The Travelin' Grampa
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The Travelin’ Grampa Touring the U.S.A. without an automobile Special Supplement Christmastime Calendar Vol. 8, No. 12, December 2015 Illustration credits: Dec. 1891 Scribner’s magazine; engraving based on 1845 painting by Carl August Schwerdgeburth. Left: The First Christmas Tree, the Oak of Geismar, drawn by Howard Pyle, for a story by that title, by Henry van Dyke in Scribner’s Magazine, Dec. 1891. Pictured is Saint Boniface, in A.D. 772, directing Norsemen to where the tree is to be placed. Right: First Lighted Christmas Tree, said to have been in the home of Martin Luther, in 1510, or maybe 1535. Some scholars claim the first Christmas tree was put on display near Rega, in Latvia, in 1530. Or maybe near Tallinn, in Estonia, in 1510. In the USA, there’s more to Christmastime than Christmas Traveling abroad, Grampa notices most natives tend to resemble one another and share a similar culture. Not here in the USA. Our residents come in virtually every race, creed, skin color and geographic origin. In our country, at this time of year, we celebrate a variety of holidays, in a wide variety of ways. There’s the Feast of the Nativity, aka Christmas, of course. Most celebrate it Dec. 25; others on Jan. 6. Hindus celebrate their 5th day of Pancha Ganapati Dec. 25. There’s Chanukah. Or is it spelled Hanukkah? And let’s not forget Kwanzaa, several year- ending African American holidays invented in 1966 in Long Beach, Calif. Sunni Muslims say Mohammad’s birthday is Dec. 24 this year. Shia Muslims say Dec. 29. Continued on next page 1 =========== = Christmastime Calendar 2015-16 . In the USA, there’s more to Christmastime than Christmas Continued from previous page In Indonesia and Malaysia, the birthday of the prophet Muhammad is a big holiday. Some Muslims virtually ignore it. Some think it’s wrong to celebrate his birthday. Christmas Eve is a big deal for Filipino and Mexican Americans. For other folks it’s merely a time for last minute shopping. Our Lady of Guadalupe is venerated on Dec. 12 by Mexican Americans. Some consider her both the Virgin de Guadalupe, mother of Jesus, and the Aztec mother-goddess Tonantzin. Mexico City has a big new Our Lady of Guadalupe basilica, adjacent to an older one. Nearby is a chapel where a temple honoring Tonantin once stood. Dec. 8 commemorates the Immaculate Conception in some churches, but simply Mary’s Conception in other churches. It’s also Bodhi Day, Buddhism’s Day of Enlightenment. Holy Innocents Day, recalling King Herod’s soldiers killing innocent children, is Dec. 27, 28 or 29, depending where one worships. Some call it Chidermas Day. On Dec. 28, some Mexicans and Puerto Ricans celebrate Día de las Máscaras (Festival of the Masks). It combines April Fools Day and Mardi Gras aspects, including costumed paraders and playing pranks. Sadly, one of our most popular Christmastime holidays is Black Friday, a big shopping day, which now begins at 6 a.m. on Thursday, which is Thanksgiving Day, and encompasses Saturday and even Sunday, followed by Ciber Monday, an on-line shopping day. Small Business Saturday seems our latest “day,” to encourage folks to “buy local.” Wonderful or weird, what all our holidays seem to share is – they are Americanized, some so much they now only vaguely resemble what they were when and where they originated. Grampa has compiled the following: Holiday Season 2015-16: Buddhist, Christian, Islamic, Jewish, etc., special days: Nov. 26 – Thanksgiving Day: Many families gather for a big meal on this day, ostensibly to express gratitude to God, one another or whomever. Big retailers open from 6 am ‘til after midnight, to kickoff Black Friday bargain sales early. Nov. 27 – $$$ Black $$$ Friday, gigantic shopping day. In theory, this is when retailers move from “being in the red” to “being in the black,” i.e., profitable. In olden days, some accountants used red ink to denote an unprofitable transaction, and black ink for a profitable one. Nov. 27 – Robert E. Lee’ Birthday celebrated in Georgia Nov. 28 – $mall Business$$ $aturday: Introduced by credit card company American Express in 2010, this is said to be the small retailer’s version of Black Friday, which generally is viewed as a holiday dominated by big retailers such as Walmart, K-Mart, Target, et. al. Nov. 30 – Ciber Monday: Starting in 2005, this became when retailers presumably offer big bargains via the Internet. On-line buying on this day this year reportedly hit $2.68-billion, versus $608-million on the second such Ciber sales day in 2006. A survey suggests that more than 50% of these purchases were by folks at work using their employer’s computer. Dec. 6 – Saint Nicholas Day: As the tale goes, a 4th Century bishop’s spirit centuries later began putting candy coins or/and other gifts into the shoes or stockings of young Dutch children, as they slept. In some places, he met them in person. This spread from Holland to Germany, Switzerland and other European countries, where he became known as Sinter Klaus. In Spain and elsewhere, a companion, Black Peter, a Moor youth, carries a sack of gifts. After Clement Moore’s 1822 poem A Visit from St. Nicholas that began “Twas the night before Christmas” became popular, St. Nick Continued on page six. 2 =========== = Christmastime Calendar 2015-16 . Picture credits: Allahabad Museum, New Delhi. India; Prof. J. B. Disanayaka, Soba magazine, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Ganesha, aka Ganapati, and his mother Parvati. Gautama Buddha beneath the holy Bodhi tree. Hindu kids get gifts on Pancha Ganapati’s 5th day, Dec. 25 Pancha Ganapati is for some Hindu children in America what Christmas is for neighbor Christian kids. It honors Ganesha, aka Ganapati, patron of arts and guardian of culture, and runs for five days, Dec. 21-25. Like Christmas, Chanukah and Kwanzaa, it’s very family and child oriented. Instead of a tree, a statue of Ganesha is its centerpiece. Surrounding decorations may include: ornaments, evergreen branches, little colored light bulbs, etc. Each day, children dress and decorate the statue in a different bright color: yellow, blue, red, green and lastly orange. These reflect Ganesha's five key abilities. Each day, they offer the statue a tray of fruits, sweets and incense. Then the family prays and sings hymns. Unlike cookies set out for Santa, everybody gets to eat these goodies. Every day, too, children give Ganesha a beautifully wrapped gift, and he, being generous, returns the gifts to the children on the 5th day, Dec. 25. Hindu clerics insist the gifts be inexpensive or at least not extravagant. USA Buddhists celebrate Christmassy-like Bodhi Day Dec. 8 is Bodhi Day, when American Buddhists decorate a Bodhi Tree to celebrate when Prince Siddhartha Gautama attained enlightenment and became Buddha 2,591 years ago, while sitting beneath a fig tree at Bodhgaya, India. All celebrants can’t use a fig tree, of course, as these flourish only in places like Florida and California, although the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture says they grow as far north as Philadelphia. Nor is trimming a Bodhi tree on Bodhi Day a worldwide Buddhist practice. It’s done mainly where Christians predominate. “Wherever Buddhism goes, it picks up the customs and bits of the culture from the country it arrives in,” explains a Buddhist Continued on next page. 3 =========== = Christmastime Calendar 2015-16 . Continued from previous page. web blogger who calls herself Monastic Mom “Of course, Buddhism isn’t alone in incorporating celebrations,” she reminds us, recalling that Christians have adopted ancient pagan Saturnalia and Solstice customs, including: Xmas trees, Easter eggs, holly wreaths, Yule logs and mistletoe. “The Buddha expounded that we should, as Buddhists, fit into the neighborhood in which we live,” points out Alden Smith of DoItYourself.com. For Hindus, Pancha Ganapati has its serious side, too On Dec. 21, observant Hindus make amends for past misdeeds, insults, etc. It’s also when family members point out the best qualities of other family members. Dec. 22 is for practicing love and harmony among neighbors, relatives, friends, etc. To faraway relatives and friends, letters are sent, phone calls made, apologies offered, forgiveness given. Dec. 23 is for promoting love and harmony among co-workers, business associates, and folks in general. Debts and disputes are settled on this day. Dec. 24 emphasizes the importance of music, art, drama and dance, especially in the home but also elsewhere. Dec. 25 is for doing what promotes love and harmony via charity and religiousness. Gifts are opened on this day. Three ideas for celebrating Bodhi Day To recall when Buddha, after fainting from hunger, was nursed back to health by a compassionate lady who fed him rice and milk, Merlyn Seeley, writing for Zen Buddhism Examiner, suggests American Buddhists on Bodhi Day eat a bowl of rice and milk. “Second thing you can do,” he says, is “string a bunch of Christmas lights or colorful lights throughout your house or on your house. Turn them on each night for 30 days.” Decorate a live fig tree, he says. Or place fig leaf-shape decorations on any live tree or large plant, to represent the original Bodhi tree. “A very good way to get Buddhist children involved in the observance of this day is to make Bodhi cookies,” he advises. “Since the leaves of the Bodhi tree are heart shaped then a Valentine cookie cutter would work perfect for this.” Prophet Muhammad’s birthday is Dec. 24 this year Many Muslims celebrate Muhammad’s birthday, aka Mawlid, as a joyful holiday that involves singing, praying, and reciting what’s written in the Quran, their basic holy scripture.