The Sandpaper Chronicles

Just a little bit

On the way home the other evening I passed a very loud outdoor concert and decided to detour for a moment to see what was going on. It was near the end of the show and some band from India was playing. I stopped right outside the gate and immediately had some young somewhat drunk Nepali guy striking up a convo and asking for my number.

I declined to divulge. You can get good at that here, as people often seem to think that after talking to you for two minutes you should give them your number. I am afraid I am generally a bit less friendly than I used to be as a defense tactic.  I was reasonably chatty when paying my phone bill recently and the guy at the counter asked for my number. Before I could even respond he just looked at my bill and wrote it down, along with my name. Maybe collecting numbers is kind of like collecting Facebook friends here. It doesn't matter if you really know the person or ever talk to them again, so long as your list is ever growing.

I digress. Back to the concert. I'm chatting with the slightly drunk guy when I see the younger brother of another friend of mine. As soon as I start talking to this friend, drunk guy disappears. Now a funny thing about standing in a large Nepali crowd -- people often stand right next to you and stare at you and listen to your entire conversation though they don't know you or the people you are talking to. As I was talking with my friend, another guy joined the conversation. Only at the end did I find out that the third guy didn't know either of us. I had wrongly assumed he was with my other friend, he was standing so close and jumped in to our talk so easily, but no, he was just a bystander.

My friend admitted that when he walked by and saw me talking to drunk guy, he stopped because he was worried about me. Though he is much younger than me, he wanted to make sure I was okay and gently scolded me for being alone in a crowd like. And then apologized for doing so. It was quite sweet.

As the concert ended, our rock star took a moment between screaming AC/DC songs (yes, and quite well at that; my throat got sore just listening) to encourage responsibility among his fans. Before his final song, he shouted to all --

"Drink as much as you want, guys! Have a great time! But when you leave and when you drive, please please drive a little bit responsibly!"

(Just a little bit. That's all you need. And I wondered, was this little bit of responsible driving supposed to take place after people followed his first encouragement to drink all they wanted? Hmmm......)

"If you don't drive a little bit responsibly," rock star continued, "then you'll end up like this last song, on the Highway to Hell!!!"

And it was back to screaming AC/DC.

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Happy voting to all of you at home!

DAY THIRTY-ONE - 5th day of Tihar - Day of Brothers

On the final day of Tihar [it was last Thursday - I'm late again!], also known as Bhai (“brother”) Tika Day, sisters give tika and a garland of flowers to their brothers. They break a walnut and pray to the Hindu god of Death, Yam Raj, for their brothers’ long lives and prosperity. Brothers sit on the floor while sisters circle them three times, drip mustard oil on the floor from a copper pitcher, and then anoint their ears and hair with the oil. Gifts are exchanged. The brothers place flower garlands around their sisters’ necks and give gifts such as clothes or money. Sisters give a special gift known as sagun (made of dried fruits, nuts, and candies) and cook them a favorite meal.

 

Readings: 1 John 5:20-21 & 1 John 3:16

Personal comment: Pictures are from the Bhai Tika party I went to at one of my favorite organizations here. It's more of a big family, really. Started by Brazilians eight years ago, they now have five homes and many happy girls formerly on the streets or in other exploitative and/or abusive situations. The oldest girls they first took in now help run things. They do their own Christian version of Bhai Tika celebration. Many of the girls have younger brothers, some of whom stay in their boy's home, so lots of younger brothers come to the party, and the girls anoint them with oil and pray for them and give them mallas (flower garlands) and gifts. It's a pretty wonderful group of people and it was a pretty great day. The love in their homes is so tangible you can almost taste it. You can certainly feel it in the many hugs and hear it in the laughter all around.

And this brings me to the end of the 31 day prayer guide and my 31 day blogging extravaganza.

 

DAY THIRTY - 4th day of Tihar - Day of Self

The fourth day of Tihar is about worshiping and blessing oneself to remain healthy and happy for the rest of the year. Oxen are also worshiped on this day for their plowing labor and role in growing life-sustaining crops. It is also New Year's Day for the Newar people, the traditional inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley.

Readings: Colossians 1:13-14 & Jeremiah 32:17

IN THE NEWS:

Govardhan Puja Observed

DAY TWENTY-NINE - 3rd day of Tihar - Day of the Cow

The day centers on worshiping Laxmi who is both the goddess of wealth and the mother of the universe, the “sacred   cow.” According to Hinduism, after an infant is weaned from its mother’s reast milk, the cow acts as the surrogate mother providing millk for the rest of life. Cow worship is perfomed by putting a tika on a cow’s forehead, a flower garland on the neck, and offereing special food. The cow’s manure is placed in various parts of the home and a small amout of come urine and feces are drunk as part of a purification process. At dusk, each house is illuminated by colored lights and candles to show Laxmi where to come and bless.

 

Readings: John 8:12 & Ephesians 2:8-9

 

Personal comment: I don’t want to say this doesn’t happen – maybe it does – but the eating and drinking cow feces and urine is not something I’ve heard people talk about. I’ll have to ask some friends if they actually still do that here in the city.

 

Outside almost every house today people set up what a friend a couple years ago dubbed "Laxmi landing pads" – painted circles on the ground, decorated with colored powder and with offerings of flower petals and fruit placed on them. At night a small oil candle is lit in the circle to light the way for Laxmi.  From the landing pad, people smear a trail of paint from the circle up their sidewalk and stairs to the doorway of the home.

 

IN THE NEWS:

Laxmi Puja observed

DAY TWENTY-EIGHT - 2nd day of Tihar - Day of the Dog

On the second day of Tihar, people pray to the dog that guards their homes. In Hinduism it is believed that dogs guard   the underworld just like they guard homes. The dogs are adorned with flower garlands around their necks and tikas on their foreheads. Then as kings for a day, they are offered great meals.

 

Readings: Psalm 61:1-2 & Ezekiel 20:41-42

 

Personal comment: The drive to the office on this morning involved passing many newly-blessed dogs wearing their marigold garlands (mallas) as they wandered the streets. I noticed one puppy who had little mini-malla – just a few marigold buds on a string around his neck – to match his little puppy size. It was very cute.

 

Kathmandu generally has a plethora of mangy mutts wandering the streets who are more used to being yelled at and chased away than being pampered, so it is no doubt a day of much confusion for those occasional strays who get blessed on Dog Day.

 

IN THE NEWS:

Kukur (“Dog”) Tihar Observed

DAY TWENTY-SEVEN - 1st day of Tihar - Day of the Crow

Early in the morning on the first day of Tihar, families prepare a good meal. Each member of the family takes the first course outside on a platter to offer to crows who swoop down in large numbers. Crows are considered messengers of the lord of death, Yama. A popular Nepali superstition states that when crows caw, they announce that sorrow is coming.

Readings: Romans 1:21-23 and 2 Timothy 1:7.

IN THE NEWS:
Tihar begins today with Kag Parva

The Tihar Festival

Tihar, also known as Dipawali or the Festival of Lights, features candlelight, tinsel decorations, and festively-colored sweets. The goddess of wealth Laxmi is worshipped at Tihar, and during the five-day festival, crows, dogs, cows, brothers, and even one's self are also worshiped and given offerings.

Personal comment: This is the time of year to buy Christmas lights. The "Tihar lights" they sell all over town, you will find upon inspection, usually play very discordant Christmas carols. And they all flash - all kinds of flashing craziness. It is hard to find any that don't flash and don't play music. It is lovely now, at any rate, with all these colored flashing lights strung all over buildings around town.

And yes, again, I am behind. There are actually only a couple days of Tihar (and this 31-day-endeavor) left. Must go continue catching you up now....

DAY TWENTY-SIX - New Believers

Nepal families are tight-knit and concerned about maintaining harmony to earn good karma for themselves and their extended relationships. An individual choosing to become a Christian is viewed as a violator of family and communal harmony. Therefore, new believers may experience rejection, persecution, or pressure to return to their old ways and values. [My friend Yeshoda's story is like many in this regard...]

Readings: Matthew 5:11-12 & Isaiah 43:2-3a

DAY TWENTY-FIVE - Village Life & Oral Societies

Still today, the majority of adults living in Nepal's villages do not read or write. Most people function in oral traditions using story-telling, singing, dancing, and dramas to communicate their values and ideas. Additionally, Nepali is even a second language to many people for whom a different tribal language is their first language. [I had in my head that there were 63 languages in Nepal, but just googled to confirm and found one site saying there are 123 living languages.]

Readings: Luke 19:10, Mark 4:33 & Matthew 28:18-20