HRT3M – Hinduism, Gazes, and Message in a Bottle

Rationale
This lesson focuses on the Hindu concept of murti, or divine images, with a particular emphasis on the religious and cultural meanings of eyes, gazes, and looking,
which are fundamental concepts in worship in Hinduism. The lesson begins with a quick formative full class discussion to activate prior knowledge, a few concepts
delivered using direct instruction, and then the bulk of the lesson shifts to an activity where students will move around to different stations that each offer a
different learning experience in regards to gazes and murti (students visit three of the five stations by the end of class). They record their learning on collaborative
learning logs (the conceit is that they are leaving various “messages in a bottle” for other people stranded on the “islands,” which are the learning stations). The
lesson is fundamentally collaborative in nature; however, the social barrier for entry is low, since students can fully cooperate, or merely respond to written
messages from other students if they prefer to learn relatively independently. This helps to foster initial collaboration skills without demanding full group
participation from all learners.
The assessment tool comes in the form of the three message responses students will write (one at each station). In their first station, they will begin a new message.
At the next two stations, they will respond to the messages that other students started. Each student adds a unique and anonymous name code to their messages so
that the teacher can assess their work but they remain anonymous to each other.

Specific expectations Learning Success criteria Instructional and/or learning strategies Assessment tools
intentions

Strand A: Research Today I will... I will be successful when... Hook (10 minutes) Description
and Inquiry Skills

A3.3: Analyse and Learn about the I can explain the importance of Link to Slideshow Assessment Tools
Interpret Research importance of eyes murti in Hinduism and how it Hinduism - Eyes, Message in a Bottle.pptx
Information and the gaze in relates to eyes and the gaze Recap/Formative Critical Questions (10 minutes) Recap/Formative
A4.3: Clearly Hinduism Use early slides in slidedeck to get a sense of what students understand about Critical Questions
communicate the I can compare the meaning of Hinduism so far in the course and to activate their larger knowledge around eyes For Teacher
results of their Understand about eyes and the gaze in Hinduism to and gazes
inquiries the concept of another religious or cultural Message in a Bottle
murti (divine context (e.g., divine images in Activity
images) Catholicism) For Of
Teacher/Student
Strand D: Sacred Compare eyes and I can think carefully both by Message in a Bottle Activity (55 minutes)
Teachings and gazes to other myself and with others
Principles religious and
cultural contexts I can critically respond to other
D1.3: Describe Introduce Activity (5 minutes)
students’ messages
actions people Practice reflection
perform to fulfil the and collaboration - In “Message in a Bottle,” students imagine that they are stranded on an
expectations of their skills “island.” Each island is a station that includes varied tasks and learning
experiences (see Appendices for each station instructions)
particular belief
- Some stations are academic, some are creative, some ask for interreligious and
tradition intercultural comparisons, some ask for self-reflections
D3.2 Identify and - Students write out their “message” on a sheet that they leave behind at each
explain the purpose station. Their “message” is the task that they complete at each station (make sure
of specific roles to record their anonymous name code on their message
associated with - When they rotate, they go to a new station and find a “message” that a previous
various religions student left behind
and belief traditions
Rotate Through the Stations/Islands (50 minutes)

- Monitor the class for how quickly they can respond to each station (around 15
minutes—students do not need to complete each station to be successful; they
get to choose)
- Ask probing questions and provide help when necessary. Encourage students to
authentically respond to each others’ messages

OCSGEs and Deep Closure (10 minutes)

Learning Concepts

OCSGEs Recap and Sharing Messages (10 minutes)

2. An Effective
- Students who were part of particularly funny or interesting message exchanges
Communicator may share with the class
3. A Reflective, - Share and discuss the most interesting connections students made between the
Creative, and stations
Holistic Thinker - Collect messages
5. A Collaborative
Contributor

Deep Learning
Concepts
Creativity
Critical Thinking
Communication
Collaboration
Differentiation
The lesson is built with the principles of Universal Design for Learning at the forefront. Students have choice regarding which kinds of learning they want to engage in (they
choose three of the five stations, which each ask for a different kind of thinking style: creative art, comparative thinking, reflective thinking, academic analysis, and literary
response). Students can sit, stand, and move around the room. Readings are available on printouts and on Chromebooks for students who need to use text-to-speech software
or translators. Students have the option of collaborating as they go to each station or working independently. Therefore, they can use peer support when desired. The stations
run themselves, so the teacher is free to give personalized support to individual students or small groups who need it.

Rubric
Criteria Not Met Met Exceeds

Message Responses
Demonstrate a Clear
Understanding of Religious
Concepts (murti, Bhagavata
Purana, sacred gazes)

Message Responses
Demonstrate Comparative
Thinking (personal reflections,
interreligious comparisons,
cross-cultural comparisons)

Student Demonstrates
Collaborative Thinking and/or
Behaviour (group cooperation
and/or effortful responses to
other students’ messages)

Appendices: The Stations (or “Islands”)

Station A:
Is Looking Culturally Dependent?

What Are Some Different Cultural Meanings of Looking in Everyday Life?

Possibilities:

· Muse on the subject and explain what you know

· Narrate an experience or memory that tells us about how the meaning of looking or eyes can differ between cultural contexts
Station B:
Draw, Describe, or Copy and Paste Your Ideal Set of Eyes

Possibilities:

· Draw an eye or eyes in whatever art style you prefer

· Narrate a story or experience based around eyes or looking

· Find a drawing, painting, or photo with a striking set of eyes and add it to the ChromeBook

Station C:
How Is the Idea of Looking or Eyes Important to Other Religions? Give Examples.

Possibilities:

· Muse on the subject and explain what you know

· Narrate an experience or memory that tells us about how the meaning of looking or eyes can differ between religions

Station D:
The Story of Krishna Who Shows the Universe from Within His Mouth

From the Bhagavata Purana

One day when Krishna and the other little sons of the cowherds were playing, they reported to his mother, “Krishna has eaten dirt.” His mother took Krishna by the
hand and scolded him, for his own good, and she said to him, seeing that his eyes were bewildered with fear, “Naughty boy, why have you secretly eaten dirt?” Krishna said,
“Mother, I have not eaten. They are all lying. If you think they speak the truth, look at my mouth yourself” “If that is the case, then open your mouth,” she said to the Lord
Hari [Vishnu], the God of unchallenged sovereignty who had in sport taken the form of a human child, and He opened his mouth.

She then saw in his mouth the whole eternal universe, and heaven, and the regions of the sky, and the orbit of the earth with its mountains, islands, and oceans; she
saw the wind, and lightning, and the moon and stars, and the zodiac; and water and fire and air and space itself; she saw the vacillating senses, the mind, the elements, and
the three strands of matter. She saw within the body of her son, in his gaping mouth, the whole universe in all its variety, with all the forms of life and time and nature and
action and hopes, and her own village, and herself. Then she became afraid and confused, thinking, “Is this a dream, or an illusion wrought by a god? Or is it a delusion of
my own perception? Or is it some portent of the natural powers of this little boy, my son? I bow down to the feet of the god, whose nature cannot be imagined or grasped by
mind, heart, acts, or speech; he in whom all of this universe is inherent, impossible to fathom. The god is my refuge, he through whose power of delusion there arise in me
such false beliefs as “I”, “This is my husband”, “This is my son”, “I am the wife of the village chieftain and all his wealth is mine, including these cow-herds and their wives
and their wealth of cattle.”

When the cow-herd’s wife had come to understand the true essence in this way, the lord spread his magic illusion in the form of maternal affection. Instantly the cow-
herd’s wife lost her memory of what had occurred and took her son on her lap.

Question: How does this relate to the theme of “looking”? Notice how his mother reacts to seeing inside of his mouth. What is special about looking at a divine being
vs. looking at an ordinary person? Also, why would the universe be inside of his mouth? How could that even make sense?

Alternative Prompt: Narrate your own story of an encounter with divinity, the cosmos, or a too-powerful experience (e.g., nature) on your deserted island or in your
raft.

Station E:
 GLANCING: VISUAL INTERACTION IN HINDUISM

By Lawrence A. Babb, Department of Anthropology-Sociology, Amherst College

Abstract: In Hinduism great emphasis is given to visual interaction between deity and worshippers. Devotees wish to see and be seen by the gods, and believe that
they will be benefited by doing so. Underlying this belief is a conception of “seeing” as an extrusive flow-of-seeing that brings seer and seen into actual contact. Under the
right circumstances devotees are thereby enabled to take into themselves, by means of vision, something of the inner virtue or power of the deity, including the deity 's own
power of seeing. Evidence in support of this thesis is drawn from three sources: two modern religious movements and a popular religious film.

Let me start by establishing the context of my problem. A fact that is obvious to anyone familiar with Hindu life is that Hindus wish to see their deities. This is,
indeed, a fundamental part of what the worship of a deity's image (murti) is all about. At a minimum one goes to a temple to see, to have the darshan (sight) of, the deity
housed within. Deities sometimes emerge from their temples in procession, as kings and queens might come forth from their palaces, so that they may see and be seen by
their worshipper-subjects.

But if it is clear that Hindus want to see their deities, there is another important point that may be less obvious; Hindus want to be seen by their deities as well.
Perhaps nothing indicates this more clearly than the iconographic importance given eyes. Even the crudest lithic representations of deities are likely to have eyes, if nothing
else in the way of facial features. Eyes, moreover, are associated with the life of the image, so that the consecration of images is, in part, accomplished by the creation or
opening of its eyes. The implication is that if the deity is present, the image sees.

Hindu devotees, then, wish to see the gods; and the gods evidently see their devotees in turn. My question is, what does this mean? What is actually believed to be
going on in these visual exchanges between deities and their human worshippers?

What I shall try to establish is that in the Hindu milieu seeing is believed to have good and bad effects on that which is seen, and that one of the purposes of worship
is to attract to the devotee a deity's benevolent gaze. I shall further suggest that visual interaction between deity and worshipper establishes a special sort of intimacy between
them, which confers benefits by allowing worshippers to “drink” divine power with their eyes, a power that carries with it—at least potentially—an extraordinary and
revelatory “point of view.”

Question: Based off of your reading of this article and your own critical thoughts and experiences, what do you think is going on in these
visual interactions in Hinduism—deities and human worshippers looking at each other? Why might Hindus want to see their deities,
and, in turn, why might they want to be seen by their deities? Optional: What do you think it would be like to engage in this two-way
experience of looking?