A Visually Contextualized Reflection on a Hindu Festival

Last week I posted about the 2012 Dashain Prayer Book produced by Cody C. Lorance, which used a rangoli painting of mine on the cover.  As I looked into the Hindu festival of Dashain, I read that it is focused on the goddess Durga.  I confess that I've only lightly researched Dashain, and a related festival in India called Durga Puja, the "largest outdoor art festival on earth" (October 20-24).  Durga Puja takes place during the last several days of Navratri, another Hindu festival.

In any case, I think that the main point of each Durga festival is the celebration of the victory of Good over Evil, in the form of the Durga's victory over the evil buffalo demon Mahishasura.  Unfortunately, this celebration of Good conquering Evil is ironic because it is spiritually a very dark and oppressive time when idols are fervently worshipped and the Giver of Life is unknown or ignored.

Seeing this image of Durga slaying the buffalo demon reminded me of another Hindu-style painting I once did called Jesus' Work on the Cross:

Jesus' Work on the Cross

I have no idea how this painting would be interpreted by Hindus, but my intent was to show the purpose of Jesus' sacrifice for our sins without simply showing him nailed to the cross.  And besides, the image of Jesus kicking Satan's tail has always been a favorite subject of mine!  Here Jesus spears Satan through the neck, effectively "crushing his head," while Satan "strikes" Jesus in the heel (Genesis 3:15).  Jesus wears a crown that symbolizes his divine kingship over heaven and earth.  The flaming halo around his head symbolizes the presence of the Holy Spirit upon him.

This image depicts the ultimate triumph of Good over Evil through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, who is motivated by his love for a lost world.  He didn't simply slay a demon; he defeated the King of the demons!  Of course, I suppose that it is Jesus' resurrection that confirmed his victory over Satan and Death, but that will have to wait for another painting.

2012 Dashain Prayer Book

Cody C. Lorance, the Senior Pastor and Church Planting Leader for Trinity International Baptist Mission, has posted a 2012 Dashain Prayer Book.  Cody's book encourages Nepalese and other Christians to "ask God to fill our lives with his Holy Spirit and to produce the Spirit's fruit in us."  He writes:

Dashain is the greatest festival of Nepal. In this time we Bhutanese-Nepali devotees offer prayer during nine days. Every family should pray that the Holy Spirit would come into their homes. What do we need in life? All people need the nine fruit of the Holy Spirit. This small book will guide you during the Dashain-Navaratri prayer season. In this way, you may receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Because when we pray in the name of Lord Jesus, God the Father will hear us!

In addition, Cody used one of my paintings for the cover!  The painting is a cross-shaped design called a rangoli, which is a decorative design "made on the floors of living rooms and courtyards during Hindu festivals. [A rangoli is] meant to be sacred welcoming [area] for the Hindu deities" (Wikipedia).  This one shows the pierced feet of Jesus in the middle, welcoming Him into one's home.  Cody uses rangolis in some of his contextualized church rituals.