Question regardin Srimand Bhagavatam

[Guest guest]

It states in 1.8.6 - that the king performed Horse sacrifices. I do not understand this...for we are supposed to treat all living entities wit upmost respect and dignity. Then why are these sacrifices being performed??

 

I appreciate any clarification

 

Hare Krishna

[jagdish 0]

In the purports of the same Canto, it also explains why the Kings in those days performed those sacrifices and why we, in this day and age don't observe them anymore.

 

- The kings then performed those sacrifices to uplift the Soul that was trapped in the body of that particular animal, horse in this case.

- In those days, Sages, Rishis of the highest caliber and purity performed these sacrifices and therefore the soul of that animal instantly got liberation or moved on to the body of a being better than that of an animal.

- Performing such sacrifices was a huge undertaking and it entailed distributing large wealth amongst the brahmins, feeding 1000s of people, etc.

 

- This was a very pious activity in those times and it ensured that the person performing them also received meritious rewards in the spiritual realms.

 

- The purity, and discipline no longer exists in the people these days and hence this activity is no longer recommended.

 

Best Wishes

Jagdish

[maadhav 0]

since a few centuried no hindu does violent sacrifice.

so the concern is not a concern any more.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

<<The kings then performed those sacrifices to uplift the Soul that was trapped in the body of that particular animal, horse in this case.>>

 

<<In those days, Sages, Rishis of the highest caliber and purity performed these sacrifices and therefore the soul of that animal instantly got liberation or moved on to the body of a being better than that of an animal.>>

 

I think the above two statements were just justifications used by either the writers of the bhaghavadam you read or justifications made by the performers of the sacrifice itself and was passed from then on to us now.

 

ultimately, sacrifices are just that, sacrifice. during the days of no cars, planes or trains, horses were the quickest and thereby the best form of transportation. to sacrifice a horse was undeniably a good thing from the perspective of sacrificing that which one needs greatly. it would be like sacrificing a car today, althought that may seem absurd. It served its short lived purpose then but the sin of the act has been proclaimed all over the world and it is no longer practiced. as for the horses, like u said...

 

<<This was a very pious activity in those times and it ensured that the person performing them also received meritious rewards in the spiritual realms.>>

 

i dont believe that those rishis held magical powers or status that helped the horses but karma may have worked out so that the horses atman progressed at the hands of the enlightened.

[jagdish 0]

This appears in the Vedas and the Puranas also, Not just any specific version of Srimad Bhagwatam. These are not mere attempts at making justifications for the actions, either by the writers or by the performers of these vedic rituals.

 

- The sacrifices are not just sacrifices. One can not take the subject matter out of context and try to glorify one's own explanation.

- A car is not a living being, like the horse, and it does not have a soul (though some might argue otherwise - The junkyards are full of sacrificed cars and other vehicles)

 

-- Granted that the karmic actions might have a part to play.

-- It is not just the Rishis that had Mystical/Yogic powers (Not Magical - these are two different things)

-- The actual salvation of the soul of that animal was ascertained because of the Vedic Mantras that were chanted and more so due to the purity of the chanting, during the performance of these rituals.

-- It is already established, time and again that Sound is a form of Energy. Vibrated at different levels it has different effects.

-- The Mantras being chanted are pure and transcendental in nature.

-- Mantras are used very effectively, even today

-- In this day and age people cannot pronounce the mantras properly with proper understanding due to the impure nature of the people chanting them and therefore the mantras are not as effective as they were in the past.

 

-- Ultimately, You can believe what you like (be it in the state of enlightenment or be it in ignorance), that is the freedom you have.

 

Best Regards

Jagdish

[tackleberry 1]

There are so many child sacrifices taking place everyday in India.Maadhav stop behaving like an ignoramus. Dont you read the papers?. They take place in interior India where by and large people are mentally in the 7th century BC!!!

[Guest guest]

The child sacrifices you are talking about have no bearing on the discussion taking place in this thread.

 

Kindly note the subject header. Because looking at your view point, those kind of killings (i would not call them sacrifices) are happening all over the world and not just in india

 

[Guest guest]

i didnt mean to liken a horse to a car in that sense. what i meant is what the horse meant to the society of the time was important. that was one of the reasons they sacrificed it. because that is what they are doing, sacrificing, giving up soemthing useful and neccessary because of their belief and faith in the help that god will give them. that is why a car respresents the same in the sense of importance and what it means to the society.

 

i dont believe just because people chanted certain mantras, the horse was saved. it was saved regardless of thepeople chanted mantras or not or whether they cursed it. god undertands the plight that the horse went thru and god understands that the animal did not ask to have a part in the rituals but was chosen and forced by humans. god will not treat the horse differently just because some people who either genuinly cared or did not chanted some mantras or not.

[Guest guest]

"i dont believe just because people chanted certain mantras, the horse was saved"

 

we are in a religious forum.. if we do not believe in religion what we are doing here?

[Guest guest]

"i dont believe just because people chanted certain mantras, the horse was saved. it was saved regardless of thepeople chanted mantras or not or whether they cursed it. god undertands the plight that the horse went thru and god understands that the animal did not ask to have a part in the rituals but was chosen and forced by humans. god will not treat the horse differently just because some people who either genuinly cared or did not chanted some mantras or not."

 

If you do not believe in yogic powers or anything, what do you believe? You obviously do not believe in Vedic culture its philosophy or its beliefs, so why are you here?