Roots of bible's pagan full moon rituals in ancient india?
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The full moon festivals of pagan hindus
indiayogi presents a unique section on the Full Moon Festivals in India, as a tribute to Immortal Masters who inspire the sacred traditions of the Full Moon.
The Moon gives knowledge of time with its waxing and waning, closely connected with spiritual knowledge. It brings sharp awareness of the reality of impermanence through its changing cycles. It corresponds to the yin and yang of the ever-changing path of the Tao, urging us to cultivate firmness and flexibility with equanimity and compassion.
The Full Moon is a symbol of enlightened consciousness and bliss. In India, the festivals of the Full Moon are a sacred device to encourage people to become attuned to the natural tides in the universe at their great highs, and to share the joy and spiritual blessings with others in the community. Each such event is uniquely rooted within a particular seasonal cycle of growth and unfoldment. In this section, we embark on a journey of exploration around the twelve Full Moon festivals of the year. The articles deal with the traditional festival and spiritual lore surrounding each event.
Fourth of these twelve pagan festivals of the full moon
Kojagiri Purnima
This is the cool Autumn or Harvest Full Moon in the month of Ashvin (September October), also known as Sharad Purnima or Navanna Purnima. The Moons orb appears enormous as it rises on the horizon, magical in its enchantment the world over. It is close to the Autumn Equinox, and is nearly full in light for several days, inspiring many outdoors festivals of Arts - poetry, folk theatre, dance and music throughout India. It is considered the most beautiful Full Moon of the year, celebrated for its own sake.
The night of the Full Moon is crystal clear, and the earth at its purest, following months of overcast skies and persistent rain showers. It is one of the occasions when the Moon is believed to radiate its divine nectar of health and immortality upon the earth, and it is possible to collect and imbibe this potion, as described later.
Jagadguru Adi Sankara, the great ascetic and mideaval Indian philosopher of monotheism, has compared the luminescence of the Sharad Purnima to the beauty and fullness of the Goddess Amba in his poetic composition, Saundaryalahari (Ripples of Beauty). Sharad means maturity, as in the ripening of the harvest. This season is chiefly dedicated to the Goddess Sharada or Saraswati, who presides over perfect knowledge, replete with natural wisdom. She inspires the fluency of the spoken word, the alphabet, and the most sophisticated form of subtle intelligence, represented by the classical notes of the musical instrument, veena. It is she who bestows the grace of creativity and artistic inspiration, thus naturally ruling over the Arts, and it is de rigueur for performances of Classical Arts to begin with the Saraswati Vandana, or the ritual invocation to the Goddess Saraswati.
sub'haana Allaah
I often wonder have the pagans of bible been inspired by hinduism, or is it the other way round? Or do they trace back to an older pagan community?
al'hamd li Allaah Rabb al'aalameen
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Autumn Equinox
Seventh Month
Tishri (Hebrew) Tashritum (Babylonian) (late September-early October) (end dry season)
New Moon - New Half-Year - in the magical seventh month
On this New Year's Day, eat something sweet (honey) first and avoid sour foods, to magically bring sweetness in coming year.Autumnal Equinox September 19, 20, 21, 22
Intercalary Purification Fast Day - 10th day after New Moon
At this time people at home light no fires and perform acts of expiation and purification. In ancient times there was a Bull sacrifice in temple; a Goat sacrifice in temple, and a Scape-goat was sent to Azazel into wilderness to transfer any evil from humans to animal. In Modern Europe Kiparot on day before before Yom Kippur (= Day of Awe), Orthodox Jewish men are lightly flogged at their synagogue, a hold-over from the actions of mourning or ecstacy performed by celebrants in ancient days. At home, to purify and chase away evil, swing a white rooster around one's head, then sacrifice it, or drive it away, or throw into running water, or give the bird to the poor to eat.FULL MOON - Feast of Harvest In-Gathering - Week Long Festival
This week long festival marks the end of the grape harvest and the final Harvest Home. The Canaanites ate, drank, and reveled, marking the end of agricultural year and the beginning of the rainy season. Dance processions wound their way through the fields under the full moon's light almost until dawn. Celebrants would carry palm leaves, and olive, myrtle and willow branches bound together and hanging with fruit. Major animal sacrifices were performed at the temple, but the poor could offer a jar of flour or oil or a jug of wine instead.During the festival, prayers and magic are made for rain. Normally, after the burning of the daily sacrifice, libations of wine are poured on the altar. During Sukkot, a special libation of water is also poured. A priest with a golden ewer goes down from mount of the temple to a special sacred spring to draw water. He returns to temple through what is called the Water Gate, where other priests blow silver trumpets. Another group of priests gather long willow branches which are placed alongside the altar with their tips curving inward. The water priest pours the holy water over the altar in a magical practice to bring rain, after which libation all the priests march around altar carrying the willow withes in a magic circle. This activity is watched by men carrying bundles of leaves from the palm tree, sacred to the Athirat. At night, men dance in temple whirling torches until cock crow. At end, the priests circumabulate the altar seven times, then beat the earth with willow branches, a magical practice to make the earth fertile.
Hmm. Music, dancing, eating, drinking, making magic, making merry. And more. What is it with these pagan loonies?
It must be the fool moon.
al'hamd li Allaah Rabb al'aalameen