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Hinduism .. a write up

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tks

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Source: Posting by someone sent around as a whats-app message

God is not a concept, and there may be some imprecise descriptions. Hence posting in the chit-chat section

==============================================================

INTERESTING!!! Well articulated knowledge...Why I'm Hindu ?


A Hindu was flying from JFK New York Airport to SFO San Francisco Airport CA to attend a meeting at Monterey, CA.


An American girl was sitting on the right side, near window seat. It indeed was a long journey - it would take nearly seven hours.


He was surprised to see the young girl reading a Bible unusual of young Americans. After some time she smiled and we had few acquaintances talk.He told her that I am from India


Then suddenly the girl asked: 'What's your faith?' 'What?' He didn't understand the question.


'I mean, what's your religion? Are you a Christian? Or a Muslim?'


'No!' He replied, 'l am neither Christian nor Muslim'.


Apparently she appeared shocked to listen to that. 'Then who are you?' “I am a Hindu”, He said.


She looked at him as if she was seeing a caged animal. She could not understand what He was talking about.


A common man in Europe or US knows about Christianity and Islam, as they are the leading religions of the world today.


But a Hindu, what?


He explained to her - I am born to a Hindu father and Hindu mother. Therefore, I am a Hindu by birth.


'Who is your prophet?' she asked.


'We don't have a prophet,' He replied.


'What's your Holy Book?'


'We don't have a single Holy Book, but we have hundreds and thousands of philosophical and sacred scriptures,'
He replied.


'Oh, come on at least tell me who is your God?'


'What do you mean by that?'


'Like we have Jesus and Muslims have Allah - don't you have a God?'


He thought for a moment. Muslims and Christians believe one God (Male God) who created the world and takes an interest in the humans who inhabit it. Her mind is conditioned with that kind of belief.


According to her (or anybody who doesn't know about Hinduism), a religion needs to have one Prophet, one Holy book and one God. The mind is so conditioned and rigidly narrowed down to such a notion that anything else is not acceptable. He understood her perception and concept about faith. You can't compare Hinduism with any of the present leading religions where you have to believe in one concept of God.


He tried to explain to her: 'You can believe in one God and he can be a Hindu. You may believe in multiple deities and still you can be a Hindu. What's more - you may not believe in God at all, still you can be a Hindu. An Atheist can also be a Hindu.'


This sounded very crazy to her. She couldn't imagine a religion so unorganized, still surviving for thousands of years, even after onslaught from foreign forces.


'I don't understand but it seems very interesting. Are you religious?'


What can He tell to this American girl?


He said: 'I do not go to Temple regularly. I do not make any regular rituals. I have learned some of the rituals in my younger days. I still enjoy doing it sometimes'.


'Enjoy? Are you not afraid of God?'


'God is a friend. No- I am not afraid of God. Nobody has made any compulsions on me to perform these rituals regularly.'


She thought for a while and then asked: 'Have you ever thought of converting to any other religion?'


'Why should I? Even if I challenge some of the rituals and faith in Hinduism, nobody can convert me from Hinduism. Because, being a Hindu allows me to think independently and objectively, without conditioning. I remain as a Hindu never by force, but choice.' He told her that Hinduism is not a religion, but a set of beliefs and practices. It is not a religion like Christianity or Islam because it is not founded by any one person or does not have an organized controlling body like the Church or the Order, I added. There is no institution or authority..


'So, you don't believe in God?' she wanted everything in black and white.


'I didn't say that. I do not discard the divine reality. Our scripture, or Sruthis or Smrithis - Vedas and Upanishads or the Gita - say God might be there or he might not be there. But we pray to that supreme abstract authority (Para Brahma) that is the creator of this universe.'


'Why can't you believe in one personal God?'


'We have a concept - abstract - not a personal god. The concept or notion of a personal God, hiding behind the clouds of secrecy, telling us irrational stories through few men whom he sends as messengers, demanding us to worship him or punish us, does not make sense. I don't think that God is as silly as an autocratic emperor who wants others to respect him or fear him.' He told her that such notions are just fancies of less educated human imagination and fallacies, adding that generally ethnic religious practitioners in Hinduism believe in personal Gods. The entry level Hinduism has over-whelming superstitions too. The philosophical side of Hinduism negates all superstitions.


'Good that you agree God might exist. You told that you pray. What is your prayer then?'


'Loka Samastha Sukino Bhavantu. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti,'
लोका समस्ता सुखिनो भवन्तु !!! ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !!!


'Funny,' she laughed, 'What does it mean?'


'May all the beings in all the worlds be happy. Let there be Peace, Peace,and Peace every where.'


'Hmm ..very interesting. I want to learn more about this religion. It is so democratic, broad-minded and free' she exclaimed.


'The fact is Hinduism is a religion of the individual, for the individual and by the individual with its roots in the Vedas and the Bhagavad-Gita. It is all about an individual approaching a personal God in an individual way according to his temperament and inner evolution - it is as simple as that.'


'How does anybody convert to Hinduism?'


'Nobody can convert you to Hinduism, because it is not a religion, but it is a Culture, a way of living life, a set of beliefs and practices. Everything is acceptable in Hinduism because there is no single Authority or Organization either to accept you or to reject you or to oppose you on behalf of Hinduism.'


He told her - if you look for meaning in life, don't look for it in religions; don't go from one cult to another or from one Guru to the next.


For a real seeker, He told her, the Bible itself gives guidelines when it says ' Kingdom of God is within you.' I reminded her of Christ's teaching about the love that we have for each other. That is where you can find the meaning of life.


Loving each and every creation of the God is absolute and real. 'Isavasyam idam sarvam' Isam (the God) is present (inhabits) here everywhere - nothing exists separate from the God, because God is present everywhere. Respect every living being and non-living things as God. That's what Hinduism teaches you.


Hinduism is referred to as Sanathana Dharma, the eternal faith. It is based on the practice of Dharma, the code of life. The most important aspect of Hinduism is being truthful to oneself. Hinduism has no monopoly on ideas. It is open to all. Hindus believe in one God (not a personal one) expressed in different forms. For them, God is timeless and formless entity.


Ancestors of today's Hindus believe in eternal truths and cosmic laws and these truths are opened to anyone who seeks them. But there is a section of Hindus who are either superstitious or turned fanatic to make this an organized religion like others. The British coin the word 'Hindu' and considered it as a religion.


He said: 'Religions have become an MLM (multi-level- marketing) industry that has been trying to expand the market share by conversion. The biggest business in today's world is Spirituality. Hinduism is no exception'


He said "I am a Hindu primarily because it professes Non-violence - 'Ahimsa Paramo Dharma' means - Non violence is the highest duty. I am a Hindu because it doesn't condition my mind with any faith system.


A man/woman who changes his/her birth religion to another religion is a fake and does not value his/her morals, culture and values in life.


In Hinduism we don't have any managers of god.


Some say "Be Muslim".Some say "Be Christian". Vedas say "Be Human".


Some say "Follow Prophet".Some say "Follow Jesus". Vedas say "Follow Conscience".


Some say "God is over 7th Sky". Some say "God is over 4th Sky". Vedas say "God is with me, within me".


Some say "God tests". Some say "God punishes". Some say "God forgives". Vedas say "God supports".


Hinduism is the original rather a natural yet a logical and satisfying spiritual, personal and a scientific way of living a life.


Hinduism is not a religion,its a culture,a way of life.Type a message
 
Sharing another article which is relevant…

Yogi and mystic Sadhguru explains the origin of the word “Hindu” and looks at why there is actually no such thing as Hinduism. Being Hindu is a way of life, not a religion
Excerpts:

……………………
…………………...

There is no belief system to the Hindu way of life. Someone believes in God, someone else can choose not to believe in God. Everybody can have their own way of worship and way to salvation. If there are five people in your family, each one can worship the God of their choice, or not worship anything, and still be a good Hindu. So you are a Hindu irrespective of what you believe or don’t believe.

At the same time, there was a common line running through all these. In this culture, the only goal in human life is liberation or mukti. Liberation from the very process of life, from everything that you know as limitations and to go beyond that. God is not held as the ultimate thing, God is seen as one of the stepping stones. This is a Godless but a devout nation in the sense that there is no concretized idea of God. When I say Godless, we need to understand that this is the only culture that has given humans the freedom not just to make a choice of Gods, but to create the sort of God that you can relate to. You can worship a rock, a cow, your mother – you can worship whatever you feel like – because this is a culture where we have always known that God is our making. Everywhere else people believe “God created us.” Here we know we created god so we take total freedom to create whatever kind of god we can relate to. People worshiped whatever aspect of life they related to most, and that was perfectly fine.
Toread more click here
Courtesy…. http://isha.sadhguru.org/blog/yoga-meditation/demystifying-yoga/hinduism-not-religion/
 
I was searching for the word Shraddha and Iswara in the write up..could not find it!


Poor little girl she should have asked a person with higher thinking!LOL
 
I was searching for the word Shraddha and Iswara in the write up..could not find it!


Madam,

Please wait.

Thisis only a shared message from WhatsApp.

The thread opener is yet to share his views elaborately

May be one can come across words like Rajas, tamas, satwik, Ghost, Roman God, Six pack, Shahruk Khan, etc abundantly in the ensuing posts..LOL

P.S: It is in CHIT CHAT.
 
Madam,

Please wait.

Thisis only a shared message from WhatsApp.

The thread opener is yet to share his views elaborately

May be one can come across words like Rajas, tamas, satwik, Ghost, Roman God, Six pack, Shahruk Khan, etc abundantly in the ensuing posts..LOL

P.S: It is in CHIT CHAT.

LOL!!!

You know all words I frequently use.
 
Dear Renu,

Now we can easily guess who this Rudhran is! :)

Consequent upon putting in of papers by a vast number of Intelligence Personnel due to sudden and unexpected election of Donald Trump as POTUS, many high level intelligence sleuth posts need to be filled in urgently.

Will the new job profile be more appealing than teaching music..?

If this offer causes excitement, please email your resume @xyz.intell.gov.us marking it for the attention of the undersigned. :)

I still have no clue about who Rudhran is. A couple of hints for dumbos..?

This is a chit-chat thread !!!!
 
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Consequent upon putting in of papers by a vast number of Intelligence Personnel due to sudden and unexpected election of Donald Trump as POTUS, many high level intelligence sleuth posts need to be filled in urgently.

Will the new job profile be more appealing than teaching music..?

If this offer causes excitement, please email your resume @xyz.intell.gov.us marking it for the attention of the undersigned. :)

I still have no clue about who Rudhran is. A couple of hints for dumbos..?

This is a chit-chat thread !!!!

:thumb:
 
...I still have no clue about who Rudhran is. A couple of hints for dumbos..?
OK! Here is one hint.

V K R can never ape Sivaji, the great!!

Rudra-Thandavam-1978-%E2%80%93-Tamil-Movie-Watch-Online.jpg


 
Sharing another article which is relevant…

Yogi and mystic Sadhguru explains the origin of the word “Hindu” and looks at why there is actually no such thing as Hinduism. Being Hindu is a way of life, not a religion
Excerpts:

……………………
…………………...

There is no belief system to the Hindu way of life. Someone believes in God, someone else can choose not to believe in God. Everybody can have their own way of worship and way to salvation. If there are five people in your family, each one can worship the God of their choice, or not worship anything, and still be a good Hindu. So you are a Hindu irrespective of what you believe or don’t believe.

At the same time, there was a common line running through all these. In this culture, the only goal in human life is liberation or mukti. Liberation from the very process of life, from everything that you know as limitations and to go beyond that. God is not held as the ultimate thing, God is seen as one of the stepping stones. This is a Godless but a devout nation in the sense that there is no concretized idea of God. When I say Godless, we need to understand that this is the only culture that has given humans the freedom not just to make a choice of Gods, but to create the sort of God that you can relate to. You can worship a rock, a cow, your mother – you can worship whatever you feel like – because this is a culture where we have always known that God is our making. Everywhere else people believe “God created us.” Here we know we created god so we take total freedom to create whatever kind of god we can relate to. People worshiped whatever aspect of life they related to most, and that was perfectly fine.
Toread more click here
Courtesy…. http://isha.sadhguru.org/blog/yoga-meditation/demystifying-yoga/hinduism-not-religion/

Very relevant reference to the topic indeed. Though I do not agree with what Jaggi Vasudevan (Sadguru) says as being always an authentic interpretation of our scriptures, he writes and speaks extremely well.

Like all others of his work the above piece is well written.
 
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In chit-chat section diversion makes the thread come alive (but not in other sections in my view).. Enjoyed reading the reference :)
 
Hinduism is a way and view of life

Hinduism was defined in a brilliant manner by President Radhakrishnan

Here are excerpts from his lectures that later appeared as a book

==============================================================

The book “Hindu View of Life” is the transcript of a series of lectures given in 1926 at Manchester College, Oxford. The second chapter of the book: “Conflict of Religions: The Hindu Attitude” is a must-read for all Hindus and non-Hindus. It will make every Hindu proud of the religion and it will be a great source of ideas of toleration for people of other religions. Here are some quotes from the book.

The Hindu thinker readily admits other points of view than his own and considers them to be just as worthy of attention. If the whole race of man, in every land, of every colour, and every stage of culture, is the offspring of God, then we must admit that, in the vast compass of his providence, all are being trained by his wisdom and supported by his love to reach within the limits of their powers of knowledge of the Supreme. p.7

Hinduism is not a definitive dogmatic creed, but a vast, complex, but subtly unified mass of spiritual thought and realization. Its tradition of the godward endeavour of the human spirit has been continuously enlarging through the ages. p.8

The Vedanta is not ‘a’ religion, but religion itself in its most universal and deepest significance. p.10

Hinduism does not distinguish ideas of God as true and false, adopting one particular idea as the standard for the whole human race. It accepts the obvious fact that mankind seeks its goal of God at various levels and in various directions, and feels sympathy with every stage of search. p.16

In the name of toleration we have carefully protected superstitious rites and customs. Even those who have a clear perception of religious values indulge in practices which are inconsistent with their professions on the comfortable assumption that superiority should not breed want of sympathy for those who are not up to the mark. There has not been in recent times any serious and systematic endeavour to raise the mental level of the masses and place the whole Hindu population on a higher spiritual plane. It is necessary for the Hindu leaders to hold aloft the highest conception of God and work steadily on the minds of the worshippers so as to effect an improvement in their conceptions. The temples, shrines and sanctuaries with which the whole land is covered may be used not only as places of prayer and altars of worship, but as seats of learning and schools of thought which can undertake the spiritual direction of the Hindus. p.18

Hinduism does not believe in bringing about a mechanical uniformity of belief and worship by a forcible elimination of all that is not in agreement with a particular creed. It does not believe in any statutory methods of salvation. Its scheme of salvation is not limited to those who hold a particular view of God’s nature and worship. Such an exclusive absolutism is inconsistent with an all-loving universal God. It is not fair to God or man to assume that one people are the chosen of God, that their religion occupies a central place in the religious development of mankind, and that all others should borrow from them or suffer spiritual destitution. p.32

We cannot have religious unity and peace so long as we assert that we are in possession of the light and all others are groping in the darkness. That very assertion is a challenge to a fight. p.38

The general character of a society is not always best expressed by the mass of its members. There exists in every community a natural elite, which better than all the rest represents the soul of the entire people, its great ideals, its strong emotions and its essential tendency. The whole community looks to them as their example. When the wick is ablaze at its tip, the whole lamp is said to be burning. p.65

Service of one’s fellows is a religious obligation. To repudiate it is impiety. p.84

Hinduism is a movement, not a position; a process, not a result; a growing tradition, not a fixed revelation. Its past history encourages us to believe that it will be found equal to any emergency that the future may throw up, whether in the field of thought or of history. p.95

After a long winter of some centuries, we are today in one of the creative periods of Hinduism. We are beginning to look upon our ancient faith with fresh eyes. We feel that our society is in a condition of unstable equilibrium. There is much wood that is dead and diseased that has to be cleared away. Leaders of Hindu thought and practice are convinced that the times require not a surrender of the basic principles of Hinduism, but a restatement of them with special reference to the needs of a more complex and mobile social order. Such an attempt will only be the repetition of a process which has occurred a number of times in the history of Hinduism. The work of readjustment is in process. p.95

Source:
http://practicalphilosophy.in/2015/07/22/quotes-from-dr-radhakrishnans-hindu-view-of-life/
 
Sri Rudhran,

Welcome to the forum. Hope you post more.
Regardless of who you may have been allow me to give you some unsolicited suggestions.

Stay away from engaging with what may appear as toxic posts. It is fun for most part but your best friend is the ignore feature. Here is a quote for you :)

georgebernardshaw1.jpg
 
tks Ji,

Thanks for your thoughtful suggestios and the quote.

I just stumbled upon this quote which I would like to share here:

dc0acfab799de76de02cb416cfbd137b.jpg

Source: Google images
 
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Dear Rudhran Ji,

Welcome again and again to Forum...

I am very happy that in a short while of joining forum you have been able to notice all my favorite words like 6packs,Greek Gods,SRK and so on and on.

It feels nice yaar to be noticed so fast by a total "newbie".

I see you are enjoying yourself in forum..keep it up..Forum has been a bit boring off late..one active member too has been silent for a while..I miss that active member but anyhow you seem to be a breath of recycled air that will blow away the clouds of boredom of Forum.

Do not worry about wrestling with pigs in mud etc...the Porcine DNA is very close to the human DNA and in the past when humans were wrestling for their lives..it was us humans that snatched the pigs away from the mud and used the Porcine Insulin and Porcine heart valves to make humans live..not to mention usage of Porcine gelatin in certain life saving vaccines.

So the Pig though look down upon have been supporting human lives in ways forgotten by those who merely want to see them as creatures that wallow in the mud.

After all God had no problem assuming the form of a Porcine relative to lift the world from troubled waters.

Keep up the good work Rudhran ji.
 
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I was searching for the word Shraddha and Iswara in the write up..could not find it!


Poor little girl she should have asked a person with higher thinking!LOL
hi

may not be everybody like you madam.....you are experience ADVAITHA....NOT EVERYBODY....the poor gal like

me...KATTHUKUTTI...LOL
 
:focus: Hindus are the blessed souls on the earth because they can live as they like. :whistle:

No rules restrict them to live in a particular way! :cool:
 
Dear Rudhran Ji,

Welcome again and again to Forum... .

Madam,

Thank you for your nice gesture.

I may come again and again….. so long as those few erudite members permit, so long as the Moderator is kind enough to permit and so long as my urge for participation exists.

And I have no liking on those achievements and awards conferred by the Forum like ‘Veteran’ or ‘Newbie’. And I know there are Veterans without contribution of a single posting and there are ‘Newbies’ with more stuff remaining silent like a rock.



I am very happy that in a short while of joining forum you have been able to notice all my favorite words like 6packs,Greek Gods,SRK and so on and on.

It feels nice yaar to be noticed so fast by a total "newbie". .


Madam it is all there in the Archives. If one visits either most viewed threads or threads which have more replies, it is certain one cannot miss your contributions.

I see you are enjoying yourself in forum..keep it up..Forum has been a bit boring off late..one active member too has been silent for a while..I miss that active member but anyhow you seem to be a breath of recycled air that will blow away the clouds of boredom of Forum.


Do not worry about wrestling with pigs in mud etc...the Porcine DNA is very close to the human DNA and in the past when humans were wrestling for their lives..it was us humans that snatched the pigs away from the mud and used the Porcine Insulin and Porcine heart valves to make humans live..not to mention usage of Porcine gelatin in certain life saving vaccines.

So the Pig though look down upon have been supporting human lives in ways forgotten by those who merely want to see them as creatures that wallow in the mud.

After all God had no problem assuming the form of a Porcine relative to lift the world from troubled waters.

Keep up the good work Rudhran ji.

Thanks for the compliments….

I believe that every member possesses his/her own unique style of presenting his/her views, opinions, arguments, counters, defence, etc I am seriously going thro’ to learn, more particularly being a ‘newbie’.

For some, porcine may also a loveable animal created by the Almighty God and reared as pets. Some even relish to prepare more recipes out of pork with different flavours and cuisines by roasting, grilling, steaming, frying, smoking, braising, broiling, etc.

This time I am here to wrestle with enriched minds with guts like soldiers, warriors, brave hearts. dare devils, etc And that is going to be my interest.

Thanks and guide me with your rich experience for a smooth sailing experience in this Forum.

Cheers
 
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I like to wrestle with soldiers, warriors, brave hearts. dare devils, etc And that is going to be my interest.

Thanks and guide me with your rich experience for a smooth sailing experience in this Forum.

Cheers

We share some common interest here..my fantasy is to wrestle with Dwayne Johnson...so both of us are Brave Hearts!LOL

Yes..I will surely guide you again and again and make you the bravest warrior here..

Just surrender to me and abandon all fear and I will guide you through Forum and you would experience the splendor of this Forum that can rival the brilliance of a thousand suns. Ma Suchah!
 
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