Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesha, the elephant-headed son of Shiva and Parvati, is one of the most beloved of all the Hindu gods. He is the god of wisdom, beginnings, and success. His birthday festival, or chaturthi, begins on the fourth day of this waxing moon and lasts for 10 days.

Hindus believe in one God who has many symbolic forms. Ganesha is worshipped as the Lord of Beginnings and the Lord of Obstacles, both of a material and spiritual order. He can remove obstacles, or he can place obstacles in the path of those who need to be slowed. 

I plan to use Ganesha as a focus for my meditation for the next 10 days, give attention to my obstacles, and find a way forward through them.

Agenda for this week:
1.  Journal about my obstacles
2. Make a clay Ganesha
3. Make a Success Altar
4. Ceremony for beginning and success

Paitishem

The Zoroastrian community honors the six seasons of the year by celebrating six Gahambars- the word gahambar means "proper season". Each of these six festivals is celebrated for five days, and each honors one of the six material creations: The heaven, water, earth, flora, fauna and man.

Paitishem is the third Gahambar, celebrating the creation of the earth, the end of summer, and the harvesting of crops. It takes place each year from September 12th through the 16th.

Agenda this week:
1. Recite prayers
2. Make papeta-ma-ghosh (stewed meat with potatoes)
3. Work in the late summer garden

Al-Hijra

Photo by Alan Gilespie.

Al-Hijra is the first day of the Islamic month of Muharram, the Islamic New Year; it begins at sunset tonight, when the crescent moon is sighted. 

Hijra means migration, and also an escape from a dangerous situation. The original hijra was the journey of the Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE, after he learned that another Arab tribe was trying to assassinate him.

Islamic years are calculated from 1 Muharram, 622 CE. They are followed by the suffix AH, which stands for "After Hijra". (Tonight begins 1440 AH.)

Al-Hijra is celebrated quietly, with prayers, readings, and reflection, not the hoopla we associate with the western New Year. Muslims tell the story of Muhammad’s flight through the desert on camel-back with sword-wielding thugs in pursuit. They reflect on their own migrations, actual or of the soul.

Agenda:
1. Journal queries
2. Prayer

New Harvest Moon and Rosh Hashanah

Tonight is the new moon. The Chinese call this eighth new moon the Harvest Moon, because it's harvest time! 
Tonight is also the first evening of Rosh Hashanah (Roash hah-shah-nuh), which falls at or near the new moon of late September or early October. The observance begins at sundown tonight and lasts for two days, but it's actually the start of a ten-day period called the Days of Awe that ends with Yom Kippur.

Rosh Hashanah means “Head of the Year”; it’s the Jewish New Year for the Spirit. The focus of this festival is repentance for wrongs you have done, and reaffirmation that you will take the honorable path in the future.

Agenda for today:

1- Journal queries
2- New moon harvest meditation
3- Set intentions
4- Harvest and can pickled beets
5- Make challah
6- Share a Seder

Ripe Corn Festival

The Ripe Corn Festival is a tradition of the Tsalagi (Cherokee) Native Americans, held annually in early September. The Festival lasts for four days and nights. The holy man tends a sacred fire, and the men dance. Then they have a big feast with lots of corn-- roasted corn, corn tortillas, corn soup, and corn bread.

The festival is a time to thank Mother Earth for providing all foods during the growing season, and acknowledges Selu (pronounced Say-loo), who was the First Woman. In Cherokee mythology, Selu is the goddess of the corn. Her name means "maize" or "corn" in the Cherokee language. Selu's spirit is resurrected with each harvest. You can read the whole Cherokee story of Kana’ti and Selu: The Origin of Game and Corn here.

Agenda:
1. Prayer of thanksgiving
2. Make succotash
3. Make corn husk dolls

Red Full Moon and Raksha Bandhan

Tonight is the full Red Moon, called that because it often appears reddish as it rises through the sultry haze of late summer - and in our valley, a sultry haze is the norm! One lovely (possibly Native American) explanation is that the moon is blushing after being kissed by the sun.

In India, this is also the Festival of Raksha Bandhan, which means “knot of protection.” Traditionally, girls tie a braided thread called a rakhi around the wrist of each brother-- a symbol of a sister's love and prayers for her brother's health and happiness, and to remind him of his life-long vow to protect his sister. Now it is also common for girls to trade rakhis with sisters, and with friends.

Agenda for today:
1. Update my altar
2. Journal queries
3. Practice stillness
4. Make rakhis
5. Send love and prayers to my sister and brothers
6. Make Kayla Halwa (Banana fudge)