Spiritual Symbolism in the Number 7 Seven

The Seventh Chakra, the Thousand-Petal Lotus, is located at the crown of the head. It symbolizes spiritual states of consciousness and connection to spiritual or universal energies.

African:

Seven candles are lit in the kinara during the African-American celebration of Kwanzaa, which is a seven-day holiday.

British/Celtic (Druid):

Seven Chieftain Trees sacred to the Druids were Oak, Hazel, Apple, Holly, Yew, Ash and Pine. Penalty for removal: one cow.

Seven Common Trees were also protected and carried a penalty for removal: Alder, Willow, Birch, Elm, Aspen, "Idhadh," and Mountain Ash.

Seven each of shrub and bramble trees were protected, too.

(All these trees and shrubs were protected by Brehon Law of Ireland.)

Buddhist:

Buddha walked 7 steps at his birth.

Christian:

The number of churches of Asia to which the "Book of Revelation" is addressed.

The number of the Seven Virtues: Chastity, Moderation, Liberality, Charity, Meekness, Zeal, and Humility, corresponding to the seven deadly sins.

The number of sacraments in the Roman Catholic faith, and most reformed traditions.

Daoist:

The Stellar Sovereigns of the Five Planets and Seven Stars are seven Daoist deities. The Five Planets are the Year Star (Jupiter)1, the Sparkling Deluder (Mars)2, the Grand White Star (Venus)3, the Chronographic Star (Mercury)4, and the Quelling Star (Saturn)5. Together with the sun and moon, they are called the Seven Stars. Daoism worships the Seven Stars as spirits and calls them Stellar Sovereigns.

Also important to Daoists is the seven stars of the Big Dipper. "In the process of conducting Daoist Magical Skills, the ritual master often recites incantations with his mouth, making Finger Gestures with his hands, and Pacing the Big Dipper with his feet. Making Finger Gestures and Pacing the Big Dipper are two kinds of major physical movements of the ritual master as he conducts Magical Skills." Taoist Culture & Information Center

Egyptian:

The number of palms in an Egyptian Sacred Cubit.

Greek:

the Ancient Greeks considered seven to be a potent number due to the chanting of the seven vowels of their alphabet as magical sounds. There are several spells and incantations revealed in The Greek Magical Papyri In Translation: Including the Demotic Spells edited by Hans Dieter Betz that include the chanting of A, E, E with a line on top, I, O, U (written Y), and O in various orders for various reasons. (Alpha, Epsilon, Eta, Iota, Omicron, Upsilon, and Omega.) It is possible that chanting the vowels in a particular pattern or order caused a shift in consciousness much like the chanting of "Om." In one spell which seeks the attention of the god, the vowels and sounds each also corresponded to a direction; the priest was to chant or sing each sound while pointing his palms into the directions of east, west, north, south, up (sky/heaven), down (earth), and the final vowel was sung while holding one's hands over one's heart for Center.

Hindu:

Hindu mythology defines fourteen worlds (not to be confused with planets) - seven higher worlds (heavens) and seven lower ones (hells). [There is still one Earth ~M~]

Lord Brahma, out of his thought, creates seven sages, or Sapta Rishis, to help him in his act of creation. Sapta Rishis (sapta means seven and rishis means sages in Sanskrit). They are Bhrigu, Angira, Atri, Gautama, Kashyapa, Vashishta, and Agastya. The other meaning of Saptarishis is constellation of Great Bear (Ursa Major).

Jainist

Jain Dharma takes the seven Nayas as the basis of its philosophy; and so it comprehends all the Nayas. (Naya means a way of comprehending an object).

1. Naigama Naya (Popular standpoint)

2. Sangraha Naya (Synthetic Standpoint)

3. Vyavahara Naya (Empirical standpoint)

4. Rijusutra Naya (Straight-thread stand point)

5. Sabdanaya (Verbal Standpoint)

6. Samabhirudha Naya (Conventional standpoint

7. Evambhuta Naya (Actualistic standpoint)

To further understand these Nayas, please visit Jinalya.com

Jewish:

God rested on and sanctified the seventh day (Shabbat).

The weekly Torah portion is divided into seven aliyahs, and seven men or boys over the age of 13 are called up for the reading of these aliyahs during Shabbat morning services.

The menorah is a seven branched candelabrum lit by olive oil in the Tabernacle and the Temple in Jerusalem.

Mithraic:

The number of ranks in Mithraism.

Corax (raven)

Nymphus (bridegroom)

Miles (soldier)

Leo (lion)

Perses (Persian)

Heliodromus (sun-courier)

Pater (father)

The titles of the first four ranks suggest the possibility that advancement through the ranks was based on introspection and spiritual growth.

Muslim:

The number of ayat in surat al-Fatiha.

The number of heavens in Islamic tradition.

The number of Earths in Islamic tradition.

Native American: Cherokee

The Seven Ceremonies by Rob Wood (no relation to Yours Truly)

Seven is represented in the seven directions: north, south, east, west, above, below, and "here in the center" (Lewis & Kneberg, p. 175), the place of the sacred fire.

Seven also represented the seven ancient ceremonies that formed the yearly Cherokee religious cycle. Six of the ceremonies took place every year, the seventh was celebrated every seventh year:

First New Moon of Spring Ceremony

Green Corn Ceremony

Ripe Corn Ceremony

Great New Moon Ceremony

"Atohuna" the reconciliation or "Friends Made" ceremony

Bounding Bush Ceremony

Every seventh year the Uku Dance replaced the Great New Moon ceremony

Shinto:

Seven Gods of Fortune:

Ebisu, god of fishers or merchants, often depicted carrying a cod or sea bass.

Daikokuten (Daikoku), god of wealth, commerce and trade. Ebisu and Daikoku are often paired and represented as carvings or masks on the walls of small retail shops.

Bishamonten, god of warriors.

Benzaiten (Benten-sama), goddess of knowledge, art and beauty,especially Music.

Fukurokuju, god of happiness, wealth and longevity.

Hotei, the fat and happy god of abundance and good health.

Jurōjin (Gama), god of longevity.

Sumerian:

Most curious is perhaps the story of Inanna's descent to the underworld. In Sumer the Underworld was not necessarily a place like a 'hell' but it was not a heaven. When humans and heroes died that is where they headed. However based on their behavior they could be afforded better treatment or positions in the underworld.

She abandoned all her offices of power and took her 7 divine powers.

She dressed for the occasion by wearing a turban, a wig, a lapis lazuli necklace, beads upon her breast, the 'pala dress' (the ladyship garment), mascara, pectoral, a golden ring on her hand, and she held a lapis lazuli measuring rod.

She passed through a total of 7 gates each removing a piece of clothing or jewelry she had been wearing at the start of her journey. In Sumerian mythology some forms of burials included burying the deceased with gifts for the gatekeepers and judges of the Underworld to win their favor. Items could also be used as an amulet or protective device so stripping Inanna of each item would leave her more vulnerable to any type of attack.

Zoroastrian

The earth is referred to have seventh regions (Yasna 32:3) or seven quarters (Yasna 57:23).

Seven is the number of the creations and of the Amahraspands who guard them.

The keeping of the seven annual feasts (the six seasonal feasts of five Gahânbârs and the Nowruz) is a regular, solemn, and obligatory act of devotion. The seventh, Nowruz, has "many and varied rites containing the number seven" (Boyce, Stronghold, p. 50)

Tolerance is Social and Political, too!

Tolerance poster courtesy of Living Values Education
(To better read the poster, click on it to open in a full window.)

Here are a few quotes from think exist.com

"Tolerance is giving to every other human being every right that you claim for yourself." Robert Green Ingersoll quotes (American Statesman and Orator, noted for his broad range of culture and his defense of atheism. 1833-1899)

"When you find peace within yourself, you become the kind of person who can live at peace with others." Peace Pilgrim quotes (American Teacher and Spiritual leader and Peace Prophet, 1908-1981)

"You have your way. I have my way. As for the right way, the correct way, and the only way, it does not exist." Friedrich Nietzsche quotes (German classical Scholar, Philosopher and Critic of culture, 1844-1900.)

"The test of courage comes when we are in the minority. The test of tolerance comes when we are in the majority." Ralph W. Sockman quotes

"In the practice of tolerance, one's enemy is the best teacher." Dalai Lama quotes (Head of the Dge-lugs-pa order of Tibetan Buddhists, 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, b.1935)

"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." Aristotle quotes (Ancient Greek Philosopher, Scientist and Physician, 384 BC-322 BC)

"Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others." John Fitzgerald Kennedy quotes (American 35th US President (1961-63), 1917-1963)

"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there." Jalal ad-Din Rumi quotes (Persian Poet and Mystic, 1207-1273)

"If a profound gulf separates my neighbor's belief from mine, there is always the golden bridge of tolerance" Anon.

"Tolerance implies a gratuitous assumption of the inferiority of other faiths to one's own" Mahatma Gandhi quotes (Indian Philosopher, internationally esteemed for his doctrine of nonviolent protest, 1869-1948)

"We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race." Kofi Annan quotes (Ghanaian diplomat, seventh secretary-general of the United Nations, 2001 Nobel Peace Prize.)

"Tolerance can lead to learning something." Jakob Dylan quotes (Rock Star; band Wallflowers?)

Finally, here is a quote from The Living Pulpit

"The first thing we must do is abandon the notion of [America as] a melting pot where people have to give up most of what makes them who they are in order to become what someone else wants them to be. That flies in the face of tolerance." Marvin A. McMickle is Associate Professor of Homiletics at Ashland Seminary in Ashland, Ohio

Incense burning

Many spiritual traditions include the ritual burning of incense, but their reasons are many and varied. Below are excerpts from various internet sources outlining the beliefs from many cultures. When you see ~M~, that indicates a comment written by me.

Ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans

http://landru.i-link-2.net/shnyves/incense_offering.htm

In the ceremonies of [pre-Christian religion] incense had an important part. Its use is mentioned by Ovid and Virgil as a feature of the rites of Roman worship, being probably adopted from the Eastern nations with whom the Romans had come into contact. Among these, especially the Assyrians and Egyptians, it has been known almost from the dawn of history. The carvings of the tombs and temples of Egypt represent kings offering homage to the gods by burning incense in censers much like those used in our Catholic churches at the present day.

The religion of ancient Egypt used incense frequently during temple worship, and when the idol would be moved in procession. In pagan Rome, incense was also used at funerals.

[The use of incense by ancient Mediterranean peoples appears to have been an offering, a purification rite, or both. ~M~]

Baha'i, Buddhist, Gnostic, Hindu

http://www.lifepositive.com/spirit/traditional-paths/rituals/incense.asp

Excerpts from "Wisps of Worship" By Saurabh Bhattacharya

Fragrance has been a dominant factor in Hindu religious rituals since Vedic times. "The essential philosophy of havan (fire ceremony)," says Brahmaprakash, a teacher in Srimad Dayanand Ved Vidyalaya, a gurukul in Delhi, India, "is that man can absorb anything in minuscule form. Havan purifies the atmosphere by releasing fragrant properties of samidha—wood—and samagri—powder of fragrant wood, mixed with aromatic medicinal herbs and ghee. Incense sticks and dhoop are corrupt versions of the havan fire."

The term dhoop, according to Brahmaprakash, originates from the dhoop tree, found in eastern India—whose chips give out a rich fragrance when burnt. But the popular dhoop—black-colored putty—is essentially a mixture of ghee, herbs and wood chips. It is, in effect, a miniature form of havan.

The relation between incense and havan fire is qualified by Ameeta Mehra of the Gnostic Center, India, thus: "Incense purifies the atmosphere like havan fire. But it works through the power of fragrance which is not so much the mainstay of Vedic ritual as the domain of flowers that have deep spiritual connotations in Hindu philosophy." Incense brands are often named after flowers.

"Incense sticks," says Mehra, "are made by extracting the perfume of sacred wood and flowers. Their aim is to make the atmosphere congenial for spiritual contemplation."

"When I light an incense stick and offer it to God," states Mehra. "I symbolize my aspiration to burn with that fire and fragrance. I am, in effect, offering my Self to the Divine."

Incense is considered an excellent ally to meditation. The archetypal image of a meditating sadhu has a bunch of incense sticks burning near him. As Michael Talbot writes in his book Your Past Lives: "Perhaps one of the most ancient techniques for creating a meditative atmosphere is the burning of incense... For many, a gentle and pleasant fragrance is as lulling a 'backdrop' to meditation as soft music."

Explains Brahmaprakash: "Because fragrance purifies the physical environment, the individual feels that, as part of the environment, he is also being purified. Psychologically, he reads a basic physical purification as a spiritual one. In the process, the person transfers himself into another world where meditation is easier."

However, Dr A.K. Merchant, a Baha'i, feels that burning incense has stronger spiritual undertones. "Humans love aroma," he says. "You burn the incense you like before the deity. By doing so, you express the urge to share your likes with your god. At the same time, you contribute a little bit of your individuality to a place of worship."

None of the extant religions give as much emphasis to the use of incense as Tibetan Buddhism where it has transcended mere ritualistic fumigation and gained a respectable medicinal status. "Tibetan Buddhism considers spirits as ethereal neighbors who are there for your benefit," says Dr T. Dolkar Khangkar, a Delhi-based Tibetan medicine practitioner in India. "Hence, incense sticks are the means to keep a good relation with them."

Incense was unknown in early Buddhism, which was opposed to external ritual. But, in time, its use became more general. To quote from the Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics:

"It is used in the initiation of a monk; it is offered to the good spirits and lamas in the daily cult of the monasteries; it is used in exorcisms, in baptisms, and other ceremonies; it is burned in censers before the lamas at the performance of religious dramas, or in shrines."

Christian and Jewish

http://landru.i-link-2.net/shnyves/incense_offering.htm

The mystical meaning of incense is not difficult to comprehend. By its burning it symbolizes the zeal with which the faithful should be animated; by its sweet fragrance, the odor of Christian virtue; by its rising smoke, the ascent of prayer before the throne of the Almighty. As St. John tells us in the Apocalypse, or Book of Revelations: "The smoke of the incense of the prayers of the saints ascended before God from the hand of the Angel."

[Also, incense creates a cloud. A cloud is a symbol for God the Father. For example at the Transfiguration, Matt. 17:5, a cloud appears and from it comes the Voice of God. In Acts 1:8 Jesus enters a cloud. Also in Exodus, the people are lead by a pillar of cloud, Exod. 13:22; and in Exodus 40:34 the cloud settled on the meeting tent and the glory of the Lord filled it. Thus the cloud of incense should remind us of God whose presence is revealed by a cloud.]

Exod. 30:7-8. "Aaron shall offer fragrant incense on it; every morning when he dresses the lamps he shall offer it, and when Aaron sets up the lamps in the evening, he shall offer it, a regular incense offering before the LORD throughout your generations."

Exod. 30:34 -37. "The LORD said to Moses: Take sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense (an equal part of each), and make an incense blended as by the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy; and you shall beat some of it into powder, and put part of it before the covenant in the tent of meeting where I shall meet with you; it shall be for you most holy. When you make incense according to this composition, you shall not make it for yourselves; it shall be regarded by you as holy to the LORD."

Daoist, Shinto

http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jgr6/203/unit04/explicit.htm

"... burning incense in Asia is comparable to a Catholic lighting a vigil candle in the West. It is always a prayer or offering to the divine."

[However, in some places, burning incense also represents purification. ~M~]

Jainist

http://www.newstatesman.com/200701170001

For example, there is the use of light to signify consciousness, the characteristic of the soul, and Enlightenment; a fruit symbolises the ultimate fruit of Moksha itself; burning incense signifies the burning away of Karma.

Muslim

http://muttaqun.com/incense.html

Incense According to Quran and Sunnah

Keeping the Mosques Clean and Scenting Them

Fiqh-us-Sunnah 5.132

Aishah said, "Perfume the Ka'bah, because this is a part of purifying it." Ibn Az-Zubair used to perfume the entire interior of the Ka'bah. He used to burn one pound of incense in the Ka'bah daily, but on Friday, he burnt two pounds of incense.

Fiqh-us-Sunnah 2.71

'Aishah reports that the Prophet ordered that mosques be built in residential areas and that they be cleaned and perfumed. This is related by Ahmad, Abu Dawud, at-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and Ibn Hibban with a good chain. Abu Dawud's wording is: "He ordered us to build the mosques in the residential areas, to build them well, and to purify them. 'Abdullah would burn incense when 'Umar would sit on the pulpit."

Anas reports that the Prophet said: "The rewards of my ummah were placed before me, even for removing a speck of dust from the mosque." This is related by Abu Dawud, at-Tirmidhi, and Ibn Khuzaimah who calls it sahih.

Native American

Many, but not all, Native American Tribes use Smudge (which is from a Middle English word meaning "smokey") instead of traditional incense sticks, cones, or powders. No doubt you have seen batches of braided grasses, often Sweetgrass or Sage. Smudge is what the batches of braided grasses are called, and it also means "to spread or "bathe" with smoke." In Native American spiritual traditions, smudging was done for personal and ceremonial purification, and to make dwellings sweet-smelling. ~M~

Wiccan

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incense

Although many Pagan traditions associtate specific botanical materials with certain magical attributes, those definitions vary widely from one tradition to another. Generally speaking, Neopagans and Wiccans use incense for two basic purposes in modern rituals. First, incense is believed to create a magical atmosphere that is appropriate for the invocation (or inviting) of deities and spirits often present around the Pagan altar. Second, burning the incense is believed to release the large amount of energy stored within natural incense so that it can be used for magical purposes.

Zoroastrian

http://tenets.zoroastrianism.com/short33.html

What are the objects of Zoroastrian rituals and ceremonies?

The first object of Zoroastrian rituals and ceremonies is to purify atmosphere with fire burning with incense, the second is to secure blessings of divine spirits, and the third is to express gratitude to Ahura Mazda for the seasonal bounties bestowed upon mankind.