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Comparing The Concepts Of Hindu Religion And West African Culture

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Indian culture/Hindu religion and West Africa culture have a large impact in both literature and by applying the concepts of divinity, beauty, duty and truth. The concepts of divinity and beauty are heavily applied the the Indian book named the Bhagavad-Gita where the main character Arjuna is a warrior that is in inner conflict about going to war with people he learned are his relatives (flesh and blood) and so in one of the main scenes of the book in Chapter 11 Arjun goes to seek counsel and advice from Kishha who is actually The Supreme God in disguise. They speak about the universes leading up to Kirshna revealing to Arjuna his Godly form. The Hindus believed in the beauty and divinity of their Gods believed that God is a part of the individual …show more content…

The king’s Horseman play is tragedy about the struggles of the Horseman Elesin. It is tradition in the Yoruba culture for a horseman to accompany their King in death. This a sacred duty for the purpose of guiding the king in the afterlife as one did in the Life of the living. The main character Elesin was honored in the news of serving the king in the afterlife not only for fulfilling the duty but also because after serving under the king so long they were very close companions so and so by law and tradition he must commit suicide one month following the king’s death. The drama of the play begins on the day Elesin prepares to serve his duty and commit suicide. Another main character in this play is Simon Pilkings who is a British Colonial district officer. Pilkings and the other Bristsh occupants of West Africa who are there like many other European powers because of the valuable resources Africa has to offer called the Race to Africa believe that all life is sacred and regard the act as barbaric and illegal. Therefore, Simon Pilkings believes it is his duty to stop Elesin from committing suicide. In continuum, Elesin is granted to have one wish by law. His wish is to marry and have sex with a beautiful young women whom he saw in the marketplace. Elsein wants to impregnate the young women so he will have a legacy left in the world of …show more content…

Shiva in this form is doing the dance of the cosmos which means, that the self, the universe and God become inseparable. Nataraja is doing the dance to destroy a weary universes and prepare for the God Brahma to start the process of creation. The stature is represents how Indian/ Hindu culture admire the divine and visualize how beautiful and larger then life their Gods are such as Nataraja having multiple arms and gracefully posed for the dance. Furthermore, In Indian culture the more divine one becomes the more detached they are from worldly possessions and desires. Nataraja has two dances which are; aaya a gentler form of the dance and Tandava a dangerous and violent dance. Asaya deals with the creation of the world and tandava is associated with destroying old and wearily world views. The sculpture has a lot of balance and unity as shrown through the flames that encircle the sculpture signifying the burning of ignorance. Also, the hand pointing down at foot is supposed to create an image of an elephant trunk which represents the pushing down of ignorance as well. The dreadlocks represent rejection from society and the fire burning the negatives aspects of life and the universe. The crescent moon in Nataraja’s hair represent karma which is very significant in Hinduism. Lastly, Nataraja’s drum represents the sound of the creation of the universe and the lotus signifies

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African civilizations were transformed through trade. This allowed art and government for new developments and changes. As civilizations changed, aesthetics advanced based on the geography and new cultural aspects, along with new governing influences. These African civilizations thrived on their own by using leadership and other ideas from neighboring trade countries. Trade modified aspects of certain kingdoms from religion to social structures.

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North Americans and Western Africans, although living in vastly different areas, share many cultural similarities with each other. In both areas, the people had similar views on trading, land, religion and the social constructs of their societies. The Western Africans, for centuries, used trade to be able to connect with the rest of the world. The trading network throughout Africa went all throughout the continent and allowed West Africans to deliver goods to the North African hubs and ports, as well as eventually going to Europe and Asia. The Native Americans had a similar trade network.

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Each work shows how the relationship bet ween the gods and the humans work. In the Indian culture the gods is someone who can show the people the way but in the Hebrew culture their god test the loyalty of the humans. In both cultures from the works the people will seek their gods for guidance and wisdom but the outcomes are not the same in both places. There are similarities and differences between how the relationships between people and the gods work in the different cultures. Each work the main character has a problem that is troubling the throughout each work.

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Their faces are donned with white clay, that is not to be removed and each girl is blessed with cattail pollen; a symbol of fertility. On the first day, the symbolic tipi is constructed to house the rituals, and the medicine man blesses the candidates ceremonial dress. The morning of the second day, the sunrise dance is performed. Dancing is done in unicinte with reciting chants and songs. It is during this dance that the girl is believed to the take on the powers of White Woman, which she then uses in blessing

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I see many similarities between the African religions and the Native American religions. Like African religions, Native Americans believed in ancestors, support from ancestors, and guidance from ancestors. Another similarity between the two is the belief in a higher power. The afterlife belief is also a common belief between the two religions. They also held similar rituals, one being the Native American Visions quest that leads the person from one stage of life to another and the African initiation ritual which is also a rite of passage ritual.

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(196-197)” Knowing history, it is clear the abuse of faith it that the King has made upon having multiple mistresses. While the play is to show how the King is like Tartuffe; and to mock the religious abusers, Death and the King’s Horseman presents the desires of man and the impact of failing their ritual duties has upon the community. Even though Death and the King’s Horseman does not mock Elesin in the same way, it does present him the pain of failing his job as the guide to the King in the afterlife. Him failing his duty manifests itself in the end of the play when the cloth is removed and Iyaloja said, “Because he could not bear to let honour fly out the door, he stopped it with his life. (1097)”

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The Nacirema’s culture is based on their belief and value of the human body. They believe that the human body is weak and prune to diseases. The only way to make their appearance better is by them doing rituals. I think that their rituals are kind of bizarre because they spend a really considerable amount of time on them. They have “shrines” at their house which are bathrooms, they believe that the more shrines the better.

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Religion is a very important factor in the African Diaspora and African American history. The enslavement of many Africans in the New World and the interaction with Native Americans and Europeans brought new religions, religious views, cultures, rituals, and traditions to Africa and the Americas. Even though there was many small religions, Islam was one of the most widespread religions in Africa, then Christianity started dispersing once Europeans came and set foot into Africa. This religion was spread throughout various parts of Africa and enslaved Africans were being forced to practice this religion in the Americas as well as in parts of Africa. The Christian holy book called the Bible has affected the lives of Africans and their descendants

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The spiritual aspect of Hinduism shows the overbearing power of the “Brahman”. The Brahman also known as the World Soul comes from the sacred text of the Bhagavad Gita given to Lord Krishna. The Brahman is ones deepest self, the identity that remains beneath one’s changing self (Griffen). In Hinduism, this God is the basis of all creation, and all power worshipped in the religion. The Brahman lies at the root of all who show devotion to other gods.

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The hierarchy of scale is seen in the sculpture as Naram-Sin stands high above his army and the people he has vanquished, about twice the size of the other figures in the Stele. He is the only figure in this sculpture that is shown with his face in profile and his shoulders forward. This sculpture also shows the Akkadians, Naram-Sin’s people, had polytheistic beliefs in terms of divinity. Not only are the suns, or stars, at the top of the sculpture portraying the divinity guiding Naram-Sin to his victory, but Naram-Sin himself is wearing a horned helmet, which was a symbol of divinity to the Akkadians, showing that Naram-Sin was believed to be godlike himself. Another way that you can tell Naram-Sin is an important ruler from this sculpture is the way his army and the people he has conquered look to him.

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764 Words | 4 Pages

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