"Heavenly Bodies" - Catholic relics

Pat Macpherson, Xochitl, Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly

(Thamesandhudson.com) Q&A with LA-based art historian Dr. Koudounaris, expert and author on European ossuaries and charnel houses for both academic and popular journals. Now he is bringing these saints out of the darkness for the first time.

 

Dr. Paul Koudounaris* signed Heavenly Bodies earlier this month at La Luz de Jesus art gallery. Koudounaris gained unprecedented access to the relics of Catholic "catacomb saints," a rare set of historical artifacts. They were hidden for over a century because Western attitudes toward the worship of holy relics and death itself changed. Some of the ornamented skeletons appear in publication in his book for the first time (105 illustrations, 90 in color). Where did they come from? 

 

Pope and boy (TIME)

The 17th- and 18th-century jeweled skeletons photographed for Heavenly Bodies are the finest works of art in bone ever created -- with the exception of Tibetan bone works in Nepalese lamaseries. Unlike the anonymous bone piles photographed for The Empire of Death, these holy skeletons are meant to have distinct identities -- as magnificently glorified holy people. In each case, constructing them from skulls, femurs, ribs, jewels, gold, and silver creating a kind of personality. Sometimes these skeletons are touching and poignant, sometimes bizarre and surreal, even grotesque.

• Science discovers new body part
• The Body in the Eyes of Science
• Science adores relics in "BodyWorld 2" 
• Exposing Anti-Pope (Most Holy Family)
• Ariana Grande is in touch with demons 
• Bodies? 46% more rapes in US military this year
  (Pauline Jelinek, Huff Post) Reports of sexual assaults in the military increased by an unprecedented 46 percent during the last fiscal year, the Pentagon said Thursday. It wasn’t possible to know whether the spike represented an increase in assaults, an increase in the percentage of people reporting them, or both. More

*Dr. Koudounaris explains: “The closest I can come to bringing the actual Heavenly Bodies to my viewers and readers is this photo show, which presents them in up to live-sized reproductions. This show also provides me with another opportunity: a chance to cull my own personal favorites from among the thousands of photos I took. These are not always the same images shown in the book; rather, it is my own personal selection of what I consider the finest and most expressive decorated skeletons.”

Mara and the "Day of the Dead" (sutra)

Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Pfc. Sandoval, Ashley Wells, Xochitl, Irma Quintero, Wisdom Quarterly based Ven. Thanissaro (trans.),  Marapasa Sutta, "Death's Influence" (SN 35.115)

Sugar candy skulls (calaveras) characteristic of Day of the Dead celebrations (ALC)

Mara, the personification of death and defilements (Dia de los Muertos, Los Angeles 2007)

 

Drama Queen Gaga (latestwallpapers.net)

"Meditators, there are forms cognizable by the eye -- enticing, agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, giving rise to desire. If one relishes them, welcomes them, and remains clinging to them, one is said to be fettered by forms cognizable by the eye.

"One has gone over to Mara's camp [the place of death and defilements; one has fallen under Mara's [the Killer's] influence. The 'Evil One' [Namuci] can do with one as he wills.

 

Demon in Taoism (asiaobcura.com)

"There are sounds cognizable by the ear... There are fragrances cognizable by the nose... There are flavors cognizable by the tongue... There are tactile sensations cognizable by the body...

 

"There are ideas cognizable by the mind -- enticing, agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, giving rise to desire. If one relishes them, welcomes them, and remains clinging to them, one is said to be fettered by ideas cognizable by the mind. One has gone over to Mara's camp; one has fallen under Mara's influence. The 'Evil One' can do with one as he wills.
 

We really die. Deceased Nazi soldier in advanced stage of decomposition (Jesse Davis)

 
Escaping death

Buddha, Likir Gompa (Fulvio/Ifphotos/flickr)

"Now [as has just been said], there are forms cognizable by the eye -- enticing, agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, giving rise to desire.

"But if one abandons relishing them, welcoming them, or clinging to them, one is said to be freed from forms cognizable by the eye.

"One has avoided Mara's camp; one has avoided falling under Mara's influence.
 
 "The 'Evil One' is helpless to do with one as he wills.
 

"There are sounds cognizable by the ear... fragrances cognizable by the nose... flavors cognizable by the tongue... tactile sensations cognizable by the body... There are ideas cognizable by the mind -- enticing, agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, giving rise to desire.

 

"If one abandons relishing them, welcoming them, or clinging to them, one is said to be freed of ideas cognizable by the mind. One has avoided Mara's camp; one has avoided falling under Mara's influence.

"The 'Evil One' is helpless to do with one as he wills."

10 Defilements
Kilesas from Abhidharma and Path of Purification

1. Greed
2. Hate
3. Delusion
4. Conceit
5. Wrong views
6. Doubt
7. Torpor 
8. Restlessness
9. Shamelessness 
10. Recklessness

Mara's Army

Ven. Nyanamoli (trans), Life of the Buddha, p. 20 (Sutta Nipata III, 2).

Yama: Lord of Death

Mara, your first squadron is Sensual-Desires, your second is called Boredom, then Hunger and Thirst compose the third, and Craving is the fourth in rank, the fifth is Sloth and Torpor, while Cowardice lines up as sixth, Uncertainty is seventh, the eighth is Malice paired with Obstinacy; Gain, Honor, and Renown, besides, and ill-won Notoriety, Self-Praise and Denigrating Others -- these are your squadrons, Namuci; these are the Evil One's fighting squadrons; none but the brave will conquer them to gain bliss by the victory [nirvana].

• The Many Maras, literal and figurative (Prof. Guruge)

What is "Mara"?
Prof. Ananda W.P. Guruge, The Buddha's Encounters with Mara the Tempter: Their Representation in Literature and Art (edited by Wisdom Quarterly)

Mexico: skulls celebrating the festival Day of the Dead (diarioelamanecer.com)

 
In the Dictionary of Pali Proper Names, G.P. Malalasekera explains: Mara in the commentarial literature becomes much more than a living individual:

1. "Mention is made of five maras: Khandha-mara [Five Aggregates], Kilesa-mara [defilements], Abhisankhara-mara [karmic constructions], Maccu-mara [Death], and Devaputta-mara [a young deity]. Elsewhere Mara is spoken of as one, three, or four."
2. "The term Mara, in the older books, is applied to the whole of worldly existence, the Five Aggregates, or the realm of rebirth, as opposed to nirvana."
3. Commentaries speaking of three maras specify them as Devaputta-mara, Maccu-mara, and Kilesa-mara. When four maras are referred to, they appear to be the five maras mentioned in (i) above minus Devaputta Mara.

Malalasekera proceeds to attempt "a theory of Mara in Buddhism," which he formulates in the following manner:
 

"The commonest use of the word was evidently in the sense of Death. From this it was extended to mean 'the world under the sway of death' (also called Maradheyya, e.g. AN IV 228) and the beings therein. Then, the defilements (kilesas) also came to be called Mara in that they were instruments of Death, the causes enabling Death to hold sway over the world. All temptations brought about by the defilements were likewise regarded as the work of Death. There was also evidently a legend of a deva [devaputta, literally "son or offspring of the devas"] of the Vasavatti World called Mara, who considered himself the head of the Kama-vacara world [the Sensual Sphere] and who recognized any attempt to curb the enjoyment of sensual pleasures as a direct challenge to himself and to his authority. As time went on these different conceptions of the word became confused one with the other, but this confusion is not always difficult to unravel." More

"Day of the Dead"

Skull face (festivalearth.com)

DEFINITION: The Day of the Dead is a holiday is a time of family gatherings with friends to remember and pray for friends and family members who have passed. It is celebrated in Mexico and elsewhere. The celebration takes place on October 31st and November 1st and 2nd in connection with the Christian triduum of Hallowmas: All Hallows' Eve, All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day. Activities include building private altars called "offerings" (ofrendas) honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts. Celebrants also leave possessions of the deceased. Scholars trace the origins of the modern Mexican holiday to indigenous observances dating back hundreds of years and to an Aztec festival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl. More

El Dia de los Muertos

Pfc. Sandoval, Ashley Wells, Xochitl, Irma Quintero, Wisdom Quarterly

Dia de Los Muertos skull sugar candy for the dead (paintersoflouisville.com)

 

Tutorial (fromdahliastodoxies)

The USA is eagerly embracing a second Mexican holiday tradition in addition to Cinco de Mayo -- the Day of the Dead or Dia de los Muertos.
 
This is an ancient practice predating Spanish invasion and conquest, European hegemony, and Catholic domination. The practice, in fact, exists around the world.
 
Everywhere people remember those who have passed and attempt to help them along in the afterlife. This was the main focus of Egyptian religion and even prehistoric practices, judging by funereal evidence at archeological sites. Why else are the dearly departed dressed, prepared, and buried with valuable object of use only to living beings? Belief in rebirth is the norm -- even if one merely believes in one more life in only one of two planes as is promulgated by Christians.
 

(individualreisen-mexiko.de)

Somehow everyone seems to know that "the veil is thin" between the worlds. Ghosts (a catchall for all the shapeshifting oddities of the unfortunate spirit world, the apaya or downfall) are easier to perceive. Hellions (narakas) may get out for a day, not from the lowest worlds of torment perhaps but from the less oppressive levels of "hell."
 
Creatures, ghouls, goblins, poltergeists, banshees, phantoms, spectres, shadows, ghosts (petas) are all about under ordinary circumstances, their world not being so far off but just a frequency away. The worlds intermingle, laying atop one another, at differing vibrational rates. Mexico is not alone in celebrating and honoring "the ancestors" (los muertos, "the dead" central to the holiday).
 
Pagan or Catholic?

We rule countries after invasion!

But in Catholic and Mayan/Aztec-influenced Mexico as well as adjacent Southern California, large communities go en masse to cemeteries to refresh flowers, bring supplies (candy, alcohol, tobacco, etc.), and remember or reestablish connections with departed loved ones.

Catholicism (and other forms of Christianity like Protestantism, Eastern Orthodox, etc.), with its replacement observances, often usurped ancient holidays and co-oped them to its own ends. Christianity was a Roman psychological operation, one of the most successful propaganda campaigns the world has ever seen. But not all people neglect the indigenous origins of the appropriated celebrations in spite of the imperial killers.

When Roman psy-ops rule the world

As for the dead, there are the "grateful dead," who appreciate a favor or a last wish being fulfilled for them. These are ghosts who do not linger but move on to be reborn in proper (rather than intermediary) planes of existence.
 
A few troublesome or restless spirits are laid to rest and encouraged to move along according to their karma. Who are our "ancestors," our departed "relatives"? The Buddha said that they consist of those extended family members going back seven generations, quite a coincidence since Native American peoples believe the same thing.

The Devil's media on my TV (video)

Pat Macpherson, Pfc. Sandoval, Wisdom Quarterly; BillZebub.com; HALLOWEEN SERIES

Yama (King of the Dead), demon, temple guardian, hell warden (o_0/flickr.com)

(AncientAliensTruth) The real history and legendary exaggeration of "The Devil"

 

I quite like it.

"Black Metal: The Music of Satan" is a no holds barred documentary on the Black Metal scene in Europe and America from the mind of Bill Zebub. [Uh, Pat, we can't show that video. What, why? It's so funny! BANNED by you-know-who for a scene that is too explicit to air. We're going in a different direction, something on the surprising history of the devil. JERRY SPRINGER? No, the Bible guy.]

(MrB) Have we been duped by evil Hollywood moguls again?

Is the "Jerry Springer Show" fake or an exploration of America's

repugnant underbelly? KCAL 9 News, Los Angeles, investigates.

 
Some people think of American and Norwegian church burnings and murders when they hear the term "black metal." This documentary is not for those people. Zebub wanted to prove that a documentary about black metal could be entertaining without sensationalism. Sensationalism? Let's go with that! Will the real Scandinavian "Black Metal" please stand up:

(MVDmusicvideo) "Black Metal Satanica" WARNING: Shocking!

 
"Black Metal Satanica" is an in-depth music documentary. It captures the dark, mystical, and evil history of the genre. Based on Scandinavian Viking lore, it borrows from ancient Viking melodies, lyrics, and mythology dating back to the 11th century. A new wave of musicians give their take on the current state of the music and the extreme, almost inhuman, acts that surround this controversial subculture. Self-mutilation, murder, suicide, church-burning, the desecration of graves and corpses are all covered here in shocking and graphic detail!

 

Tibetan chakrabhava "Wheel of Existence" sacred tapestry (viewzone.com)

 

Hey, man, it's just musick.

See the artists express themselves candidly while, of course, some embarrass themselves with their detachable facades. But that's entertainment! The show must go on, and the masks must fall off.

From the mind of Grimoire Magazine and films like "Death Metal: Are We Watching You Die?," "Metal Retardation," and "Black Metal: Norwegian Legacy."

This documentary features interviews with bands like King Diamond (Mercyful Fate), Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, Venom, Darkthrone, Behemoth, Immortal, Enthroned, Enslaved, Satyricon, Marduk, and many more.

• VIDEO: Boys obsessed with porn, girls, and sex (BBC)

Electronic Dance Music (EDM) craze
(The Fine Bros/MyMusicShow.tv) Episode 38: "Raver Madness" (new episodes every Tuesday)

• Does Wisdom Quarterly actually believe in the Christian "devil" or "God" for that matter?

Telling the Devil to go to Hell? (comedy)

I. Rony, Wisdom Quarterly; "Swear To God" with Rev. Winton Dupree (aka Bob Odenkirk)

"The more you are motivated by LOVE, the more fearless and FREE your action will be" - DL

Ferocious avian (garuda) temple guardians warding off serpents (nagas), Thailand

 

Reverend Winton Dupree (Mr. Show)

I have a question, and I know you all have it, too. "What is up Lucifer's butt?" All he wants to do is mess us up, the crapple pie eater!

Now, I'll tell you what. I am the only preacher with the f'n cahones -- you know this, you all know this -- to say:
 
"Goddam you, Mara! I dam thee straight to purgatory! You goddam so-and-so and son of a B!" Can I get an f'n A?
 

Tricky Mara Devaputra

"F'n A!" Thank you, friends.
 

Now the Lord said, "I am the Light of the World."

 

Now he could as easily have said, "I am King Sh-t of F--- Mountain! Why would you mess with me?!"

WARNING: Rated X! Extreme Christian profanity and ungodly obscenities steeped in liberal comic mockery of fundamentalist fervor and hypocrisy! (Mr. Show with Bob & David/HBO)

• The Buddha's encounters with the real Mara (sutras)
• Encounters with the metaphorical Mara (Abhidharma)

No thanks, Mara!

Dhr. Seven, Dhr. Amber Larson, Ashley Wells, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly

The Killer's disciple holding up the characteristic devil's horns (mudra) of the Dark Lord

  

But would the esteemed reverend's approach be any way to rebuke Mara Devaputra (the Killer as an angelic being of light, aka deva-putta, "son of god")? Anger in the face of anger is failure. Hatred is weakness; fear is disease.

Remember Siddhartha under the Bodhi tree. He faced Mara again and again, sometimes in a fearsome guise, sometimes in seductive mode. Mara is scheming. Mara does not play fair.

Mara (Death personified), L.A. Day of the Dead

Resistance is futile, if by "resistance" one means direct opposition. Mara (Temptation itself) is stronger than a human. But there are many things one can do: stand aside, not take the bait, distract oneself, abandon clinging by insight, or win by virtue rather than fighting.
 
Mara has no real interest in forcing only in provoking. Instead of coercing by brute strength, he inspires us to be the source of our own ruin.
 
For example, in Sutra 50 of The Middle-Length Discourses, Maha Moggallana -- one of the Buddha's chief male disciples, foremost in mystical powers -- eludes Mara. He then warns the inimical spirit what awaits as the karmic result of such harmful behavior toward enlightened disciples of the Buddha.
 
Maha Moggallana can warn Mara (Namuchi) from direct experience. For he himself, long ago, was a mara known as Mara Dusi, and he himself met with the horrific-hellish results Mara Namuchi would eventually face if he did not desist.

 

But Mara, it seems, does not listen. He does not believe there will be any karmic results for himself. He is, after all, no mere flesh and bones being. He wields dark powers, namely, the power to influence the thoughts of others, to shapeshift, to lead others astray by inspiring in them latent defilements (fear, anger, lust, delusion, discouragement, laziness, etc.)
 
Mara does not insert these into a person's mind/heart; he instigates and awakens what is there dormant and unabandoned. These things -- whether conceived of as momentary states or innate traits -- cannot be successfully opposed for very long by mere willpower or force of any kind. They can, however, be suppressed, outmaneuvered, eluded, abandoned, and completely let go by meditation (cultivation of skillful states and traits).

 

Siddhartha did not fight under the tree. But he stood his ground, it's true, refusing to rise and leave the meditation mat even at the threat of an imminent attack by an army of ogres (yakkhas) led by Mara on a giant war elephant. Finding this approach futile, Mara then sent in his three seductive "daughters" (Craving, Boredom, and Cupidity).

What to do?

The rewards of peace and ahimsa

In fighting, don't fight. In struggling, don't struggle. And in striving, the same: neither striving nor giving up. In this way one does not fall back and one does not ruin oneself by one's own efforts and over-exertion. Carry on without relenting. Elegant balance. Calm persistence. And in no long time, one realizes the fruits of compassion and wisdom.