Welcome to our open, self-paced ESL study group. We can and hope to add networks to the group. This blog is the hub where you can find lessons, links to ESL learning resources, leave links to add to the network, post comment and questions. The study group project is experimental. Participate by sharing ideas and suggestions.
You are quite lucky for living in such area whcih resembles heaven. One photo was of Priest Canyon - holy water. What's that? In India we consider river Ganga as holy river and it is widely believed that it curres us of all sins. Is it the same with Priest Canyon?
I don't know about the naming of Priest Canyon. Native American groups - especially desert dwellers in the Southwest are water & environment conscious. They consider water sources, even the smallest of springs, sacred.
Catholic missionaries (priests and monks) were less water conscious and would have considered the practice pagan. Maybe a priest lived (or died) in the canyon. It's an interesting question. I know people in the local Forest Service that I could ask.
Most of terrain around here is high desert and does not look like this part of the Manzanos.
I'd really like to see pictures and links to web sites and slide shows about where others in the class live.
Thanks for telling about the Priest Canyon. But, as we consider Ganga in India as a sacred river, is there any river in your area which is considered sacred by you (By "you" I mean to say American people).
We consider Ganga a sacred river and we worship it. People from all walks of life but Hindus only immerse their ashes into it and also perform last rites.
Everyday people perform Aarti (offerings) by chanting hymns from religious books - Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, Shastras etc.
Among Native Americans, rivers are sacred, with different tribes recognizing the river most central to their tribal lands. Otherwise, perhaps excepting "back to nature" New Age groups, rivers here are not regarded as sacred in the same way here as in your country.
Nevertheless, some rivers have such power symbolic force, a hold on our imaginations strong enough to be considered sacred. They show up in folklore. legend. songs and literature.
The Mississippi is one such river. I have lived along the Mississippi and crossed it many times, mostly at it broadest in the Louisiana delta. I remember walking right up riverbank alone (and should not have been) when I was about 8 years old.
Now I live near the Rio Grande, another "significant river" in American history and culture. Like the Nile, the Rio Grande flows through a major tectonic rift. The Rio Grande changes dramatically as it flows through New Mexico, from swift running deep gorge in the north to slow moving and shallow in the south.
Your question intrigued me, so I ran a search on "sacred rivers" in the US. I came up with some listings but not as many as would have expected. I did see listings for pages referencing the Rhine as Germany's sacred river, Thames as England's, Seine as France's, Tiber as Rome's and so on.
Think too of the significance of the River Jordan in the bible and Christian hymns. "Crossing the River Jordan" often stands for successfully making a journey that brings the pilgrim to freedom and/or englightenment.
Thanks for the reply and telling about sacred rivers. I fully agree with Loren Eiseley in saying that “If there is any magic on this planet, it is contained in water". During ancient times all the major Indian cities grew on the banks of perannial rivers and these rivers were considered as the major waterways and even today these rivers are the major waterways in India.
But, now a days some of these rivers have become endangered species because the authorities continue to discharge poorly treated sewage into these rivers. A classic example of this water pollution is Yamuna river which has aptly been described as a 'filthy drain'.
I do not know why people do not understand that water is the basic necessiy of life.
Hi Ms. Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteHow are you?
You are quite lucky for living in such area whcih resembles heaven. One photo was of Priest Canyon - holy water. What's that? In India we consider river Ganga as holy river and it is widely believed that it curres us of all sins.
Is it the same with Priest Canyon?
Bye
Rajeev
Rajeev
ReplyDeleteI don't know about the naming of Priest Canyon. Native American groups - especially desert dwellers in the Southwest are water & environment conscious. They consider water sources, even the smallest of springs, sacred.
Catholic missionaries (priests and monks) were less water conscious and would have considered the practice pagan. Maybe a priest lived (or died) in the canyon. It's an interesting question. I know people in the local Forest Service that I could ask.
Most of terrain around here is high desert and does not look like this part of the Manzanos.
I'd really like to see pictures and links to web sites and slide shows about where others in the class live.
Hi Ms. Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteThanks for telling about the Priest Canyon. But, as we consider Ganga in India as a sacred river, is there any river in your area which is considered sacred by you (By "you" I mean to say American people).
We consider Ganga a sacred river and we worship it. People from all walks of life but Hindus only immerse their ashes into it and also perform last rites.
Everyday people perform Aarti (offerings) by chanting hymns from religious books - Vedas, Puranas, Upanishads, Shastras etc.
BYe
Rajeev
Rajeev
ReplyDeleteAmong Native Americans, rivers are sacred, with different tribes recognizing the river most central to their tribal lands. Otherwise, perhaps excepting "back to nature" New Age groups, rivers here are not regarded as sacred in the same way here as in your country.
Nevertheless, some rivers have such power symbolic force, a hold on our imaginations strong enough to be considered sacred. They show up in folklore. legend. songs and literature.
The Mississippi is one such river. I have lived along the Mississippi and crossed it many times, mostly at it broadest in the Louisiana delta. I remember walking right up riverbank alone (and should not have been) when I was about 8 years old.
Now I live near the Rio Grande, another "significant river" in American history and culture. Like the Nile, the Rio Grande flows through a major tectonic rift. The Rio Grande changes dramatically as it flows through New Mexico, from swift running deep gorge in the north to slow moving and shallow in the south.
Your question intrigued me, so I ran a search on "sacred rivers" in the US. I came up with some listings but not as many as would have expected. I did see listings for pages referencing the Rhine as Germany's sacred river, Thames as England's, Seine as France's, Tiber as Rome's and so on.
Think too of the significance of the River Jordan in the bible and Christian hymns. "Crossing the River Jordan" often stands for successfully making a journey that brings the pilgrim to freedom and/or englightenment.
Dante's Commedia is full of sacred rivers.
More on sacred rivers -
ReplyDeleteThe Sacred River, a sermon
Sacred Rivers, an essay on the symbolism of sacred rivers and what they represent
American Rivers, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection and restoration of North America's rivers
HI Ms. Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reply and telling about sacred rivers. I fully agree with Loren Eiseley in saying that “If there is any magic on this planet, it is contained in water". During ancient times all the major Indian cities grew on the banks of perannial rivers and these rivers were considered as the major waterways and even today these rivers are the major waterways in India.
But, now a days some of these rivers have become endangered species because the authorities continue to discharge poorly treated sewage into these rivers. A classic example of this water pollution is Yamuna river which has aptly been described as a 'filthy drain'.
I do not know why people do not understand that water is the basic necessiy of life.
Bye
Rajeev