RESULTADOS DEL COLGAJO PECTORAL UNILATERAL

FESTIVAL

4.2.1 Background

This section presents the views of the representatives of the Mauritian Religious Authorities (RA) in Mauritius on the religious significance of the religious festival and pilgrimage of Maha Shivaratri (Festival). It covers the significance of the Festival for the local Hindu community in general, regardless of any participation in the Festival, and for local Hindus as a result of their participation in the Festival.

Figure 4.1 displays the four themes that emerged from the analyses of the interviews, namely (1)

‘celebrating the splendour of the Supreme divinity’, (2) ‘religious significance of the Festival’, (3)

‘performing core religious actions’ and (4) ‘fostering religious and social identity’.

Figure 4.1: The four themes relating to the significance of the Festival

4.2.2 Celebrating the splendour of the Supreme divinity

This theme focuses on the characteristics of, and the importance attached to, Lord Shiva for the local Hindu community. Out of the eight representatives of the RAs, six set out the view of their organisations on this emerging theme. The responses of three representatives are provided in Box 4.1.

The significance of the Festival for the local Hindu community

Celebrating the splendour of the Supreme divinity

Religious significance

of the Festival Performing core

religious actions Fostering religious and social identity

Box 4.1: Quotations from the RAs representing the theme ‘celebrating the splendour of the Supreme divinity’

ORA2

“…Maha Shivaratri is the main festival…celebrated in this country. For us, for Mauritians especially for people of the Hindu faith, a lot of importance is given to Shiva [Lord Shiva]

because He is the Supreme God. The religious significance, for the participants who walk, is that it is a grand festival; it is the great night of Lord Shiva.”

ORA3

“…it is an occasion for the Shaivas [the followers/believers of Lord Shiva] to appreciate Lord Shiva for what He did for Humanity during the ‘manthan’ [churning], the poison nobody wanted, he drank it. In recognition of this, at least the Hindus do reverence to Him. It is an important pillar for the Hindu Shaivas.”

ORO5 “...Lord Shiva is one of the most important figures of the trinity in Hinduism. He is the one who is responsible for the dissolution of the universe and of each cycle. ”

The three RAs endorsed Lord Shiva for his unique qualities. For instance, the heroic characteristic (according to Hindu scriptures) of Lord Shiva in terms of imbibing the poison to save humanity was related by ORA3. As such, the followers of Lord Shiva, Shaivas, celebrate the Festival to pay reverence to Him. This was strongly stated by ORA2 and ORO5. Overall the RAs attached major importance to this annual Festival as it gives the local Hindu community the opportunity to demonstrate their loyalty, religious commitment and belief, and to perpetuate their culture and traditions through practicing their religion. The massive congregation of the participants for the Festival creates special, distinct and memorable religious experiences, thus making it one of the main Hindu religious festivals on the island of Mauritius (ORA2).

4.2.3 Religious significance of the Festival

This theme emerged from the analyses of five out of the eight interviews of the RAs. The views of four representatives, two from the ‘on-site’ religious authorities and two from ‘off-site’ religious-cultural organisations, are given in Box 4.2.

Box 4.2: Quotations from the RAs representing the theme ‘religious significance of the Festival’

ORA2 “…while doing the rituals, all their wishes are accomplished…The greatest significance is we are perpetuating our culture, tradition, and dharma [duty]...”

ORA3

“For them it is a big thing because Shivji’s prayers that they perform make them feel something positive in their lives…For the Festival [amongst Hindu, most specifically among the Sanatanists, the followers of Shiva] the focus is on Lord Shiva. It means that for those Hindus in Mauritius, the Shaivas…it becomes a necessary pillar at least once a year to join together so that they can submerge themselves in the vibrations and find Lord Shiva…the Festival shows force [referring to unity]…that in Hinduism also we have a major event, which teaches the significance of: who Shivji is, why we offer water, why we pray Ganga…It is an event to show God that…we are offering water and we say that in our life we are making a sacrifice so that God always gives us water and that we do not die without water, and that everybody benefits from this water…And people think that praying Shivji is a prayer for water…For the Festival, you see that on Shivji’s head itself there is water. Water falls from his “Jatta” [hair]...When one person prays, it is one person, but when...

Box 4.2 (continued): Quotations from the RAs representing the theme ‘religious significance of the Festival’

ORA3 …there are a thousand people praying, the vibration that comes has an effect on those people and also on the environment…this is a renewal of our belief”

ORO4

“The local Hindu people are of two views. One group they don’t pray to idols and the other group they believe in idols. They are both Hindus, yet the Hindu religion is very vast like the ocean: we have Hindus who believe in god, Hindus who do not believe in god, Hindus who do several types of prayers (they pray to several deities), Hindus who believe in and pray to one deity...So those who believe in Lord Shiva, they go there [Ganga Talao] and they believe that Lord Shiva is the God who gives them power and energy to do everything…This is the place where you get peace of mind, feel extremely happy, feel peaceful and are freed from trouble because God will give you a solution…It’s a place worth visiting once in a lifetime”

ORO5

“Hinduism talks about dharma [righteousness], material happiness and prosperity, family life and lastly the moksha [liberation of the life and death cycle]...So the Festival is not only an occasion for the Hindus to be exempted from the shortcomings of the bad things we might have committed in our past life towards those who were dear to us, vis-à-vis our family, etc., but it is also an occasion that God allows us to unite with Him during this great night. And…for the Festival…we have got the blessing of God, we can expect total liberation...”

As mentioned by ORO4 there are different types of Hindus, for instance those who believe in idols, those who do not believe in idols, those who believe in one deity or several deities, and so on.

Given the complexity of the Mauritian Hindu community, the religious significance of the Festival may differ from individual to individual. For example, each may hold different views on performing religious duty, focusing on God, renewing belief, receiving blessings, overcoming difficulties and feeling positive in life, getting closer to God and visiting the sacred site. However, overall, participation by the local Hindu community in the Festival is seen, by the RAs, as a means to demonstrate their sense of commitment, responsibility, encouragement and inspiration vis-à-vis their religion, traditions, embodiment and society. These were considered as essential characteristics for the perpetuation of the religious and cultural traditions. In addition, the involvement of the local Hindu community in the Festival allows the individuals to demonstrate a greater sense of unity and force (ORA3). This enables them to express their religious identity as Hindus. ORA3 also discussed the significance of using water during the Festival, in particular the use of the sacred water from Ganga Talao. The sacred water was seen as being very important in attracting the local Hindu community to the sacred site. The collection of the sacred water enables the Mauritian Hindu community to have a collective experience allowing them to feel an attachment to Ganga Talao.

4.2.4 Performing core religious actions

The core religious actions are expressed through worshipping and making personal sacrifices during the Festival. This theme emerged from the analyses of six out of the eight RAs. The views of four organisations are illustrated in Box 4.3.

Box 4.3: Quotations from the RAs representing the theme ‘performing core religious actions’

ORA3

“…at least once a year they make sacrifice, it’s an occasion to fast 10 days, 15 days, some do fast for a month. It depends how long people want to fast. Some people fast, they consume food that have salt, but no meat. There are some people who do not eat food with salt at all; they eat only sweets for the duration of this fast.”

ORO3

“…and it is a very very big sacrifice when they [participants who walk] fast, they leave their place for 3-4 days and walk to Grand-Bassin, they pray and return by walking, sleep here and there, right, it is an extraordinary sacrifice.”

ORO4

“…they give some penance to themselves…it helps, it purifies the mind…it helps people, they feel some compassion when they have done something wrong and it’s a time for them to ask for forgiveness and to clear their minds and to do good for people in future and to help people in future and to do good for everyone.”

ORO5

“For the Hindus, it is the number one festival for renewing oneself…it is a mystic voyage, very spiritual…For the layman [a typical local Hindu participant], Maha Shivaratri is fasting, going to Grand-Bassin on foot, have fun on the road, return home, do Pooja during the night and it’s done. Then the next day, end [terminate] the fast, then it is a big party.”

An overall view of the ‘journey’ of a participant and his/her core religious actions, such as fasting, praying and undertaking the walk, was provided by ORO5. Predominantly, the sacrifice undertaken by the participants for the Festival was identified by both ORA3 and ORO3. The representative of ORA3 acknowledged that the participants endure sacrifice through fasting which can be varied in terms of the type of food consumed over the course of the Festival and the duration of the fast. In contrast, the walk per se was described as an extraordinary sacrifice (ORO3) as the participant would not be able to experience the usual lifestyle he/she is used to in his/her normal daily life.

The Festival was seen by the RAs as an opportunity for local Hindus to undergo penance and this in turn had psychological/mental effects on the participants (ORO4). As such, the participants can be transformed as they have the opportunity to be cleansed or purified from their sins. The transformation involves a change in the participants as a result of performing core religious actions for the Festival. ORO4 added that by asking for forgiveness, a participant purifies his/her mind and this equips him/her to do good for others in the future. As a result, performing these religious activities can be seen as having both a physical and mental influence on the participants.

Worshipping and walking are seen, by all representatives of the RAs, as physical actions carried out by the participants. For example, the walk is a sacrifice involving the bodily feelings that are experienced during the Festival in terms of the hardship, fatigue and trouble encountered during their journey. The sacrifice can also influence the mental state, through liminality and transformation, of the participants. Liminality is an escape which occurs when an individual leaves his/her normal life, including his/her social class, behind to be on the same pedestal as all the other participants (Turner 1974). In effect, performing core religious actions can potentially influence and/or reinforce an individual’s disposition, identity and religious belief. Additionally, by undertaking core religious actions, an individual has the opportunity to learn, inculcate and enhance

4.2.5 Fostering social and religious identity

The theme, ‘fostering social and religious identity’, emerged from the analyses of the interviews of the RAs on the significance of the religious festival and pilgrimage of Maha Shivaratri for the local Hindu community. Within this theme, sharing and learning experiences were also included. The Festival has social connotations in that participants have the opportunity to meet and interact with others. Therefore, the Festival helps participants to build or strengthen ties with friends, family members or new acquaintances. Of the eight RAs, six representatives contributed to the content of this theme. Quotations from five representatives of the organisations, two ‘on-site’ religious authorities and three ‘off-site’ religious-cultural organisations, are presented in Box 4.4 below.

Box 4.4: Quotations from the RAs representing the theme ‘fostering social and religious identity’

ORA1

“…for the Festival all organisations and communities participate, not only the Hindu community: it is throughout (many Mauritians of all communities). We have people from abroad [Hindu diaspora] and tourists also participate.”

ORA3

“…there are also non-Hindus who participate…they also go with the big flow…go there [Ganga Talao]…There is no distinction. There are many who do what we call “sewa”, give food, fruits and there are many Hindus who also bring their contributions in this way…There are some [non-Hindus] who cannot give juice and fruits on the road, but they are giving money as a contribution. But that too is a way of contribution.”

ORO1

“For the Hindu community, it brings a moral at home that I do not need to live for myself, I need to live for my family, the community in my area and for my country. I need to have something to give others. I do not need to be selfish, similarly to when Lord Shiva made a sacrifice for others to live. This is the message of the Festival: live for others.”

ORO4

“…we believe that work is worship, so our people, our friends who are there, they spend most of the time serving, they say this is their prayer to offer some food to the participants who walk and are tired and hungry. And our motto is: service to man is service to God…Hindu religion believes in “Vasudevakutumbakam” meaning the world is one family. And with these values, they do their work and believe that world brotherhood will prevail and world peace will prevail if everybody starts thinking in this way and acting this way.”

ORO5

“In social terms, when all these people converge, they talk, converse and make friends.

Man is a social animal and they share. When we see on the roads, how people from all communities are sharing food, fruits, water, etc., this shows the social side, this sharing aspect is present in each one of us.”

The Festival is celebrated by both Hindus and non-Hindus according to ORA1 and ORA3. ORA1 also pointed out that besides local Hindus and non-Hindus, tourists also take part in the Festival.

This shows that the Festival widens the opportunity for the local Hindu participants to build or strengthen ties with others. During the interaction, the local Hindu participants are able not only to share ideas but also to develop and establish relationships. As such, the Festival may help to establish social attachment between the local Hindu community and other communities in Mauritius.

Another outcome of the social gathering is that it creates an opportunity for personal growth and development whereby participants, Hindus and non-Hindus, learn to be tolerant towards other

communities. Non-Hindus were seen to have participated either by taking part in the walk, donating food or drink along the way to Ganga Talao, or even providing financial contributions to organisations during the Festival (ORA3). The motto of the Festival for the local Hindu community is to ‘live for others’, as noted by ORO1. In other words, one should not be selfish and think only about oneself but also think about all those around us, namely our family, friends and others living in our community and country. This is to follow a similar example set by Lord Shiva when he drank poison to save humanity. ORO4 furthered this by adding that the Hindu community believes that

“the world is one family”. As such, the Festival enables the local Hindu community to inculcate and foster a belief of ‘oneness’.

The social aspect is inevitable during the Festival as “Man is a social animal” (ORO5). It can be said that if there are a huge number of people going to the sacred lake, they are bound to meet and talk to new and old friends and this encompasses the social aspect of the Festival. Hence, the opportunity for social gathering triggers social experiences and this in turn can reinforce unity among participants such as family members, friends and the community at large.

4.3 THE VIEWS OF THE MAURITIAN RELIGIOUS