Well, the first post in a newly born blog is always a little bit of a lost, just like a blank wall just waiting for some color or painting. Anyway...today I went to what we call, in Umbanda, "terreiro". This is where we conduct our services - our prayers, development of our "work" (a word we use for our "service").
I don't even know how to start... the "terreiro" is a house, usually simple and in a peaceful atmosphere. There is a separation between the "audience" (us, the people who believe and go to service) and the practitioners (those who conduct the service). The separation is also physical: in this square-shaped room, there are rows of chairs on one side; a small white-wooden "fence" separates the rows of the audience from the area where the practitioners work. There is a curtain, as well, and it resembles the aspect of a theater.
The members who conduct the service all dress white clothes and white shoes (when they are not barefeet). In the back of the service area ("terreiro") there is an altar, with a big Jesus on the top shelf (who is called, in Umbanda, "Oxala", but this will be discussed in the future). There are a few shelves under the big Jesus-Oxala, filled with Catholic saints and entities from African beliefs, such as the "mother of the oceans", our beloved Yemanja. Yemanja is a beautiful figure and the only one in the Umbanda belief system who doesn't have a correspondent Catholic saint (for example, Jesus is Oxala; Mother Mary is Oxum; Saint Sebastian is Oxossi; Saint George is Ogum, etc). There are also images of "pretos velhos" - old black men and women whose representation is that of an old person who had lived as a slave in one of their reincarnations. However, pretos velhos are very enlightened spirits to take this shape as a way of teaching people humility. Sometimes they were doctors, professors, priests and nuns in their previous lives, but they choose to appear to us as old black slaves, from the time of slavery.
Hey, don't get scared: it's not about prejudice at all. I'm jumping ahead of myself. Let me tell you something really important about Umbanda and Spiritism (besides the fact that they are, indeed, different religions, despite the fact that they are both spiritualists beliefs): we all believe in reincarnation and we believe in karma and that our goal is to reach enlightenment through charity, forgiveness and kindness. The only difference is the way to express these beliefs. So, some enlightened spirits choose to appear to us, incarnated spirits (us, living people), as old black slaves because in the time of slavery the Africans and their descendents suffered a great deal of pain and humiliation. Through that test of suffering, many of them became very enlightened because umbandistas and spiritists believe that it is through suffering that we will reach enlightenment.
That is so because we tend to sympathize with what we can relate; if we know pain, we feel compassionate towards others who suffer the same pain. So we can learn through observation or through experience (theoretical method vs. empirical method...); when we are in an incarnation (as this one that you and I are living right now) we go through suffering and it is this suffering that will teach us to be better beings. We may learn or we may not; and we go on creating good and bad karmas (Buddhist word that is used in Spiritism but that also fits Umbanda's beliefs).
Anyway, back to the physical aspect (in this post I'm not going to go through details about the doctrine or how I feel about it. Not yet, at least): we have images of pretos velhos, and caboclos (Native American indians who are also enlightened spirits - same idea as the pretos velhos). There are some herbs and some necklaces of colored beads (there is a reason for every single object in a terreiro). There are also candles and incense and a picture of Jesus. And there is an atmosphere of sacred, of peace. You can breathe it.
We open and close our services with a prayer to God (yes, we believe in one God), which is the "Our Father" prayer (yeah, the same one the Catholics pray! LOL)
Well, for now, this is it. I'll come back with more info...as my Governor says, "I'll be back!!!"
(Forgive me if the post is just about the physical aspectt; it's quite late and I'm somewhat tired. I'll leave the metaphysical aspect and the doctrine for another day.)
