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or women, for love or community. When this occurs there is a wealth of love that pours from the reciprocal relationships that are able to grow. In Hinduism there is a very personal and loving relationship that is able to grow. The concept of women depending on the deities for the blessing of their family and world is considered the womans role because of her nature; but there is something deeper that happens. In contrast, Judaism does not give women much authority in the spiritual realm. Women have had to depend on each other and Shekinah for their spiritual support except in the house cleaning ritual. In Hinduism there has to be a recognition that gender roles require that women stay home and establish themselves as the spiritual matriarchs of the household, and that men handle the hard labor. Understanding this makes it easier to understand why women are able to become so close to the deities that they worship. There are two reasons why Hindu women are so fastidious in their worship of the deities the first reason relates to the idea of karma. In Hindu culture it is thought that if you fulfill your earthly duties well you will come back as something better in the next life. For women, that means doing what the man says and fulfilling her spiritual expectations. Associated with that idea is relying on the deities for support to get to the next level and blessings in the present life. Out of fulfilling your expectations comes love for the deities. Self-reliance is not seen as a negative aspect of the Hindus relationship with the deities, but as a way to please the deities. Women love pleasing the deities and it gives
blessings to all people. There is a mutual relationship between the deities and woman and all who she is representing. The deities are kind and bless people because it is in their nature. Women receive their kindness and glorify the deities out of their love for the deities. Even though the deities do not need the woman, they desire the praises of the woman, and proceed to bless the woman and mankind. The women and the deities have a feminine love for each other that blesses their mutuality and their relationship. Womans self-reliance perpetuates this cycle of giving. Another ritual based on reliance on the deities is dabbing ephemeral vermillion and white-gray powder design on the surfaces of doorways, thresholds, temples, foreheads, etc. The kolam, or designs, evokes, hosts and dehosts the divine as guests1. The kolam is designed to invite, host and maintain close relationships with the goddesses Lakshmi and Bhudevi, who in turn prevent harm, illness, and laziness from entering the household2. Yet again the woman gives up self-reliance in order to allow the goddesses to protect the household. In the same way that the woman depends on the goddesses to protect the household, insects and birds benefit from the kolam as part of their daily diets. There is a cycle of giving that comes from venerating the deities. This cycle is dependant on recognition of each partys needs. The woman cares for the deities just as the deities care for the woman. In Hinduism there is the idea that everything that the woman is doing is for the family, but there is a very personal benefit from serving the goddesses and being blessed by them.
Vijaya Nagarajan, quoted in Fisher, Women in Religion (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Longman, 2007), 82. 2 Vijaya Nagarajan, quoted in Fisher, Women in Religion (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Longman, 2007), 82.
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A fairly new, contemporary Jewish ritual started by Rabbi and storyteller Lynn Gottlieb is an inner spring-cleaning ritual based on womens traditional thorough housecleaning rituals in preparation for Passover3. In similarity to the Hindu house rituals, it is based on a reciprocal action. Women or men clean their homes and YHWH will bless them during Passover. It is comparable to the idea that if they remember how God led them out of Egypt and passed over their houses, they are Gods chosen people, God will continue to bless them. The house cleaning ritual refutes the idea that women are marginal participants in their religion. The incorporation of spirituality into the ritual brings Jewish women closer to Gd. When women are able to get closer to Gd through an otherwise menial task, their spirituality will grow to a level it couldnt in the institution of the religion. They will also be more receptive to Gd leading them. Unlike all other feminist Jewish rituals there is an inclusion of men in the house cleaning ritual. Because there is an inclusion of men in the house cleaning ritual, women can focus less on the patriarchal implications of women cleaning the house for Passover and more on the metaphor of cleaning their hearts for Passover and growing their relationship with Gd. This idea of relying on God relates to the idea of relying on other women. In 1975 three women in Haifa organized a feminist Sedar that adds a part at the end in which women who were oppressed and are currently oppressed tell their stories and are
Fisher, Women in Religion (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Longman, 2007), 180.
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encouraged on their path to independence and self-discovery4. Women who hear the stories, who have been through oppressive situations themselves, can use the stories from other women to push themselves forward. There is a strong sense of solidarity in the feminist Jewish community for women who have been oppressed. Feminist Jewish women have two journeys that they are remembering and making: they are Jews in a historically anti-Semitic world and they are women in a historically patriarchal religion. It is more important than ever for Jewish feminist women to remember where they came from and use each other to get where theyre going. Many women that are tired of the patriarchy in the Jewish religion get together in womens groups to celebrate the feminine aspect of YHWH, Shekinah. These women have different reasons for their worship of the feminine aspect and a different connection to the goddess than Hindu women have. Hindu women worship the goddess because it is already a part of their culture. For Jewish women, however, worship of the spirituality was never a part of institutional religion. It was originally a problem for the Israelites so they changed the ritual to fit a monotheistic religion. Because of this it is not convenient for Jewish feminist women to worship the goddess every day. There is even conflict about whether Shekinah is a part of Adonai or a goddess in her own right. Once you say that Shekinah is a goddess in her own right, you are paganistic. Because of this conflict it is more difficult for Jewish women to form an intimate connection with the goddess. The goddess or aspect is what draws these women together, but they have to rely on each other form a community that celebrates the goddess. Women are able to grow in their relationship with the goddess, but they are also growing Fisher, Women in Religion (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Longman, 2007), 180.
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in the relationship they have with each other. The author felt that after she fellowshipped with other goddess/aspect worshippers she felt inspired to go to another Rosh Chodesh ceremony next month. Hinduism home rituals contrast with Jewish rituals because Hindu rituals focus on daily worship of the mostly feminine deities. There is a continual relationship of giving the deities worship or sustenance and them giving you blessings. For the Jewish feminists it is a little different, there are blessings from God, but for the main part the women are submitting themselves to each other and being blessed through the womens contributions.