Pagan - Traveling Thru History

What Makes You So Different From A Terrorist?

Erin — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 04:46:41 +0000

There is something that has been weighing on my mind recently and I don’t think I’ll be able to stop thinking about it until I write about it. Or maybe not. Hopefully this doesn’t open a firestorm. I may lose some friends and some followers, but I can’t stay silent about this anymore. Some things just need to be said. I’m sure most people have a Facebook account and have seen all the negative posts people are making about Muslims and Islam. If you don’t have a Facebook page, perhaps you’ve seen these types of posts on Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Google+ , Youtube and various other websites. And if you still don’t know what I’m been talking about, I wish I could be like you. For the past year or so we’ve been seeing an upsurge in the animosity towards Muslims and the Islamic faith. Yes, this has been happening for over a decade now, but recently it has changed. Now that we’re bringing more refugees to the US and increasing the Muslim presence in our country, the rhetoric has changed. Friends of mine who I’d believed were peace-loving and kind-hearted people have been posting statuses saying we should destroy Islam and get rid of all the Muslims. Some say we should lock them up or shoot them. Others are posting that we should kick all of the Muslims out of America and yet more are celebrating others who call for the death or incarceration of Muslims. The most shocking posts have been the ones where people I know are themselves posting that all Muslims should be executed and Islam should be wiped from the earth. Are you kidding????!? And these are just the posts I’m seeing from my friends. My Christian, God-fearing, bible-following and “Christ-like” friends. And along with my Christian friends, yes, these types of posts are also coming from my Agnostic, Buddhist, Jewish, Atheist, non-denominational, Hindu and Pagan friends. What is wrong with all of you?!?!?!?! Do you not realize you are behaving just like the people you say are destroying the world? Do you not realize that by calling for the eradication of Islam and the destruction of Muslims that you are supporting the very ideology that you wish to destroy? It isn’t the ideology of Islam, but the ideology of hate. You condemn these people for their desire for death and destruction, yet you are calling out for the same. Radical Muslims say, “Death to America.” Many Americans are saying, “Death to Muslims.” What’s the difference? What makes you so different from them? Is it because you’ve never actually killed anyone? Neither have most of them. Middle Eastern terrorist groups are made of more than just Muslims. Granted, Muslims probably make up for a large portion of their numbers, but there are certainly plenty of people of other religions who just want to cause mayhem in those groups. Certainly there are non-denominational members, Christian members, Jewish, Atheist, Buddhist and Pagan members. Terrorist can come from any religious background. Before I go any further, I wish to clarify that I am, in fact, a devout and faithful Christian. I’m not a follower or studier of Islam. I believe in God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost, the Bible and the Book of Mormon. I belong to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and strive to follow the teachings of the Savior. I’m not perfect, I fall short so many times, but I’m doing my best. Except for right now. Right now I feel upset and want to yell at a lot of people. When I read these status updates about how we need to kick all the Muslims out of the US or that we need to round them all up and put them in Guantanamo or that Muslims need to be shot on sight or that we should just bomb Iran, Iraq and Syria off the planet it just breaks my heart and baffles my mind. How can anyone think that 100% of Muslims are evil? Do we think 100% of all Catholic clergy are child molesters? Do we think 100% of all Baptists rejoice in the deaths of the military? Do we think 100% of Jews are penny-pinchers? Do we think 100% of Hindus perform human sacrifices? Do we think 100% of all Pagans practice witchcraft? Do we think 100% of Atheists are devil worshipers? Do we think 100% of all Christians practice what they preach? I’m pretty sure most of you answered NO to all of those. There is no situation on EARTH where 100% of any group of people have the same ideals. Most Catholic clergymen are good and devout men. Most Baptists disavow the Westboro group. Jews have a wide variety of practices when it comes to spending and saving. Hindus moved away from human sacrifice almost 200 years ago and it is only rural and radical sects who violate the laws banning such practices. Most Pagan beliefs and ceremonies revolve around a human connection with nature, not witchcraft or black magic. Atheists do not worship the devil, they do not even believe in the devil. That would be the Satanists. And as for the Christians, we Christians are just as bad as everyone else when it comes to not always living what we believe. There always has been and always will be a variety of beliefs and actions across each religious group, so why do we allow that to some and not others? I mean, seriously, there are quite a few Christian serial killers, bombers, arsonists, murderers and radicals. Timothy McVeigh (Oklahoma City bomber) was raised Catholic. Eric Robert Rudolph (Olympic Park bomber) was a member of the Church of Israel. The Army of God is a Christian group with many members who have committed mass shootings, sent bombs or murdered. Heck, a lot of mob, mafia and cartel leaders are devout Christians, too. These people are all radicals and terrorists. Does this mean ALL Christians are terrorists? By your reasoning, yes. And I’m pretty sure that assertion is making you quite upset. But all I’m doing is applying your own logic. My point is, not all Muslims are terrorists and wish to destroy America. Not all followers of Islam are radicals. Not all of those who worship in a mosque are conspiring to take your life away. So many of these people are peace-loving and hate what the radicals are doing to their beloved religion. Don’t you hate it when you hear about another Christian doing something awful in the name of God? And now I have some questions I want you to consider. Do you realize that when you call for Islam to be destroyed that you are mirroring the radical Muslims’ calls for the destruction of Christianity? Do you realize that when you post that all Muslims should be eradicated that you are echoing the radical Muslims’ cry for the annihilation of the Western world? (as well as Hitler’s rally for the murder of the Jews?) Do you realize that when you call for the deaths of all Muslims, that you are calling for the deaths of babies, toddlers, young children and so many others who have never hurt a person in their lives? Do you realize that the venom you spew about how evil Islam is and how it needs to be crushed is hate speech? Do you realize that when you say all of this you are acting just like THEM? The radical Islamic terrorists are saying the exact same things about you as many of you are saying about them. Do you not realize this? Something that crossed my mind is that a lot of these things were said by people in the days leading up to the Holocaust. So many in Germany blamed the Jews for everything that was going wrong in their country. It started with making them wear something that denoted who they were, then there were calls to kick them all out, then it evolved to putting them in special ‘zones.’ After that, all humanity was lost. Are we heading in that direction again with the Muslims? As a Christian, it is so shocking to me that my fellow Christians are saying such horrible things. How can you call yourself a Christian and say the awful things you do? Do you believe that Jesus Christ would be calling for the murder and destruction of a single person, let alone an entire group of people? Do you believe that “Thou shalt not kill” only applies to the actual act of murder by you and not for the support and rejoicing of it? Do you believe that “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” only applies to your actual neighbor? Do you believe that the God of peace, love, grace and truth would have His followers petitioning for hate, murder, anger and destruction? Do you believe that the instruction to “And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” only applies to those of the same faith? Do you really believe you are behaving in a Christ-like manner when you speak in such a way? Whatever happened to love and compassion? Whatever happened to following the example of the Savior? And if you aren’t a Christian, these questions apply to you as well: How does being hateful to those who may or may not hate you make them not hate you? How is calling for the destruction of an entire religious group any different from what Hitler wanted with the Jews? How is inciting hate and fear going to solve the problem? How is behaving in an antagonistic manner going to stop other people from becoming militant extremists? Cuz, really, I bet there are quite a few that join the radical cause because they see all the hate many are spewing their way and start to believe the radical preachings that they must destroy us before we destroy them. But, of course, I do believe there are those out there who just want to destroy us because of the warped view of what their religion teaches. If there should be calls to destroy anyone, it should be those who are actively trying to destroy us. Not those who are just living their lives. Or those who have come to the United States to get away from the militant extremists. Or those who are living in fear in their home countries because of those same extremists. Or those like Malala, the young Islamic peace activist who terrorists almost killed because she went to school and spoke out against them. Those people, those are the ones we need to protect. I’m not saying we should just sit back and let the Islamic extremists blow America to bits. Or that we should give up trying to get rid of terrorism around the world. Or that we shouldn’t conduct thorough background checks before letting refugees into the country. What I AM saying is that not every Muslim is a terrorist and we need to stop acting like they are. And I’m also saying that before you write your next “we should blow every Muslim off the planet” post or make your next “Muslims are the scum of the earth” comment or share that hate-filled blog post, perhaps you should think about what you’re doing. Because, honestly, you’re saying the same things the terrorists are and, from where I’m sitting, you’re not much different from them.

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Myanmar Travel Guide

Erin — Mon, 22 Feb 2016 09:58:39 +0000

Years ago, people would have hardly ever considered Myanmar when listing off dream destinations, but since the country has opened itself up to the world, it has become more and more popular as a tourist destination. We really didn’t know what to expect when we went there, so I decided to share what I’ve learned to help other people prepare for their trip. Overall, Myanmar is a really great country. It’s not as developed as the Western world, but it’s still such a fantastic place to visit. As long as you’re prepared for some of the nuances of a less-developed country with a vastly different culture, you will have a wonderful time there. BEFORE YOU GO VISA – You will need a visa to get into Myanmar. A standard single-entry tourist visa costs USD $50, is valid for 90 days and allows a trip length of 28 days. Business visas cost USD $70, are valid for 90 days and allow a trip length of 70 days. Recently Myanmar began accepting online applications for evisas. The evisa application and list of countries who are allowed to apply online can be found here. BRING EXTRA OF ANY NECESSITIES – whether it be something you NEED or something you just prefer, bring extra because finding medical items or comfort/convenience items is not always easy and will sometimes be impossible. If there is an item you MUST have or something you just won’t be happy without, bring a spare just in case. MONEY CURRENCY – The local currency is called kyat (pronounced similar to ‘chat’) and since 2012, the government is pushing for that to be used more than USD. Even so, you will still find places that will accept USD. ATMS & CREDIT CARDS – Myanmar is slowly starting to accept credit cards, but it is not widespread. ATMs are plentiful and some larger business are starting to take credit cards, but still be prepared to pay cash since most smaller shops and street vendors won’t take credit cards. MAKE SURE USD IS PRISTINE – The government won’t allow shopkeepers to trade bills with tears, smudges, creases or any type of imperfection, so the vendors will, in turn, not accept anything except a bill in perfect condition. I took all of our USD and ironed them before going on the trip and that took care of the creases and folds. Also, make sure none of your bills are older than 2006. BRING HARD CASE FOR MONEY – In order to keep your bills in mint condition, be sure to bring a flat wallet or hard case to keep the bills flat and unbent. BILL DENOMINATIONS – For exchanging at local exchange shops, you’ll want larger bills. Those get the best exchange rates. Still bring smaller bills, though, to use for tips and purchases at small shops or eateries. WHILE YOU ARE THERE DON’T DRINK THE WATER! – The water in Myanmar is not suitable for drinking. Water bottles are roughly USD .20, so it’s not too bad to have to buy water. Plus, the three hotels we stayed in were really good about giving us extra water when we left for the day, so be sure to ask your hotel for a bottle or two before heading out. LIMITED INTERNET AND CELL SERVICE – There is no public wifi in Myanmar, so if you need cell or internet service, pick up a SIM card. SIM cards are available at the airport and train stations. If you go to Bagan, you won’t have service even if you buy a local SIM card. The infrastructure of the country is still developing, so only the major cities have semi-reliable cell service. We survived 5 days only having insanely slow wifi in hotel lobbies and not having cell service at all when we were in Bagan, so it’s not hard to get by without it. REMOVE SHOES (AND SOMETIMES SOCKS) AT RELIGIOUS SITES – This is just how it is, no way around it. If you try to wear your shoes, you will be asked to either leave or go back and take your shoes off. This is a pretty big one and some people will get quite offended if you don’t respect their culture and remove your shoes before entering temples and shrines. HAGGLING IS EXPECTED – Unless you are in an actual store with posted prices, the vendors will negotiate with you. Some will drop the price quite a bit and others will only drop it a little. The higher a quantity you buy, the bigger the discount will be. Also, the more friendly and companionable you are, the more willing most of the vendors will be to lower the price. If you’re at a tourist spot and the vendor won’t negotiate, there’s most likely another vendor with similar items nearby. POWER GOES OUT PERIODICALLY – This happened to us every day we were there. Sometimes it was in the afternoon and sometimes in the evening. It was a little disconcerting to have the power go off while I was taking a shower. You may want to bring a flashlight. Sometimes the power only went off for less than a minute and sometimes it was close to 10 minutes. INSIST ON RECEIVING CHANGE IN THE SAME CURRENCY YOU PAID WITH – Since the government is pushing for the exclusive use of kyat, this may not be an issue for much longer, but it still is at the moment. If you pay in USD, make sure you are given USD in change. If they give you kyat instead of USD, you will end up being shorted. US POWER PLUGS – Every hotel we stayed at in Myanmar had US power outlets, so if you are from the US, you don’t need an adapter. If you are not from the US, bring a US-type power adapter. RELIGIOUS SITE DRESS CODE – when you visit any of the temples or religious sites, you will need to wear a shirt with sleeves (cap sleeves are fine) and longer shorts. It is offensive for you to go to their religious sites or enter their temples wearing anything that shows your shoulders or knees (men and women). Some places have cover-ups that you can purchase that are lightweight and have very pretty designs or you could bring something lightweight to throw on before going inside. SUPER DUSTY AND SMOKY – No matter where we went, it was either dusty or smoky. Or both. The locals burn weeds and other things, so you’ll smell a lot of smoke along with all the dust from it being so dry there. The rural areas are the worse, though you’ll still find the smoke and dust in the cities sometimes. If you have asthma or a breathing condition, bring an extra inhaler and/or whatever else you need to manage your condition. Face masks are a good idea, too. We wore ours several times when the dust got really bad. WEATHER – Myanmar has three seasons: hot, not too hot and hot & rainy. The best times to visit are between November and February. Those are the coolest months. We were there at the end of January and it was hot, but not too bad. Rainy season goes from May to October and the super hot time of year is March through May. COSTS FOOD – Food is so cheap there. Tourist hotspots will cost you a several dollars for a meal, but if you go to the smaller restaurants or street vendors, you can get a meal for $1-2. Bottled water is about .20 per bottle. HOTELS – Hotels vary. We got a cheap hotel in Yangon for $25 and it was okay, but the entire place reeked of cigarette smoke. We looked around town and found a place for $40 a night that was really nice and didn’t smell bad at all. In Bagan, we paid $25 a night and were happy with our hotel. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was comfortable and the staff was really nice. TAXIS – Taxis are pretty cheap. Some use meters and some don’t, but it shouldn’t cost more than $3 to cross the entire town. If the taxi doesn’t want to use a meter, don’t agree to pay more than $3 or 3700 kyat. SOUVENIRS – It depends on the site and the vendor. Some will charge less than $1 for some items while another vendor will charge $1-2 for the same item. Sand paintings are really cool (factory-made) and cost anywhere from $8-16, though if you buy several they’ll give you a discount. BUSES – You can ask your hotel to book a bus for you and arrange for you to be picked up from the hotel or somewhere nearby. Buses that the locals ride are adequate for short distances, but for the longer-distance trips, you’ll want to splurge for the ‘VIP’ bus. That can vary from $15-20 for a 12-hour trip, but it’s worth it. The ‘VIP’ bus comes with reclining seats, televisions, blankets, AC and complimentary meals. FYI MOST SOUVENIR PAINTINGS ARE FACTORY-MADE, NOT HANDMADE – Vendors like to tell people all the paintings are hand-made, but you will find the same ones at every temple. The ones that really are hand-made will be the ones that are unique and the ones where you can see the artists painting them. PAY FOR PICTURES – One of the things we found in Myanmar was that many people who you photograph will ask for money afterwards, even if you ask for permission before. We didn’t understand this at first and a lady yelled at us when we started walking away. Once we figured out what she was upset about, we gave her some money and she was happy. Not everyone will ask for money after you take a photo, but it does happen, especially in more touristy areas. SOMEONE WATCHES YOUR SHOES, THEY EXPECT YOU TO BUY SOMETHING – When visiting temples, it is required for you to take your shoes off. Sometimes vendors will offer to watch your shoes and when you come back, they’ll insist you purchase something since they watched your shoes and kept them safe. SOMEONE GUIDES YOU SOMEWHERE, THEY WILL EXPECT YOU TO BUY/PAY/DONATE – Periodically, someone will offer to show you something ‘really cool’ at whatever tourist place you are currently at and then take you to see it. Vendors want you to purchase something from them. Kids or teens will then try to get you to donate for their schooling or some ‘official’ charity thing that they have a form for. Random adults just want you to pay them for their service. If you have money to spare, go for it. If you are on a tighter budget, it’s best to just decline their offer and say you want to look around on your own. NO NON-SMOKING ROOMS IN THE CHEAP HOTELS – Myanmar doesn’t quite have the same bad view of smoking as the US does. Even though we reserved a non-smoking room in Yangon, we ended up with a heavily smoked in room and the front desk said all their rooms smelled like that when we went to inquire about changing rooms. We found the same response at all the cheaper hotels we contacted. It wasn’t until we contacted some of the mid-range hotels that we were able to find a true non-smoking room. If you absolutely require a non-smoking room, be sure to verify with the hotel that they do indeed have non-smoking rooms. TIPS BRING WET WIPES – the floors in public buildings can be quite dirty, so if you’re in a place where you have to also take your socks off, you will probably want to wipe your feet off before putting your socks and shoes back on. Plus, it’s really hot and dusty there and the wet wipes can be a periodic refresher during the day. WEAR EASILY REMOVED SHOES OR STURDY SANDALS – Pretty much every temple you go to will require you to remove your shoes before entering, so if you plan on going...

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She Myet Hna

Erin — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 20:43:46 +0000

She Myet Hna is one of the 2,200 Buddhist temples, stupas, payas and pagodas that still remain of the 10,000+ that were built in Bagan, Myanmar. While most have are in ruins or disrepair, this one has been preserved and restored. We actually found this temple by accident. One of the modes of transportation in Bagan is the bicycle. We rented our bikes from our hotel, Thante Nyaung U, and rode off in search of some of the temples. As you can see, our hotel wasn’t too far from Old Bagan. Old Bagan is the section inside the blue lines on the left side of the picture. It took us maybe 20-30 minutes to bike back to the hotel once we were done for the day. When we took off from the hotel we were actually looking for Shwezigone Temple, but we took a wrong turn somewhere and when we rounded the corner we found this one. There are a lot of streets not marked on maps and we got lost several times. It wasn’t too bad, though, because getting lost in Bagan just means you find more temples you weren’t expecting. Being that She Myet Hna was the first temple we saw I figured that it should have the honor of being the first Bagan temple I wrote about. Not much is known about She Myet Hna. The locals say it has been there as long as they can remember, but nobody knows how old it is, what prompted it to be built or if She Myet Hna is its original name. The history of it isn’t important to them, they just know it was built as a place of worship and reflection. To them, it’s just another one of the religious sites that cover the land. Another face in a crowded room that showed up one day and nobody knows why. Maybe someday someone will unearth a hidden text that names all the temples and explains what their purpose was. Maybe one day we will know why so many religious structures were built in the same area. Maybe one day we will truly understand what Bagan really means. We did find a placard with writing on it, but haven’t been able to find someone who can translate it. Does this tell the history of this temple? Does this explain more about Bagan? Perhaps it does. It’s actually driving me a little crazy to not know what this says. Perhaps it just explains a bit about Buddhism or maybe it just talks about the restoration of the temple. I really wish someone could tell me. This is a dvarapala. They are guardians set to protect the holy place inside the temple. Since She Myet Hna is small and has no real interior, prayers are done from the individual doorways and this dvarapala protects from outside the temple. One of the nice things about Bagan is that there are many places to get water. These are communal drinking basins. You just take the plate off the top, get yourself a cup of water and then place the cup upside down on the plate over the top of the ceramic basin. While it’s nice for locals, I wouldn’t recommend drinking the water from places like this. This water is usually from nearby lakes or streams and isn’t filtered or treated. Modern day Buddhist graffiti. It’s sad that someone would deface the temple, but I do have to admit it’s a pretty good drawing. These figure are known as deva statues. When King Anawratha was crowned in 1044 AD he began unifying the kingdom of Burma and instituted Theravada Buddhism as the national religion. In order to appease local cults and ensure peace, King Anawrath adopted nats and devas into the Buddhist culture. Buddhism revolves around the concept of reincarnation, but offshoot branches believe that violent deaths prevent a person from being reincarnated, thus their spirit roams and becomes dangerous to the living. Burmese Buddhism believes that these statues are a place where those spirits can dwell and be somewhat at peace. These guys are known as leogryphs or chinthe. Chinthe are almost always depicted in pairs and serve to protect the pagoda. They typically appear as animals, but are sometimes found with human faces. Why do chinthe guard temples and pagodas? Well, according to legend, a princess and a lion fell in love and were married. They had a son, but the princess eventually abandoned the lion who became enraged and began terrorizing the lands. When the princess’s son grew up, he sought out and killed the lion in an effort to protect the people. It was only after the prince returned and told his mother what he’d done that he found out he had killed his own father. To atone for his sin, the prince constructed a statue of a lion to stand as guardian of the local temple and thus the tradition began. The chinthe is revered and loved by the Burmese people and is used symbolically on the royal thrones of Burma. Predating the use of coins for money, brass weights cast in the shape of mythical beasts like the chinthe were commonly used to measure standard quantities of staple items. And ever since the creation of modern currency in Myanmar there have been chinthe on the bills and the coins.

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