Banned Books Week

Hi all!

This week has been pretty killer - I had my first all-nighter of the semester and a bunch of quizzes, and I got all my paperwork in order for my on-campus job as a marketing intern.

Nothing too exciting has happened since my last post, but in English this week my teacher told us about something called Banned Books Week, a national week that celebrates free speech and free expression by bringing attention to censorship. Upon reading up on the list of books that were/are banned in various places across the country, I was shocked:

The Great Gatsby
Their Eyes Were Watching God (this is my FAVORITE book of all time, so needless to say I'm outraged)
The Catcher in the Rye
The Scarlet Letter
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Fahrenheit 451 (Considering the plot, this is just plain ironic)
Moby Dick
Where The Wild Things Are
The Hunger Games  (I know not everyone likes it (I personally do!), but banning it?! It turns out that people see anti-ethnic sentiments in it. I don't understand it either.)

And all of these are only a few. It's truly ridiculous. Almost all of the ones I listed (and even more in the actual list) are novels that have shaped this country, and if a small group of people had their way, then we might never have had the opportunity to experience them. In my English class we're currently in the middle of a "banned book" - Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle, a fantastic piece of literature that has a lot to say about the human condition.

BB Week is officially September 30th until October 6th, but CNU had a read-in this past Thursday, Sept. 27th. People showed up to read banned book, and could even stand up and share their favorite passages. I was unable to attend at the very last minute, but have friends who went and loved it. Regardless, I'm glad that banned books week exists and that I know about it. I absolutely love what it represents, and I knew I had to share with you guys!

I was born in the wrong hemisphere...

Hello all!

I. Am. So. Sorry. Really, I haven't posted in an UNACCEPTABLE amount of time. I know this isn't an excuse, but the past few weeks have honestly been a blur of writing essays and naming organic molecules. It seems I tragically underestimated my work load this semester. :(

However, every now and again my classes remind me of why I'm studying what I am in the first place, and I get super inspired.

I was fully expecting my Religions of the East class to be a typical run-of-the-mill introductory class, full of freshmen and an absolute bore. I was quite happy to find that I was mistaken (minus the freshmen part :/ ) I'm actually learning a lot - not just about Hinduism and Eastern vs. Western spiritual themes, but about myself and my own spirituality.

My boyfriend joked last year about me being born in the "wrong hemisphere," i.e., fitting in much better in Eastern philosophies than in Western traditions, and I learn more and more how true that is.

I have more or less given up on an anthropomorphous God who is jealous, angry, and possessive. In my opinion, if there is in fact a Divine being among us, He/She/it must be more perfect than humankind. And how can a God who demonstrates the worst trait in man (with little to no redeeming qualities, might I add) be more perfect than man? Therefore, almost no Western tradition is welcoming to me.

Hinduism (the mother religion of many well-known Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Jainism), on the other hand, presents a god who is none of the above. The Hindu god, Krishna, is neither a loving nor a hating and condemning god; he is a transcendent energy and the maintaining energy in the universe through which all things are possible.

I would like to just plainly state that that last part is VERY in keeping with my Pantheistic worldview - a god that is in everything, not some third party floating around in the clouds. Even if I don't buy into all of the myths of Hinduism (which I don't), I love the general idea behind their god.

Anyway, we're reading the Bhagavad Gita (basically the Bible of Hinduism) for our lectures, and I just wanted to share a few passages with you guys that made me fall in LOVE:

"I am the goal, the sustainer,

the Lord, the witness,

the dwelling, the shelter,

the innermost heart;

The coming forth into being,

the going forth into

cosmic absorption;

the continuance of existence,

the cosmic receptacle,

and the everpresent seed." (9:18)

I love this; it sums up everything I think of when I think of something divine, something holy, something worthy of awe and reverence.  But that's not all!

"Those who serve divinities

go to the divinities;

those who serve ancestors

go to the ancestors;

Those who sacrifice for spirits

go to the spirits;

those who sacrifice for me

surely come to me." (9:25)

Another aspect that I love - no forced worship. Krishna - God - is literally saying "Do you; I'll be here waiting."

"Whatever you do,

whatever you enjoy,

whatever you sacrifice,

whatever you bestow,

Whatever austerity

you undertake - 

that, enact as an offering to me." (9:27)

In the same way that god does not care if you do not worship him, he also does not care how you worship him. Whatever makes you happy, you may do in his honor and he is pleased.

"I am the same

toward all beings;

no one is either hated

or dearly loved by me.

Yet those who,

with an offering of love,

offer their love to me - 

they are in me

and I am also in them." (9:29)

This is really the icing on the cake.  This god does not play favorites and does not condemn anyone for their choices. This god is in and all around us, waiting for us to notice. 

(This is the version of the Gita that I'm quoting. It's a translation by my BRILLIANT professor, Dr. Graham Schweig. It's also available on Amazon for dirt cheap if you're interested.)

Now, don't get me wrong - I'm not converting to Hinduism or anything. It is still very structured and fantastical in its myths for me to truly buy into it. However, I can appreciate the beauty of its sacred text and its value in Eastern spirituality. Without it, there would be no Buddhism, which as you all know is a philosophy that I hold very dear to my heart.

So that's it for today, guys! I'm glad I FINALLY got to rant and rave about spirituality and all things religious which, let's be honest, I could do all day.

 I have a list of topics going, so never fear, I PROMISE I won't be absent this long anymore. 'Tis downright unacceptable if you ask me!

I'm very grateful for those of you who stopped by during my hiatus - views steadily climbed even while I was away!

Til next time!

<3, Ali

P.S.!

I found this on my pinterest, and I thought it seemed fitting to share:

HOW COOL IS THIS?! The Sri Yantra is a very common and very sacred symbol in Hinduism, representing the universe and its unmanifest source. It has been around for, say, a couple thousand years. On the right is the sound of someone meditating and saying the 'Ohm' - and what it looks like on a tonoscope. 

To me it's scarily telling of how in tune the ancients were with the universe. It also pushes me to meditate harder and try to focus deeper - maybe I'll be able to see what sounds look like too!

My first week!

Hi all! And happy September!

So ends the first week of classes, and I'm gearing up for another one. I miss highschool, when nothing really happened for the first few days. Already I've had two assigned readings for my English class, two short writing assignments for one of my religions classes, and I've had a quiz in my Bio class. -_- I've also had my start-of-semester scare session with the Pre-Med Scholars program, reminding me of the countless hours of research, service and shadowing that are ahead of me if I ever want to THINK about applying to vet school.

Just a side note, there are now 18 days until my 19th birthday! (Yes, I'm acutely aware of how young I am for my grade.)

This post I'll share some photos of my room with you guys! It's not perfect yet, but I don't want to wait too long to share. I figured I'd share while it was still relevant.

Anyway, just to get it out of the way, here's my room at CNU:

The front door to our suite. Inside is a sitting room and access to a shared bathroom and two bedrooms.
Inspiration for dry-erase board beside the door.

Front door to just our bedroom. The "Come Party" is sarcastic; neither of us are what you'd consider party animals.

My half of the room! :D My wall is so bare because I  had less wall space last year; we were tripled and I had top bunk. Note the dreamcatcher.

Where the magic happens. And by "magic" I mean paper-writing, pointless facebook browsing, and of course this blog!

There's the quick tour :) It isn't much, but it's my home. And, believe it or not, it's where I'd be year-round if presented the option.

Though I'm afraid I sounded whiny in the intro for this post, I actually love my classes. I'm taking a biology class that's divided into half botany and half zoology, where we learn about different physiological concepts in plants and animals such as reproductive systems, digestive systems, etc. Needless to say I'm very excited for the zoology part. I'm also talking organic chemistry, which I'm really excited for despite it's reputation for being really difficult. Organic carbon-based molecules are the basis for all living things; it's hard to NOT be awed by the concept. Or maybe I'm just a nerd. :)

Second-year English classes at CNU are themed based on the interests and expertise of the professors. I was lucky enough to find a slot in a class that focuses on satire and humor as a means of social commentary. We'll read things like Gulliver's Travels, and watch Colbert clips and analyze The Onion. It should be really fun!

My religions classes are by far the ones I'm most excited for. One of them, Religions of the East, is a comparative class where we'll learn the beliefs and traditions of religions like Buddhism, Hinduism, Baha'i, Sikhism, and others (Religions of the West is another class that goes over Christianity, Judaism, Islam, etc. that I'm taking next semester). Seems pretty simple, but the professor, Dr. Schweig, is brilliant and hilarious and I think he'll make it an exciting adventure. Although I have mad love for Buddhism anyways, so it's not like I wouldn't take the class even if it WAS boring.

The other class is what I think will be my favorite this semester; it's called Religion and Ecology. The course concerns itself with questions like "What is mankind's place relative to other species on Earth?" or "Do we have a responsibility to protect and coexist with the others?" explored through various religious outlooks. AKA, questions that I ask myself on an almost daily basis, that form the framework for what I base my worldview on. I. Can. Not. Wait.

I'm sorry that this post was so short. I've been trying to sit down and write about my spiritual path and Pantheism like I said I would in my intro post, but there's so much to think about. I honestly haven't had to sit down and delineate everything I actually believe in one sitting. I have an outline going, so don't worry - I won't leave you guys hanging.

Thanks for reading!
<3, Ali