Every religion is replete with mysteries. There are innumerable anecdotes of mystery in all religions. Religion is often conceived of as contradictory to science. But our deep-delved searching into the purposes of both religion and science makes us discover that both have similar purposes. Both religion and science strive for unearthing some hidden secrets of life and the universe. Only the modalities of searching the truths are different. Science unfurls the truths through experiments in laboratory or in the big laboratory of the universe with the help of necessary instruments and religion unfurls the truths through a very extraordinary process of thinking and rethinking, judging and re-judging different speculations, faiths and beliefs in the peculiar laboratory of the mind. A strange thought pre-occupied my mind the other day as I just cast my glance at the beautiful sights of the decorative disposition of the city of Kohima on the approach of Christmas. Every year Christmas comes in winter. While the bodies shiver inside the wind-cheating jackets, cold-fighting foot-wears and dew-cheating caps, the minds of all revelling believers jump up in extreme warmth of joy at the advent of Christmas.
Yes, it is generally believed that Lord Jesus Christ appeared on this earth on 25th December in order to save mankind from the committed sins. That is why, 25th December is believed to be a holy day and is celebrated as Christmas by all believers. December meets winter season in almost all the countries of the globe. Why Jesus Christ came to this earth in winter? Is it a plan of God or a coincidence? Isn’t a great mystery? An eager searching into the answer to this question will stimulate a host of thoughts in the minds of all believers and will concretise their beliefs in the strength of religion. Even the non-believers will also change their perspectives. Yes, it’s, of course, a great mystery. In the core of the mystery there lie certain easily explicable truths which can be dug out only by our profound belief. Winter figuratively stands for ageing, mutability, pains, sufferings, sorrows and miseries. Nature also wears a bleak and prosaic look in winter. Trees and plants shed their leaves. Spring season comes as the saviour. God sent His angel Jesus Christ when winter prevailed in the mind of mankind. It is believed that God sends some saviours when He finds that mankind is in troubles and goodness is dominated by evil. The Geeta, a Hindu scripture asserts that whenever religion is at stake, some incarnations of God come to this land to empower goodness and uproot evils.
Jesus Christ appeared on the earth when the lives of men were inflicted with sufferings, torments, sorrows and miseries. The peace bade goodbye to this earth. It was just like the winter season. All humans were sinners. They were groaning in the abysmal darkness of vice, evil and ignorance. Vice prevailed everywhere. Virtue was nowhere. All good things of life decayed. It was a spiritual winter. A great necessity of a saviour who could liberate the sinners from their sins was felt everywhere. At that very juncture Jesus Christ took His birth in a mysterious way. It was the month of December. It was winter season. Symbolically it was winter in the minds of man. Jesus Christ embraced crucifixion only to save mankind. He cleansed the sinners at the cost His life. All evils were gone from the earth. Everything was new again.
Every year Christmas is celebrated in winter in glorification of the greatness of Christ. Are winter and Christmas coincidental or a divine plan? My personal conviction is that it is a fantastic divine plan. I am not applying any scientific formula to establish my view, but I am applying the formula of my faith and belief. It was a divine plan to send Jesus to the earth with an assignment to cleanse the minds of the sinners. God Himself chose the month of December and the season of winter to send the angel to the earth. The natural setting of winter is also bleak and morose. A close affinity lies between nature and man. It was believed by William Wordsworth and many other poets and thinkers. The dew drops are tears and fog is the blur created by the tears in the Nature’s eyes. At the sight of man’s sufferings, even Nature shed tears. The state of tearful eyes of Nature is winter season. If we believe that there is telepathy between Nature and Man, then we shall surely believe that when mankind was in troubles, Nature was also not in peace. Jesus came in winter as His coming was a necessity at that very time. His advent is celebrated as Christmas. Winter and Christmas are, thus, inter-related. Therefore, winter and Christmas are not coincidental. As we start feeling winter, we also start feeling Christmas fervour. Approach of winter heralds approach of Christmas. With the arrival of Christmas, all prejudices, ill-feelings, evils of the minds are washed away. Minds become clean. Clean and fresh human relation starts. New zeal, new enthusiasm, new spirit, new hope, and new expectation are born in the minds.
Christmas tree is also very significant here. Christmas tree is an evergreen tree. It symbolises the undying, unshakable, immutable and indomitable happiness that Christmas brings to our life despite all pains, sorrows and mutability. Let’s have the faith that whenever the pains and sufferings of the winter season come to our life, Jesus will also look upon us and save us from all adversities. Any moment adversities may come to our life, any moment Jesus may become our saviour. We may enjoy the thrill of Christmas in all the moments of our spiritual winter. Only thing we need is sincere faith and belief.
Yes, it is generally believed that Lord Jesus Christ appeared on this earth on 25th December in order to save mankind from the committed sins. That is why, 25th December is believed to be a holy day and is celebrated as Christmas by all believers. December meets winter season in almost all the countries of the globe. Why Jesus Christ came to this earth in winter? Is it a plan of God or a coincidence? Isn’t a great mystery? An eager searching into the answer to this question will stimulate a host of thoughts in the minds of all believers and will concretise their beliefs in the strength of religion. Even the non-believers will also change their perspectives. Yes, it’s, of course, a great mystery. In the core of the mystery there lie certain easily explicable truths which can be dug out only by our profound belief. Winter figuratively stands for ageing, mutability, pains, sufferings, sorrows and miseries. Nature also wears a bleak and prosaic look in winter. Trees and plants shed their leaves. Spring season comes as the saviour. God sent His angel Jesus Christ when winter prevailed in the mind of mankind. It is believed that God sends some saviours when He finds that mankind is in troubles and goodness is dominated by evil. The Geeta, a Hindu scripture asserts that whenever religion is at stake, some incarnations of God come to this land to empower goodness and uproot evils.
Jesus Christ appeared on the earth when the lives of men were inflicted with sufferings, torments, sorrows and miseries. The peace bade goodbye to this earth. It was just like the winter season. All humans were sinners. They were groaning in the abysmal darkness of vice, evil and ignorance. Vice prevailed everywhere. Virtue was nowhere. All good things of life decayed. It was a spiritual winter. A great necessity of a saviour who could liberate the sinners from their sins was felt everywhere. At that very juncture Jesus Christ took His birth in a mysterious way. It was the month of December. It was winter season. Symbolically it was winter in the minds of man. Jesus Christ embraced crucifixion only to save mankind. He cleansed the sinners at the cost His life. All evils were gone from the earth. Everything was new again.
Every year Christmas is celebrated in winter in glorification of the greatness of Christ. Are winter and Christmas coincidental or a divine plan? My personal conviction is that it is a fantastic divine plan. I am not applying any scientific formula to establish my view, but I am applying the formula of my faith and belief. It was a divine plan to send Jesus to the earth with an assignment to cleanse the minds of the sinners. God Himself chose the month of December and the season of winter to send the angel to the earth. The natural setting of winter is also bleak and morose. A close affinity lies between nature and man. It was believed by William Wordsworth and many other poets and thinkers. The dew drops are tears and fog is the blur created by the tears in the Nature’s eyes. At the sight of man’s sufferings, even Nature shed tears. The state of tearful eyes of Nature is winter season. If we believe that there is telepathy between Nature and Man, then we shall surely believe that when mankind was in troubles, Nature was also not in peace. Jesus came in winter as His coming was a necessity at that very time. His advent is celebrated as Christmas. Winter and Christmas are, thus, inter-related. Therefore, winter and Christmas are not coincidental. As we start feeling winter, we also start feeling Christmas fervour. Approach of winter heralds approach of Christmas. With the arrival of Christmas, all prejudices, ill-feelings, evils of the minds are washed away. Minds become clean. Clean and fresh human relation starts. New zeal, new enthusiasm, new spirit, new hope, and new expectation are born in the minds.
Christmas tree is also very significant here. Christmas tree is an evergreen tree. It symbolises the undying, unshakable, immutable and indomitable happiness that Christmas brings to our life despite all pains, sorrows and mutability. Let’s have the faith that whenever the pains and sufferings of the winter season come to our life, Jesus will also look upon us and save us from all adversities. Any moment adversities may come to our life, any moment Jesus may become our saviour. We may enjoy the thrill of Christmas in all the moments of our spiritual winter. Only thing we need is sincere faith and belief.
Gopal Talukdar
PGT(English)
JNV, Kohima
