Article: truth in religions

Religions and the truth
by Rahman a. | edit | delete
September 12, 2007 12:50 AM EDT (Updated: September 13, 2007 11:25 PM EDT)
rating: 10/10 (1 vote) | comments: 6

Religions are a sensitive topic to talk about and it is threatening to the ground of reality to some people, so I will tread so ever carefully and respectfully;
The topic of truth is closely related to religions, since religions suppose to define the truth for you, All religions claim to deliver the truth. I understand that if you think about it ,it is man attempt to understand this mysterious world that we live in, and understanding the forces that runs it; so it is the "truth" the way they saw it ;it is easy to accept the gospel as a "Gospel" if you were raised in a Christian family, both parents believe the same thing; but what happens if you have two parents who believe in different religions ? say one parent Christian and one Jewish, Christian and Buddhist, or Muslim and Jewish, then you are faced with a dilemma as to which one is the truth ?the logical deduction is that one is right one is wrong, both are wrong, or both are right; now if we have considered only two religions, how about adding another, say Hinduism or Taoism ,why not considering all religions including Sufism Greek mythology ,Mesopotamia mythology, Zoroastrian, ..and so on

Christianity
Jesus of Nazareth declared;
And" The TRUTH (in capital letters) shall set you free"
The depth and the profoundness of this one word in this one sentence leaves me breathless speechless, it sinks me to my void, this truth reflects not only on what you say, what you do, or what you think-, it echoes to me from even beyond the abyss of our being and the daily living; it has reflected itself beyond the apparent; it has established itself on such grounds where it causes the apparent to appear! And to unfolds

generally we perceived things one way ,then with the passing of time we perceived the same things another way ;we thought things are prerequisite, then we realized that they where not , and what we thought thing can not change, but they did , we thought that the universe is static but it is not
I suppose there was a profound disappointment , deeply we are all looking for those thing that do not change , I suppose things that do not change gives us a sense of security of some sort
after all said and done, in religions we would be considered vigilant or awakened enough if we haven't got tangled in a web of prejudices,dogma, rituals, political influence, agendas, brainwashing, propagandas , ego, money, even love and sex
obviously most people don't even know what is the definition for the [ truth] ,even it came and bite them ,how then can distinguish what the right way is ? When they encounter it.?

when I was sixteen years old, I really thought to be in fashion are the things to do , and I used to argue with my mother sometimes when she wore uncoordinated colors, she used to tell me then "it doesn't really matter" that used to infuriates me, while I did not worry about the food that we eat, nor about the heater in the house, the gas that goes in the car I can, the tune-ups, rotating the tiers, checking the brakes etc. etc.
we were
just last weekend we were having some friends over and we were preparing dinner I realize that I am short on yogurt a and parsley so as I was grabbing my jackets going to Safeway, I called upon my seven years old son, hay baboosh let's go to Safeway and grab few things , he looks at me and he said" baba that doesn't match "he was referring to the jacket that I was putting on , I answered instinctively "it doesn't matter" !

When I look back I remember, my first breakup with a girl friend , I was 19 I really thought my life's coming to end ,I lost my footing and grasp on everything else, because she was everything for me, it seems that I rationalized and reasoned that everything was attached to her, now when she was gone nothing seems to be complete anymore,; many years later when she was in the past in retro respective I realize that there was no reason for me to be devastated like that ;I am complete now I was complete then ,but I didn't know it ,
I am telling you these two little stories from my past to bring about the point that we perceived thing one way ,then when the passing of time we perceived it differently , that when we thought thing are prerequisite, then we realized that they where not , and what we thought thing can not change, but they did , but back then I don't know how!?
is there any psychological changes that we have to go through ? or may be a physiological one ? Because still (my eyes were not open)

The change is to distinguish and discriminate between what is the truth? And what is not?

I suppose there was a profound disappointment ; deeply we are all looking for those thing that do not change , I suppose things that do not change gives us a sense of security of some sort

The story of Abraham;does bring this point to focus
According to Jewish tradition, Abraham was born under the name Abram in the city of Ur 90 km south of Baghdad today ,Babylonia in the year 1948 from Creation (circa 1800 BCE). He was the son of Terach, an idol merchant, but from
The continuation of the story of ibraham we find an account according to the Quran the book of Islam, surat al Anaam.

. When the night covered him over, He saw a star: He said: "This is my Lord." But when it set, He said: "I love not those that set."
. When he saw the moon rising in splendor, he said: "This is my god." But when the moon set, He said: "unless my Lord guide me, I shall surely be among those who go astray."
. When he saw the sun rising in splendor, he said: "This is my Lord; this is the greatest (of all)." But when the sun set, he said:......

I suppose when Abraham was back at Ur, he was searching for something true to believe in, since ideals in the status and ideals didn't make sense to him anymore, he kept asking himself
Who is my God(what is the truth)? and he realizes that the truth does not change
The continuation of the story of ibraheem we find an account according to the Quran the book of Islam, surat al Anaam.
it is He who created the heavens and the earth in true (proportions): the day He saith, "Be," behold! it is. His word is the truth. His will be the dominion, the day the trumpet will be blown. He knoweth the unseen as well as that which is open the. For He the Wise, all knowing
- Lo! Abraham said to his father Takest thou idols for gods? For I see thee and thy people in manifest error
- So also did We show Abraham the truth and the laws of the heavens and the earth, that he might (with understanding) have certitude.

.
Now that Abraham found his god and that god in verse 75 " the lord showed Abraham the truth and the laws of havens" ;
Then he proclames

"O my people! I am indeed free from your (guilt) of giving partners to false god .

The question "what is true? What is not?" And "what is real? What is not?" still persist in that fundamental sense of knowing that I am not there yet

Finally came across something that goes something like this
Course in miracles

"The truth can not be threatened, and time does not influence, every thing else is an allusion, a mirage, that change, dissipates, or disintegrate with the passing of time"
(a course in miracle ]

If we kick this ball further; the truth resides outside the linear time dimension
[remember the letter of Horus to the enneads] in this case the deity of the truth is stronger than the deity of time]in my article the truth in mithology
The low of the truth are more fundamental than those of time.

This is something like the spaghetti test!
Do you know what the spaghetti test is?
To find out whether or not the spaghetti is cooked, you take a strand and you throw it against a wall, if it sticks on the wall then it is cooked, if it falls down it means its not cooked or cooked too much
Here you can find out if things are real or not just put them to the test of time (the spaghetti wall), the more things endures time the more real it is, some endures time more than others, so they more real, ultimately you would reach, or come across qualities, that absolutely do not change with time, here ,were the truth is , and perhaps these are the qualities of THE GODS

The truth according to the course in miracles a well worth book to read, is eternal and non changing, its bounds contains you ,since they are the laws that indeed have a hand in your make up,
another example where gods assert their right to endure time the god Marduk in Mesopotamia mythology speaks
To the god Tiamat, he demands to take over as a supreme god

"My own utterance shall fix fate instead of you!
Whatever I create shall never be altered!
The decree of my lips shall never be revoked, never changed!"
True words of gods

now Tiamat is not a fictional charictar, nor is a person in a movie or a strory ,it is a name which is given to the actiual CREATOR in their mind back then,,,,,which is the same creator now; at least how they saw him ; dont fall in the trap of the FORM...but go with what it really... resmbles...!

"There is no substitute for truth. And truth will make this plane to you. As you are brought into the places were you must meet with truth. And there you must be led, through gentle understanding which can lead you nowhere else .Where God is; there are you. Such is truth. Nothing can change the knowledge giving you by god, into and unknowingness. Everything God created knows its Creator."
[A course in miracles]

The truth is persistent omnipresent, and if you don't see it , it does not mean its not there or it does not exist; eventually and unavoidably you will come to realize it

Why is a theory of truth important? Because that is what, ultimately, our cognitive life is biased upon; It is important because other wise we stumble on problems after problem in our daily living , beside the truth, things do not fit together perfectly, the truth is ultimately our cognitive life is all about: Whenever we analyze a scene, whenever we study a statement, whenever we recall a memory, whenever we do anything with our brain, we are on a quest for truth. by recognizing the truth things will make perfect sense since things are perfect individually and collectivly, and they are perfect collectively
An interesting theory of truth is the "correspondence theory of truth", that bonds truth to what we perceive as reality:
There are several problems with this theory of truth. The truth predicate (the expression "is true") acts as an intermediary between words (language, mind) between thinking and the actuality of the things

There are also other ways of defining Truth based on other Virtues
the three monotheistic Judaism , Christianity, Islam see it this way; every one is familiar with Genesis , the first chapter of the holy Bible that start like this :

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Now the earth was] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. God saw that the light was good and he separated the light from the darkness God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning-the first day. second daythird dayfourth day.fifth day .and so on.
Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground-everything that has the breath of life in it-I give every green plant for food." And it was so.
And God saw all that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning-the sixth day"

The divine comedy

Written by Dante Alighieri in 1306
The time setting when the book begins is in 1300, so he uses his knowledge of the present to "predict" events. he start his journey like this
The inequality of the universe

"Glory be to him, who moves all things in the universe
That is shone in one part bright,
And in other parts less
Within the heavens that Most receives his light
I was: I saw things that he
Who from that height descends?
Has no power or knowledge to recite
Our intellect sinks in so deep
That our memory fails to follow"
[Canto 1 paradiso, Dante Alighieri, the book of the divine comedy]

The holy book of Sikhism (sri guru granth sahib )declares:

"ONE UNIVERSAL CREATOR GOD".
Satnam*?
Sat in Sanskrit means beingness, existence and Satya which means truth Naam literally means, the Name
Satnam [Truth is its name ]
"Creative Being personified, No fear No hatred
Image of the Undying, beyond birth, self existent
By Guru's grace
Chant and meditate
True in the primal Beginning
True throughout the Ages
True Here and Now
O Nanak, forever and ever True"
[Sri Guru Granth sahib]

SATNAM ( means truth)

If our knowledge changes from one place to another, from one time to another from one social Organization to another, the truth would seem like an elusive creature, an impossibility of a task to grasp, like trying to grab a blob of mercury with your bare hands.
What is more difficult is that, the truth has many different manifestations

the trinity in Christianity,different facets of god

in different places and different facets of that same truth
In Hinduism, the Trimurti (also called the Hindu trinity) are three aspects of God in His forms as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.

Or Such as the wall carving from Siem Reap, Cambodia ;where the god has many faces indicating that gods have many facets it's more than a human can fathom

Realistically it has many sides many attributes all at once
Siem Reap, Cambodia two of the 216 faces of the Bayon

Angkor

theories are all the products of reflective thinking. Devoted to matters of the mind The very concept of life, and very concept of the universe, and the very concept of knowledge (education) are also ;But inspiration is a product of your creative thinking and work, creativeness considered to be spiritual attributes, divine Knowledge if you will ,

we think about life and we are in the Midst Of it
While we are in the midst of it, looking radialy in both direction( outward and inwards ), we see nothing but life, life of the same essence under the same law ,one facet of god manifestation
The Quran confirms so elegantly and so profoundly and points to god without using a finger, and say there he is

* "To god belongs the east and the west.
* weather so ever Ye turn there is the face of god,
* for god is all pervading
all containing(encompassing)
* all-knowing.
Glory be to him.And To him belong all that in heaven and on earth,
* and everything renders worship and submissiveness to him "
(Baqara 115-116)

No Matter whatever we think or speak about life, the universe and ,and the universal mind; agree with it, deny it, believe in it or not to believe in it; the universe keeps on doing its things, subject to the laws that supports it and under lay all its manifestation, by using the plural, I am not condoling the separation of laws and manifestation , these attribute are the cause and the effect of one thing ; we are all but part of it, now the universe would not be complete without you ,me or the mosquito that just bit me .indeed its A mathematical certainty

.Summation of all the parts =the whole

All agree of that there is this unbound, unlimited intelligence, Omni present, Omni potent, Omnificent, all in one and one in all
has given birth for unlimited number of universes

According to the thirteen petal rose by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
Our physical universe which is one of many , with all that it contain, suns and planets , galaxies clusters of galaxies , matter, energy, expanding space-, arrow of time , for all what is this physical universe is, it is still limited and bound ,since it has a beginning, it has an end ,it has physical boundaries
This physical universe is only one part of the many manifestation of the encompassing One.

Now what the philosophers called the universe is not the same as what physicist has in mind when they refer to it,
Latin universum, from neuter (neuter)

a gender that refers chiefly (but not exclusively) to inanimate objects (neither masculine nor feminine) of universes entire, whole,
What the philosophers call the universe is the totality of all that. And beyond the physicality, that is intelligent, It is what Chinese philosopher (Lao Tzu) refers to as the Tao

"There is a thing, formless yet complete. Before heaven and earth it existed. Without sound, without substance, it stands alone and unchanging. It is all-pervading and unfailing. We do not know its name, but we call it Tao (the way). .. Being one with nature, the sage is in accord with the Tao." (Lao Tzu)

Taoism,
Along with Buddhism and Confucianism, are the three great religions / philosophies of Ancient China. In 440 B.C. Taoism was adopted as a state religion of China, with Lao Tzu (so called founder of Taoism) honored as a deity. State support of Taoism ended in 1911 with the end of the Ch'ing Dynasty and much Taoist heritage was destroyed. Tao (pronounced 'Dao' or Tao) can be defined as 'path', or 'road'. The way of the Tao is the way of Nature ;perhaps ultimate reality is becoming one with the universe without the use of your sensory perception ,. Tao is often described as a force that flows through all life(holy spirit if you will ). A happy and virtuous life is one that is in harmony with the Tao.
So the philosophy of Taoism understands Tao as the One Thing which exists and contain every thing in it . Tao, Nature, Reality are One. The idea that 'All is One and interconnectedness is not found solely within Chinese Philosophy. Hinduism , the three monotheistic (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), the Greek Philosophers also understood the universe as a unity, as have many other philosophers and scientists over the past 2500 years.

The ancient Chinese worshiped many gods of many kinds, from natural forces to the spirits of ancestors. In the Shang period (1766-1154 B.C.), oracle bones mention a god, Shang-ti, that ruled over all other divinities as well as over human affairs. This deity eventually evolved into the concept of T'ien, or "Heaven," which, as an abstract and impersonal concept, became synonymous with Shang-ti. For the ancient Chinese, Heaven ruled the physical universe through ming, or "destiny," which was beyond human understanding and control, and ruled the moral universe, the universe of human behavior, through T'ien ming, or "The order of Heaven." commission that is given to a government and its policies through an electoral victory noun: a document giving an official instruction or command
This "Mandate of Heaven" universal law , was based on the idea that Heaven was primarily concerned with the well-being of humans and human society; in order to bring about this well-being, Heaven instituted government and authority. Heaven gave its mandate a document giving an official instruction or command to a family or individual to rule over other human beings with justice and fairness; rulers were to make the welfare of their people their principal concern. When rulers or a dynasty failed to rule in this manner, Heaven would remove its mandate from that ruler and bestow it on another. By Confucius' time, the T'ien Ming had extended to include all human beings and their responsibilities obligations for the people around them and related to them. Each person is responsible for the welfare of those that have been put into their keeping, so that the T'ien Ming functioned at all levels of society. For the ancient Chinese, these two ways in which Heaven governed the cosmosMing , which is order in the physical world and T'ien Ming , which is order in the moral or social worldtogether made up the Tao, or Way of Heaven.
No concept is as crucial to understanding the Chinese world view as this concept of the Tao, nor is there any concept which evolved quite as dramatically as this one did. As various Chinese schools developed alternative ways of looking at the world, this concept was adapted to these changed world views
The philosophy of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu focused entirely on this concept of the Tao, hence the name of the philosophy they founded: Taoism. For these two foundational Taoists, the Tao becomes the unitary principle and source of all there is, replacing T'ien as the source and governor of the universe.

The Zen Teaching of Huang Po

Huang Po was a Zen master in the ninth century in China who got his name from the mountain where he lived. His teachings, consisting of sermons and dialogs, and koans

If Huang Po's philosophy can be put into words (which he repeatedly says it cannot)
it is that man must break through all of his false concepts based on sense perception in order to see his true Self ,and indeed the truth period.

He explains to his students that, "if you students of the Way wish to become Buddha's, you need study no doctrines whatever, but learn only how to avoid seeking for and attaching yourselves to anything.since all these concepts and ideas are not the truth by nature " Not only are doctrines not sufficient but neither are practices; and he say :
" our original Buddha nature is, the highest truth, devoid of any objectivity, it is void, omnipresent, silent, pure,; it is glorious mysterious peaceful Joey; and that's all
Inter deeply into it, by weakening to it yourself,.
That what is before you in all its fullness is utterly complete "
Muster huong po

Kabbalah
Here is the same thing written in kabalistic manner
"The divine essences itself, which has not, and can not have a name. We call his essence or God-in himself by name that is it's self, it is a paradox: "the infinite, blessed be he"
when we speak of the infinite blessed be he, we are talking about the utmost of perfection and obstruction, that encompasses everything, and is beyond any possible limits and comprehension .for the infinite is beyond anything that can be grasped- in any term either positive or negative"
{The Devin manifestation} by adin steinsaltz

The tree of life
Kabbalah ( Reception), Standard Hebrew Qabbala, also written variously as Cabalah Kabala, , Qabala Kabbala, , is a religious philosophical system ,an insight into divine nature.
"Kabbalah" is a doctrine of esoteric knowledge confined to and understandable by only an enlightened inner circle concerning God and the universe, asserted to have come down as a revelation to elect saints from a remote past, and preserved only by a privileged few. Kabbalah is considered part of the Jewish Oral Law. It is the traditional mystical understanding of the Torah. Kabbalah stresses the reasons and understanding of the commandments, and the cause of events described in the Torah. Kabbalah includes the understanding of the spiritual spheres in creation, and the rules and ways by which God administers the existence of the universe.

The Zohar (Hebrew "Splendor, radiance briliance") is widely considered the most important work of Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism. It is a mystical commentary on the Torah (five books of Moses), written in medieval Aramaic and medieval Hebrew. It contains a mystical discussion of the nature of God, the origin and structure of the universe, the nature of souls, sin, redemption,.The Zohar is not one book, but a group of books. These books include scriptural interpretations as well as material on theosophic theology, mythical cosmogony, mystical psychology,
Rabbi David Mivasair from Ahavat Olam Synagogue points out ;
"That is the idea that the Zohar is in fact one book. It is called Sefer ha-Zohar - The Book of Splendor. It consists of many different kinds of material, but it is all composed as one book. Most contemporary scholars believe it was written by one individual person as one integral book."

Zaradeshti
The truth according to Zaradeshti, Zoroastrianism, or Mazdaism the most ancient living monotheistic religion that caution you to proceed gently and step by step in search of the truth, then ignorance will lift

Veil after veil it will lift- but there must be veil upon veil behind.

To Venture in the zarathushti philosophy, and ultimately find that one verse that profoundly pointed out to the one truth , that the zarathusttian religion was striving to uphold for approximately 4000 years, would be a definition of the asha-ritathat goes something like this:

God that ever lives and loves
One god, one law, one element
And one far off divine event (not in distance)
To which the whole creation moves.

According to the zarathushti believes that it's Mazda Ahura
First created consciousness and knowledge of good (naturin) which is the spirit of truth, spenta manyu a, but when he created the physical, detig, world evil came into being in the form off ignorance, sin, violation of natural order (similar to Mara's daughters in Hinduism, and Buddhism) Zarathushti called the spirit of evil "the lie which later came to be called angera Manyu this struggle between these opposing forces, I found it is the struggle between two perceptions on one hand, the perception or physical world, relative ness, worldly issues, self-centeredness, the limited understanding, nearsightedness, scattered mindedness, in securities, fears [I could keep going on and on so you can see the focal point of these minds or the center, that give rise to these perceptions ]. On the other hand are the perceptions of the lows that give rise to the physical world, the spirit of that manifest itself in physical forms, the infinite, the absolute, the divine.
The struggle between these opposing perceptions (forces) which they see the same thing from different perspective, will govern a human life thought activity; that would lead to a set of conducts that is either prosperous happy and successful or insecure doubtful and turbulent
The battle between truth and Lie, Mazda Ahura assigned the amahs spenta, (the benevolent spirit) which is an aspect of his own power, its the amesha spent as are sometimes represented as in an angelic being, but in the spiritual sense they are a spark of the divine, that every person the may cultivate within himself or herself if they look inward.
This is derived from the Ahuna-vairya The (Ahunavar,) prayer has been hailed as the most fundamental of all prayers of Zoroastrians. That contains three distinct statements in this verse each enunciates a profound eternal truth:

Just as the sovereign Lord, the all-powerful
So is the spiritual teacher by reason of his store of asha (the good)
The gifts of vohu-mano (good mind) (enlightened mind)
Our four works done for the lord of creation
And the kashathra (blessing), of Ahura descends, indeed
Upon him who becomes a shepherded to the meek

This may be written in more Lehman fashion, and still coincides with
The pada by pada arrangement

As lords temporal work there will on earth
So by their gathered to Asha teachers wise
The gift of voho- man (good mind) comes as rewards
Ahura's kashathra (blessings) to have been on earth surely cometh down
On him who service with zeal of his brother meek

Sikhism

You are the Creator, O Lord, the Unknowable. You created the Universe of diverse kinds, colors and qualities. You know your own Creation. All this is your Play."

(Guru Nanak, Var Majh)

"The Formless Supreme Being abides in the Realm of Eternity. Over His creation He casts His glance of grace. In that Realm are contained all the continents and the universes, Exceeding in number all count. Of creation worlds upon worlds abide therein; All obedient to His will; He watches over them in bliss, And has each constantly in mind."

(Guru Nanak, Japji)

Hinduism

The one without color appears
By the manifold application of his power
With many colors, in his hidden purpose.
May the Being of Splendor in whom the world dissolves
And from whom it rises
Grant us a clear understanding.

He is Agni, the lord-of-fire,
And he is the Sun, and the Wind, and Moon.
He is the Seed, the Immense-Being,
He is the Lord-of-Progeny.

You are woman, and you are man,
You are the youth and the maiden,
And the old man tottering with a staff.
You are born again facing all directions.

You are the blue fly and red-eyed parrot,
The cloud pregnant with lightning.
You are the seasons and the seas,
You are the reasons and the cause
The without beginning , endless, the Abiding Lord
From whom the spheres are born.
Svetasvatara Upanishad 4.1-4

In ancient Hinduism, sacrifices performed for the gods (Devas ) were vital in obtaining the material benefits given to humans by the gods. The efficacy or power (Brahman ) of these sacrifices was determined by their being performed in exactly the manner and order prescribed. The proper order of a sacrifice was called Rita. Eventually, this concept of Rita would become in Hinduism one of the key concepts of the Indian world view, meaning first something like "moral order" and later "cosmic order" or "cosmic law."

The cosmic balance of Shiva natarajais both symbol and reality it is the movement of creation, preservation and disillusions, the triad which taken together is the principle of Maya gods endless impulse, taking place within each of us within every atom of the universe, we are a dancing with Shiva display moment and he is uses, in the mist of his agitated drums, god Shiva head is balance and still, his expression is serene and calm , perfectly unmoved mover, his right earnings made of snakes is masculine his left earning large disks is feminine together symbolize the fact that that Siva is neither male nor female but transcends both ;about the third eye is the eye of fire symbolizes higher perceptions extending through the past present and future God Shiva's hair is in the loaned unintended locks of ascetics, flying out to energetically. On his head odd the serpents sarsanga, representing the cycle of the year as skull symbolizing Shiva's power of destruction the fifth day crescent moon symbolizing his creative power and the goddess ganga the most sacred River in India symbol of the descending grace .Shiva's back left-handholds a blazing flame, the fire God angi symbolizing his power of destruction samharaby which the universe re absorbed as the end of each cycle of creation only to be recreated by god Siva which allows souls to mature through experience when we emerge into the divine .
Lord Siva dances upon the figure known as apaasamara" forget full or heedless" will represent the soul of a bound by the individuating a veil of duality, source of separation from the divine. Apaasamara looks up serenely at Lord Siva's raised felt the ultimate refuge, release and destiny of all souls without exception. Low achieve I left front and representing the syllable Vaheld in the elephant trunk pose ,his left foot, source revealing grace by which souls return to him. Left and right back arm are balanced as our creation and destruction. back right hand holds the faith in waisted Rattle drum damaru symbol of creation of which begins with a soundless sound which rises the mantra almost AUM the front right hand is raised in a gesture [abhaya]which means to fear not symbolizing she this power off srishti preservation and protection and standing for the symbol Ya Lord Shiva raised foot symbolizes his revealing grace by which the soul ultimately transcends the bounds of anva Karma and Maya and realize its identity with him Lord Siva skin is pinkish color his body is submerged with white holy ash vibhutie symbol of purity fibula throats or presents his compassion in swallowing the deadly poison to protect mankind he wears skull necklace symbolizing the perpetual evolution of agesthe serpent jahanuwi and/or is his body, symbol of his identity with the kundalini power the normally doormat spiritual force within man coiled at the base of the spine . Raced through yoga this forced propels man into god realization. Shiva wares a Tigers skin symbol of nature's power, his ash is blown to one side by his rapid movement. The ark of flames in which he led dances in the whole of consciousness each flame has three sub flames symbolizing fire on earth in the atmosphere and in the sky at the top of the arc is mahakala great time
Mahakalais the god Shiva himself to create transcends and ends time
Sheila Aunt Nataraja within the state of time transcendence the double Lotus pedestal symbolizes from this based spring the cosmos
The 4 sacred Vedas, mankind best scripture into an to Siva Lord of sacrifice ,offhand and balmy medicines we pray for joy and health and strength he shines in splendor like the sun he felt jammed as bright gold, the best among the gods he is godhead in all beings innermost soul ,he watches the works of creation, in all things, watches all things. He is pure consciousness, beyond the three conditions of nature of [their eyes goes not nor words or mind we know not how he can be explained he is above been known ,and he is above the unknown
Fire is his head, the Sun and moon his eyes, space his ear, indeed as his speech, the wind his breath, the universe is harld. From his feet the earth has originated verily, he is the inner self of all beings
[Atharva Veda mundaka Upanishad]

The symbolism of Shiva Nataraja is religion, art and science merged as one. In God's endless dance of creation,

Preservation, destruction and paired graces is hidden a deep understanding of our universe. Aum Namah Sivaya. Bhashya Nataraja,

budhasm
Buddhist Lamas of Drepung Loseling Monastery have a festival for the (impermanence) where they paint a picture with colorful sand, they take Millions of grains of sand and painstakingly laid into place on a flat platform over a period of days or weeks. to create mystic and exquisite most unique painting ,this art is called ( dul-tson-kyil-khor) which literally means "Mandala" ,

Tibetan monks, constructing a Mandala, with sand and dust of precious stones. After the festival the Mandala will be destroyed, thus expressing the insubstantiality of visible forms.

According to Buddhist history, the purpose, meanings, and techniques involved in the spiritual art of sand mandala painting were taught by Shakyamuni, the historical Buddha in the sixth century B.C. in India. Over the centuries the Kalachakra teachings have been transmitted in an unbroken lineage from teacher to student. In the 11th century the Kalachakra went from India to Tibet and during the 18th century the VII Dalai Lama introduced it to the Namgyal Monastery. This continuous lineage extends to the XIV Dalai Lama of our own time.

When finished, to symbolize and remind them selves of the impermanence of all that exists, the colored sands are swept up and poured into a nearby river or stream the waters will carry the healing energies throughout the world.