Freedom and religion

  Photos by PATIL ARMENIAN/Daily Bruin Senior Staff Monks
at the Higashi Hongwanjii Buddhist temple in downtown L.A. begin
their Sunday service earlier this year. Buddhism is practiced in
many parts of the world, including the U.S.

By Janet Chang
Daily Bruin Contributor

Many students may leave home to attend college, but few leave
behind their religion and spiritual beliefs.

For most students, practicing religion means holding on to a
part of their upbringing, helping them navigate through life.

“You go through the different stages of life,” said
Chay Thaopaset, a fourth-year psychology student. “Buddhism
teaches you to be a good person. It helps you through your life
experiences.”

One way students keep up with their religion is by incorporating
prayers and other rituals into their daily lives.

Every weekday, Muslim students gather behind the patio between
Kerckhoff Hall and Ackerman Union for their prayers.

“Most Muslims are scheduled to pray five times a
day,” said Asim Malik, a fourth-year mechanical engineering
student who practices Islam. “There are five specific times
that we are supposed to pray according to the different positions
of the sun.”

Muslim, which refers to a follower of Islam, is an Arabic word
for a person who submits themselves to the Will of God. Now the
second largest religion in the world, Islam was founded by Mohammed
the Prophet.

  Muslim worshippers pray in Kerckhoff Grand Salon on a
Friday afternoon. Students who practice Islam pray five times a
day, and many do on campus. “Every Friday, there is a big
prayer day called Jumu”˜ah,” Malik said. “You get
to hear about the specifications of your religion once a week and
reflect.”

For other students, practicing religion is habitual and lends
structure to life.

Fourth-year physiological science student, Valerie Terrano
attends the University Catholic Center every Sunday for mass.

Terrano also keeps up with Catholicism through daily prayers,
which she said go beyond the rituals and theories of the religion
and lends practical application to her religion.

“I have a personal relationship with God which includes
daily prayers that are simply conversations with Him,”
Terrano said. “I definitely ask for his guidance during those
last minutes before midterms and finals.”

Other students found it more difficult to keep up with the
religious ceremonies in college.

Many students who try to get involved through campus religious
groups sometimes find them to be different from their previous
religious experiences.

“My freshman year, I went to a meeting for a Buddhist
club, but I didn’t really like it,” Thaopaset said.
“There are many types of Buddhism, and they didn’t
appeal to my particular views of Buddhism.”

Buddhism, which originated in Northern India, teaches followers
to live in harmony with nature, others and themselves.

Unlike other religions with a central authority, there is no
supreme authority in Buddhism, meaning there is no one type of
Buddhism.

Each individual can approach Buddhism in his or her own way.

Like other students, Thaopaset said she continues the more
traditional sense of Buddhism, which includes more ritualistic
aspects, because her parents taught her to practice the religion in
that manner.

Though she goes to temple less frequently than in high school,
Thaopaset said going home preserves her connection to Buddhism.

“I usually go the temple when I go home,” she said.
“And that’s usually during the holidays.”

Rebecca Wasserman, a third-year psychology student, also said
her family played a big role in helping her maintain her connection
to Judaism.

But like Thaopaset, trying to practice her religion in college
proved difficult for her.

“It doesn’t mean the same for me here as it does at
home,” Wasserman said. “I’m not with my
family.

Though she attempted to attend services, the unfamiliarity of
the temple kept her from some of the spiritual aspects she found at
home.

Though Wasserman doesn’t go to temple as often, she said
she still feels connected to Judaism.

“I wish that I was more involved,” Wasserman said.
“But I have friends from other Jewish groups that I
don’t find it to be an issue.”

Despite the hurriedness of college life, some students find
religion embedded in to their life.

Religion isn’t just about the rituals on the holidays or
mass on Sundays. Students don’t just identify themselves with
their religion. It’s an inherent part of them.

“I enjoy the religion. It’s a difficult religion and
it requires a lot of discipline,” Malik said about being
Muslim.It’s as much a part of my life as college is a part of
my life,”

“I think of it as a way of living. It teaches you the
right, virtuous way of living.” Thaopaset said.

For some students, religion is part of their culture.

“Judaism is more than a religion. It’s a culture.
It’s like that for many religions,” Wasserman said.
“There are customs and rituals. It’s more than saying
prayers and observing the holidays. It’s hard to explain.
It’s just a feeling.”

Sometimes, though, identifying oneself with a particular
religion also means dealing with the different stereotypes and
arguments against the religion.

Malik said other students sometimes associates Islam with
religious fanaticism.

“The religion preaches about patience and
tolerance,” he said. “I’m not too crazy about the
activism, and that’s not what it’s about.

“Some radical people are tainting the name of the
religion, when the practice is actually of patience and
tolerance,” Malik continued.