Author Archives: Garrett Fantin

Vishu Festival

Nationality: Indian
Age: 18
Occupation: Engineering Major
Residence: Seattle, Washington
Language: English

Informant: “The night before Vishu, you put books and things of knowledge by your family’s prayer area, and then when you wake up, you aren’t allowed to open your eyes until you get to the book, or items of knowledge. So, I would put important books downstairs in the prayer room and go to sleep. Then, my dad would wake me up, and I wasn’t allowed to open my eyes. He would then walk me down the stairs with my eyes closed to the prayer room. We’d go see the books, and we’d have to pray for a bit and use the time to be thankful for the gift of knowledge and opportunity.”

Me: What did it mean to you?

Informant: “I think it’s meant to celebrate other things, like, to be a reflection on the year that passed, but, for us, it was about being grateful for our opportunity and privilege.”

Context: The informant celebrates the Vishu festival because it is a tradition in their family. They said that they celebrate it once a year, and although it is very important to their parents, they don’t know quite as much about the celebration and wanted to look up some things to make sure they got the facts right. Their interpretation of the meaning of the festival seems to be fairly unique, according to what I found online, so it is likely that this is how her family has adapted the festival to better fit their own values of education.

Analysis: Sources like Wikipedia seem to characterize this festival slightly differently: Calling the “items of knowledge” my informant referred to a “vishukani” shrine, which can be composed of valuable or precious items that bring luck for the new year. My informant’s family places a big emphasis on education, and the informant is studying a very difficult major at a prestigious school, so I find it likely that her family has altered the festival (whether intentionally or not) to be more about their values of knowledge and gratitude for their family’s academic success. However, despite this adaptation, some aspects of the celebration remain the same, like their creation of a shrine and the focus on prayer in the morning.

Raksha Bandhan

Nationality: Indian
Age: 18
Occupation: Engineering Major
Residence: Seattle, Washington
Language: English

Informant: “This is a ritual we do, that’s usually performed between a brother and sister, but it could also be a cousin or something. I get a bracelet from my brother that has a cultural symbol, and in return, he gets me a gift. It’s from back in the day, as if I’m sending him off to fight in some war. The bracelet is supposed to offer him protection and good health on that journey. We do it every year on a specific day, but I can’t remember the day. Oh, and we also have to feed each other something sweet.”

Me: “So what is this festival about for you?”

Informant: “It’s about the bond I have with my brother. Also, since my brother is older, it’s like I’m thankful for everything he does for me, even if I don’t see it. You know, I’m sure there’s a lot he does that I don’t really have to think about because I’m just the younger sister. We’re never really serious with each other, so I really appreciate it as a day for us to be serious about our family and siblinghood.”

Context: The informant has been performing this ritual with her brother, once a year, every year, for as long as she can remember. They were taught it by her parents, and although the informant is shaky on what she thinks the ritual should mean, she finds her own meaning in the bond she has created with her brother and the opportunity to show that love despite the fact that they are rarely serious with each other. The cultural symbol in question is called “Rakhi” and is meant to symbolize protection, as the informant stated.

Analysis: My interpretation of this ritual, as it is performed by my informant, is that it is an old ritual which has been gradually adapted to make more sense in our modern context. According to my research, the ritual originally existed in villages where married women would leave their roots to go live with their new husband in another village. This ritual would then serve as one of the only times they returned home to their parents’ house each year, with the purpose of the ritual being to symbolize the brother as a protector in his sister’s relationship. As such, the way my informant celebrates the ritual serves more as a symbolic appreciation of brotherhood and sisterhood than a very real and potentially necessary promise of protection.

Angayapudi Powder

Nationality: Indian
Age: 18
Occupation: Engineering Major
Residence: Seattle, Washington
Language: English

Informant: “Whenever I’m sick, my mom will mix this powder with rice, and it’s supposed to make your stomach stop hurting. It’s a black powder that doesn’t taste all that good. I’m trying to think of why it helps, but I’m pretty sure that when I asked, she would say to just trust her. It’s a bunch of herbs that are dried and ground with hot rice. It has turmeric, dried ginger, dried cilantro, dried cumin, and dried pepper. They are all Ayurvedic medicines, which is something from my moms culture. I would mainly have it when I was little, and it’s been a long time since she gave me any.”

Me: “Did it actually help?”

Informant: “Definitely! I guess it might’ve just been a placebo effect, but a lot of people believe in this stuff, so there’s probably some truth to it.”

Context: The informant recalls a form of folk medicine that her mom would give her when she was sick as a kid. She seems to believe in its effectiveness, although not wholeheartedly, and connected the medicine to Ayurvedic medicines, which are traditional, holistic indian medicines that have been around for centuries. Although the informant no longer uses the powder, they seemed to remember it positively.

Analysis: This seems to be the informant’s mother’s recipe for an age-old traditional medicinal system that focuses on natural solutions. Ayurvedic medicines are common in India, so much so that they operate similarly to our mainstream medical system, with Ayurvedic professionals having to undergo training and certification just like a doctor would in the states. It is supposedly one of the oldest medicinal systems around, which made it surprising that I couldn’t find anything about this specific powder online, but I suppose that may speak to the originality of the medicine that my Informant’s mother was making.

Las Posadas

Nationality: Mexican-American
Age: 21
Occupation: Business Major
Residence: Los Angeles, California
Language: English

Informant: “I’ve celebrated this a few times with my grandma. It’s a Mexican celebration, not on Christmas Day, but around the holiday times. You all get together, sometimes as a church thing, but it’s still a big community event even for the non-religious. There’s some specific activities we always do, like certain games and whatnot. We usually have tamales for the food, but I imagine that differs. We would also sing songs together. There’s one specific song we would sing called ‘Las Posadas’, which I guess the holiday is named after. I think the lyrics talk about Mary’s journey because the celebration itself is meant to be a celebration of Mary’s journey while seeking shelter to give birth to Jesus. We sometimes would hold candles while singing that song, too, and I think that’s a big part of the celebration for some people. For me, it’s really just a good excuse to see family around the holidays. Although it is religious, I would say that the whole community participates, and it doesn’t feel as strictly religious as I may be making it sound. There’s also piñatas, so it would be one of the only times you hit one aside from your birthday. I really liked that part as a kid.”

Context: The informant is telling me about a traditional Christmas celebration that is important to his family. Although he knows the celebration is really about Mary and Jesus, he seems adamant that it has turned into a more general celebration, and is an event for more than just Christians. He seems to remember the celebrations fondly and recalls them as something that was mostly explained and taught to him by his grandmother.

Analysis: Las Posadas is a festival centered around prayer that is celebrated in many places in Latin America, Spain, and, of course, Mexico. Las Posadas, meaning lodging, refers to the shelter provided to Mary in the nativity story. Interestingly, my research indicated that this is an intimately Christian celebration, with some forms of the festival going so far as to re-enact Mary’s journey, complete with actors playing the role of Mary, Joseph, and even angels. Perhaps my informant’s understanding of the festival reflects that his family places more emphasis on being with family over the holidays than celebrating their religion. However, the informant is less religious than many of his older family members, so it is possible the religious themes are still just as present in their practice of the festival, but he finds them less important or relevant to his own personal meaning.

Manifestation – Journaling and Meditation

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Engineering Major
Residence: Seattle, Washington
Language: English

Informant: “If I have something I want to happen or become part of my reality, then I use my journal and I write it out as if it has already happened. I just keep doing that with every detail. Over and over. Very specific details as if it had already happened. I’ll write out every little thing I can think of, like what the weather will be like, the exact date and time, and of course, the details of what I want to happen. But, I’m not writing it thinking ‘I want this to happen’. It’s more like, ‘I know this will happen, it’s inevitable.’

Me: “Where did you learn to do this?”

Informant: “I got introduced by friends at school and even by my dance teacher. Sometimes at dance practice, they would have us meditate and do manifestation that way. A lot of times, they would play specific types of music at a specific frequency. For example, I’ll watch a 40Hz video, and then they give you prompts that help you visualize your success and what you want to achieve.”

Context: The informant is referring to their practice of manifestation and how they use it to make positive things happen in their life. They fully believe in its effectiveness, and further, find that complete belief in its effectiveness is necessary for it to work. They were introduced by dance teachers who also taught them other spiritual practices like meditation, all designed to help their mental health and boost their confidence so they can achieve their goals. Lastly, the informant also believes that music at specific frequencies can assist in this process.

Analysis: I have heard of manifestation many times, especially online, and I would say that this explanation of it is pretty similar to my existing understanding. From my research, and as the informant stated, it would seem that belief is a core component of this ritual. By repeating something verbally, on paper, or even in their mind, people who engage in manifestation believe they are affecting the world through their thought process, but it only works through genuine belief. However, I have also heard it described more as a mental health / confidence tool. There are some who practice manifestation not because they expect it to change their reality on its own, but because they believe that by combining such intense belief in themselves (manifestation) with action toward their goals, they can achieve anything. Although I most commonly encounter discussion about manifestation online, and had previously assumed it originated in online communities, my research indicates that it can be tied back to Buddhist principles, which would certainly connect with my informant’s experience of being taught to meditate and manifest at the same time.