RamaRaksha

One of the jokes that I keep making is that when it comes to religion we seem to be like Chimps teaching modern Humans - we know how ridiculous that sounds I want to scream whenever someone says, "What does it say in the Scripture?" - I feel like grabbing that person by the neck, shaking him and saying, "this scripture is nothing but ideas of people just like you and me, but living a long time ago. No, back then there were no Gods running around. They did not have any magic insight. That is why they thought the sun circled the earth. Had no clue about Evolution, the age of the earth or the universe" These people were not fools - they simply wrote down what they knew, which was not much We seem to be the fools - blindly reading something in a book and nodding our heads, unable and unwilling to accept new ideas A bunch of white guys got together and came up with these meanings in dictionaries or wiki - they are subject to change as people change We ARE allowed to change these things - they are not set in stone - in fact, many meanings are changed over time The Wikipedia page you referenced - I did try to change it - but someone keeps deleting my change "gloss over countless new lives that the notion of reincarnation promises" - Reincarnation was developed as a counter to the idea of Heaven - ancient Hindus saw such a notion as cowardice, the weak running away from REAL LIFE! Think of this logically - your kid or loved one says to you - I am thinking of joining this organization that says after Death we will get to travel the galaxy in space ships - that is what Heaven's Gate, the Death Cult, promises No more work, no more worries - just enjoy the easy lazy life forever! What would your reaction be? "how wonderful! can I join?" or "are you nuts?' It is against this backdrop that Reincarnation is to be seen. Of course they had to say we keep coming back Thank you - I heard but didn't know for sure To me Judaism does not belong with Christianity & Islam - simple primitive Master/Slave religions - obey the master & be rewarded - there is not much there Judaism, to me, with its multiple prophets is a Teacher/Student faith - and its stress on education is relevant here For me Hinduism, Buddhism are Teacher/Student faiths - many do not understand that our Gods are our Teachers Judaism belongs with Hinduism and Buddhism Have you not heard new parents saying their child is a Gift? Have you not heard philosophers say Life is a Gift? The world we inhabit is a wonder? To be cherished? Have you heard of Buddhism that says there is no God? Why is there any need for a magic controller? We are souls who decided on being born. We have free will - if life is seen as a burden, we are free to embrace Death, Eternal Death "about dead people sitting around idle, but you never explain your objection to the idea, or what they ought to be doing instead" - because that runs counter to the life that we have now - here you learn that no one GIVES you anything, nothing is FREE, you HAVE to WORK to make a honest living, PAY for what you eat, where you live, EARN what you desire Heaven runs counter to all the laws of life that ALL creatures on earth follow Heaven is unnatural, it makes no sense, it is but a fantasy of the weak, the lazy We have them down here - supporters of brutal dictators like Putin, Saddam - sing their praises, support them unconditionally and live the good life Prostitutes/gigolos/leeches/parasites use the same method - find a rich Sugar Daddy, sing his praises, tell him they "love" him and hope for a life of ease & comfort That is the mentality that Death Cults and religions exploit - the reason why the likes of Madoff are so successful - greed! Greed for the easy living the easy lazy way

Please speak for yourself And yes there are threads on Multiverse, String theory etc - none of which is backed by evidence And let me repeat again - Reincarnation is the idea that there is ONLY ONE WORLD! THIS ONE! It was developed as a counter to this idea of Heaven - ancient Hindus saw it as cowardice - We know of Death Cults like Heaven's Gate - Kill ourselves, we get to travel in alien ships across the galaxy Assume one of your kids or loved ones starts talking of ending his life so as to spend an eternity in this wonderful land that is promised him - no more work, no more worries - no more worrying about climate change, covid19, poverty, discrimination, drug wars, dictators like Putin(I am sure you are keeping up with all the bad news on Ukraine), health issues, job losses & so many more. A nice Sugar Daddy magic being will keep him in cozy comfort for eternity! Would you say, "How wonderful! Can I join you?" Or be shocked and angered? And it is against this backdrop that Reincarnation was developed I just got an idea - if a moderator is reading this - please see the highlighted in bold words - can I make that a thread? What would someone's reaction be upon hearing those words? Or does it fall under attacking religion again?

Again, are we in a communist forum? We are not We are in a democracy and should be freely get rid of rules that make no sense or at least discuss better ways of doing things We do it all the time! Try the mask mandate that is raging on right now in Canada and the US. I am in favor of Masks but if someone has a different idea they should be freely allowed to speak You are shutting down all discussion with "membership rules" - these rules can be changed, they are not set in stone Sorry, that is a cheap shot Again, do you not understand of democracy and free speech? Amazing!

Sure, some guy called me a 5 year old on one thread - it happens, no biggie - we are adults here, unless one starts inciting violence, I think we should be able to speak freely and I don't think we are able to Blasphemy laws in Pakistan are meant for one purpose - to protect any criticism of Islam - so that the Mullahs get to keep power over the populace The Burkha is meant to keep women in a 2nd class subservient role - these things are very clear and we should be able to discuss them without being mocked as rants Am I doing that now? It depends on one's opinion does it not? That is not a very fair way to judge someone's legitimate point of view Let the members, the voting public, decide whether a thread should be closed or kept open - to me that is the fair thing to do Just one person, the moderator making the decision, acting like judge and jury with no chance of an appeal - sounds like just what happened to Galileo when he tried to change minds. How are we still stuck back there?

"Heaven comes as a reward after a life spent working hard" That is so crazy! There is no Sugar Daddy God nicely letting billions just sit around doing nothing for eternity! An idle, lazy, useless and pointless existence for eternity! How does that make any sense? How is it that you can't see a religion simply exploiting people? - you hear Death Cults like Heaven's gate making cheap promises of travelling in alien ships after death and you clearly see it but when it is YOUR OWN religion, do you get blinders? "reward at the end of it is still release from the physical grind" - er no, first of all Life is a Gift! It is not a trap second there is no magic Retirement Home in the sky being run by a Nanny God So basically this release is just Death, Eternal Death & no one would choose Death over life Reincarnation says there is ONLY ONE WORLD! THIS ONE! Reincarnation was developed as a counter to the idea of Heaven - ancient Hindus saw it as cowardice, running away from real life, building fantasy castles in the sky - see Peterkin's comment above - a reward for struggling thru life No such lands exist - there are no magic Nanny Sugar Daddy God keeping billions in cozy comfort And that is what Reincarnation is stressing - it is life down here or bust You mentioned Buddhism - and I am sure you are familiar with the Mahayana concept of Bodhisattvas No one is guiding us, WE are in control of our own destiny - we seek Life because we want to experience life And Reincarnation also says we can develop as human beings - it does not have to be spiritual development - one can aspire to be the next Einstein, the next Buddha, the next Mozart

Just simply do not care for personal attacks! That the lowest form of discussion, sorry Try being civil and let people speak freely

Is it just me or do I see a lot more locks on Religious subjects when compared to other areas in this forum? Is religion being treated differently, in other words, being protected from criticism? Over in Politics I saw a thread - Has the Republican party lost its collective mind? - that doesn't seem a nice thing to say about Republicans (FYI I am a liberal) It seems to me that in other areas of this forum, we are freely allowed to discuss issues with an open mind, after all we are all adults here But here, I feel like I am in Pakistan with all its blasphemy laws - one better watch one says about religion, and we know or at least I know since I keep myself up-to-date on what is happening in the sub-continent, what the horrible consequences would be if we did not But I am not in Pakistan, I am in the US where we are supposed to freely discuss all subjects But here again I see the same stifling communist clampdowns - the moderator makes the decision - good luck in making an appeal That does not scream democracy & freedom does it? Should it not be up to the members of the forum to decide whether a thread should remain open or not? What do members think?

"Believe in me, Support me & be rewarded. If not, you will suffer" "Our dear, loving _______ loves us all. He gives us great joy & happiness. We are soo happy to serve him. We believe and serve only him. All those who are not with him are evil, misguided and must suffer" Ok fill in the blank - Putin, Kim Jong-un or God? It is that easy

Any fool can make promises & that means we don't let greed take over and invest with Madoff or vote for a Putin Life teaches us that nothing is free, no one GIVES us anything, we have to WORK for anything we want & it is those who don't have a stomach for hard work that fall for cheap ponzi-schemes - some steal, some turn to crime & others become prostitutes, gigolos, leeches, parasites - why work for anything when all we have to do is sing some rich guy's praises and tell him we "love him and he will keep us in nice comfort? And when we ask what people DO in Heaven they tell us that they will be singing God's praises, they "love" him so sooo much Religion is just exploiting these people - Sugar Daddy lands with easy living simply do not exist This is it! THIS IS ALL THERE IS! Can you explain the life that you have now? We don't know what consciousness is - we don't know where thoughts are coming from If life can happen once, why not again? And again you missed the main point of Reincarnation - it is not saying we move from life to life - it is saying if we want life, THIS IS IT! This is all there is And is that not what Science says? There is no evidence of any spirit worlds, zero evidence of any Sugar Daddy lands with billions sponging off him & living a life of ease & comfort

It's a simple cheap claim - a Sugar Daddy God keeping billions in cozy comfort - does it make any sense? That is why I ask these questions - Can you please describe a DAY - just ONE DAY & the run! But using this cheap promise they have managed to divide and preach hate & that has in turn led to so many mass killings - we can ask the Mayans or Native Americans about it Much killings going on in Pakistan today - someone is accused of blasphemy & a mob starts killing. We are not there in this country, thank God, but in stressful times, like if Climate Change comes true, I can see a lot of killing of unbelievers I always say if the Buddha had been born in Christian or Muslim lands he would have been branded a heretic, an apostate & been lynched to death! His writings burnt, his followers killed - there would be no Buddhism today Christianity has killed off the largest number of small religions all around the world - you can google it & of course wherever Muslims gain a majority, no other religion is allowed to grow This shouldn't be happening in the 21st century As for being a scary dude, lol, I guess i am - ideas are scary, aren't they? Hindus don't teach our religion to our children - you can ask a Christian kid about the Bible, he might say a few words from it. A Muslim kid might quote the entire Koran A Hindu kid would have no idea about the Gita - they know our Gods and some stories because they are exposed to it but not much As for Reincarnation - i keep stressing this - these are ideas! Heaven is the idea that we can run away from Real Life and hide in a Fantasy Reincarnation is the idea that there is only one world! This one! This one! That is what Reincarnation is saying "more cozy, attractive reality"??? Really? In Heaven no one mentions any work being done. Everybody gets to just sit around doing nothing, while a magic Sugar Daddy Nanny keeps everyone in cozy comfort No more having to worry about climate change, poverty, discrimination, covid19, job losses, health issues, Dictators like Putin - based on what is going on today, the market might take a big hit tomorrow - drug wars......the list is endless! Reincarnation says this is where you belong - how exactly do you see a "more cozy, attractive reality"?

One guy called me a 5 year old! Now that's resorting to personal insults, which this forum should not allow We are not kids here - I am not personally insulting anyone, just dismissing this idea of a Sugar Daddy God in the sky and billions getting to sit around doing nothing all because they joined the right religion - seems crazy to me Every time i have asked theists - What does one DO in Heaven? And Why would an all-mighty God need anything to get done? And need our help in getting it done? They run away - EVERY TIME! If a Madoff comes around making claims, you would be using the same dismissive language as well & that is what all Death Cults do - cheap easy claims of a wonderful "life" AFTER Death. They know and the sad thing is that the followers know as well, that there is zero evidence of such lands Which is why they stress belief so much

There are rational, down-to-earth explanations to all ideas Basically there are no Gods - there has never been any evidence of such beings All ideas of God came from life - Christianity & Islam molded their Gods in the image of their local King/Dictator - get down on our knees, swear loyalty & obedience to this master and this master only, pleased, he will reward us with heaven Hindus viewed God more as a Parent/a Teacher - the goal is to strive to be more God-like - the ancient Hellenic religion was saying the same thing - it's not Gods walking the earth, but human being being God-like. Which is why the Buddha HAD to be a God, which the Buddhists misunderstood. The Buddha hated magic, miracle - said if one believed in magic or miracle, one cannot be a Buddhist That is what Hinduism is stressing - there are no magic, miracle Gods, just human beings aspiring to do great things We use this term in our daily life - Michael Jordan is a God! Mahomes, Einstein referred to as Gods - these Gods are Hindu Gods What I am trying to do is to give a rational down-to-earth explanations to all Gods & beliefs Amazing that this guy can't see that Nietzsche also But it is not as if Reincarnation really happens - the stress is that we can't run away & hide in fantasy lands in the sky THIS IS IT! THERE IS ONLY ONE WORLD, THIS ONE! And what Reincarnation is saying is that if you want life, it is only here. Sorry, life is harsh, difficult but this is the only game in town. Many people fall for Death Cults and their happy promises of a wonderful "life" AFTER Death! What Reincarnation is saying is that such worlds do not exist No Sugar Daddy Gods, not magic realms where billions get to sit about doing nothing There is much that we still do not understand about the brain - we know it is working but how do cells create thoughts? Where are these thoughts coming from? Why do I have this insight now and not a few years ago? The one creature that has always intrigued me is the ant - such a small creature with hardly a brain but it builds huge cities, are farmers, tend to "cows", wage wars, capture slaves - where are they getting all this intelligence from? Another problem is the migration of birds - how does a new born bird know where to go? Yet these paths seem to come inbuilt Life - REAL LIFE - if you want life, this is the only game in town It is like graduating from one class to another - new year, new school, new subjects, new teachers Death Cults have created magic Retirement Homes in the sky where billions get to sit about doing nothing. And this idea is clouding our vision Tons of videos on Heaven on You tube - everything is about, "I saw this, I saw that" but none mention any work It's all about how we can be sooooo happy and at peace - just don't see any sense in a magic being playing a Nanny Sugar Daddy to billions just laying about, in an idle, lazy, useless and pointless existence for eternity

I am saying that was the world they lived in - a very violent world where matters were settled with violence rather than with Justice. Hence the "Gods" they gave birth It is the reverse - it is man who made God in his image - in this case a King/Dictator demanding obedience and loyalty & rewarding(Heaven)/punishing(Hell) accordingly What is sad is that we have not moved much forward if we go by Hollywood's standards of "Justice"

For a long period in human history, Justice was hard to come by - the lack of forensic science and modern methods of catching a killer, meant many crimes would go undetected Hence the wild, wild west where matters were settled with a gun rather than the law - but that is Vengeance, not Justice It is in such times that Gods and Heaven and Hell were invented - the criminal would get "Justice" ie torture and brutality in hell We still see this in some primitive countries where criminals are tied up and lashed, thieves having their hands cut off etc And of course Hollywood LOVES vengeance - the "Kill Bill" move genre where the hero or heroine gets hurt in the beginning and then the audience is treated to a kill fest - their blood lust is satisfied! But is this Justice? Did the Hero or Heroine get their loved ones back? Justice is when the VICTIM is made whole, right? If a child was abducted and the parents could choose between a) getting their child back safely or b) the criminal dies a brutal death, their child still lost Which one would the parents pick? 100% would pick option a of course In today's times if some drunk guy drives his car into our parked car or house and causes damages, we don't take our car and damage his car or damage his house, do we? In a civilized world, we make the guy pay for the damages - no one is hurt, the VICTIM comes out happy What is amazing is that the all-powerful "God" cannot offer Justice, only Vengeance! A few years ago a little child was abducted, raped and killed! The criminal was caught and I think he is in jail now awaiting death So let's assume God forgives him, everyone will agree that that is totally wrong So God dumps him in hell - is that Justice? That little girl did not get to enjoy life - hang out with friends, first dances or crushes, college, a career, falling in love, marriage, kids - all the joys of life that the rest of us got to enjoy! And her parents also did not get to enjoy all the joys of parenting, at every graduation, every marriage, every birth of a child, they are reminded of their little girl lost So again, we end up with a "God" who is unable to offer Justice Clear evidence that these are man-made Gods and man-made ideas of the afterlife

I always thought what it would be like to be on the other side - imagine a hook stuck thru you jaw and you being yanked around while on the other side shouts of glee! You are in tremendous pain, blood all over - good thing there are no piranhas around I think even worse is bird hunting - as they fly over, hunters let loose with a hail of bullets - the "lucky" ones die quickly, the unlucky birds get hit in the wing or leg, fall to the ground and dies a slow painful death. It's young back in the nest get to die of starvation unless a predator puts them out of their misery When it comes to bugs - i think this is a matter of pain & suffering - I think the higher animals feel pain but at the lower level, i think such pain is reduced. The smaller an animal is it is subject to a lot of natural damages - an ant can be injured by rain, by a falling leaf! If it feels pain the same way we do, it will never survive. I do believe that bugs, ants do not have the same pain receptors that we do