A Brief Encounter with Hinduism

Our new neighbors finally moved in this past weekend. They've been remodeling the house for several months, making changes in the upstairs and remodeling the basement. They announced last week that they would be holding a special house blessing ceremony on Saturday, and they invited everyone in our cul-de-sac to attend. Wanting to be a good neighbor and being somewhat curious about Hinduism, I accepted their invitation.

When Mark and I got there, the Hindu priest was still getting set up for the ceremony. We were invited to take a tour of the house, and I was shocked to see that it was completely furnished. I had talked to the father a couple of times during renovation about helping him move everything in. I hadn't seen any signs of moving, no moving truck or furniture vans. I was expecting the house to be completely empty. But it wasn't. Somehow they had moved in. Perhaps it was in the dead of night to avoid making their neighbors feel the need to help? I'm not sure. Let's just say that it was the first clandestine move I've ever (can't say seen) known about.

When we were invited to the ceremony, we were told that it would last two hours. I didn't understand at the time how it could possibly last that long. I thought that they were perhaps overestimating. They weren't. I didn't realize just how many gods they had to address in the ceremony, and each god had to be given its due attention. We watched forever as the priest chanted in a sing-song voice and family members tossed different objects onto the altar. Not understanding very much about what was going on, I was surprised that I still felt somewhat connected to the ceremony, absorbing the cadence of the prayers and the spiritual energy of the believers. While I clearly felt like an outsider, I connected with the way the religious ceremony bound the neighbors and their friends together. It was energizing and relaxing at the same time. Eastern religions seem to give me that feeling.