God's creation is full of rich variety. All around us we can behold a tapestry of splendor and wisdom. Difference abounds in God's world - different seasons, different climates, different colors, different fragrances, different fruits and vegetables, different peoples and different ways that people express themselves through music, art, and literature. Looking upon this extraordinary creation, how could we not be astonished by God's diversity? November-December is a very special time of year which displays this diversity.

I recently gave a presentation at one college entitled "Difference Is Beautiful" - and this time of year reminds me all the more of the difference and the beauty. In this 21st century we must use our resources to teach respect for differences, and to learn to understand and honor the differences. November-December is a time of giving and thanksgiving, of prayer, of introspection, of understanding one's roots, of renewal, of faith. I invite you to meditate upon and explore some of the gifts that this sacred season holds for us:

*At this time of year, the Buddha attained enlightenment. He had left behind riches and comforts to wander for six years up and down the Ganges valley, performing great austerities. He decided to abandon such practices and sit quietly beneath the bodhi tree and wait for enlightenment. He sat for 49 days. When he emerged from meditation he gave a discourse on the Eightfold Path - the path of right view, right intention, right effort, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right mindfulness. Let us rejoice for our realizations as we sit beneath our own bodhi trees.

*The heroic Maccabees, greatly out numbered, recaptured the Temple. But all the sacred articles therein had been smashed. Amidst the rubble, they found a remaining flask of oil - enough oil for only one day. But amazingly, the oil burned for eight days - and thus, the 8 day Hanukkah festival began. The Jews celebrate Hanukkah and remember the time of the miracle. Hanukkah is not about the great miracle of the five Maccabee brothers who, with a ragtag army, drove the invading Syrians from the sacred temple. Hanukkah is the celebration of a small miracle, a small flask of sanctified oil left untouched in the ransacked temple, and how it lasted for eight days when it was used to rekindle the lights on the altar. Let us be thankful for the small unnoticed miracles in our lives.

*Arjuna and his brothers had returned from exile wanting only to live in peace. When their cousins the Kuravas refused to return the land that rightfully belonged to the brothers, the stage was set for a great conflict. On the battlefield, Sri Krishna spoke the eternal wisdom of
Bhagavad Gita to his friend Arjuna. Arjuna was not a yogi, nor a wise man, nor a scholar of Vedanta. He was a worldly man, a husband, a father, a prince - a man with many responsibilities. He wanted to leave his responsibilities behind and go to the forest. But Krishna advised him to stay and perform his dharma (his duty or path) no matter how difficult it may be - to perform it as a sacrifice to God.

*Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar. At this time the Holy Koran descended from heaven to serve as a law book for man. The followers of Islam observe fasting from sun up to sun down during Ramadan to celebrate the advent of the Koran. The fasting is ended in
the evening with prayers and a meal. It is a time for deep contemplation. Ramadan is a time of giving, a time of standing, a time of prayer, a time of penance and purification. The most important time of the month is the Night of Power. During this night, one is advised to
stand and pray in penance until sunrise. It is said that to offer prayer and penance on this night is of greater merit than performing pious activities for a 1000 months. No one, however, can say exactly which night it is.

*The three wisemen followed the guiding star which led them to the humble abode in Bethlehem where the Christ child was born amidst the animals. They brought gifts to the Christ child in the manger. At this time of year I am reminded of O'Henry's story, "The Gift of the Magi," wherein a poor husband and wife sell their most treasured possessions in order to
get money to buy gifts for each other . At the end of the story O'Henry writes-

"I have lamely related to you the uneventful chronicle of two foolish children who most unwisely sacrificed the greatest treasures of their house. But let it be said to the wise of these days that of all who give gifts these two were the wisest. Of all who give and receive gifts everywhere, such as they are wisest. For they are the magi."

Let us be blessed that we may be such foolish children.