A couple of days ago a 12 ton, 76 feet high Norway Spruce at
Rockefeller Center in NYC lit up with
45,000 lights. The tree lighting event
at Rockefeller Center started in 1933.
But the Christmas tree event goes
back to when it was introduced to English high society by Prince Albert who put
up an evergreen for the holidays in Windsor Castle in 1841. It had been a pre
Christian German symbol, and most Christians at that time loathed the idea of
connecting the tree with Christmas. But within 10 years the fanciful custom
took root in England and by the end of the 1800’s it also become an established
tradition in America with Woolworths stores selling Christmas tree decorations
and all.
The tree seems to be a universal symbol in religious and
cultural traditions around the world. In Judaism the Torah is referred to as the Tree of Life.
The Torah is likened to the branches of a great tree spreading into the sphere
of our lives, and it calls upon us to make every act an act for God.
In Buddhism the Buddha attained enlightenment sitting
beneath a tree. At one point in his meditation when he was assailed by raging
storms and other strange occurrences, a divine serpent arose from the roots of
the Bodhi tree to protect him.
Nearly a thousand years ago on this continent, Deganawidah,
known as the Peace Maker, called for a great council by the shores of Lake
Onondaga. There, he carefully uprooted a Pine tree and urged all of the
warriors from the gathered tribes to throw their weapons into the hollow of the
earth. Then the tree was replanted over the weapons. The tree (the Tree of the
Long Leaves) became known as the Tree of Peace. Thus the Great Peace was
declared and the five nations of the Iroquois was established.
500 years ago Caitanya Mahaprabhu implored us to be as
tolerant as the tree which patiently endures the rain and cold and heat. Another
time, Caitanya declared to his followers
“As a large fig tree bears fruit all over its body, the tree of devotion to
Krishna also bears fruit, and when that fruit ripens it becomes as sweet as
nectar. All the wealth in the world cannot purchase even one such fruit of
devotion. I request everyone to accept this Krishna consciousness and take it
everywhere. I am the only gardener. How can I
act alone? How many places can I go? How many fruits can I pick and
distribute? It is certainly very difficult for Me, alone. So all of you
must take this fruit of loving devotion to God and give it away freely to all people, in all directions,
all over the world. Do not consider who is fit or unfit, whether people ask for
it or not. Let people eat these fruits and become free from old age and death.”
Symbols of spirituality and peace from whatever tradition
can surely be revered by all.
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