More often than not, I feel like I get these things mixed up. I don't consider myself to be overly-religious, nor do I know what exactly causes someone to fall into that category. I would say though that I've come to develop a somewhat negative connotation to the overall idea of religion, and I'm not really sure why. Similarly, if you were to ask me why I identify as a Hindu, I don't have a clear answer. I was born into a Hindu family, so that part makes sense. Do I believe in all the tenets of Hinduism? Do I even know what Hinduism is all about? Probably not. But I'm okay with that, and I'm willing to bet that there are others out there like me.
I believe in something - that much is clear to me. And religion does play a definite role in my life, I know that too. Just last week as I was reading an article for my art history class, the Islamic Arts of Africa, I found myself wanting to defend my religion. The term "god-pictures" was used by someone to refer to the common usage of deity iconography in everyday Hindu life. It's true, images of important gods and goddesses are often abundantly seen in our homes. It's also very typical for Hindus to have some part of a home reserved for prayer and meditation, in which you're likely to find a small-scale mandir (temple). And inside it is where you'll probably find the so called "god-pictures." All of this can be found in my home in Kentucky.
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| My "prasad" from the Women's Resources Center. Too good. |
Basically my point is...I was offended by this simplified take on Hindu iconography. Maybe to an outsider, it's an acceptable way of looking at it. This train of thought is risky though, and lends itself to the creation of stereotypes.
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Now I wasn't thinking about any of this as I walked into the "Speedfaithing" event at the Women's Resources Center last Friday. I actually didn't even know I was going to attend - one of my roommates told me she was on the student panel that would be leading a discussion on faith identities. She was representing Sikhism, a major religion in India. The other 3 student speakers were followers of Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism. They responded to pre-determined questions by another Muslim student, Najah Batty (seen to the left in the picture below).
As you can see, a representative for the Christian faith was missing. It was also a little strange to me that only one person was guiding the discussion in many ways, since Q&A from the audience was mostly held off until the end. Regardless, the issues addressed were still pretty interesting and relevant. One of the questions asked the panelists to describe any stereotypes associated with their particular religion. In the post 9/11 world, Anti-Muslim sentiment is still evident today. Unsurprisingly, this has affected Sikhs as well, who are known for wearing turbans in their religion. Ignorance has caused some to equate this symbol for terrorism, leading to an increase in hate crimes.
Of course, sometimes it doesn't even take a politicized symbol to spark tension and racial discrimination. I haven't forgotten the day that a group of older boys began to laugh at me because I looked like "Osama Bin Laden's daughter" to them. This happened in sixth grade -nearly a decade ago- and the memory is still fresh in my mind.
The theme of unity and love between human beings was a message being promoted across the board by the student panelists. This is essentially the core (or should be) of any major religion, it seems like. It was nice to see such a positive outlook on religion, because as I said earlier, I have doubts about some things. And it seems like it's not so much religion that has flaws, but rather the actions of certain individuals who compel us to think that way. Promoting awareness and defeating ignorance is key to a better tomorrow.
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| Photo by Ross Wantland |
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