Posted on 12/15/2011 1:27:56 AM PST by Cronos
No doubt. And that one god is the sum total of everything - thus other Hindus claim thousands of gods because everlything is god. It's still the same concept. Pantheism would be better described as Paneverythingism.
Ping
true. But some aspects of hinduism are an interesting study
Well, there might be a lot of evidence right in plain sight - especially considering the apparent age of some of these sites:
No only interesting but Christians have a duty to learn the tenets of other religions so they can respond to the "all religions are the same and equally valid" crowd.
Thank you, very interesting. I will read in detail and no doubt “have my say” in a bit.
You’re welcome, I thought it might be of interest :)
I still didn’t read it in detail. From my cursory reading, most seems to well agree with my study of yugas, Mahayugas and Kalpas. The timelines in the Vedas are precise and very long. Also the Vedas pre-date all other written or oral traditions; somewhere (I WISH I could remeber) in one of the 4 Vedas, I don’t think it was one of the Puranas, there is a description of an astronomical configuration that recently was determined to have happened 26,000 years ago.
Many people just do not want to admit that maybe human civilized history goes back a lot further in time that modern history describes.
The Vedas clearly describe one Supreme Lord - Parameshwara - who is the Supreme Person, or Purushottama. Not an admixture of everything, not amorphous, but a Person. Of course everything that exists is described as Him in the sense that everything is His energy and therefore not separate from Him.
Sort of like the sun and the sun’s rays. They are one, but different as well. The thousands of demigods or devas are merely His servants, they are created beings and not Supreme. You will find many prayers by the devas offered to the Supreme Lord. They know they aren’t God!
If you do run across it again, I'd love to hear the details ... astronomy is a lifelong interest of mine.
I will search for it.
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"Nay, and of hearts which follow other gods
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In simple faith, their prayers arise to me,
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O Kunti’s Son! though they pray wrongfully:
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For I am the Receiver and the Lord
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Of every sacrifice, which these know not."
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: IX, Lines: 92-96.
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| The Bhagavad-Gita. |
| Chapter XII |
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“Here shall no end be hindered, no hope marred
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No loss be feared: faith—yea, a little faith—
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Shall save thee from the anguish of thy dread.”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: II, Lines 140-142.
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ARJUNA:
“And what road goeth he who, having faith, |
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Fails, Krishna! in the striving; falling back
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From holiness, missing the perfect rule?
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Is he not lost, straying from Brahma’s light,
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Like the vain cloud, which floats ’twixt earth and Heaven
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When lightning splits it, and it vanisheth?
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Fain would I hear thee answer me herein,
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Since, Krishna! none save thou can clear the doubt.”
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KRISHNA:
“He is not lost, thou Son of Prithâ! No! |
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Nor earth, nor heaven is forfeit, even for him,
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Because no heart that holds one right desire
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Treadeth the road of loss! He who should fail,
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Desiring righteousness, cometh at death
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Unto the Region of the Just.”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: VI, Lines 125-138.
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“Of many thousand mortals, one, perchance,
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Striveth for Truth; and of those few that strive—
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Nay, and rise high—one only—here and there—
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Knoweth Me, as I am, the very Truth.”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: VII, Lines 8-11.
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“There be those, too, whose knowledge, turned aside
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By this desire or that, gives them to serve
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Some lower gods, with various rites, constrained
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By that which mouldeth them. Unto all such—
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Worship what shrine they will, what shapes, in faith—
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’Tis I who give them faith! I am content!
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The heart thus asking favor from its God,
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Darkened but ardent, hath the end it craves,
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The lesser blessing—but ’tis I who give!
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Yet soon is withered what small fruit they reap
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Those men of little minds, who worship so,
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Go where they worship, passing with their gods.
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But Mine come unto me! Blind are the eyes
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Which deem th’ Unmanifested manifest,
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Not comprehending Me in my true Self!
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Imperishable, viewless, undeclared,
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Hidden behind my magic veil of shows,
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I am not seen by all; I am not known—
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Unborn and changeless—to the idle world.
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But I, Arjuna! know all things which were,
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And all which are, and all which are to be,
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Albeit not one among them knoweth Me!”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: VII, Lines 69-90.
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“Nay, and of hearts which follow other gods
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In simple faith, their prayers arise to me,
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O Kunti’s Son! though they pray wrongfully:
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For I am the Receiver and the Lord
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Of every sacrifice, which these know not
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Rightfully; so they fall to earth again!”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: IX, Lines 92-97.
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“Yet not by the Vedas, nor from sacrifice,
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Nor penance, nor gift-giving, nor with prayer
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Shall any so behold, as thou hast seen!
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Only by fullest service, perfect faith,
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And uttermost surrender am I known
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And seen, and entered into, Indian Prince!
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Who doeth all for Me; who findeth Me
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In all; adoreth always; loveth all
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Which I have made, and Me, for Love’s sole end,
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That man, Arjuna! unto Me doth wend.”
- Bhagavad-Gita, Ch: XI, Lines 332-344.
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Thank you, always wonderful to see Bhagavad Gita slokas on FR. Annie laurie, my time is so tight lately - but this article is interesting, maybe I can work up some semi-cogent reply tomorrow. Have you ever read “Forbidden Archeology” by Michael Cremo? Much archeological evidence exists that points to humans having existed on earth millions of years ago, but scientists do not like this evidence since it does not conform to the evolutionary time lines. Many Christians do not like it either, as it does not go along with a “young earth” theory. I will see what I can find about the astronomical configuration mentioned in the Vedas or Puranas.
James, thank you for sharing the verses.
LJ, I understand (all too well) about time being tight. So, please don’t stress yourself in any way regarding a longer reply on the article ... I only pinged you because I thought it might be of interest to you. I had (and have) no expectations of anything beyond that. The ping was just a gesture of ‘FR’iendship, so no worries at all if you don’t have the time to reply in depth.
Also, please don’t worry about going to a lot of effort to find the astronomical info that we discussed. I only meant that if you ever happened across it again during your reading, myself and others on FR would surely enjoy reading about it. So, please don’t stress about this, either! :)
Since I can’t wish you Merry Christmas (or can I?), I’ll wish you a Happy New Year :) By the way, thank you for all the work that you do on the Moral Absolutes list, and can you add me to it, please? :)
Thank you and a joyful Christmas to you as well. I honor Jesus Christ greatly as a pure representative of God who also taught the same basic truths as in the Vedas - love God, and all of His children. Which in Sanskrit is Bhagavad Bhakti and jiva daya.
In fact, I owe a great deal to Jesus Christ for something that happened to me in Jerusalem as a child. Another story...
I will add your name and thank you for the kind words.
And I want to know about that astronomical thingie myself. I wish I had kept the reference!
I still haven’t found the one describing greater antiquity (yet) but here is another interesting one.
Astronomical Evidence Regarding the Antiquity of the Vedas
From Sky and Telescope, Vol. No. 5, March 1942 published by Harvard College Observatory Cambridge, MA. Page 10:
“Eclipse of July 26, 3928 BC”
[Excerpt]
Astronomy has come to the aid of the historian in determinated the time of the earliest known Aryan colonisation in India*. A solar eclipse, described in the Rig Veda, had been observed by Atri, one of the earliest settlers in the northern Punjab. Among the 22 central solar eclipses that occurred near the Summer Solstice withint the given time interval, there is one and only one that fulfills all the required conditions inferred from the Rig Veda. That one occured on July 16, 3928 BC (Julian Calendar).
*(My comment) The “Aryan invasion” is now being soundly debunked and it has been proven without a doubt (except for those who cling to it for various reasons) that it was invented by British Indologists to falsely taint the ancient Vedic civilization as of recent origin. This is a huge topic in itself and has much evidence supporting no so-called Aryan invasion at all. In fact, in the Vedic texts, the word “aryan” never means a race, ethnic group or kingdom or society. An “aryan” means a civilized human who understands and practices varnashram dharma system of religions and civilized behavior; one who knows the spiritual and moral values of life. As opposed to for instance barbarians or those who practice no religion or morality.
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