For my international topic blog, I wanted to do a deep dive into one of the lesser-known religions/faiths in the world. Yesterday, there was an event hosted by the Bahá’í Association, and while I unfortunately could not attend the event, I did want to learn more about the faith as I had never heard of it before. 

The Bahá’í Faith originated in the mid 1800s in Persia, which is now Iran. A young merchant declared he had a message from God and called for spiritual and moral reformation. The merchant is known as The Báb, which translates to “The Gate” in Arabic. The main purpose of this religion is to unite humanity as one and treat one another with respect. The Bahá’í faith also believes that God has sent a series of divine educators to humanity, which include Abraham, Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. These divine educators are known as the Manifestations of God, and their teachings have helped the advancement of civilization. The main divine educator of this era is known as Baha’u’llah. As mentioned, this faith believes in unifying humanity. It is believed that every human has an immortal soul, and our purpose is to progress spiritually by serving others. It is also believed that humans achieve their highest purpose through giving, whether that be time, energy, knowledge, etc. 

While this is a very brief overview, I enjoyed learning about this faith, as it is one I had not been familiar with previously. I hope to learn more about this faith by attending the events put on by the Bahá’í Association here at OU!

Last week, I attended the Asian American Student Association’s Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Even though AAPI Heritage Month is not until May, AASA wanted to get a head start and celebrate in April so students could enjoy the festivities before the semester ends. AAPI Heritage Month celebrates the culture and impact of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. AAPI Heritage Month was officially established in 1992 to celebrate the accomplishments of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The month of May was chosen for this heritage month because May was when the first Japanese immigrants came to the United States, and also when the first transcontinental railroad was completed, and the labor of Chinese immigrants was a huge factor in it. This is a brief overview of the month, and we continue to celebrate these groups for their ever-growing accomplishments. The event featured lots of cultural food, such as samosas, fried rice, matcha, and more. They also had crafting tables to connect the community, where we could decorate traditional fans and more. It was also cool to see everyone in their cultural attire, which showed the diversity of clothing and traditions. Since this event served as the kickoff for AAPI Heritage Month, throughout April, AASA will be hosting a number of events to celebrate and highlight AAPI culture and impact. Some of these events will be hosted by the Filipino Student Association, Vietnamese Student Association, Korean Student Association, and more. These events serve to highlight the variety of AAPI cultures and countries.

Yesterday, I attended the Colombian Student Association’s annual Colombian Night. This was my first time attending this event, so I was very excited. For their 25th anniversary, the theme was “Legends that Bind Us: A Quarter-Century of Tradition”. The event consisted of a show that brought Colombian stories and myths to the stage. This was truly such a fun event, and I am glad I got to learn more about Colombian culture. 

The show had various musical and dance performances that told the story of traditional myths in Colombian culture. We were given a pamphlet that explained the background of the stories performed. The first performance was El Dorado and La Gallanita De Los Huevos De Oro. The story goes as told: When a new ruler comes to power, the native people (the Muisca) gather at Lake Guatavita, which is a sacred lake. The ruler’s body is covered in gold dust and sails across the river on a raft with treasure, and these gold treasures were offered to the lake to honor the gods. Because of this ritual, Spanish explorers thought this city was filled with gold. In the story of La Gallanita De Los Huevos De Oro, a greedy farmer kills his hen, thinking there was gold inside, as the hen lays gold eggs. But after killing the hen, he loses his source of wealth. This story was performed as a “merengue campesino danced in carranga style”. Another performance I enjoyed was the salsa dance, specifically El Diablo en Juanchito. The Salsa dance originated in Cali, Colombia, and consists of fast footwork and spins. In the story of El Diablo en Juanchito, in a nightclub, an elegant man appeared and danced with a woman. When she looked down, she saw he had hooves. Then, the smell of sulfur filled the nightclub when the man disappeared, and everyone knew the Devil had been there. Another performance that was fascinating was the story of El Mohán, who is considered the guardian of rivers and caves. El Mohán also seduces women, steals from fishermen, and loves tobacco. This myth came from the Magdalena River region. The show also had other performances from various dance groups and singers.

Colombian Night 2026 was truly an event to remember, and I enjoyed learning about these myths and legends, as this was something I had never known before. I am glad I was able to celebrate the 25th anniversary of COLSA and learn more about the rich culture of Colombia.