5th Grade Ancient India Block
Students in the 5th Grade studying the Ancient India block took part in an immersive experience of what it is like to visit an Indian home/event for a reverential festival.
The students wore festive Indian clothes and were welcomed with an aarti and tikka into an ambiance of incense, lamps, garlands, and rangoli. They witnessed a pooja ceremony conducted at an altar. The altar uniquely represented Hindu and Christian religions as well as spiritual masters – they learned love and light are common among them. Students also had the opportunity to get acquainted with dances from various regions, including Dandiya, a dance around a lamp (symbolically instead of a goddess).
The students adorned themselves with bangles and henna and played Indian games.
Finally, the class experienced a traditional Indian meal served on a banana leaf, seated on the floor, and ate with their hands. They were instantly comfortable with this tradition! Eager hands were continuously raised, asking for more food, and students enjoyed the opportunity to revere their guests. They personalized an Om symbol which recognizes the ever-existing vibration of love and light. The Om vibration cannot be known when we have dark emotions. (Rudolf Steiner on Om)
30-50 auspicious festivities are celebrated annually in India. Since ancient times, Indians have had a keen awareness and wisdom that there is something bigger than us, a divine intelligence. The frequent festivities involve reverential rituals to celebrate and refocus on divine intelligence instead of being consumed in material and sensory pursuits. They serve as reminders that we are all connected to one divine source and that the “divine good” within us needs to be cultivated, enhanced, and inspired to strive toward this refocusing. This way, one can gain blessings by sincerely honoring spiritual beings, creating good karma.
Karma - It is a Sanskrit (ancient Indian language) word, not attached to religion, and has held significance since ancient times. Karma means every THOUGHT and action has a consequence - as there is always a thought before an action. From Rudolf Steiner’s Anthroposophy (spiritual science) also, we understand the human spirit/soul journeys through several rebirths, gathering life experiences that depend upon karma. Simply put, one can create good karma by thinking good thoughts even when faced with difficult situations/relationships. This is achieved through maintaining higher thoughts, consequently feeling and radiating positive emotions.
Our True Way of Being - Students discovered HOW to alter one's thinking about a challenging situation with a person and go from experiencing dark emotions to love and light-filled emotions - which is our true way of being! Anger, contempt, sadness, and withholding love changed to empathy, compassion, love, and even gratitude, all through self-inquiry. Though not an easy choice, striving to choose thoughts of the higher mind can become second nature and is liberating. Though “karma” is not relatable to everyone, we intrinsically know refocusing toward choosing light over darkness through whichever means that speak to us has power for one's well-being. Students were left with the message that we are the masters of our thoughts, and how we feel within ourselves is a clue where our thoughts are.
*Spiritual - recognition of a sense that there is something greater than yourself, something more to being human than sensory experience, and that we are all part of the cosmos or all of it is divine in nature.
Silence technique - Some of life’s challenges don’t have immediate answers even with having altered one's thoughts and students learned about experimenting with a simple silence technique, an opportunity to contact one’s inner light, that helps one get through each day with increased ease, intuition, and invites grace.
Spiritual/Truth Seekers - Since ancient times, a significant percentage of Indians have been spiritual seekers (vs. religious) to overcome the limitations of the mind and use meditation to connect more directly to one's inner light. Spiritual seekers often use a lit lamp and/or photographs of saints (photos carry their energy) to support the journey.
India’s influence in meditation, yoga, religion, dharma, etc. has held deep value in today's culture globally.
— by Sangitha P Lorenz (mother to Karishma- 5th grade)
5th GRADE FIELD TRIP
Students visited Sri Venkateswara temple in Cary. At homes and establishments, idols serve as symbols to strengthen the relationship with the divine. However, at temples, the murtis are energized with divine life forces of a spiritual being with potential to help raise the energies of all those in proximity. (Rudolf Steiner on divine life force/energies in mineral life.)
The tour guide shared about the consecrated space at the entrance of the temple where one can drop their ego to become more receptive to higher energies within the temple and about dharma, He ended the tour at Lord Shiva’s deity, saying as one prays to the spiritual beings one becomes more receptive to that divine intelligence that’s within and around us, and actually, answers come from within us.
Each murti/deity (typically, incarnated highly evolved souls vibrating to divine intelligence) represents a certain freedom when prayed to. Lord Shiva,the first yogi, helps destroy darkness/spiritual ignorance that doesn't serve man to help protect and transform him for beneficial change.
Indian Arts have thrived since ancient times as they are steeped in reverence. The Shiva Tandav - dance of destruction - was offered to the 5th grade by their classmate.
ARTS OF INDIA PRESENTATION
The study of Ancient India is one of the aspects of the curriculum that drew us to Waldorf Education and specifically EWS. Having practiced Gaudiya Vaisnavism, a branch of Hinduism, my whole life I was delighted to hear that my children would hear the stories so loved and familiar to my own childhood. I grew up immersed in the histories, spiritual texts, culture, and arts of India. As part of that immersive life, at the age of 7-years old I began studying Bharatanatyam, the Dance of India, an ancient art form passed down through generations of dedicated gurus (teachers). Thus began a creative outlet that I continue to study to this day, as well as teach the next generation of dancers.
Over a decade ago I was asked to come into the then 5th grade classroom and share Bharatanatyam dance with the class. This dance of India brings a rich experience complete with vibrant visuals from the costumes, rhythmic music, facial expressions, hand gestures, and stories told through the medium of dance. Since that first visit many years ago, I have had the wonderful opportunity to be invited into numerous 5th grades and share my love of Bharatanatyam as well as other art experiences with the students.
I was delighted to spend a morning with Mr. Hubbuch's 5th graders. I found a class of eager listeners who were attentive, respectful, engaged, and enthusiastic. I started the morning by explaining a little of the spiritual path our family practices, along with reading the much-loved story of Krishna, the Butter Thief. I then passed out kartals and brass gongs, traditional hand instruments that are played during kirtan, a call and response singing that is central to the Bhakti tradition. We sang a song together, while I played the harmonium. Music is a universally popular experience, and I loved watching the children clap and play their instruments to the 1,2,3 beat I had demonstrated.
The next activity we did was creating clay diyas (lamps) that were stamped with hand carved wooden stamps from India. Creating beauty with our hands is such a fundamental part of Waldorf education. We got our hands full of soft clay and shaped the lamps, which in previous years they had painted store bought ones.
From there we moved up to the Brown Wing where we formed a circle and learned dance steps from the village folk dance called garba. Similar to square dancing, we formed different formations as we twirled along to greet a new partner and then another. Everyone joined in!
We ended the morning with some beautiful dance performances by myself, Karishma, Pranaya and Pearl, all of whom study Bharatanatyam. Sharing the arts of India is a huge passion of mine and I was so grateful to have a short time with the 5th graders of 2024!
- by Priya Gopal
