Buddhist Snow Angels

Part one (mostly just bragging)____________________
All temps Fahrenheit.

Last night was cold, though not what one might call "very cold".

Actually, I take that back. Very cold is relative. In Hong Kong "very cold" means 60 degrees, while in some parts of Alaska "very cold" means when gasoline goes from a jelly (at -40) to more of a solid (about -70). In turn, other parts of Alaska scoff at those parts that call -70 cold. See? All relative.

But I didn't think that last night was very cold, certainly not by normal standards. The temperatures were in the single digits, with wind chill in the -20's. Those are above average temperatures for this time of year, and last night was one of the warmer nights of the week.

It was a perfect time to test my limits.

Lately I have discovered that I can go out without a coat. This produces a thrill akin to free diving (which I also enjoy, though I don't do it very often). The idea of going into an inhospitable environment and just ignoring it for a few minutes is exhilarating, something like discovering you can fly, or go in space without a space suit.

So last night I decided to see how long I could go. One of the students asked if we could go skating, and after he persuaded another to come along I said I would go.

I went outside with my coat under my arm, and the students both told me to put it on. I told them I wanted to see how long I could possibly go, and that it was a bet of sorts.

My strategy for going out in cold weather is to to minimize heat loss and maximize heat generation. To do this I hold my arms close to my body (obviously), but I also tense all my muscles. I try to slow my breathing, and breathe out only through my nose.
I did this as we walked to the skating rink, getting stares from the Mongolians. To them there is nothing interesting about cold. It's just cold.
We got to the rink and put on our skates. I checked my watch: 8 minutes. I was happy to see that I could still tie my skates easily.
We skated for some time, and I kept going until I stopped feeling cold. This is the interesting thing: if you feel cold then there isn't much of a problem. Once you stop feeling cold it's time to quit.
I crossed the rink to where my coat was, slowly. Oddly enough I still had normal fine motor control, but I was losing the ability to move or think quickly. I crossed the rink as fast as I could, which at this point was a jogging pace. I then put on my coat and looked at my watch. I had started at 8:27. It was now 8:49. How long was that? I tried to think but couldn't. It was odd. After about 30 seconds I finally figured it out, but that was enough to demonstrate how much one's brain slows down in the cold. Still, 22 minutes with wind chills in the -20's isn't bad. I think if I had done stationary exercises instead of rushing around a skating rink I would have gone much longer. In either case, I'm not going to do it again.

Part two (about religion and stuff)_______________________

Because of the blowing wind a fine layer of snow had settled on the skating rink, shifting across the ice in crescent patterns like mini sand dunes. I asked Dolgontengis ("Calm Sea", one of the students) if he knew what a snow angel was. "Angel?" he said quizzically. I lay down and made a snow angel on the ice. "AAAAAh" he said, recognising it. He then went over to where the angels head should be and spun to a stop, drawing a neat circle. "This angel's head" he said. He then skated around, and came back over the head he had drawn. "Now I run over angel's head" he said, laughing.
I wondered briefly if I should be angered or insulted by this. I quickly decided not to be, since he had not intended to anger or insult me. Still, it got me thinking (sort of, my mind was still a bit numb). Why do we get angry when someone shows disrespects for our religious values or icons? Granted, a snow angel is more children's play than grand religious symbol, but the question still stands.

I just took off my belt. It's been getting to me over the course of the day.

This would not be odd, except that I'm currently wearing a del. Traditionally, a man is only supposed to wear his del without a belt if he is mourning his recently deceased wife, or showing empathy for someone else who is. A belt is a man's pride, and should not be crumpled or allowed to touch the ground. This is reflected in the fact that men were (and sometimes still are) called boostay, or "with a belt", and women are called boosgwee, or "without a belt" (even though women usually wear belts too).

Writing this just made me feel guilty, oddly enough. I folded my belt.

If a strongly traditional Mongolian came in here and saw me without my belt, would it be okay for him to think I was disrespecting his culture and values in the same way that I wondered about the student running over the head of a snow angel?

Some might say no, because the belt does not represent something as significant as a messenger from God. This may or may not be true, I am not familiar enough with Mongolian culture. Many of the things that are taboo in Mongolian culture are taboo because of lingering animistic beliefs, which say that everyday items such as a stove or a thresh hold should be treated with respect because of how they relate to the spirit of the family, or fire, or.... You get the idea. It's really hard to find out exactly what something is considered holy for, partly because Mongolian religious beliefs have been influenced by several religions and partly because Communism tried to make them forget their beliefs entirely.

I have a really hard time sticking to a point... where was I? Religious values and icons.

Do we have the right to feel that we must defend our God when someone insults our religious values in this way?

Let's take the most powerful, universal imagery in Christianity: the cross, and consider this.

Most Protestant denominations do not use crucifixes, but I think that most would agree they do not approve of the idea of someone desecrating one. Moreover, if someone desecrated a crucifix with the expressed intention of showing disrespect to God, I believe most Christians (Protestant OR Catholic) would feel some anger and hatred for that person.

Why?

The anger comes from two things: that they are showing disrespect for the cross itself (with the sacrifice it represents), and the fact that they are showing disrespect for Christ on it.

To the first, the cross is a symbol of Christ's sacrifice and love for humanity. However, it is also a symbol of a torturous death. It seems to me that the thing which MAKES it a symbol is the fact that so many people associate it with unconditional love and redemption, not that God himself has any special love of the object. Therefore, the person who insults the cross is not showing any more disrespect for God than he was BEFORE he insulted the cross, he is just demonstrating the disrespect he already had to the people around him.
To the second, showing disrespect directly to God, I would like to quote what Christ himself said on the cross: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do". You may say "Oh, but modern people know exactly what they are doing!"
That may or not be. A person who does not have a personal relationship with Christ knows him only by the actions of Christians. Showing disrespect for what is reflected in the actions of Christians is not, in my opinion, blasphemy, because Christians are human, and are therefore imperfect mirrors.

In short, you don't know. In either case, if you did know the best thing you could do to defend your beliefs would be to NOT show or feel hatred, don't you think?

So how about something less concrete, like marriage?

I say the same thing applies to marriage. Marriage is both a relationship and a symbol ordained (ordered and created) by God. A relationship is defined by how two people interact, not by whether or not some gays choose to dress up. A symbol is defined by the ideas that it is intended to represent, which are held in the minds of the people who believe in it. Again, it's value cannot be affected by whether or not some gay people choose to dress up.
Because of these things I say that there is no need for Christians to defend their religion by outlawing things such as gay marriage, or the desecration of other religious symbols. True, God is being disrespected and disobeyed, but only in the same way that all sin shows disobedience and lack of respect. The real difference is that with the desecration of symbols YOU and your values are being disrespected, and I think you can learn to take it.

Gays adopting, now that's a different topic.

-cue the fire blasts from right and left-