Namaste verse Shaking Hands in the year of Coronavirus

[ShivaFan]

Namaste

I suppose there is little upside to the coronavirus pandemic, the lockdowns, to say the least ... the fear.

But there is an interesting and increasingly popular social phenomenon during these times as an outcome of the pandemic, and that is the use in the "West" of the Indian Namaste with two palms and fingers together rather than the "handshake" when meeting others.

Even leaders such as Trump, Johnson, Trudeau, Prince Charles, i have observed them using the traditional Hindu namaste hand greeting rather than the handshake. And I have seen this now, despite the lockdown, of those practicing social distancing who need or want to greet each other but still maintain 6 feet distance from each other.

Today was an example in my personal life. I live in California in the San Francisco Bay Area and had ordered some groceries for home delivery. In this case from a grocery called Sprouts. The actual delivery person was from Instacart.

In this case the delivery person was a girl in her 20's. I want to emphasuze, she was not of Indian origin. She was a typical American girl, Caucasian, dressed not in Hindu attire but your typical colourful shirt and jeans, hair tied back in a pony tail.

I knew she arrived because their route is shown on a smartphone app, so I was on my porch waiting when she pulled up in her Prius. She got out of her car, wearing gloves, I told her that she could just place the grocery bags on the sidewalk side rather than coming to the door.

She smiled, placed the bags down, and I said from the distance, "Thank you, and have a SAFE DAY!" ...

She then put her hands together in Namaste posture and said, "Thank you, and You Too!"

Wow. I then put my hands together and said "Namaste!" ...

She smiled again, turned and then drove away.

Namaste!

 

[Aupmanyav]

Namaste or the East Asian bowing. Both good.

 

[Secret Chief]

There'll be no bowing with my back.

Gassho.

 

[stvdv]

She then put her hands together in Namaste posture and said, "Thank you, and You Too!"

Wow. I then put my hands together and said "Namaste!" ...

She smiled again, turned and then drove away.

Namaste!

Wonderful experience. Thank you for sharing.
Namaste

 

[Aupmanyav]

There'll be no bowing with my back.

No problem. You have the Indian alternative.

 

[Secret Chief]

No problem. You have the Indian alternative.

I do?

 

[Jainarayan]

The handshake is obsolete anyway, a relic of the time when you had to make sure the person you were meeting did not have a knife or dagger “up their sleeve”. It started by each person grabbing the other’s forearm.

The military salute is said to originate with knights raising their helmet’s visor. Klinking gkssses was supposedly to pour a bit of the drink into each other’s drinking vessel to show they weren’t poisoning each other.

These may be urban legends but everything has some basis in fact.

 

[SalixIncendium]

In the restaurant business, when meeting new team members that my managers have hired, it's tradition to do an elbow bump since the team member's hands are washed, sanitized, and gloved.

There'll be no bowing with my back.

Gassho.

It needn't be a deep bend. A simply bowing gesture with palms pressed together suffices in my experience.

The greeting should certainly not be followed with a "help me up."

 

[Secret Chief]

In the restaurant business, when meeting new team members that my managers have hired, it's tradition to do an elbow bump since the team member's hands are washed, sanitized, and gloved.



It needn't be a deep bend. A simply bowing gesture with palms pressed together suffices in my experience.

The greeting should certainly not be followed with a "help me up."

It will be more in spirit than action, to avoid an Anglo-Saxon follow-up.

 

[Shrew]

Interestingly in India they have a method to drink without touching the cup with the mouth.
That way several people can drink from one cup without risk of infection.

 

[Vinayaka]

In the restaurant business, when meeting new team members that my managers have hired, it's tradition to do an elbow bump since the team member's hands are washed, sanitized, and gloved.



It needn't be a deep bend. A simply bowing gesture with palms pressed together suffices in my experience.

The greeting should certainly not be followed with a "help me up."

In the Hinduism I know there is no bowing at all. Everyone stays standing straight. Bowing is more a Buddhist or Confucianism thing.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Either standing straight or lying straight (sashtanga), Vinayaka!
Not really, touching the feet of parents, elders, teachers (spiritual or otherwise) or anyone we respect for any reason is considered a privilege because it will not be available all the time. Similarly a hand place on head by similar people also is a privilege and blessing. Gratefulness is much appreciated.

 

[ajay0]

In Hinduism, Namaste means "I bow to the divine in you".


The Divine here means Brahman or pure consciousness which is within all beings.

This pure consciousness is considered to be auspicious ( in contrast to impure consciousness filled with cravings/aversions), and the namaste salute is performed as a spiritual exercise to purify our own consciousness by perceiving the same in others.


Saluting enlightened sages and saints in this regard is considered highly auspicious as well as the consciousness gets purified.

This is the theory behind Namaste and it is not just a mere formal greeting.

 

[SalixIncendium]

In Hinduism, Namaste means "I bow to the divine in you".


The Divine here means Brahman or pure consciousness which is within all beings.

This pure consciousness is considered to be auspicious ( in contrast to impure consciousness filled with cravings/aversions), and the namaste salute is performed as a spiritual exercise to purify our own consciousness by perceiving the same in others.


Saluting enlightened sages and saints in this regard is considered highly auspicious as well as the consciousness gets purified.

This is the theory behind Namaste and it is not just a mere formal greeting.

Can you please offer up a citation that references this as a greeting to the divine in another?

Yes, I acknowledge that each of us is divine in the sense that we are Brahman (check local listings), but in researching the etymology of 'namaste,' it appears to me that it comes from the Sanskrit term 'namas' (bow) and 'te,' which is the singular of 'taum,' (you). Aside from your statement above, I haven't seen a reference to greeting the divine in another.

"1948, "salutatory gesture made by bringing the palms together and bowing," from Hindi, from Sanskrit namas "bowing" (from namas- "obeisance," from PIE root *nem- "assign, allot; take") + te, dative of tuam "you" (singular). Attested as a word of greeting by 1967."

namaste | Origin and meaning of namaste by Online Etymology Dictionary​

 

[Aupmanyav]

Salix, there is no one to greet in Parmarthika (Absolute reality). All this greeting and cursing happens only in Vyavaharika (Lesser reality).
The word is 'Namah' (Bowing). Now Namah when combined with another word Kara/Kuru (doing, create) becomes Namaskarah/namaskaram (in South India) according to Sanskrit grammar rules. A similar word will be 'Vachaspati' (Vachah + pati = Speak + the Lord of). Very common.

In Hinduism, it means (Aup. - by extension) "I bow to the divine in you".[1]
Namaste - Wikipedia

Representations: Excavations for Indus Valley Civilization have revealed many male and female terracotta figures in Namaste posture. These archaeological findings are dated to be between 3000 BCE to 2000 BCE.

Lastly, in Tamil, for Vinayaka's interest, Namaste is known as Vanakkam which is derived from the root word vanangu meaning to bow or to greet.

 

[Vinayaka]

'Namaste' isn't the only greeting in India, or in Hinduism. It is the one that's been popularised in western appropriation.

 

[SalixIncendium]

Salix, there is no one to greet in Parmarthika (Absolute reality). All; this greeting and cursing happens only in Vyavaharika (Lesser reality).
May be continued after my grandson has done his thing.

Indeed. Who is it that one would be greeting in Paramartika except for oneSelf (Brahman)?

 

[Aupmanyav]

Interestingly in India they have a method to drink without touching the cup with the mouth.
That way several people can drink from one cup without risk of infection.

That is true, and there is nothing more satisfying than that when it comes to drinking water.

My preferred way (from Rajasthan/Desert, I hardly spill a drop, and you don't need to clean the glass), the other Indian way (I can't drink that way)

 

[ajay0]

Can you please offer up a citation that references this as a greeting to the divine in another?

Yes, I acknowledge that each of us is divine in the sense that we are Brahman (check local listings), but in researching the etymology of 'namaste,' it appears to me that it comes from the Sanskrit term 'namas' (bow) and 'te,' which is the singular of 'taum,' (you). Aside from your statement above, I haven't seen a reference to greeting the divine in another.

"1948, "salutatory gesture made by bringing the palms together and bowing," from Hindi, from Sanskrit namas "bowing" (from namas- "obeisance," from PIE root *nem- "assign, allot; take") + te, dative of tuam "you" (singular). Attested as a word of greeting by 1967."

namaste | Origin and meaning of namaste by Online Etymology Dictionary​

You can check these links...


Namaste - Wikipedia


Learn the Meaning of Namasté


I learnt the meaning when young listening to speeches of genuine Hindu saints and scholars.


Brahman or pure consciousness of an auspicious nature is there within each being.

This becomes impure consciousness of an inauspicious or deluded nature due to impurities in the form of cravings and aversions, and all crimes and vices can be traced back to them.

Pure consciousness is of an eternal nature while these impurities of cravings/aversions have a beginning and an end. The focus of all spiritual exercise is to remove the vasanas that beget them.

 

[ShivaFan]

I bow often in temples or to Guru "chairs" in temples, to feet of various Savants, Teachers, Yogis, Sadhvis, etc. Etc ... and these are even sometimes full stretched bows with arms stretched and in namaste. But sometimes, just on knees and head bow - I guess it depends on the level of "respect" or "obeisance" I think is from within to another etc etc though who am I to know who deserves less or more but usually my sense and respectfulness is spot on and appropriate.

For example, many Sadhvis are asking me to come to their home or ashram or temple in India, and of these I would certainly give full bow and hope to also touch their feet and even desire they put tilak or mark on my head.

Now that is another interesting aspect of discussion. How messengers of Dharma - example these wonderful Sadhvis (female teachers) will put mark on your third eye area after you "greet" them or bow or namaste etc etc .. almost like being given a level of respect or "blessing" in return. Such moments are truly estatic! Wow! Like shakti hitting your "body".

But I guess that isn't "social distancing", is it?