleeping on the sidewalk so the pedestrians have to step over their feet to walk, a little 7 year old boy sleeping in an ancient ruin who wakes up while we are touring the old city and carefully rolls up the poster he was using for his mattress, or the single women begging for food at the intersection. Dogs were littered all over the city and the countryside: old, young, puppies. All trying to find some shade and water. It breaks my heart, but it reminds me that I always need to keep giving back as a priority in my life. I am so incredibly blessed and it is my responsibility to bless others who are less fortunate. As I wrap up my final blog post, I think my experiences can be summed up with the phrase: Unity in Diversity. India is a country of contradictions, diversity, and differences but the people are all unified as Indians. The Indians are an exceptionally friendly group of people who accept all people, no matter their religion, appearance, language, or culture. I was continually amazed by this character trait. Hindus valued and respected Muslims, Muslims valued and respected Sikhs, etc. etc. I hope the U.S.A. can become a country that is more unified in spite of our differences than segregated or hateful. I think this will become a goal I have in my teaching: to help students value differences and recognize how differences can be a unifying factor in our national identity. A phrase that I see often around New Delhi is: "Unity in Diversity" which means that while the Indian people are diverse: their religion, their language, their dress, etc. they are unified as one people. I love this concept and wish in the USA we could accept each other more whole-heartedly like the Indians do. Today after visiting a different KV school, we went to Lotus Temple and Iskcon. Both are temples but of different religions. Lotus Temple is a Baha'i House of Worship. The Baha'i religion invites people of all religions and races to worship the Creator of the Universe and to express the love between God and man. Everyone is welcome to pray at the temple. Poonam (our host), Jen, and I visited this afternoon and were struck by the beautiful architecture of the building: the structure looks like a lotus! When you enter the temple you must take off your shoes and be silent. There are ivory benches to sit on where people pray. It is a very peaceful place. After we left the temple, we were taking pictures outside the temple and came across an Indian family who wanted to take pictures with Jen and me! (I think because they don't see many tall, white, blonde-haired Americans). I felt like a celebrity! Suddenly a crowd surrounded us and everyone was getting pictures with us. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much. After visiting Lotus Temple, we went to Iskcon, a Hindu temple. ISKCON is short for International Society for Krishna Consciousness. People come to worship Krishna and sing the Hare Krishna mantra. When we arrived, we were lucky enough to witness a service with the Pandits (priests). First we had to take off our shoes and wash our feet and hands before entering the temple. Right outside the temple was a statue of Sri Garuda Deva. When you enter into the temple, there are brightly colored pictures on each wall with three gold doors at the front of the temple. When the service began, the Pandits came out of the curtains and rang bells, sang, fanned the statues, and put sweet-smelling flowers on each statue. Another Pandit went to a table off stage and began making Panchamrita, which is a mixture of milk, honey, sugar. Followers cup their hands and the Pandit pours the Holy water into their hands for them to drink. The length of each service is up to the individual: some people stay in the temple for an hour or more, other people spend less time praying. Most Hindus visit temple on Saturday or Sunday to worship. One last note about Hinduism: since many people practice this religion in India, it is impossible to find beef in the form of a hamburger, etc. All hamburgers are buffalo meat. This is because in the Veda (the Hindu Scripture) the cow is considered the mother of all mankind by providing milk to people. Since the cow is a sacred animal, it is unthought of to slaughter this animal for food. I hope you learned something about Indian religions! These are just two of the religions that make up the diversity of the Indian people. Sikhs, Jains, Christians, and Buddhists are also represented in this diverse, but unified country! Throughout this week Jen and I have been observing at K.V. Pushp Vihar and doing some sight-seeing. Poonam, our host teacher, has taken us around to many important sites around Delhi. Here's a list of the places we have visited so far and a little bit about each monument, site, and/or temple! As you will notice, we have visited both Muslim and Hindu temples. India seems to be a land of great tolerance and acceptance: all religions are respected. When we go to a Hindu site, we see Muslims also touring the site; when we visit a Muslim site, Hindus are touring the site. There doesn't seem to be much, if any, religious tensions between groups of people!
1. Humayun's Tomb This is the tomb of Mughal Emperor Humayun and dates back to 1569. The tomb includes multiple arches, buildings, and lush gardens surrounding the buildings. India has a long and rich history that includes a Mughal dynasty. 2. Akshardham Temple This is a Hindu temple that was built in 2005 and includes several buildings, gardens, and reflecting ponds. The area is beautiful and peaceful. The intricacy on the buildings is incredibly. 3. Delhi Haat Delhi Haat is an open-air market that is permanent and includes goods from all different areas of India. Many stores include idols of important Hindu gods, hand-crafted items, and clothing. When we visited I bought a hand sewn pillow case for a throw pillow on my sofa at home. 4. Qutb Minar Qutb Minar is a Muslim temple and complex that was built in 1193 and is still an active place of worship today. This was the first mosque built in India! The most spectacular tower is here: it is detailed and tall. All other buildings surround this tower 5. Chhatarpur Temple Chhatarpur Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess Katyayani. While the shrine of Katyayani is in the center of this temple, other gods are also worshipped here in side rooms. These other gods include: Durga, Krishna, Ganesha, and Shiva. Today I learned that outside each Shiva temple stands a bull because that is Shiva's animal.
Today after breakfast, Jen Koszyk and I walked around our hotel's neighborhood with a group of other women. We saw 5 cows hanging out in the neighborhood streets! Along the streets there are many food vendors selling coconuts, watermelon, and mangos! Yum :)
After walking around and lunch, we had a special lesson on Indian History & Culture by Dr. Chirajavi Singh. Here are some of the things I have learned:
Below are some pictures of the day: breakfast, our cohort, our hotel, the neighborhood around the hotel, and our history/culture lesson. Enjoy! |
AuthorHi! My name is Janna Nobleza and I'm a high school English teacher in the Chicago Public Schools. This blog records my TGC India preparation, journey, and reflections. Archives
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