Posted by Susan47 on February 15, 2005, at 13:39:22
Chinese Temple is beautiful. At the advanced age of 47 I've just had my first "religious" experience. No wonder the Chinese have been so successful throughout history... they have incredible spiritual tradition to draw upon.
Red... I love the colour red, especially the Chinese red. In temple it surrounds me in tapestries, mixed with green and gold. Red, what is red? Red signifies love and spirituality, gold is luck, and green.. what was green? Who knows? Look it up. I'll find it. Incense is burning everywhere and there's a goddess in a little dias built just for her, she's surrounded by red tapestries and there's offerings, too, offerings on a special space in the middle. Flowers, beauty and colour, in vases at the back, then big bowls and plates of fruit, mostly oranges; dim sum, roast duckling, eggs, and the sticks, the fortune sticks. In a container by the offerings. You ask a question then shake the container until one stick comes out above the others. That stick has the number of a drawer written on it. You go to the drawer with the same number and your fortune is answered in there. There seems about a hundred drawers, and each one has a small tapestry scroll with the fortune in Chinese, so you have to be able to read Chinese to understand. I'm guessing you probably also have to be able to think Chinese. Because I'm guessing that there's an awful lot of wisdom written into the words on every scroll.
AND there's gods in the corners. Gods who protect your fortune, your luck, your family, your kitchen .... I actually felt the protection, the safety, the love. These people were onto something. Something that gave them the ability to endure endless hardships.
Poor, ignorant Susan, who knows nothing of anything but is just learning to open her spiritual eyes ... and going back to Chinatown to consult an herbal specialist, oh yes.
poster:Susan47
thread:458193
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20050215/msgs/458193.html