What is Religion

What is

Religion?

What is ReligionThis topic is explored in three sections:

Part One – Religion and MePart Two – Religion in ActionPart Three – The Great World Religions

Religion and me

Lead-InThe following sixty slides come from my ‘Reflections On Life’ Slide-Show – Part 1,

timed to give a ten-minute ‘count-down’ to the first part of four which make up ‘Two Questions.’

This is just to provide a reflective atmosphere to the workshop which explores two questions –

What is Religion? And

Who or What is God?In this first part we explore the subject of

Religion and Me

…Aum ~ Shanti ~ Shanti ~ Shanti ~ Aum…

“Music gives soul to the universe 

wings to the mind flight to the imagination and life to everything" 

Plato

  In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God and the Word was God….

The Gospel of John ch 1

“The unexamined

life is not worth living.”

Socrates 

There are two ways to live:

you can live as if nothing is a miracle;

or

you can live as if everything is a miracle.

Albert Einstein

About the authorDurgaMata Chaudhuri has been absorbed by the subjects of God and religion all her life. Born into a Quaker farming family, on leaving home she lived in Ulster, during the height of ‘the Troubles,’ which intensified her own search for Truth.

Not long after returning to England to study in Birmingham, she met the spiritual Teacher Sri Chinmoy who subsequently gave her the spiritual name DurgaMata.

Inspired by worshipping with her Hindu in-laws and with friends from many different religions, DurgaMata took a degree in Theology and Religious Studies (twinned with mural art) at Roehampton University and trained as a specialist teacher in RE and Art. She has taught for more than 20 years and now works as a free-lance RE Consultant and silk-paint artist.

DurgaMata believes that there is no such thing as a neutral viewpoint. As a Theist, she respects all faith positions including agnostic and atheist, but her own love for God both underpins and is reflected in this resource.

Many of the images in Two Questions come from our own photographs. Others have been

gathered from many sources. A full list of credits is being prepared.

We hope that all whose photographs have been used will be happy and proud to be included

in this slide-show - but should any copyright questions arise we will be happy

to make any adjustments necessary.

What is Religion

What is

Religion?

The unexamined life is not worth living.

– Socrates

What is Religion?

What do you think ?

Religion is something we all have views

about.

Activity 1

Think about the question What is religion?Working on your own,

What are the most important words or short phrases that you would want to include in your answer?

How would you answer the question

‘What is Religion?’

How would you answer the question

‘What is Not Religion? – or What is Religion Not?’

Write your views on a ‘postit’ and stick them on the flip-chart at the front of the room for later

discussion.

Religion is about me• Religion is a subject that you have to

think about. • Everyone has a point of view on this

subject.• And in the subject of religion, your

views are important. So are mine. • We may not agree but all our views

matter.• Religion is about you.• Religion is about me.• Religion is about everyone.

girls

andboys

Old

and young

We asked reception children .

They gave lots of answers and they did not all agree - but their answers followed a pattern. They all could be grouped by the ideas they expressed. There were four main ideas.

The children said that • Religion is about what I believe.• Religion is about doing things.

• Religion is about Jesus and Christianity.• Religion is about God.

Here are some of the answers they gave -

Religion is about Belief?• Your own opinion.

• A belief in different countries.

• What you believe in.• Believing in everyone.• Believe to do something.• What I believe. • Person who believes.

My favourite answer here is:

‘Your Own Opinion’ This is a very insightful answer

because Religion is about

each person,

what we think and what we believe,

our own understanding of life.

Religion is about the way that each person makes sense of the amazing

reality that we call life.

Religion is about doing things?• A thing you do at least once a

week• A religion is if you pray to

God and other people.• Believe to do something• Vegetarian• Someone who helps people• Believe to help another

person• Something you've forgotten

to do!

My favourite answer here is:

‘Believe to do something’ This is a very insightful answer because

Religion is about each person and what we do, how we live our lives.

Our religion affects

the choices we make

which are guided by our beliefs –

and all our actions.

Religion is about Jesus (Christianity)

• Believe in Jesus and God and their friends

• Something to do with Easter• … if you read the Bible• Lots of people who pray to

God or Jesus• Something left over from a

long time ago!

My favourite answer here is:

‘Believe in Jesus and God and their friends’

This is a very insightful answer because Religion is about people like Jesus who inspire others to

follow their example. People who follow the teaching of Jesus are called Christians.

Christianity is one of the great world religions.The Great World Religions are sources of wisdom and authority for millions of people. These religions have a big influence on their members but they have more influence than that. The great religions affect individuals, communities, society, national politics, and the whole international scene.

How many religions can you think of?

Activity 2Working on your own,

Make a list of all the different World Religions that you can think of

Working in pairs

Brainstorm all the different ways that

the great World Religions influence –

their members, local communities

society in general, national politics

world affairs.Working in groups of 4 – 6 people,

Share your brainstorms and discuss in your groups the ideas you have inluded.

Underline items that more than one pair listed.

Circle items that are unique to your brainstorm.

Think about religion as a power.

Which items show the power of religion adding quality to people’s lives, helping people or working as a force of good in society?

Which items show the way that religion can be a force of division or harm?

We asked reception children .

The fourth thing that the reception children mentioned in their answers to the question ‘What is Religion?’ was the concept of God.

The children said that • Religion is about what I believe.• Religion is about doing things.

• Religion is about Jesus and Christianity(which we have seen means a powerful, often unifying but

sometimes divisive source of authority and direction)and

• Religion is about God.

Religion is about God.• I believe in God

• Someone who believes in God• Is someone who loves God• Believing in God and his friends• If you think God is real• Someone who talks to God in their

prayers• I don’t believe in God.• Believe in God to do something for

Him

My favourite answer here is:

‘Believe in God to do something for Him’

I think that this is a very insightful answer because Religion is about

the relationship that someone can develop with God, not just a rather empty ‘belief’ in God.

If you have a strong relationship with someone, then you want to please them and do things for them.

And again, like in the previous answer which mentioned Jesus and introduced the great world religions, this faith or belief is

reflected in the way that people live –

in their actions –

in what they think and do –

and in how they relate to each other and the world around them.

Did anyone get the right answer?

If so, Which answer is right?Religion

is not a simple subject like maths

where you learn a ruleand use it to get the right answer.

Religion is about us, who we are and what we think. We are all different. We have different parents, different

histories, different experiences and different ways of seeing the world.

So our thoughts are different and we answer the question in our own way.

What does that mean?

Does that mean none of the answers are right?No.

Does that mean all of the answers are right?Perhaps.

Does that mean that all of the answers are right but only in part, - Each one only gives part of the answer?

Many people would say that this is true. But not everybody.

There are many different views.

The unexamined life is not worth

living.

– Socrates

The Best AnswerWell, you’re the RE teacher. You know more about the subject of religion than we do. So which answer do you like best and why?

I like this answer best:

‘Religion is something you do, something you believe in and Someone you believe in.’

Why? - Because the person who wrote this, even though they are so young (in reception class) - can understand that religion is complicated and can’t be explained in a short way.

They have said that religion is about the way you live your life (actions - what you do) – about your own beliefs - and about a source of wisdom - you believe in. This last idea includes both God and the great world religions. So this one answer covers all four basic ideas.

The Jigsaw of Religion

OK, Miss, since you are so clever, how would you answer the question?How would I explain what religion means?

That is an excellent question.

I would start by saying that

Religion is like a jigsaw made of millions of pieces.

It is not something simple and easy to understand.

Each person is a piece of the Religion-Jigsaw

Without each person, the picture of religion is incomplete.

Part 1

Religion and Me

We start by thinking about the way religion is made up of different individuals, all with their own understanding of who they

are and what life

is all about.

If this red piece represents me.What colour would you choose

to represent you?

No Religion“But I don’t believe in anything. I’m not Christian or any other religion. I don’t have any religion. I’m a ‘none’ so I’m not part of the jigsaw of religion, am I Miss?”Well, the different religions in the world are only part of the religion-picture.

Everyone’s views, ideas, thoughts, experiences, hopes, dreams and beliefs are important in religion.

The picture is only complete when it includes everyone. Your views are just as important as anyone else’s

So there is definitely a piece of the jigsaw for you.

Difference is natural. You see difference everywhere.

No two leaves on a tree are the same.

No two snowflakes in a snowstorm are the same.

It is natural that we all have different views, ideas and beliefs.

The religion-picture includes them all.

If we want to see the complete picture we need everyone’s views.

In my view, truth is not Truth if it is incomplete.(We will explore different views about religion and God later.)

I am unique• Unique is a very important word in religion. It means

absolutely special and different from anything else that exists. Just like everything else in nature, each human being is unique.

• I am unique. You are unique. We are absolutely special and completely different from anyone else who has ever lived before. Also we are completely different from anyone else who will ever come to live on earth.

• Even identical twins are different. They may share exactly the same DNA, they may look similar, but they have their own thoughts and experiences, their own ways of understanding life, their own hopes and dreams.

One goal to aim for is to try to be true to who we are.

Activity 3Working in pairs

Talk to a partner and take turns to explain what your views, ideas and beliefs about religion are and why.

See how many things you can think of that you agree or disagree about.

Do you agree that everyone is part of the jigsaw of religion even if s/he does not actually believe in God or practise – any religion such as, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism, Bah’ai, Rasta etc?

Does this challenge your own understanding of what religion is?

If so, how do you feel about that?Do you have a favourite way of explaining religion or model of religion’ which you find helpful to use when teaching? Make a note of any ideas or questions that you would like to discuss later and put them in the basket at the front.

Reflection in a mirror?

Since everyone is part of the religion-jigsaw,

one good place to start is by asking

what it is to be a human being,

what it is to be you. You look in the mirror in the morning and see your reflection

looking back at you. You may think ‘I look great today.’

But is that who you really are?

You may show a friend a photo of when you were young,

and say, ‘look how cute I was.’

But a reflection in the mirror or an image on a photograph

Do not begin to show who you really are.

You have a body and external features that can be seen

but there is more to you than that.

Who Am I?I have a strong body

which is solid and warm.

Who Am I?I have the five senses – sight,

hearing, smell, taste and feeling .

Who Am I?I have clever hands that can

make things and hold things.

Who Am I?I have a mind

that can think and dream,

Who Am I?I have feelings, moods and

emotions.

Who Am I?True I have a body and a mind –

but is there more to who I am than that?

Many people – including many great teachers of religion - would say that you are not the body or the mind –

They might say -

- that your body and mind belong to you. - You own them and use them.

• - that you need your body and mind – you can’t live without them - but they are not who you really are.

• Many – probably most – people in the world believe that who we really are is the spirit or soul.

Who is speaking?

I am the owner of my body.

I am the captain of my mind.

I am the lover of my heart.

Sri Chinmoy

Activity 4 - reflection Like all models which represent something different, the jigsaw

model of Religion is useful as a starting point but it is not perfect. There are difficulties.

We are not like a ‘jar of paint,’ the same ‘colour’ all the way through. Human beings are complicated.

There is a lot to who and what we are.

Working on your own -• Shut your eyes and feel what it’s like to be who you are. • Feel how solid and warm you are.• Listen and see how many things you can hear. • Watch your thoughts. Are they thinking about the past, the present,

the future or in the world of pure imagination?What is your own view of who you are? Do you believe in mind, body and spirit?

Do you think we have or are the soul?

Thinking of religion as a jigsaw is useful but can you think of a better model for religion?

The soul?When you think about the soul you have to use art, music, symbols or poetry because

the soul has no visible shape.

Each soulIs a leafOf God’s UniversalHeart-Tree.

Sri Chinmoy

Invite Your SoulInvite your soul To enter into your mind-jungle To clear it up.

Invite your soul To enter into your heart-insecurity To strengthen it.

Invite your soul To encourage you

in all that you do

and say.

Your soul will inspire you, Fulfil you And Immortalise you

by Sri Chinmoy.

Is death the end?Many people – including many visionaries, poets and great teachers of religion (who claim to know about these things) say that we are not the body but the soul which experiences life. They also say:

that death is not the end and

when the body dies, and the brain is dead,

the soul – which is the real you, lives on. - Few people have personal first–hand

experience of this,

so there is a lot of argument

about the soul and life-after death.

A butterfly is often used as a

symbol of life after death

because it starts out as caterpillar

and then turns into a chrysalis

(as if it had died) but after some

time it emerges

as a beautifulbutterfly

What do you think?

Activity 5Working on your own

Think not just about whether you believe in God, the soul and in life after death, but also where these beliefs come from.

Have they changed significantly over the years since you were first aware enough to think about them?

If they have changed, what caused these changes?

Do you practise a religion? Have you ever belonged to a religion? What is your ‘Faith Journey’ Reflect on this for a few minutes.

Working in a group of three people.This is an exercise in Active Listening.

Give each member of your group a number.

Number 1 tells number 2 their life-story while number 3 listens at a distance of a few feet away. S/he can write down any questions that occur while listening.

Number 1 talks for five minutes and nobody interrupts in any way. Number 2 has to listen very closely as s/he will have to re-tell number1’s Faith Journey to number 3 afterwards.

two ways You can live as if

nothing is a miracle;

or

You can live as if everything is a miracle.

Albert Einstein

Life after Death?Unless we have special vision, we do not know, from personal observation, what happens when we die or whether or not we have or are the soul. There are people who speak – and who have spoken in the past - on subjects like this, with such clarity and authority that people have been drawn to follow them and believe that what they say is true. Such ‘visionaries’ can be found in all the great religions.

Christianity and Islam tend to view life as linear, with a beginning and end. They speak of

‘judgement’ and of heaven and hell, while

Religions which have their origins in the Indian region tend to speak of ‘karma’ – cause and effect -

and view life as cyclic, birth and death being linked by reincarnation.

All religions agree that there are consequences to our actions here on earth, and death is not the end.

'sixth sense' Some people claim to see 'beyond' the physical. They

speak of a 'sixth sense' and may know things or see things that most people are not aware of. They may have encountered a ghost or been strongly aware of the presence of God in some way, for example.

People sometimes have surprising experiences, which are outside the 'normal pattern' of life, when they see things in a new way. Rudolf Otto studied this and found it is common. He called this encounter with the ‘Numinous.’

Research into reincarnation and Near Death Experiences offers some interesting insight.

Evidence?Some people speak of

encountering ghosts, speaking to spirits of the dead, past life experiences and Near Death Experiences - of ‘continued

existence’ when they have died and been resuscitated again.

Each person will have their own reasons to support their beliefs in life after death – but as with all religious questions, these can never be proved in a way that is going to convince everyone.

Most people who do not believe in God, reject the idea of life after death, too.

insightAll the religions agree that our physical death is not the end of our existence.

Sri Chinmoy in meditation,One of countless spiritual teachers who has spoken

with authority and insight gained in meditation -

about God, the soul, life after death and many

related subjects,

Sri Chinmoy combined Eastern and Western

approaches to life in a particularly clear and

dynamic way.

The spirit or soulSpirituality and religion are interested in who and what we are in our inmost selves, deeper than our physical appearance and mental thoughts.

Spiritual awareness suggests that at the deepest level we are all one.

Sri Chinmoy (a prolific poet and spiritual Master of our time) has written much about spirituality. The following poem is about the meaning of spirituality. It is all about this sense of oneness:

SpiritualityMy Supreme, my Supreme,

my Supreme!My true spirituality is the love of Your Breath

In every heart,My Supreme, my Supreme,

my Supreme!

--------- by Sri Chinmoy

Sri Chinmoy uses the name Supreme for God. What does ‘Supreme’ mean ?Do you know any other names for God?

Activity 5 How would you explain what spirituality means?

Human beings are not islands separate from everyone else. We are tribal, social animals. We tend to like it if we find people with similar views and can find opposing views quite challenging.

Have you ever got into an argument about a ‘religious’ issue?

What other subjects or views do you feel strongly about?

Where do you look for answers to the great questions in life?

What are your own favourite poets or sources of inspiration?

With members of your group

Discuss these questions… and if there are questions or issues you would like to discuss further,

note them on a ‘postit’ and stick them on the flip-chart at the front.

Inside and outsideI am complicated. I am part of the jigsaw of religion but I am also like a jigsaw myself - because I am made up of many different parts.I can think of myself as a piece of the jigsaw of religion, but I am also like a flower with lots of petals. I have a physical body. On the outside there are all the features that you can see: the colour of my skin, my hair, my eyes, the shape of my nose, how tall I am, what I see when I look in the mirror.... But then there is who I am on the inside, all the things that I think and feel. I have a mind – but I am also more than that. I am the one who experiences, observes and learns – could that be the soul?There are many different ‘petals’ that make up the ‘flower’ which is ‘me.’ I need a model for my life which recognises all the different things that go into making me who I am.

I can use a flower as a model to illustrate the complexity of my own life.

A flower is made up of many petals

A human being is like a flower

with many petals.

What ‘petals’ would you include in a flower-diagram of your life?

The Flower of my lifeLike all models which represent something

different, the jigsaw model has difficulties.We all have a body that you can see, but we are more than that. We have an ‘outside’ and an ‘inside’. Some of the most important parts of us are on the inside – including our thoughts, feelings and experiences… We grow from a tiny baby to a child and adult, then we grow old and eventually we die. Flowers also bloom and fade away.

The model of a flower is better, as a representation of my life, than a piece of a jigsaw because - just like each flower with all its petals - each person is complicated with many parts and just like a flower, we change with time.

The Garden of ReligionI can think of myself as a flower with many petals, growing

in the Religion-Garden.

Like a flower, we change. We grow from a baby into an adult and at the end of our life we die. We have family, friends and neighbours and our lives overlap.

Flowers are like that too. You need many different flowers to create a beautiful garden.

This model of Religion as a garden, helps us to understand that we are complicated and there are many parts to our nature. It also reminds us that religion is about many people, not just one.

What sort of flower would you choose

to represent your own life?

"I find one vast garden spread out all over the universe.

All plants, all human beings, all higher mind bodies

are about in this garden in various ways ,

each has his own uniqueness and beauty.

Their presence and variety give me great delight.

Every one of you adds with your special feature

to the glory of the garden.“

Sri Anandamayi Ma

ChangeA flower grows from a seed. It is nourished by the rain and the sun.

It grows and blossoms, fades and dies, just as we do,

but it stays where it was planted. Flowers don’t move about.

Flowers don’t think – at least not as we do.

People are more complicated. A human baby grows up in a family and is nourished and protected

by its parents and other people. Our family, our community is not fixed in one place like a garden.

I have a family, friends and pets. They are part of who I am, too.I am part of a community, a neighbourhood, a nation – a ‘human race,’ the world of nature and Planet Earth itself. I am part of many groups, many patterns and these patterns are constantly changing. My thoughts, feelings beliefs and ideas change with time, too. A good model for religion needs to be able to show the way we are part of patterns which move and change all the time.

Activity 6On your own

Watch your thoughts and see how they change. Can you stop them from moving about?

Imagine watching birds fly across the sky. You see them pass but you do not follow. Try to do the same with your thoughts.

Observe your thoughts and see if they are in the present, past or future – or are they in the land of dreams and imagination.

Can you detach your awareness from your thoughts, watch them without getting caught up in them?

Can you stop your thoughts and make your mind completely still and clear, awake, aware but silent and watchful?

It is not easy, but that is the aim of meditation. Try for yourself.

Watching your breath can help in meditation.

Let your breathing be gentle and slow, not forced in any way.

With each breath, feel you are taking pure peace and stillness into your heart.

As you breath out, feel you are breathing out all your restless thoughts, anything that is worrying you or making you feel tense and stressed.

The Buddha was an expert in meditation. He said that everyone can become enlightened, fully aware and awake, experiencing perfect peace and bliss.

• Using the power of imagination is also helpful when you meditate.

• Imagine a flower bud is growing in your heart-centre, in the very centre of your chest.

• The flower is slowly opening, petal by petal and growing in size until it is fully blossomed and you are nothing but this flower.

• The fragrance of the flower fills you and spreads out, sharing its sweetness with everyone around.

Activity 7On your own -

• Think about changing emotions, about times in the past few days when you have been particularly happy or sad, loving or angry or full of inner peace.

• In silence, think about all the changes that you experience – each day, each week, each month, each year and at different stages of life.

• What about your family and community – can you think of ways that they have changed?

• Has anyone you know given birth to a new baby?• Can you think of anyone who has moved away or moved

into the area. • Has anyone you know died?

Share your observations with a partner.

The beauty of lifeHas deepened my love.The beauty of deathHas deepened my wisdom.

Sri Chinmoy, Ten thousand Flower-Flame series ? Part 1

Activity 8 Our views ideas and beliefs are invisible and private – unless we choose

to share them. They are not fixed. They grow and evolve over the years. They are influenced by our experiences, by all that we learn, each

conversation we have, each book we read or film we watch.

On your own Think about your relationships with other people, friends, family, pets and

other animals etc. Then there is the whole panorama of romance. In what ways have your relationships changed over the years? Think of your own views and your experience of faith. What has shaped

this and how has it changed since you were a young child? Can you think of any models for religion that can include this quality of

diversity and change which is so important when we think about who we are?

with a partner -Share something of your faith story

Share some experiences that have changed your views on life.

Community• We are born into a family. • Our family is part of the wider community.• We belong to the local district, where we live.• Families and individuals who practise a religion belong

to a community of faith.• When we start school or join a club, we become

members of a new community and make new friends.• When we go to work we belong to another community

and are part of a team of colleagues.• When we get married we join another family group.• All these different groups are like patterns in our lives

and communities themselves are full of patterns which change with time, just as our own lives do.

PatternsIf you think of just one community that you belong to, you can picture it as a flower.

Who or what would you place in its petals?Think of people – family, friends and neighbours – your local district, your nation, continent and the whole world.Think of pets and all the birds, animals and other creatures that share this world with us. Then think of all the different people in that community and how they all belong to other groups, just as you do. You could draw these as interlocking circles, but the patterns are too complicated to represent on the petals of a flower.

Moving and ChangingReligion is like a jigsaw with many pieces.

Each person is part of the picture.Each person is complicated with many parts

like a flower with many petals, so Religion is like a garden. Just as there are many flowers in a garden, and they can be grouped in different flower-beds, so people live in groups.

We have families, neighbours, villages, towns, districts, nations and continents.

But unlike a garden with flowers that stay in one place,

our communities are made up of interlocking and overlapping patterns of people and events that are constantly

moving and changing.

We need a new model for religion which has ‘space’ for that.

.

The Kaleidoscope of Religion

Religion is not just a picture which is complicated like a jigsaw, made of many pieces which are solid and fixed.

Religion is not just like a garden where plants tend to stay where they’re planted. Religion is not fixed.

Religion full of beautiful colours and interlocking patterns which are constantly

moving and changing.

It is more like a kaleidoscope.

The Kaleidoscope!Have you ever used a kaleidoscope?

It is like a tube.

You look down the centre and turn the barrel at the bottom. Light comes through the bottom where there are small pieces of translucent plastic or coloured glass, all shapes and colours.

These are reflected by mirrors running the length of the tube. You can’t describe a kaleidoscope, you have to see it to know what I mean.

Here are some kaleidoscope images.

Religion is inside usA Kaleidoscope, colourful patterns that

move and change, now that is looking more like religion!But religion is not just something you see from outside. Religion is not just something you look at from a distance. Religion is inside us. It is part of who we are.Religion is how we make sense of the world we live in, how we understand ourselves, who we are and why we are alive.

Activity 9On your own

Just reflect on who you are and what it means to be you, what things, people, places and experiences matter most to you.

How would you answer the questions

‘Who are you and why are you alive?Listen to the following poems about identity.Reflect on these poems and the pictures and ideas

that they explore.

• From a song about myself

….. He ran away to Scotland

The people for to see -

There he found

That the ground

Was as hard,

That a yard

Was as long,

That a song

Was as merry,

That a cherry

Was as red,

That lead

Was as weighty,

That fourscore

Was as eighty,

That a door

Was as wooden

As in England-

So he stood in his shoes

And he wonder'd,

He wonder'd,

He stood in his

Shoes and he wonder'd.

• John Keats

I Am - by Rose Tremain

I am the ragged fur coat my English Literature teacher worein a cold boarding school classroomAnd all the stories she encouraged me to writeI am a publisher's rejection letterI am five publishers' rejection letters. Then six, then seven…I am the white boots I wear in 1975 to meetthe eighth publisher, Penelope HoareAnd her devastating smile of acceptanceI am Robert Merivel, and all my characters whocame before and after himI am the eyes of my readers on the undergroundI am Lev, wounded hero of The Road HomeI am Rose Tremain,winner of the Orange Broadband Prize for Fiction 2008I am all these things and all these people.

I am who I am because of everyone.

I AM ALONE

I am aloneI wonder who I really amI hear everyone around me and yet I know I am aloneI want to trust once againI am alone

I pretend that I'm fine butI feel lonely and afraidI touch my reflection and feel trapped inside myselfI worry that I'll forever be this wayI am alone

I understand that I have to find someone to trustI say to them, I'm fine but I hope they know I'm notI dream of one day feeling secureI try to put my faith in others, but I can'tI hope that one day I'll trust again, but for nowI am alone.

Student – exploring wishes, dreams, hopes and fears with poems.

Imago DeiCiara Regan, age 13

Here I stand,Looking at the cold sheet of glass,Watching a stranger mimic my every moveI think of all the time spent Trying to create the perfect face of beauty,To no avail.

What was the point?Why the waste of time?Why the waste of effort

I realise now that I am perfect in my imperfection,I am – we all are – what God intended.We are his creation,Through his spirit we live,We are him and he is us,Imago Dei

Do not stand at my grave and weep, I am not there, I do not sleep. 

I am in a thousand winds that blow, I am the softly falling snow. 

I am the gentle showers of rain, I am the fields of ripening grain. 

I am in the morning hush, I am in the graceful rush 

Of beautiful birds in circling flight, I am the star-shine of the night. I am in the flowers that bloom, 

I am in a quiet room. I am in the birds that sing, I am in each lovely thing. 

Do not stand at my grave and cry, I am not there. I do not die.

Mary Frye

Within - part 1WITHIN

I am the sound of the wind rustling through feathers

As the eagle soars between mountain peaks.

I am the space between the last breaths of the dying

As they leave life behind for the next and grow weak.

I am the grey that floats in the fog when changes arrive

Holding the potential for new choices; neither black or white.

I am the eye of the storm where it is quiet and I set its course

Yet having no motion I am the measure of the hurricane’s great force

I am the silence that the birds sing to in the night

I am the blood coursing in their veins and

the will that gives them flight

Within - part 2I am the homeless woman on the corner

whose eyes you look through.

I am the dark and the light that revolve within you.

I am the proton, electron and neutron at play,

The saints in their glory and the one who betrayed.

I am without bounds and wear time as a cloak,

With my hand I spin the cosmos with one brief stroke.

I am a bug on a leaf on the bamboo tree

Look within yourself if you wish to meet me.

--------------- by Katherine Wyatt

Long long agoWhen nothing was there

And God got bored with himselfHe made everythingThen he got bored

With everything that was perfectAnd so planned to make some distortions

So he made some like meWho as they say have lost their mindsAs I sat on the swing in the playground

The teachers words tossed in the airLike bubbles of soap all around me

I did not play with them by waving them awayBut I tried to feel them by waving them in and out

When I walked out of the classroomThe tail of words followed me

Words made of lettersCrawling like ants

In a disciplined row.

Tito Mukhopadhyay

(the author is severely autistic. He uses words to communicate his world.)

 

"I am dust particles in the sunlight.

I am the round sun.

To the bits of dust I say, Stay.

To the sun, Keep moving.

I am morning mist,

And the breath of evening.

You the One in all, say who I am.

Say I am You.“

Sufi poet Rumi.

Activity 10• Make a list of the experiences, things and people who

have influenced you, which you might include, like John Keats and Rose Tremain, in writing about yourself.

• Think about your relationships and how you feel, your dreams, hopes and fears, like the student in ‘I Am Alone.’ Add more ideas to your list.

• Think about life and death, the world of nature and all the amazing things that make up your world, which you might include, like the poem on remembrance and the poem ‘Within.’

• Think of how your own understanding of life, death and God affect your sense of who you are, like the authors of Imago Dei and the poems that followed ‘Within’.

Now write your own poem entitled, ‘I Am.’

EmotionWe have seen that religion includes everyone and how each

human being is a very complicated thing made up of body, mind and spirit. But in the poems, the dimensions of experience and emotion were added to this mix of ingredients that makes us who we are.

When some people feel very happy, they start to sing.

If you feel sad or upset, you can change that mood and cheer yourself up, by listening to music you love – or by singing.

What is so special about music that can express our emotions and change our moods like this?

We need a model of religion which includes experience and emotion. Music is an answer.

Sing or listen• Some songs are hymns and carols. They are religious

songs which are not about ordinary human things. They are about spiritual or religious subjects. They are sung as a way of worshipping, praising or thanking God. They may take you on a journey of faith.

• But many non-religious songs can also take you on an inner journey. The song ‘Windmills of Your mind’ is like a jigsaw or kaleidoscope. It is full of different images about life.

• Many kinds of music can expand your emotions and make you feel as if you are flying, but unless you play an instrument in a band or an orchestra you can’t join in easily.

But everyone can join in a song.

Windmills of Your Mind

- some of the lyrics – Like a circle in a spiral or

A wheel within a wheel never ending or beginning on an ever spinning reelLike a snowball on fountain or a carnival balloon

or a carousel that’s turning running rings around the moon

Like a clock whose hands are

Sweeping past the minutes on it’s face

And the world is like an appleWhirling silently in spaceLike the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind

Like a tunnel that you follow to a tunnel on it’s ownDown a hollow to a cavern where the sun has never shoneLike a door that keeps revolving in a half forgotten dreamOr the ripples from a pebble someone tosses in a stream

Like a clockwhose hands areSweeping past the minutes on it’s faceAnd the world is like an appleWhirling silently in spaceLike the circles that you find in the windmills of your mind.

Religion the SongReligion is often described as a code of life or way of life.

It is not silent and distant like the patterns in a kaleidoscope.

It is more like a hauntingly beautiful song. ~ if you think of religion as a song ~

Each person is one of the notes of the melody.And the music of religion flows in and through you.

You are part of the song of religion but it is bigger than any one individual.

If religion is a song, the song is part of who you are, you are part of it – and at each moment,

one of the verses is recording the story of your life.

Activity 11 part 1

Talk to the people in your group. Can you think of times when you have sung something that has changed the way you feel?What are your favourite songs?Can you think of a song you sing that ‘takes you out of yourself,’ that makes you feel exultant, as if you are flying or soaring above the earth?Can you think of any songs which use words to create a feeling or an impression, words used as symbols, not to describe the actual subject of the words (Windmills of Your Mind is a good example.)

If you have any ideas to share or questions to discuss, write them on a ‘postit’ and stick them on the flip-chart at the front of the room for later

discussion.

Activity 11 part 2…• Can you think of a time when you have sung or played

music and the result has been bigger than you, bigger than any one musician?

• Each person has been important, like a note in the song – but the song itself has been bigger than all of you.

Talk to those in your group ...about music and the part it plays in your lives.

• How does religious or spiritual music compare with popular music? Can you think of examples where they overlap?

• The subject of religion is like music. We are all part of it - but it is bigger than all of us together. Talk to those in your group about the idea of

religion as music. How does this help us understand what religion is?

“Music gives soul to the universe 

wings to the mind flight to the imagination 

and life to everything" 

Plato

Religion the musicYou can’t write a definition of music or explain why music changes the way you feel. It is an inner experience, a mystery.Religion is like that. You can’t prove that your beliefs or your way of understanding the world is right. You can’t prove that God exists or does not exist to someone else.

Religion, like music, simply is. It’s part of our experience, part of who

we are.

Activity 12 • Think of examples of things that you find

mysterious or amazing about the world.• Are there certain books or films that you find

explore the mystery of life in an insightful way?• ‘There are many more things to life than we can

know for sure or understand. If we can embrace the mystery of life, just as we accept music, then many problems and arguments simply disappear.’

in your groups-Discus your responses and thoughts

about the concept of religion as mystery … and if there are questions or issues you would like to discuss further, note them on a ‘postit’ and stick them on the flip-chart

at the front.

Religion the mystery When we come to the subject of religion, spirituality and the soul,

we are a bit like ants looking up at a human being and trying to know who human beings are. It’s amazing that we can think of all these things, but it is not surprising that there are things we simply don’t understand.

Our little brains have evolved over millions of years,

from the nervous system of a mud-worm,

from the ‘primeval soup’ in the primordial ocean

from nothing but star-dust –

and before that (to use religious language)

from the ‘dreams’ or ‘Word’ of ‘God’ our ‘Creator.’

Sometimes we just have to fold our hands,

in all humility and honesty, and admit

there are things that we simply do not know.

Shakespeare?There are more things in heaven and earth,

Horatio,Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

Hamlet Act 1 scene 5

Shakespeare

The Outer WorldScience explores the physical or material world.

Scientists have discovered amazing things about our world. They have worked out how atoms build into molecules, how the different chemical elements build up this amazing planet.

Some people think that science can explain everything. But in reality science does not hold all the answers. Science and Religion are both important.

There is an outer world that science explores. But there is also an inner world. If you want to know about that, science is the wrong discipline, the wrong tool to use.

Science and ReligionScience can calculate the age of the earth and show that life

has evolved - but it can not tell us what life is or how to live a good life. We need two eyes to see clearly, to see in perspective. In a similar way we need the insights of both science and religion to understand our lives.Science and religion are sometimes viewed as opposites, competing with or contradicting each other. But actually they are just different ways of seeking truth about the same world.

How would you ‘define’ life, love, beauty, hope, peace, happiness or the colour blue?

Can you look at love under a microscope or write a formula for it?

The Quest for TruthIn their common quest for truth,

science and religion, science and spirituality, though at opposite ends of the knowledge-

‘spectrum’ are drawing closer, as both delve deeper into

the nature of human consciousness.

Some quotations and aphorisms are as rich and meaningful as spiritual poems – The great scientist

and mystic, Albert Einstein declared:

“Science without religion is lame, Religion without science is blind. ”

Spirituality and ReligionThere is an aspect of life which is invisible, subtle and elusive.

You can not define it or explain it. But it is just as important as the outer physical world. It is the world of our inner feelings, experience, and imagination, sometimes called the ‘Inner World.’

Spirituality and religion are two related subjects that explore this 'inner' aspect of life. Spirituality is impossible to define, but it includes the sense of everything being infinitely precious and the feeling that we are all part of a Whole.

Spirituality is rooted in our experience of life and especially in the deep emotions of wonder and awe, when the mind stops thinking of anything and we just ‘live in the moment.’

Religion can be viewed as our human response to this subtle, inner or spiritual experience.

Poetry and Symbolism• When you want to explore the outer world, things that

you can see and touch, cut up and examine in detail, science can help you. If they are very small, you can look at them under a microscope. If they are far away you can use a telescope. You can analyse them in chemistry to see what they are made of – or use the laws of physics to see how they work.

• But when you want to learn about subtle, elusive subjects, about our inner lives, about life itself then you need to explore them with the tools of spirituality and religion. It is impossible to approach them directly. Here we need to use different tools.

• Art, music, poetry and symbolism are some of the tools often used to express the truths found in religion. They have to convey ideas and emotions rather than simple facts.

A poem

UpwardsTowards the heightsTowards the stars

Towards the Vast Silence

By Ibsen

The analytical mind

• Can you understand the poem?• Why do you think the poet uses capitals for V and S?• Do you think poets want you to try to analyse their

poems? • Poems are words that take you beyond the mind, to

explore realities that are without walls. • Poems are often intended to convey their meaning on

a deeper level, to give you a sense of understanding which is not limited by the analytical mind.

• Instead of trying to analyse a poem, just hold it in your heart and ‘feel’ its truth.

Aspiration

UpwardsTowards the heightsTowards the stars

Towards the Vast Silence

By Ibsen

Going Beyond the Mind

What is this mind?

Who is hearing these sounds?

Do not mistake any state for

Self-realization, but continue

To ask yourself even more intensely,

What is it that hears?

Bassui

  Searching for God: Hide and SeekPatrick Corley, age 8

I counted to ten, and then I looked,Behind the office door, on the top floor.For half an hour, I searched the shower.Then the cupboard under the stairs,But he wasn't there.I checked behind the sofa, and out in the street,But if he had been outside, he would have been a cheat.I looked under the table and under the bed.Then I checked the bathroom instead.I looked in the mirror, and what did I see?Then I realised, maybe he is in me.Should I look for him in my heart?Okay! Let's make a start.

RealisationThe Absolute

No mind, no form, I only exist;

Now ceased all will and thought;

The final end of Nature's dance,

I am it whom I have sought.

A realm of Bliss bare, ultimate;

Beyond both knower and known;

A rest immense I enjoy at last;

I face the One alone.

I have crossed the secret ways of life,

I have become the Goal.

The Truth immutable is revealed;

I am the way, the God Soul.

My spirit aware of all the heights,

I am mute in the core of the Sun.

I barter nothing with time and deeds;

My cosmic play is done.

From ‘My Flute’ by Sri Chinmoy.

Infinity is thisInfinity is that.When infinityfrom infinity

Is taken awayInfinity remains…

The Upanishads

Activity 13Think about the question

What is religion?

Working on your own,Having worked through this slide-show

and perhaps thought about religion in new ways, write your own poem or create a

mind-map or collage of images entitled -

what religion means to me.

We will then share our ideas and enjoy an open discussion.

In Part One - we have seen that -religion is about questions and answers,

in religion everyone matters, everyone has a place. The picture of religion is not complete without all of us.

Religion is like a jigsaw and each person is part of the picture.

Religion is like a garden and each person is a flower with many petals.

Religion is like a kaleidoscope,full of beautiful colours and patterns

that are always moving and changing.Religion is like a song, like music. It ‘flows in and through us’ so each person is a note in the melody, a verse in the song. The music is bigger than any one

person but each person contributes to it, adding their unique character, beauty and fragrance to the whole.

Religion is a mystery, a subtle and elusive subjectReligion explores the inner worlds, dealing with truths such as love, hope, compassion and happiness that are ‘felt’ inwardly, using the spiritual ‘heart’. Religion does not conflict with science but explores a different aspect of life.Religion and spirituality often use art, music, poetry and symbolism to inspire

and communicate, because they explore an aspect of life which can not be examined or analysed by the intellectual mind.

By Durga-Mata Chaudhuri

Blue Lotus EnterprisesBlue Lotus Enterprises is a company which creates

products and offers services which educate and inspire.

All our Slide-Shows can be ordered from our website on DVD or in book form –

see www.bluelotus.co and www.bluelotus-art.co.ukContact dcbluelotus@gmail.com

This work is copyright and can not be copied without permission of Blue Lotus Enterprises

This Slide Show is good for increasing understanding and encouraging discussion / reflection with all ages.

ImagesMany of the images in Two Questions come

from our own photographs. Others have been gathered from many sources. A full list of

credits is being prepared.We hope that all whose photographs have been

used will be happy and proud to be included in this slide-show - but should any

copyright questions arise we will be happy to make any adjustments necessary.

PoetryThe poems used in Two Questions come from many sources. They include two from the RE

Today Spirited Arts Competition, 2011.http://www.natre.org.uk/spiritedarts/poetry11/1_where_is_god.php

We hope that all whose poems have been used will be happy and proud to be included

in this slide-show - but should any copyright questions arise we will be happy

to make any adjustments necessary.

The End of Part 1