Student 63

One object that demonstrates the relationship between knowledge and culture is the incense sticks used in my home. It is used to represent this relationship through showing how culture shares knowledge from the past in order to influence daily life in the present. Incense sticks have been used in my household for many Hindu rituals as a way to please the Gods, and they have been used in many other religions like Buddhism and Christianity for similar reasons as well. They have also been used to reduce stress and negativity in the home, promote mediation, and encourage mindfulness.

Incense sticks being used to promote peace of mind indicate the knowledge from cultural practices helps lead a healthier lifestyle, which relates to the area of knowledge of the human sciences. In today’s time where many are stressed and do not know how to effectively relieve it from their system, burning incense sticks are able to provide a sense of calmness. Their scents soothe anxiety and allow for rational thinking, something that occurred due to the knowledge of the health benefits of incense being passed down.

Incense sticks are also used to enrich one’s spirituality through practicing the religious knowledge shared by ancestors, which portrays the optional theme of religion. For example, in Hinduism, burning incense is believed to create a pleasant praying environment for the devotee due to the belief that the smoke will chase away the demons around them. This religious knowledge was spread throughout Hindus for hundreds of years, leading to Hindus today to still carefully follow it. Therefore, incense sticks are an example of how religious knowledge can still be kept alive despite there being a big time difference between its creation and today. Incense sticks are a representation of cultural traditions being passed down over generations that show how the present uses knowledge from the past.

Another object which demonstrates the relationship between knowledge and culture is a Mardi Gras mask my father bought for me from Louisiana when I was little. It represents this relationship through bringing awareness to knowledge of different cultures previously unknown due to various barriers. Mardi Gras in the United States is a festival which celebrates the upcoming Lent, a period of fasting before Easter for Christians. It originated from the French Mardi Gras celebrations, and it includes many parades and multi-colored beads. This mask represents how various social classes were able to freely interact with each other in the past, the designs shared various stories, and the people immersed themselves in the festivities.

Mardi Gras masks being used in parades brings awareness to the knowledge of how important religious holidays are celebrated to those of different cultures, showing a link to the religion optional theme. For example, before I was given the mask, due to being young, I was not exposed to many cultures and their traditions other than my own, which were Hindu traditions. Receiving this Mardi Gras mask allowed me to learn that some Christians celebrate their holidays through designed masks made of materials such as glitter and feathers.

Mardi Gras masks also bring awareness to the knowledge of how an object’s purpose in a culture has changed over time with regards to the human sciences. For instance, the masks were once used to remove the implications of the social hierarchy, but now the masks serve as a way to connect people and contribute to being immersed in the festivities. People born in recent generations, such as me, are less likely to know the original meaning of the Mardi Gras masks due to it being more common to show off the multitude of designs online instead of discussing the history behind it. Mardi Gras masks represent how knowledge from different cultures are brought to light despite there being challenges in it being shared.

An additional object which demonstrates the relationship between knowledge and culture is a hand fan I bought from Italy a couple years ago. It portrays how knowledge of a culture is shared through physical representations. Hand fans are used to cool down on hot days, and in the past, they have been used for keeping away insects and as decoration for the wealthy. They have been adapted from other countries’ cultures such as Japan due to trading between them.

Hand fans being able to help others withstand certain weather conditions demonstrates the knowledge of how a culture overcomes natural hindrances, illustrating a connection to the area of knowledge of the natural sciences. In Italy, there were various types of hand fans available in the many cities I traveled to, so it is evident an aspect of Italy’s culture is having the accommodations to suit the natural environment. Depending on the material used to make the fans, hand fans can also be used to block the rain and protect from any insects in the air, which demonstrate an adaptation to the rainy climate in the winter and the many mosquitoes in the summer.

Hand fans also share the knowledge a culture has through the various designs on the pleats, which shows a representation of the art area of knowledge. For example, as my hand fan shows, there is a picture of the city of Florence. Photography is an art form many hand fans use as a way to display key areas of the city it is made in. In addition to printed photographs on the hand fans, other artistic designs are displayed as well. Some hand fans show famous paintings while others have intricate geometric designs, representing how the knowledge of the artistic values in a culture is shared. Hand fans demonstrate how knowledge of a culture can be shared through parts of physical representations.