(ReligionForBreakfast) Writer: Dr. R. Andrew Chesnut.
Editor: Mark Henry. Executive producers: Daniel Cuevas, Jay Gotschalk, Producer: Lyndsay Ballew. Further reading:
R. Andrew Chesnut, Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint, 2011. RFB Patreon community: religionforbreakfast.
In Buddhism, HOW can we transfer our merit (good karma) to benefit the grateful dead, the dearly departed, those who have gone beyond so that it gets to them today?
(Lady of the Library): Cinzia DuBois is a part-time, self-funded doctoral (Ph.D.) student and writer, YouTuber, and podcaster. She has been creating videos for over 15 years. On this channel she talks about dark and ancient history, literature, and folklore. On a second channel, she discusses productivity, personal development, her doctoral thesis, academia, and mental well-being.
Mictēcacihuātl ("Lady of the Dead"), in Aztec mythology, is a [goddess] death deity and the consort of Mictlāntēcutli, the god of the dead [like Buddhism's Judge Yama in the underworld also known as Yama in Hinduism] and ruler of Mictlān, the lowest level of the underworld [1].
Her role is to watch over the bones of the dead and preside over the ancient festivals of the dead. These festivals evolved from Aztec traditions into the modern Day of the Dead after synthesis with invading Spanish traditions. She now presides over the contemporary festival as well. In this respect, the pseudo-Catholic cult of Santa Muerte owes much to her. More
The third edition of Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saintoffers a fascinating portrayal of Santa Muerte[female Saint Death], a skeleton saint whose cult has become the fastest growing new religious movement worldwide over the past two decades.
Although condemned by mainstream churches, this folk saint's supernatural powers appeal to millions in Latin America, the USA, and beyond. Devotees believe the Bony Lady (as she is affectionately called) to be the fastest and most effective miracle worker, and as such, her statuettes and paraphernalia now outsell those of the Virgin of Guadalupe and Saint Jude, two other giants of Mexican religiosity.
In particular, Santa Muerte has become the patron saint of drug traffickers, playing an important role as protector of peddlers of fentanyl and marijuana; DEA agents and Mexican police often find her altars in the safe houses of drug smugglers.
Yet, Saint Death plays other important roles: she is a supernatural healer, love doctor, money-maker, lawyer, and angel of death. She has become without doubt one of the most popular and powerful saints of both the Latin American and American religious landscapes. More
Celebrate the vibrant and beloved Mexican holiday with Mattel Corporation's new Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) Collection.
Barbie doll looks luminous wearing a long, black ruffled gown with intricate, colorful detailing and embroidered sugar skulls. Her orange headband highlights her updo and evokes the festival's iconic marigold flowers.
Calavera (skull) face paint and bright pink accessories complete her festive look. While sold separately, both Barbie [Beltran] and Ken [Castro] dolls wear complimentary patterns, making them a perfect set and the ultimate keepsake that inspires joy and elegance.
Barbie® Dia de Muertos doll
designer: Javier Maebe. Label: Black
Face Sculpt: Lina
Body Type: ModelMuse. Includes certificate of authenticity to avoid cheap knockoffs. Barbie Club 59 members get a deal. Buy Día de Muertos Barbie doll at MattelCreations.com while supplies last. During this time, the doll may also be available at participating Target and Walmart locations, as well as Amazon.com, Target.com, and Walmart.com. Dolls cannot stand alone. Doll stand included. Colors and decorations may vary. Purchase limits subject to change at the sole discretion of Mattel. SKU#: HRM72
(NBCLA) Take a peek at Halloween Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood, an amusement park where many scary things were once filmed for the big studio system.
It's that time of year again when The Veil is thin between the worlds/dimensions and the dead mingle with the living. What we call the Halloween season is Obon in Buddhist Japan, Samhain in Celtic Ireland, and Dia de Los Muertos in Mexico and Latin America.
These ancient beliefs and customs are linked to some reality, not just make believe swept away by a colonial missionary religion that says no to heathen paganism and tries to enforce worship of its imperial deity.
Obon (お盆 [1]) or just Bon (盆 [2][a]) is a fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's deceased ancestors. This Buddhist custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people return to ancestral family places and visit and clean their ancestors' graves when the spirits of ancestors are supposed to revisit the household altars. It has been celebrated in Japan for more than 500 years and traditionally includes a dance, known as Bon Odori. More: Obon
QUESTION: Can meditation cultivate merit (punya) to transfer to the dead?
ANSWER: Yes, intensive sitting meditation is one way to cultivate skillful qualities like stillness, silence, calm, peace, serenity, contentment, joy (piti), bliss (sukha), and insight (vipassana) through fourfold mindfulness (satipatthana).
Can we meditate to help the dead?
Another way, particularly if dealing with monkey mind or a sugar rush is mindful walking to cultivate "being here now," holding attention on the present moment, the present action (walking), and slowing down to pay attention rather than operating on automatic pilot.
Yet another way is to engage in skillful action (feeding others, giving, letting go of things we cling to, offering help, compassion to alleviate the suffering of others, developing joy in the joy of others, equanimity or looking on with unbiased spreading of attention to make our love, compassion, and joy-in-others'-joy universal and unbounded).
And just when this is done, one utters the "mantra" or "prayer" or dedication of merit, bringing to mind those to whom we are making the offering:
To “share or transfer merits,” sincerely say: “May [so and so] receive merits from this good deed that I have done.” And to cultivate boundless loving-kindness (metta) add: “May ALL beings be free from the suffering in the apāyā.”
In both cases, we are BROADCASTING our intention of goodwill and compassion in offering help. PureDhamma.net
NOTE: One does not lose merit by giving but rather multiplies and compounds it.
The mistake Americans make about the Day of the Dead is that it's mournful, when it's really all about life and living, food and celebrating, remembering and loving. Goths may love the look, but it's uplifting.
The Bodhisattva Guanyin (Kwan Yin): Goddess of Compassion
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“May the merit and virtue accrued from this work adorn the Buddha's Pure Lands. Repaying four kinds of kindness above and aiding those suffering in the paths below, may those who see and hear of this all bring forth the resolve for Bodhi (enlightenment) and, when this retribution-body is over, be reborn together in ultimate bliss.” Transference of Merit (abuddhistlibrary.com)
Vajrayana
A tulku returns to help others.
In the initial stages of our journey of self-cultivation, most of us may still be inclined to transfer merit only to ourselves, our family members, and/or our loved ones. It is superior to broaden that giving to all sentient beings to make it universal and unbounded by self-interest.
Self may be the focal point of our efforts when we start practicing Buddhism. As practice deepens and our understanding of Buddhism becomes more profound, the capacity of the heart will gradually expand. This makes us more willing to share merits with all sentient beings.
The Vedic Brahmins' Cosmic Buddha Vairocana
The practice of merit transfer involves dissolving and reducing our sense of separation and selfishness, thereby cultivating boundless love, compassion, and unbiased equanimity.
The sharing of merit is most supreme, complete, and without outflows (defilements) when our mind/heart is capable of expanding giving to include all sentient beings.
A thanksgiving prayer for the (grateful) dead
To help all sentient beings be liberated from suffering and attain happiness, we generate the Bodhi mind of attaining Buddhahood and transfer our merit to all sentient beings.
We can vow to use the limited power of our vows to resonate with the infinite, compassionate vows of the various Cosmic Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and attain supreme enlightenment along with all sentient beings. More
Ancient Buddhist ghost stories from the Petavatthu (Tales of Hungry Ghosts)
(FOOLESJOURNEY) This collection of ancient South Asian ghost (peta, preta) stories combines several passages from an early Buddhist text called the Peta-vatthu – meaning “Ghost Stories," or more specifically, "Tales of Hungry Ghosts." It was likely written after 300 BCE, and is deeply rooted in ancient (especially pre-Buddhist, Vedic, Hindu) concepts of disembodied souls (subtle body beings) trapped between hellish and human planes, in the realm of hungry ghosts, doomed to experience torture and consequences of greedy, hateful, and deluded behavior in life, creating what are more simply referred to as “hungry ghosts.”
(Jhanay Mendez) Products used: white Snazaroo face paint mixed with MAC face and body foundation, C2 black Snazaroo face paint, Marc Jacobs black eyeliner, Naked palette tease/blackout, Colourpop matte liquid lipstick in Love Bug E.L.F. translucent powder, Covergirl rocket mascara, Ardell lashes in natural. Oct. 21, 2016: Instagram: @jhanaymendez
San Pedro Día de Los Muertos Festival to Host Largest Catrina Contest with Royal Caribbean Cruise for 10 as Grand Prize
Hey, Everybody, look at me! I'm a white doll!
National Latino Heritage Month continues, and Ashley has a question: Is it "cultural appropriation" to dress up for Dia de los Muertos? We think not, but in these sensitive times; anyone can get offended by anything.
It seems a male can become a female just for saying so, but NAACP leader Rachel Dolezal gets her backside handed to her on a platter for convincingly changing races or going biracial, even though she is an ally, has Black kids, a Black husband, and good intentions. When she decides to become a man, we're sure she'll be welcomed, celebrated, and encouraged to do drag. Let's look in and see how Ashley's doing on her journey of cultural exploration. Hooray!
A Frat Boy's Freedom to Offend (Prager U at UCLA and on Olvera St.)
We're living in Los Angeles (LA, "Latin America"), or the Rust Belt City of Chicago (Chi Town), so it's time to get with it. El Dia de Los Muertos or The Day of the Dead is an important adjunct to our European Halloween and Samhain (because Obon has already past). It's autumn, the fall season, and with the change of weather and amount of daylight, so goes the mood of the city. It's time to get cozy inside with lots of light because outside, The Dead are coming. These are our ancestors, and appeasing them is a nice thing, wholesome karma.
Buddhists can "transfer merit" to them in temple celebrations in both traditions, the older or back-to-basics Theravada and the populist later-development Mahayana or Hinduism-light.
The Dead are not altogether gone, just phase-shifted out of easy reach, but contact is still possible due to the strangeness of the universe and separation of dimensions and 31 Planes. Beings go on to be reborn when they pass from here. Where do they go? That utterly depends on their karma (store of deeds, not just from this life but from countless past lives), and we can contribute to their karma by helping them.
It's like offering medicine to the sick: Some would get better with or without it, some will pass even if they get it, and there is a third group who will only survive if they get it. Is it good to give it?
In all three cases, it's good to offer it. Let them decide what they need, which they will invariably do by their response (which is their karma).
Here the "medicine" is not a dangerous allopathic toxic created by sorcerers (Big Pharma) with lots of side effects. It's not even natural plant-based medicine, which can be strong. This medicine is karma (intentional action).
If sad at the airport and one is offered a flower (by say a hairy Krishna devotee), what can one do? Slap it away in annoyance, accept it and acknowledge the offer in gratitude while politely declining, accept it and eat it then spit it back out and hand it back when charged a "donation" (by their crafty employment of the sociopsychological basis of power known as reciprocation), take it and pay up, take it and tell them to naff off for demanding money... There are so many ways we might respond.
We are like the sick patient being offered something. How we respond (our intentionally chosen response) or react (our practiced and habitually reaction) is our karma.
But if it is offered in kindness with nothing expected in return, it can be quite a balm, a salve, a medicinal. It might be calendula, in which case not only is it bright and yellow, it is also medicinal when prepared as a tincture.
So this is LA, the Day of the Dead is coming, and here's a chance to participate. The contest has many prizes. Be a Catrina, a painted doll, for the celebration.
We were surprised to learn that Catrinas are not Goth ghosts, not "The Dead," haints, ghouls, spirits. They were originally Indigenous mockeries of Hispanics who dressed up and tried to pass for pure Spanish. "Oh, look at me; I'm so elegant and fashionable with my white powder face!" We were all mixed, Mestizos and Mixtecs.
The Indigenous dressed up in elegant Euro garb to mock the half-white beauty queens and princes trying to pass as white to emphasize their mixed blood affiliation (the result of rape, coercion, and mostly enticement) with the Conquistadors and settler colonialists who had ruined the New World by their genocide, occupation, and hegemonic influence.
But what's one to do? The Europeans introduced a complex form of racism and colorism that is still rocking Latin America. Spain went so far as to define 16 groups or "castes" (casta) one would be labelled in a classification system as from the Mulatto to the Negro, from the Indio to the pure Gringo or Spanish (100% purebred Iberian Peninsula European).
"The Catrina Contest is open to all genders between the ages of 18-99 with contestants judged on creativity, design, beauty, authenticity. crowd response. We are elevating our celebration with a contest that invites everyone to bring this iconic figure to life with creativity and flair, all while keeping the spirit of family and remembrance at its core.”
— Executive Director of Discover San Pedro Ryan Blaney
LOS ANGELES, California, USA, Sept. 18, 2024 (einpresswire.com) - Discover San Pedro is proud to announce the largest Catrina Contest in California as part of its annual Día de Los Muertos Festival. This year, the contest will offer a grand prize sponsored by the LA Cruise Alliance, which includes Royal Caribbean Group, Carnival Corporation, and MSC Cruises. The winner will receive an unforgettable cruise for 10 aboard Royal Caribbean International. San Pedro Día de Los Muertos Festival (wane.com) (San Pedro is Spanish for "Saint Peter," a coastal city and massive shipping port in LA). More
PRIZES: 1. Cruise for 10 people aboard Royal Caribbean Cruises 2. Feast for 10 people at the World Famous San Pedro Fish Market 3. Round Trip for 4 people on Catalina Express 4. Downtown San Pedro Red Trolley for 3 hours up to 30 people
What it’s like to visit a Japanese American Obon festival, from the musubi to the dancing: Obon is a joyous Japanese American summer holiday dedicated to remembering and honoring ancestors (aka The Dead, and we don't mean gratefulJerry Garcia).
Summer weekends at SoCal Japanese Buddhist temples fill with carnival games, Japanese food, and dancing as people of all generations come together to celebrate Obon, a joyous holiday dedicated to remembering and honoring ancestors.
Growing up Japanese American attending an Obon festival evokes instant nostalgia. I remember being a kid eating peanut butter mochi (puffy sticky rice paste) and shaved ice during breaks between dancing. Learn more about Obon.
What is Obon?
Obon — one of SoCal’s biggest Japanese American celebrations — is a way of remembering those who have passed.
It's that spooky time of year (summer), when Japanese spirits are restless (like the West's Halloween).
It's a sacred holiday dedicated to remembering and honoring ancestors.
It’s a bit like the Japanese version of Mexico's Día de Los Muertos(Day of the Dead), with a distinctly Japanese American twist.
Festivals take place at temples and community centers from June to August and include carnival games, home-cooked food, and traditional Japanese dancing.
All are welcome. Learn more about the history and find one near you.
He was on Coast to Coast (8/2/24) discussing psychic readings he has conducted with people who claim to have been abducted by space aliens and the reasons why certain people are targeted for abduction and others are not. (It's their protein metabolism, which means it's their genetic profile).
Lawyer Anthony recounts the story of Calvin Parker and Charles Hickson, who maintain that they were abducted by aliens while fishing near Pascagoula, Mississippi, in Oct. 1973.
Vril Society gave Nazis advanced technology
According to Parker, they were intentionally paralyzed by a "light" emitted from a metallic, football-shaped flying object, then taken aboard by robotic entities.
While on the alien ship (vimana), Parker described being injected against his will and examined by what he perceived to be an extremely beautiful woman who had reptilian-like fingers. Her beauty was such that he did not mind the fingers until her cloak dropped.
Orsic channeled Sumerian text from Aldebaran
Human medical examinations later showed puncture wounds on Parker and Hickson's bodies, which corroborated their abduction story, Anthony emphasized that Parker and Hickson consistently passed lie detector tests and other interrogations, reinforcing their credibility over the years.
The Psychic Lawyer discusses a gallery event in Denver, where he connected with a young man who had repeatedly been abducted by aliens. During a reading, Anthony received a message from the man's deceased grandfather indicating that the aliens were interested in how he metabolized protein.
We come for a piece [of flesh].
[So the solution to repeated abductions may lie in a change of diet, perhaps cleaning up and going vegan, a sort of purity these malevolent or at least cold-blooded creatures would not be interested in.]
This protein detail matched findings from other abductees, who experienced an intense craving for protein and salt after abductions, as if they had been drained of their stores.
Anthony links this to research suggesting that aliens might use extracted human protein as nourishment or for other purposes, such as [hybrid breeding, mating, or] cloning.
He also shares insights related to the Roswell downed UFO incident that were provided to him by his father who held top-secret clearance in the late 1950s.
Anthony said his father revealed the rapid transition in the U.S. from archaic transistor-based electronics to the advanced alien technology of silicon chips. This was the result of reverse-engineering extraterrestrial tech recovered from Roswell [as well as Velcro].
There are many spirits (Madame Blavatsky)
He expresses his belief in a massive government cover-up of Roswell with distribution of alien technology to private corporations with government contract [Bell Labs, Boeing, Gruman, etc.] and the ET influences on our technological progress. More + AUDIO
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