♫ Highway to Hell ♫'s definitions

Bokuto

A wooden Japanese sword used for training, usually the size and shape of a katana, but sometimes shaped like other swords, such as the wakizashi and tanto. Bokken is a term synonymous with bokutō in Japan, but is more widely used in the west.

Traditionally, the character Ken is used at the beginning of a word, for terms having to do with the sword, for example in Kendō (way of the sword) and Kenjutsu (art of the sword). In contrast, tō is used primarily as a suffix, for example, in shōtō (short sword) and daitō (long sword). Thus, in Japan, the word bokuto (wood sword) is more commonly used.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ December 3, 2009

Rites of Passage

Prescribed forms of ceremony used to mark and celebrate significant events in the life stages of an individual; birth, puberty, marriage, ordination of a special role, death, etc.

Rites of passage are ritual events that mark a person's progress from one status to another.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ August 4, 2010

Rastafari

Rastafari is a "messianic religio-political movement" that began in the Jamaican slums in the 1920s and 30s. The most famous Rastafari is Bob Marley, whose reggae music gained the Jamaican movement international recognition.

There is significant variation within the Rastafari movement and no formal organization. Some Rastafarians see Rasta more as a way of life than a religion. But uniting the diverse movement is belief in the divinity and/or messiahship of Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie I, the influence of Jamaican culture, resistance of oppression, and pride in African heritage. The Rastafarian lifestyle usually includes ritual use of marijuana, avoidance of alcohol, the wearing of one's hair in dreadlocks, and vegetarianism. Marcus Garvey (1887-1940), is usually credited as the founder of Rastafari and is seen as a 2nd John the Baptist.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ July 18, 2010

Adhan

The adhan (also spelled Athan, Azan, Ezan) is the Islamic call to prayer. The Muslim call to Friday public worship and to the five daily hours of prayer. It is proclaimed by the muezzin, a servant of the mosque chosen for good character, as he stands at the door or side of a small mosque or in the minaret of a large one. The adhan was originally a simple "Come to prayer," but, according to tradition, Muhammad consulted his followers with a view to investing the call with greater dignity. The matter was settled when 'Abd Allah ibn Zayd dreamed that the faithful should be summoned by a crier. The standard Sunnite adhan can be translated as: "Allah is most great. I testify that there is no god but Allah. I testify that Muhammad is the prophet of Allah. Come to prayer. Come to salvation. Allah is most great. There is no god but Allah." The first phrase is proclaimed four times, the final phrase once, and the others twice, the worshipers making a set response to each phrase.

It’s simply a way to alert people when they are busy; that the time for the prayer (“Salah” in Arabic; one of the 5 pillars of Islam) has come. Especially in the Muslim world; because in Islam, the five daily prayers are supposed to be carried out in congregation as much as one can. And so in the old days, before the development of technologies (alarm clocks, mobile phones, etc) that was a fast way to let people know. Recently, in the past fifty years or so, they started using loudspeakers on top of minarets to call the adhan. It’s a beautiful and enchanting sound and it’s just calling people to come and worship.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ May 12, 2010

Ramayana

The epic about the struggles of Rama and his allies in rescuing Sita from the demon Ravana.

The Ramayana tells the story of Rama. Rama is an avatar of the great god Vishnu, incarnated to destroy Ravana, the demon king of Sri Lanka. When Ravana steals Rama’s wife Sita, he goes to retrieve her aided by his brother and the monkey king Hanuman. He rescues Sita and kills Ravana, but when the people question Sita’s honor, he sends her away. This sets a model for the responsibilities of husbands, rulers, and wives.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ August 30, 2010

Osiris

Osiris was king of the gods. His wife Isis was goddess of fertility and magic and their son Horus was the falcon-headed god of the sky. Osiris was sacrificed by his brother Set in a bid to usurp him. Set cut him into pieces and scattered them across Egypt. Isis and Horus found the pieces and restored Osiris to life. Horus remained to rule the Land of the Living and Osiris went to the Underworld to rule the Land of the Dead. The Pharaoh was an incarnation of Horus.

In his original form, a green-skinned man dressed in the raiment of a pharaoh. Following the Legend of Osiris, he appears as a green-skinned man in the form of a mummified pharaoh. He is often depicted wearing the atef crown with a pair of ram horns at its base.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ August 4, 2010

Krishna

In Hinduism and Indian mythology Krishna is the eighth avatar or reincarnation of the god Vishnu. Also Krishna is one of the most popular Hindu gods. Tradition holds that Krishna saw Vishnu in a vision in which the former deity told Krishna to destroy Kamsa son of a demon, a tyrannical ruler of the world. Krishna's mother, Devaki, was Kamsa's half-sister. Kamsa already killed her first six sons because he had been told one of her sons would kill him. Krishna' brother, Devaki's seventh child, Balarama was miraculously saved by Vishnu. Krishna was also saved when exchanged by his parents for the daughter of a herdsman Nanda and his wife Yasoda (the daughter was also a divine being, an incarnation of Maya). With his foster parents Krishna spent a happy life playing boyish pranks and seducing the gopis (cow girls) and other rustic maidens. They found his flute playing irresistible. Legend has it he may have had 16,000 wives. But his favorite was Radha, daughter of his foster father, and his childhood lover, although they did not marry.

According to legend Krishna was not only divine, but heroic as well. He is alleged to have defeated numerous dragons and monsters, and eventually as predicted, killed his half-uncle the tyrannical king Kamsa. In the epic poem 'Mahabharata' he helps the Pandavas against the Kauravas, two families in contention. In the poem Krishna is depicted as divine. Also in the poem he delivers his celebrated oration 'Bhagavad-Gita' on duty and life to the troubled Hero Arjuna, for who he was a charioteer, on the eve of the decisive battle. This speech persuaded Arjuna that it was right to fight against his kinsmen. His "Song of the Adorable One" is one of the great philosophical poems. There are certain parallels between his birth and infancy and that of Christ's which tend to link these two important figures together. In art Krishna is usually portrayed as blue-skinned.

by ♫ Highway to Hell ♫ August 4, 2010