USHAO
October-November 2003,
Mah Aban, Fasal Sal 1372
Kat toi, Asha! Zbayente avanho What of thy help, Oh Asha! Is there for the invoker
Zarathustrai? Kat toi Vohu Mananha! Zarathushtra? What is thine, Oh Vohu Mananh?
Ye –ve staotais, Mazda! Frinai, Ahura! For me who will gladden you with hymns,
Oh Mazda Ahura!
Avat yasas
hyat ve ista vahistem? Beseeching such as is the
best wish of yours.
In this stanza [Yasna 49.12: Spenta Mainyu 3.12] Holy Zarathushtra first tells Asha and Vohu Mannah that he is their worshipper and invoker. Then he asks them as to what help he would get from them in return for his worship and invocation. Finally, he beseeches Ahura Mazda to grant him the best of His wish in return for which he will gladden and propitiate Him with hymns.
[Source: “The Holy Gathas
of Zarathushra” – Behramgore T. Anklesaria]
“The essential theme of his (Zarathushtra’s) religion based on Good thoughts, Good words and good deeds shows the strength of his message and its superiority over others. If the entire world were to act according to Zarathushtra’s thoughts, there would be no wars, no conflicts, no torture, no prejudice---all these would vanish. His is the only way of salvation for humanity.”
[Dr. Parvaneh
Jamshidor : Dushanbe-Tajikistan]
IN THIS ISSUE:
04.
THE RIGHTEOUS GOVERNMENT OF GOD: Dr. Maneck B.
Pithawalla
05.
LOOKING UP THROUGH NATURE UNTO NATURE’S GOD: Faridun K.
Dadachanji
06.
THINK EVERYONE [Poem]: Farida Bamji
07.
SOURCES OF FIRDOUSI’S SHAHNAME: Jamshid Cawasji
Katrak
10.
ROLE OF PARENTS IN RELIGIOUS EDUCATION: Farishta Murzban
Dinshaw
12.
DREAM UP SOLUTIONS WITH FOCUSED MIND: Anil K. Rajvanshi
VISPA HUMATA --- ALL GOOD THOUGHTS:
by N.D.
Khandalavala
There
is in the Khordeh Avesta, a short exhortation with the above title, which is
rendered as follows:
“All good thoughts, all good words, all good deeds
proceed from (good) sense. All bad thoughts, all bad words, all bad deeds,
are not the products of good sense. All good thoughts, all good words, all
good deeds lead to Heaven. All bad thoughts, all bad words, all bad deeds,
drag (a man) towards Hell. The righteous are aware that the (fruition of)
all good thoughts, good words and good deeds, is Heaven.”
This beautiful little precept is mechanically
recited by old and young, as if it were a prayer, like the long drawn out
recitals –bhantars of the Khordeh Avesta, and it is supposed that the
mere vociferation of the Avestan words would produce good thoughts, good words,
and good deeds and would ultimately carry the reciter to Heaven, when earthly
life is ended.
Unintelligent babbling
Religion is often confounded with unmeaning
mechanical acts. Mind and feeling are inhibited, and placed on the shelf
of forgetfulness. Dull, idle, thoughtless voicing of old unmeaning,
inappropriate texts, is superstitiously believed to be sufficient to bring down
blessings, and gifts from the upper world on the blank head of the
mutterer.
The effort to
think
“Watch and pray” is a deeply significant
phrase. What is the substance and significance of the words you are
uttering? Such a question is never pondered upon. One has to be
constantly on the watch to see that his thoughts are good, his words are good,
and his deeds are good. And then again arises the difficulty. What
is meant by Good and Evil? It is not remembered that ‘Good and evil’ are
relative terms. It is necessary to take great care, really to find out
what in each particular case, is a good thought, a good word, or a good
deed.
Beautiful thoughts and
deeds
Not a moment of our valuable time should be idly
wasted. The mind should always be tuned to beautiful thoughts,
remembering that thought is as important as action. To deeply ponder and
realize that the Divine Power, which rules and guides the Universe is all
powerful, all wise and mercifully just. It gives us strength, patience,
comfort and leads to useful activities. A firm belief in the existence of
a just and merciful God is the bulwark of a religious life. In deep
thought we find higher guidance and
consolation.
Evil
thoughts
The wings of our thoughts constantly fly
upwards. They are like angels carrying messages, or supplications to the
Almighty. They are never lost by the way, and cannot miscarry. Just
imagine how harmful an evil thought can prove winging its flight to the world of
peace, justice, and beauty, entering like an evil presence to meet disapproval
in angelic spheres. All mean desires, all unholy actions, and all selfish
motives, move in lower, denser spheres, and darken the inner vision of the
producers thereof. The dark wings of evil thoughts produce fear and
depression. Patience, endurance, courage, and true belief make music and
harmony and produce joy and sunshine. Extreme care must be taken to guard
our mind, so that it may hold only that which may spread truth and
peace.
Thought Influence
It is written: “Speak not evil of one
another” But much evil, as well as much good, may be
done unconsciously by the thoughts which do not find expression in our
conversation with our fellow men. It is not so much in our words, as in
our thoughts, that our influence lies. Words are but the outer
manifestation of the inner creative forces. Moreover often in verbal
converse, with persons in our presence, our thoughts may be running in
directions, and concerning things, not indicated by our words. The words
may even be used, to conceal our thoughts. But our thoughts none the less
are operative although hidden.
In our intercourse with others we must beware, how
and what we think. If our feelings are not in harmony with the law of
sympathy, much harm may be done. On the other hand if our feelings are
imbued with brotherly love, much good may be done, by awakening a corresponding
feeling in others.
Think of your
thoughts
It is said: “What a man thinketh in his heart,
that he is.” Thought and feeling are the soul’s
self-expression, the mirror of its activities. Our thoughts then are in a
sense ourselves. Our higher enfoldment is an expansion of consciousness,
whereby we are enabled to apprehend, assimilate and reproduce the higher
thoughts, which contact with the spiritual world, lays our mind open to.
The widening of the consciousness is brought about, by constant effort to
understand and make our own, those deeper thought-impressions which our higher
self endeavors to make us conscious of.
There is another reason why we should think of our
thoughts. The character of our thinking, by modifying the thought
atmosphere, in which we live, is either helping on, or hindering the whole of
mankind.
Moral and Mental
Activity
The maxims contained in Vispa
Humata form a very instructive little
sermon, which is not to be idly recited, as a bhantar or recitation
producing miraculous effect, but must be deeply pondered over, and constantly
meditated upon, so that our consciousness may be expanded and higher and
beneficent suggestions may come to us to be acted upon. Our rising
generation is often misled to keep aside thought and feeling and blindly to
believe in the magical efficacy of muttering unmeaning, fabulous and
inappropriate ancient phrases. The true meaning of prayer should be
carefully explained to boys and girls, so that they may know wherein religious
duty consists. [Source: ‘Rahnuma’ Karachi
1927]
THE RIGHTEOUS
GOVERNMENT OF GOD: by
Dr. Maneck B.
Pithawalla
F
or centuries Zoroastrians
have believed in the righteous government of God and the monarchy of all good
rulers. It was at the feet of King Gushtasp that the Prophet put the first
Avestan prize, which he had brought from high abode; and not till the Ruler of
the country embraced his creed, was he able to move forward. History is
clear on this point: no great religious movement has been a success in this
world unless backed by a king or an emperor. It was the Empire at the back
of Christianity that gave the religion of Jesus Christ a chance in the
world.
Zarathushtra wants rulers
---good rulers who can better the world by their wise government and elevate the
people. “May not the Dushkshthra rule over us!” The
Book says. Loyalty to the Almighty Creator and to the King of a country
went hand in hand. It was Iran’s fate that whenever it lost its Kingdom it
fell into anarchy and irreligion.
Zarathushtra’s principles of
world-government are clearly seen in his conception of a Divine Hierarchy.
Towering above all is the Good Ahura Mazda. There were Asuras conceived
before him but the unity and union of nature was His first good thought.
Then in the Assembly are the constituted Amesha Spentas to whom the government
is entrusted. In that oft repeated, Avestan song Yatha-ahu-vairyo,
it has been expressly stated that the aim of good government is the preservation
of the common people. “The Kingdom of Ahura is for him who gives to the
poor their daily bread.” Of such government Zarathushtra was always in
favor.
Though he did not actually believed in the Divine
Right of Kings, he regarded the throne of the righteous monarch as a symbol of
earthly authority, of dignified simplicity and public justice.
[Source: “The Light of
Ancient Persia” by the author]
TRIBUTE TO ZARATHUSHTRA
“Z
arathushtra, the first follower of the
religion, the temporal and spiritual leader of the corporeal world, belonging to
the existing good creation was:
“Amongst the living most virtuous ruler, amongst
the living most brilliant, amongst the living most glorious, amongst the living
most worthy of adoration, amongst the living most worthy of homage, amongst the
living most worthy of propitiation, amongst the living most worthy of
glorification.
“Whom we declare as beloved worthy of adoration
and worthy of homage as someone amongst the living who is best on account of his
righteousness.” [Favardin Yasht Para 152: T.R. Setha
translation]
LOOKING UP THROUGH NATURE UNTO NATURE’S GOD
By Faridun K.
Dadachanji
“Thou, Ahura Mazda, art the divine architect.
Who hast designed and built, sculptured and painted
Thy sublime nature,
That speaks to us and
sings to us, inspires us and elevates us.”
A
Parsi need not wait for a
temple. Nature in all its grandeur and beauty is also his temple of
worship. The glorious sun and resplendent moon, the towering mountains and
winding rivers and the vast ocean draw forth from him his admiration and praise
for the great Architect above. This system is called “Looking up through
Nature unto Nature’s God.” On this unique form of worship, the
world-famous American steel magnet and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie has
written a beautiful passage:
“This evening we were surprised to see, as
we strolled along the beach, more Parsis than ever before, and more Parsi ladies
richly dressed and winding their way towards the sea. It was the first of
the new-moon, a period sacred to these worshippers of the elements; and here on
the shore of the ocean as the sun was sinking in the sea, and the slender silver
thread of the crescent moon was faintly shining on the horizon, they congregated
to perform their religious rites.
“Fire was there in its grandest form, the
setting sun, and water in the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean outstretched
before them. The earth was under their feet, and wafted across the sea, the air
came laden with the perfumes of Araby the Blest. Surely no time or
place could be more fitly chosen than this for lifting up the soul to the realms
beyond sense. I could not but participate with these worshippers in what
was so grandly beautiful. There was no music save the solemn moan of the
waves as they broke into foam on the beach. But where shall we find so mighty an
organ or so grand an anthem? How inexpressibly sublime the scene appeared
to me, and how insignificant and unworthy of the Almighty seemed even our
cathedrals made with human hands, when compared with this looking up through
nature unto nature’s God. I stood and drank in the serene happiness, which
seemed to fill the air. I have seen many modes and forms of worship -–some
disgusting, others saddening, a few elevating when the organ pealed forth its
tones, but all poor in comparison with this. Nor do I ever expect in all
my life to witness a religious ceremony which will so powerfully affect me as
that of the Parsis on the beach at Bombay.”
To
this inspiring narration Samuel Laing, a scholar of Zoroastrianism
adds:
“I say Amen with all my heart to Andrew
Carnegie. Here is an ideal religious ceremony combining all that is most
true, most touching and most sublime on the attitude of man towards the great
unknown. Compare it with the routine of an ordinary English Sunday, and
how poor and prosaic does the latter appear. In this respect the
Zoroastrian theory of religion affords great advantages. It connects
religion directly with all that is good and beautiful, not only in the higher
realms of speculations and emotions, but in the ordinary affairs of daily
life.”
While vacationing in the Himalayan foothills we
went for a walk in the forest, and coming across a steep hill, decided to climb
it. Our daughter who was the first to reach the top suddenly shouted; “O
Lord, how beautiful!” When we reached the top we saw such a spectacular
and breath-taking view that we repeated her wonder at His craftsmanship.
Our thoughts were immediately directed from nature unto nature’s God. We
could see the snow-capped mountains of Himalayas rising majestically in the
distance, while there was a lush green valley down below. “A thing of
beauty is a joy for ever.” This was an ideal place for a Zoroastrian to
pay his homage unto Ahura Mazda.
To feel the beauty of what is beautiful, to feel
the truth of what is true is in itself a silent prayer and an act of homage
towards Ahura Mazda, and you are in tune with the Infinite. To a
Zoroastrian, prayer assumes a form of recognition of all that is pure, sublime
and beautiful in the surrounding universe. For a Zoroastrian wherever he
may be, he need not wait for a temple. The rays of the setting sun, the
glow of the rising moon, the glittering stars, the mountains, the clouds, the
sands and vast stretches of ocean ---these are the places of Zoroastrian
worship. NATURE IN ALL ITS GRANDEUR AND BEAUTY IS THE UNIQUE
ZOROASTRIAN TEMPLE OF WORSHIP.
THINK EVERYONE
Ours is a Universal
Religion
Meant for one and
all,
No matter who it
be
Whether great or
small
Zarathushtra gave no Dos or
Don’ts
“The Choice is yours” He
said
“Follow the Path of Good and
reap the rewards.”
I say once
more:
To old customs, practice and
habits
Please do not
cling.
To advance communities and
empower generations,
May I remind
you?
“Times, those are
changing”.
[Farida
Bamji]
SOURCES OF FIRDOUSI’S SHAHNAMEH: by
Jamshid Cawasji Katrak
W
e learn from the Arab
geographers of the ninth and tenth centuries, Istakhri and Ibn Haukal, of the
existence of fire-temples and strong castles in the province of Fars, and the
large number of Fire-worshippers there during their time. Istakhri states
that in the castle of Shiz, in the district of Arrajan, in the province of Fars,
were preserved at the time he wrote, manuscripts written in Pahlavi, containing
history of the Iranians from earliest times, an illustrated with portraits after
the style of the Sassanian bas-reliefs on rocks near Shapur. Amongst these
books was one named Khudai Nameh or ‘Book of Kings’,
containing history of ancient kings of Iran from the time of Gayomard down to
the reign of Nosherwan.
It was complied by a learned Zoroastrian nobleman
of the name Daneshwar Dehkan. Firdousi, in his immortal epic, often
refers to this ‘Dehkan’.
Along with this Khudai Nameh were
preserved in Pahlavi, books like the Exploits of Zarir, the brother of king
Gushtasp; Karnameh of Ardashir Babegan, the founder
of the Sassanian dynasty; the Andraz or Pand literature, treating of the
admonitions and sayings and speeches of the Iranian Kings to their sons and
people; Madigan Chatrang, dealing with the explanations of the
games of chess and draughts; Zarthosht Nameh, treating of the life and work of
the holy Prophet Zarathushtra,
etc.
It was from such Pahlavi works that translations
into Arabic were made. These translators were either Persians themselves
still clung to their ancient Faith, or convert outwardly professing Islam, but
at heart devoted to Zoroastrianism.
The Fihrist of An Nadhim is the
chief source to us of the history of the entire Arabic literature. It
gives the names of some of the chief translators from Pahlavi into Arabic.
The foremost of these translators was Ibn ul Muquaffa, of whom the Fihrist
speaks at length. He translated Khudai Nameh into Arabic. The
Pahlavi Ain Nameh containing the customs, manners, laws of the ancient Persians
was also rendered in Arabic by Muquaffa. He also translated Taj Nameh, and
Book of Kalileh and Damneh, into Arabic.
It was the basis of Ibnul Muquaffa’s Arabic
renderings of Khudai Nameh etc. that enabled later Arabic writers to
compile history of ancient Persians. Jahiz often cites the Khudai
Nameh, Tabari, in writing his book on the History of Iran, had such sources
available to him as the Khudai Nameh, Karnameh etc., in their original or
their Arabic versions. The great Masudi, whose writings have always been
quoted by Arabic and Persian writers as reliable and trustworthy, had access to
such ancient records. Miskawaihi, who lived a thousand years ago, wrote
Adab ul Fars val Arab on the basis of the Pahlavi
Javidan Khirad, which according to Jahiz, was translated into
Arabic by Hassn ibn Sahal. Arabic historians like Ai-Balkhi and Hamza
Isphani often consulted Zoroastrians priests or Mobeds and Iranian
records. Thalibi versified the prose version of the Khudai
Nameh. Unfortunately the original Pahlavi book, as also Muquaffa’s
translation of it are irretrievably lost to us. Of course, abstracts and
fragments are contained in some Arabic historical works and also in anthologies
like Uyunul Akhbar of Ibn Qutaiba. Hamza Isphani states that Mobed Behram
had to use more than twenty copies of Pahlavi Khodai Nameh in order to
establish the correct chronology.
The prose preface to Firdousi’s Shahnameh states
that in 958 A.D., four Zoroastrians were entrusted with the work of compiling a
prose Shahnameh from the original Pahlavi sources like Khudai Nameh, at
the order of Abu Mansur bin Abdurrazak, governor of Tus. Albiruni
testifies in his Athar ul Baquiyeh to such a compilation.
Firdausi himself, in the Introductory portion of his Shahnameh, states of a book
written since olden times --gahe bastan including
historical narratives; folios of which were lying scattered with Mobeds
---paragandeh dar daste har Mubadi. A great lord
---pahlawan descended from the Dehkans, that is of ancient
nobility, ordered to bring from everywhere old Mobeds and to compile a book out
of the information etc., they were able to supply. This book later became
the basis of Firdausi’s poem. This prose version written in Persian, by
the four learned, wise and pious Zoroastrian priests (Mobeds), and compiled by
them from original Pahalavi materials as well as their Arabic renderings, was
first noticed by a Zoroatrian poet, named Dakiki. He intended to versify
the book in Persian ---banazmaram in nameh ra guft
man.
He versified into one thousand couplets the
history of the religious war between Gushtasp, the king of Iran, and Arjasp, the
Turanian king. But the young poet met an untimely
death.
Thus the original, root source of Firdousi’s
Shahnameh was the Pahlavi Khudai Nameh. Firdousi may have utilized
it along with other works noted above; or he might have had access to Muquaffa’s
version. He might have used later Arabic writers who quoted from
Muquaffa. But he certainly took full advantage of the Persian prose
work compiled by the four Zoroastrians.
Firdousi himself has emphasized that his work was
no fiction. He says, “Whatever I say has been already narrated
---Sakhun harche guyam hameh gufteh-and”. “Do not consider this as
falsehood or fiction ---To in ra darugho fasaneh
madan”. Truly, has the poet made Iran living ---ajam zendeh
kardam badin Parsi
Not only written records but, oral traditions as
remembered by Mobeds were searched for by Firdaousi in the compilation of the
various Dastans. He says, “Magar kaz pedar yad
darad pesar, beguyad tura yak ba yak az
pedar.”
In commencing the narrative of Kayumars, Firdousi thus refers to the old Zoroastrian historian:
Sukhungue
dehkan che guyad nukhost
And for the narrative of Zal, the father of
Rustom, he again consults the ancient history –bastan book,
that is the Khudai Nameh, and he says: “Kunun bar shegefti yaki
dastan. Bepaivandam az gofta-e bastan.”
Whilst finishing the narrative of King Kaus, the
poet thus says: “Dar in dastan goftam an kam shunud”
In narrating the dastan of
Sohrab and Rustom, the poet at the commencement cites again the
Dehkan of the Bastan Nameh, and he says: “Ze
goftare dehkan yaki dastan-Bepayvandam as gofta-e
Bastan.
In
old Mss. of Shahnameh, the age of the Kianian king Gushtasp in whose reign holy
prophet Zarathushtra
flourished is thus given: “Guzashteh bar an saleyan
shish hazar.”
Firdousi states that he incorporated one thousand
couplets composed by Dakiki in his Shahname, as per the wish intimated by the
deceased to the poet in a dream. Dakiki must surely have used the Pahalvi
Yadgare Zariran for his narrative of the battle with
Arjasp. Firdousi says: “Dakiki rasanid inja sakhun. Yaki
Nameh didam pur az dastan sukhunhae an
pur manesh rastan.”
The
poet states that one Azadsarv of Merv, well versed in ancient history of
Iran, had with him a book containing history of ancient kings. From him
the poet got his narrative of the death of Rustom.
The
sources for the narrative of Alexander could have been the Khudai Nameh
or other Pahlavi writings, which unanimously call him by the epithet
gazaste i.e. ‘accursed’, since he destroyed Iran and its
literature. The source may be some Arabic versions from Greek or Syriac
writings.
The history of Ardesher Babegan is
met with in the Pahlavi Karnameh of which we know, that a larger
Karnameh once existed. Of the narrative of Haftavad and the
Worm, we find description in Karnamneh too. There we have
Haftan bukht instead of Haftavad , which seems a
corrupt transcription of original. Firdousi states at the beginning of the
narrative: “Bebin in shegefti ke Dehkan che guft badangeh ke
bokshad raz az nehuft”
Firdousi states, he narrated the story of the game
of chess on the authority of old records, like Pahlavi Madigani Chatrang:
“Sar amad kunun bar man in dastan ke beshnidam az goftae
bastan”
The poet states that the narrative of Burze, the
physician, was written on the authority of Shadan Burzin, who was
one of the four translators of the prose Shahnameh. This narrative is
based on the Pahlavi Kalileh and Damneh. The history of Nosherwan’s
invasion of Rum is also based on Namae Bastan-ze goftare an
daneshe rastan. The story of Khusru and Shirin is
based on a Kuhan Dastan
[Source: “Iranian and
Oriental Papers” by the author: Tehran 1960]
Is Iran’s pride then gone for ever,
Quenched with the flame in Mithra’s caves?
Her proud sons, her highborn souls,
Men, in whose veins---O last disgrace!
The blood of Zal and Rustam rolls,
---
No—she still has sons that never---never—
Will stoop to be the Sceptic’s slaves,
While heaven has light or earth has
graves.
[MOORE’s Lalla Rookh]
ROLE OF PARENTS IN RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
By Farishta Murzban
Dinshaw
Extract from a talk by the author on “The Challenges in Zarathushti Religious Education.”
Organized by the
Zoroastrian Society of Ontario on September 14, 2003
F
or us, Zarathushtrians, the
term religious education encompasses two aspects; one, content knowledge of
history and doctrine, and two, the moral aspect of living a good life. Of
the two, the second aspect needs more emphasis. Now, more than ever, the
need for education that focuses on building character is vital. Factors
like lack of adult supervision, inadequate models of moral behavior in the
popular culture, confusing global issues and unclear national values do not
offer children a stable standard by which to measure what is right or
wrong. Even within the Zarathushtrian community, geographical distances,
divisive squabbles amongst scholars and community leaders, ignorance about
doctrine and history, and conflicting information on the Net only serve to
confuse children about who they are and what they should be. Parents hope
their children will be talented and good looking, will be good at sports and
achieve in school, but nothing is as important as their moral behavior. If
children are not honest, self-disciplined, kind and hard-working, then their
purpose in life to “invigorate and refresh’ the world is diminished, as John
Gray wrote, “Developing the mind is important, but developing a conscience is
the most precious gift parents can give to their
children.”
“Being a good person” encompasses many
characteristics such as:
♦ Honest and trustworthy
♦ Hard-working, responsible and self-disciplined
♦ Kind, with concern for fellow human beings
♦ Independent, able to withstand the pressures of the crowd
♦ Generous, giving of their time and money
♦ Loving and caring
♦ Tolerant
♦ Friendly, helpful and cheerful
♦ Concerned for justice and respectful of legitimate authority, rules and laws
♦ Respectful of their own bodies
♦ Respectful of other’s lives and property, and the environment
♦ Courteous, having good manners
♦ Fair in work and play
♦ Forgiving, understanding the pointlessness of holding a grudge
♦ Willing to contribute to family, friends, community, country, religious organizations and
Schools
♦ Courageous and willing to
openly state and stand up for their beliefs and actions
Sir William Temple said. “The most influential
of all educational factors is the conversation in a child’s home.” No
mater how strong and detailed a curriculum offered by Sunday school teachers,
ultimately the development of a child’s moral growth depends on parents.
Amongst the multiple facets of their role as providers and nurturers, parents
need to be exemplary role models. Therefore, they need to be clear about
their own priorities and values. When a parent decides to sleep in on a
Sunday instead of taking the child to religious classes, or a parent allows the
child to miss the class for a football practice or to study for a test, the
message that is passed on is that ‘religion is not important’”.
Teaching right from wrong is not merely about
mouthing, “stealing is wrong” when it applies to a TV news story about a bank
robbery. It is an every day lesson children see when parents fill
incorrect information on tax forms or use gadgets to steel satellite
signals. Parents need to “walk the talk” if lessons in right and wrong are
to be effective. Teaching right from wrong also includes accountability or
taking responsibility for actions.
Making realistic promises, establishing worth and
identity of the child, and respecting children’s rights is as much a part of a
parent’s role in reaching “religion” as teaching them the kusti
prayers. Unlike what is generally believed, values like kindness,
tolerance, and honesty are not inherent to a race or a family. It is
wrong to assume that Zarathushtrians are charitable and honest because it is in
their blood to be so. Good habits, like negative ones, are learned
behaviors. Teaching children to be “morally upright” should start when
children are toddlers when fundamentals of moral habits such as using
self-control, sharing, being kind are first acquired. Most parents make
mistake of waiting until their children are in school to begin trying to “do the
right thing.” And often, they miss out opportunities because they do not
want to deal with a tantrum. For instance, if a child is eating French
fries and a parent suggests that she offer it to a guest and the little girl
says, “No”, often the parent will laugh it off rather than deal with the
situation in which the child may embarrass them in front of others. What
parents need to internalize is that the more you practice good habits the more
they become habitual and, hopefully, as children grow older these “good deeds”
become second nature and they become instinctive behaviors.
One of the most important roles parents play is to
“act as bridges” between the child and the rest of the world. They can do this
by passing on the tradition and culture of the family as this gives children a
sense of identity, of belonging. This means making the children proud to
be a Zarathushtrian. Now this is the tricky part – parents need to instill
pride in our heritage based on information, not illusions like “pure
blood”. Living in a multi-faith, multi-cultural society, children are
bound to face taunts of being “fire-worshippers” or questions like, “Don’t you
find this gruesome to have vultures at your dead?” If a child has a solid
information base about why we pray in front of fire or details about
dokhmenashini then they can explain it without becoming defensive or
embarrassed. Another important way to act as a bridge is to teach children
to give back to the community as a way of thanksgiving. This just does not
mean signing cheques for charity or going to a gala evening in aid of a
charitable organization. It means that children need to see parents making
the time and effort to volunteer to help others, whether it is in a professional
way or as a member of the parent-teacher committee.
If we want our faith to flourish in the future, we
must remember Margaret Mead’s words: “There is no greater insight into the
future than recognizing that when we save our children we save
ourselves.”
“SPEAK KIND WORDS AND YOU WILL HEAR KIND ECHOS.”
[Author
unknown]
DREAM UP SOLUTIONS WITH
FOCUSED MIND: by Anil K.
Rajvanshi
I
n 1953 three major events
took place. Mount Everest was ‘conquered’ by Edmund Hillary and Tensing
Norgay, scientists Watson and Crick discovered the DNA’s structure and a young
American PhD student, Eugene Aserinsky discovered Rapid Eye Movement
sleep. During REM sleep the brain is extremely active and generates
dreams. This was the beginning of a whole new area of research in sleeping
and dreaming. Fifty years later there has been tremendous progress in
mountaineering and genetics, but the subject of sleep and dreams continues to
mystify us. Most religions and cultures view dreams and sleep as
mechanisms to connect the present physical world to that of the
supernatural. Before Buddha’s birth, his mother Queen Maya dreamt that a
white elephant has entered her body. Similarly, Ramakrishna’s mother
dreamt that a small green figure she identified as God, was telling her that He
would be born in her house. Mother Mary, too, learnt through a dream about
the impending birth of Christ. There are innumerable such instances of
prophetic dreams. Often, people have come up with innovative solutions in
their dreams. Kekule’s benzene structure, Mendelyeev’s periodic table, Howe’s
sewing machine, Neils Bohr’s model of the atom and Gandhiji’s Dandi March were
all ideas that had their genesis in dreams. Many scientists, inventors and
technologists have literally dreamt up solutions, which they could not arrive at
in the waking state.
How does the mind produce such prophetic dreams?
During dreaming, sensory inputs are blocked and the ego-sense “I” is absent.
This allows free reign to random thought patterns, emanating from existing
memories from different parts of the brain, which produce dreams. The
dreaming process therefore follows the Maxwellian distribution (the bell curve)
where a majority dreams about a day’s events or activities. Scientists
claim that the day’s learning process is consolidated in our memory during
sleep. This dreaming process sometimes produces disjointed dreams and at
other times, nightmares. Sometimes, however, the brain synchronizes random
thoughts into a powerful single thought. Imagine 100 billion neurons of
the brain synchronizing in a laser-like fashion to produce a higher dimensional
thought signature. This thought connects us to a higher dimensional
space-time continuum from which we get the knowledge and power of clairvoyance.
The probability of this type of synchronization is very small but it is
there.
Can we deliberately produce prophetic solution
dreams? Since the ever-present director –the ego sense “I” is absent
during the dreaming process, we have no control over our dreams. We can
however, control our day’s events, which are ultimately reflected in our
dreams. Yogis claim that non-REM or dreamless sleep is possible.
This is achieved through sanyam or contemplation and reflection and
samadhi or focused deep meditation. Scientists too, have discovered
that REM and non-REM sleep are totally dependent on how active the brain is
during daytime. The MRI brain scans of sleeping volunteers show that most
of the dreaming takes place in the region of the brain, which was most active
during the daytime. Non-REM or slow-wave dreamless sleep occupies the
central position in the sleep process, when information and memory consolidation
process takes place. Hence REM sleep is simply a mechanism for the brain
to check whether memory consolidation has taken place. Besides it also
helps us remember dreams. So to produce happy, productive dreams, you
need to be active mentally and physically – in a positive way – during waking
hours. [Source: “Times of
India”]
Published for Informal Religious Meetings Trust Fund, Karachi by Virasp Mehta
4235 Saint James Place,
Wichita KS 67226 E-mail:
viraspm@yahoo.com