Gaea

The thing to understand is that Lord Buddha taught according to time, place and circumstance - this is the case with ALL incarnations - time, place and circumstance The people at that time fancied themselves as intellectuals, so Lord Buddha gave them something to think about. They are on one rung of the spiritual ladder. Ultimately the ladder is going up but you have to start somewhere. It is the same whther you are a Buddhist, Advaitist, Dvaitist etc. - you start according to your position. God is so merciful that he allows you to go at your own pace.

yes, that's exactly my thinking too.

I havent met any Indians - at least Hindu Indians - that hate Vishnu. That;s a gross generalisation. Also, I don't believe hating and loving Vishnu are very different. Enviable is the position of Kamsa, who hated Krsna so much but nevertheless thought about Him always.

Datta, I appreciate your sentiments and thanks for the link. I agree that science and spiritually should go hand in hand, but I still feel they should not be mixed. The danger is that you will push away those who are ingrained in the scientific process - indeed I have yet to find anyone who claims scientific proof of the spiritual things you are talking about. I am sure on the spiritual level all of your claims are valid - but it doesn't cut the mustard on the material level. It's like trying to convey a very complex painting in the form of sound - sound just doesn't have the capacity to convey visual images in the way light can. It's not that I don't believe in the spiritual stuff - i do. But to make the claim that its scientifically explainable - i reckon that's a little difficult to swallow. By the way, i must admit the book is long and so at best i can only glance at it. To back your claims up, can you give a short summary please? Cheers, G.

ok i went there and looked up the Gayatri stuff. So what? I don't deny the power of the Gayatri Mantra, as well as all the other mantras in the Vedic texts. I know they are immensely powerful. I do however deny your "superscience" claim. Again, what empirical evidence is there to back up your claim? I'm saying this because all too often people are trying to put Vedic thought onto us as if it is scientifically proven . as if all the big words used in the english video on your website somehow proves your claim?? Spirituality and science are two very different things. They both have a place in our lives. But i don;t think we should mix them up because it is inevitable that such claims will be knocked back.

Wow, that's some pretty intense hatred and/or distaste for India you have there. Any personal reason for that? Have you ever been to India? I've been quite a few times and met many "average Indians" - all of them that i have met are very agreeable. Also I found a wealth of knowledge there that I could not find in the UK or US. I do agree that there is plenty of corruption and a very bad human rights record. However i can't agree with your view - in the land where your coveted Vishnu roamed Himself more than once you decry it in the same sentence. I guess that's just the way of world - things go up and down.

i'm gonna play devil's advocate here (no offences intended).... for it to have a "solid scientific basis" it needs to be grounded on emperical evidence. Otherwise it's just a theory. Or a myth. Or a rant.

street magicians are just like david blane i guess - that's just a job, which is fine. I think tirislix was talking about those who dabble in arts that invoke spirits, demons, etc., if such things really exist.

there is no unifying authority of Hinduism to condemn or condone anything - you would be better off asking a particular sect. I know that many Saivites (but not all) are engaged in this kind of thing - may its just siddhic, i dont know. On the other hand Vaishnavas generally have no interest in these things.

what are you reading it with? If it is a pdf file, try downloading the latest version of Adobe acrobat reader (google it). If you are using a web browser to read the pages, try downloading the latest updates for that version OR download mozilla firefox.

Q: How can you delay milk turning sour? A: Keep it in the cow.

You have a wonderful connection... if the connection really is that close you can be candid with your Guru and He will understand I'm sure.

the opposite is also true, Raghu... How many times have scriptures been quoted here, only to be debunked as "Tamasic" scripture or the like? What ever is our disposition, so we follow - whether you are an advaithin, dvaithin, etc.

Judgement is for Krsna to make. Not you. Even if any of these things are true, so what? Krsna is the ultimate authority by which they are redeemed or judged. In the eyes of the public a Guru may well look like a demon, but the HEART TO HEART RELATIONSHIP of person-to-Krsna and none of us can even begin to comment. Hell, we can't even comment about OUR OWN position let alone somebody else's. If they're getting sick, so what? If they seem to be engaging in misdeeds, so what? ISKCON is Prabhupada's mission, a pure devotee no less. As such the happenings in ISKCON and other organisations/societyies are dealt hands according to KRsna's Will alone. If Krsna decides that such-and-such a person must be ill due to karma etc. then so be it. How can we make any logical conclusions, as if we understand the Grand Plan or as if we understand somebody's pprivate relationship with Krsna? Such "logical" conclusions or speculation amounts to one having too much time to complain. In fact, i don't want to spend even another second on this!!

oh ok, i understand now.

only if you want to see such gurus in a bad light.

maybe Krsna just wants them to come back to Him sooner

why label yourself as a Hindu, or anything at that? Such things are bodily designations. If you let go of this notion then your confusion is cut in half. Whether you are Christian, Hindu,Muslim or Vaishanava, the aim is spirituality and one of understanding your relationship with God (as your questions are tending to, so ur headed in the right direction!) Sounds like you're asking all the questions that a follower of Vedas may well ask tho... keep searching you're bound to find answers. Good places to start are those scriptures that appeal to you... try Bhagavad Gita, Srimad Bhagvatham.... Mahabharata and Ramayana are nice stories to read to start of with too.

"loving smile" is my fave

There was a thread recetly discussing "everyone" practicing Vedic Dharma. It's important to remember not EVERYONE practiced it, but it was predominant.

not in the same way.

also sounds alot like the 99 names of Allah. Chapters 9/10 of Gita is where Krsna is really showing off who He is, but it's not really a list. (many years ago) when i read the SB i remember reading things like this - especially Narada's description of Hari. Sorry i can't be more precise than that!!

The written form of Vedas and Mahabharata were compiled by Vyas and Ganesha. I guess they're still with him!! I don't know about the originals but the words must always be carried identically so whther you hear it from a bona fide master or from Vyas himself, the words are the same. Re the Ramayana - Valmiki's version is oooooold. very old. I don't even know whther he actually wrote it or just expounded it. If written, we can only guess.

i understand i think.... but it is only our egos that makes us think "oh look, i have changed from x to y due to sadhana".... whereas in Truth it is only God's mercy that has changed us (if we have indeed truly changed on the inside not just the outside). So those who have not changed do not because they need to build up the momentum. Start pushing that car down the hill and it will gather speed. And in Bhakti Yoga is is mighty steep and high hill

why the angry face, Guest?