Last Friday afternoon and night, the Hindu community of Guyana – representing the largest block of citizens following a particular path to the Universal Divinity – trekked to their mandirs or to the shrines built in their yards to perform the rituals prescribed for “Maha Siva Ratri” – the “Great Night of Lord Shiva”. Containing all of the major world religions and not an inconsiderable number of the minor ones, the festival reminds us that Guyana with its tiny population is truly one of the most multi-religious societies on Earth.
While most Guyanese would boast about their country’s “resources”, they are invariably referring to our physical resources such as bauxite and agricultural land etc. But in reality, the greatest resource any country possesses is its people and the religions of the people are in turn one of the prime values of that resource. But that recognition is sorely lacking and in truth the leaders of this country in all fields, not just the “religious” one, should work to overcome this lacuna by exposing our children in schools to the substantive tenets of the different religions because of the benefits that would immediately flow to the nation.
Take the festival of Shiva Ratri, for instance, which is dedicated to the Lord Shiva, known among Hindus as “Maha Deva” – the Great God: it offers an insight into Hindu cosmology. “Shiva” represents that aspect of the Universal Divinity into which the entire universe and indeed the “multiverses” will become dissolved after billions of years. During those eons, the universe is kept going by another aspect called “Vishnu” after having been projected out of its quiescent state by the third aspect called “Brahma”. This cyclical process at a cosmic level playing out in an infinite timeline over and over again, should serve to remind mankind that it is indeed grotesque for individuals to fill themselves with pride in their blip of existence. As another religion advises, “Vanity of vanities – it is all vanity”.
What is interesting is the ancient Hindu conception of multiverses emerging, existing and then dissolving and emerging again in an infinite cycle is exactly what modern cosmologists have now concluded is the nature of existence. Exposure to these ideas by all Guyanese children would not only make their cosmology lessons more accessible, but would be coupled with the moral message of all religions that mankind should not become filled with pride at his puny existence. This message is definitely needed in Guyanese public life.
Another aspect of Shiva Ratri that is very useful to all is based on a story that is associated with the festival. A weary hunter takes refuge one night on a tree and totally inadvertently, performs the several aspects of Shiva’s worship, which earns him great reward. The point of the story in that ultimately, it is the actions that one performs in this world that is important, and not all the wonderful intentions and thoughts that one may have inside one’s head. As Guyanese, let us know each other by our deeds and not our words or our thoughts.
But one of the reasons for this neglect of our religious diversity lies not only in the emphasis of the Colonial-imposed official state emphasis on Christianity but also the media coverage along the same lines. And this neglect does not only extend to Islam and Hinduism but also the smaller groups. The loss is ours, as was exemplified by the recent visit of an English “Blues” singer – Dana Gillipsie – who is a member of the Sahtya Sai Organisation, and who performed before packed audiences in locations in Berbice and Demerara including Georgetown.
It turns out she is a direct descendant of Thomas Foulis Buxton, the man who fought for and piloted the Bill for the Abolition of Slavery in the British Parliament. The village of Buxton was named after him. The Lord does work in mysterious ways, but it remains so because of the willful neglect of some.
