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Post by clusium on Nov 21, 2022 19:28:42 GMT
First, please tell us all why Hinduism would be most likely the one true religion, before we dispute you. Why not, let's say, Confucianism for example?  Hinduism predates Confucianism, and Confucianism is more of a secular philosophy than a religion. It's a bit of both, actually.
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Post by Feologild Oakes on Nov 21, 2022 19:38:18 GMT
I think people in the east views religions differently than we do in the west. In India they do not view Hinduism as a religion they view it as a way of life. Some Hindus may not even belive in the Gods of Hinduism but they still follow the philosophy of Hinduism.
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Post by rachelcarson1953 on Nov 21, 2022 19:42:06 GMT
Hinduism is the oldest living religion (still practiced) by humans.
And the Egyptian respect for a cat that "had a deity on board" is an interesting concept, given that us cat people treat our cats as if they are royalty, or a deity.  But as an agnostic atheist, I see religion as having been started by primitive men who didn't understand where lightning came from. And from a folklore perspective, evolved over the centuries. I know. I don`t know if this is accurate, but i have heard that in India, Hinduism is not actually viewed as a religion but a way of life. Also in India if i am not mistaken they call it Sanātana Dharma and not Hinduism.Oh i agree that religion was started by primitive men, i frankly don`t think you need religion, just get rid of it. And some people may think that i am against people believing in God, because i think we can get rid of religion, that is not the case, frankly you don`t need religion to have faith, religion is just away to control people. Our board expert on Hinduism, Aj_June (an apatheist, but born in India) could probably clarify that. But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life, of something beyond the obvious struggle to survive in the real world. It makes people feel 'safer' thinking that an all-knowing deity is watching them and if something bad happens, they will go to Heaven. Of course, some of the Eastern religions believe in reincarnation, with a final achievement of Nirvana (a release from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth).
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Post by clusium on Nov 21, 2022 21:16:43 GMT
I know. I don`t know if this is accurate, but i have heard that in India, Hinduism is not actually viewed as a religion but a way of life. Also in India if i am not mistaken they call it Sanātana Dharma and not Hinduism.Oh i agree that religion was started by primitive men, i frankly don`t think you need religion, just get rid of it. And some people may think that i am against people believing in God, because i think we can get rid of religion, that is not the case, frankly you don`t need religion to have faith, religion is just away to control people. Our board expert on Hinduism, Aj_June (an apatheist, but born in India) could probably clarify that. But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life, of something beyond the obvious struggle to survive in the real world. It makes people feel 'safer' thinking that an all-knowing deity is watching them and if something bad happens, they will go to Heaven. Of course, some of the Eastern religions believe in reincarnation, with a final achievement of Nirvana (a release from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth). A lot of things are used to control people. Politics, country, etc.
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The Lost One
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Post by The Lost One on Nov 21, 2022 21:22:49 GMT
But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life I've often seen this argument made but I don’t think it's accurate. Not all religions throughout different cultures across history have a central concept of an afterlife and of those that do, it's often unpleasant or at least fairly neutral. At best, the idea of a pleasant afterlife accessibile to adherents is a feature of some religions and it's interesting to question why it came about in those religions and not others. |
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Post by rachelcarson1953 on Nov 21, 2022 22:36:14 GMT
Our board expert on Hinduism, Aj_June (an apatheist, but born in India) could probably clarify that. But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life, of something beyond the obvious struggle to survive in the real world. It makes people feel 'safer' thinking that an all-knowing deity is watching them and if something bad happens, they will go to Heaven. Of course, some of the Eastern religions believe in reincarnation, with a final achievement of Nirvana (a release from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth). A lot of things are used to control people. Politics, country, etc. All boiling down to one thing; fear of "others". It is tribal, and pretty much part of our DNA. A tribe sticks together, and they depend on each other for food, safety, warmth, etc. If another tribe shows up, they might want whatever natural resources the original tribe depends on for survival. Then there is the chance of a battle over the resources. A strong leader sometimes makes the difference, and the weaker tribe loses to the stronger one. Slowly, the other tribe assimilates into the stronger tribe because they have control. Then, another tribe shows up, and the same scenario plays out. Or the resources of the tribe can't supply for all the needs of the tribe as it grows, and they move, or a faction splits off. Somewhere in there, a strong leader that cannot be seen emerges, a god. This god can control weather (humans can't), food and water sources, etc., and the practice of sacrifices to please this god and bring on favorable living conditions evolves. We can't see far enough into the past to chart all of these changes over huge amounts of time, but science has given us a glimpse of our long evolution into modern humans. But science is relatively new here amongst us humans, and evidence doesn't yet win over epidemiology. Writing has only been around for 5 thousand years or so, and folklore and legend were prevalent and not exactly quantifiable. If we don't blow ourselves up first or die out from starvation and infectious disease brought on by overpopulation, humans might have a chance of reaching a higher level of understanding of how the world works and be able to live in a sustainable environment without the need for 'a higher power'. But I'm not betting the farm on it...
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Post by permutojoe on Nov 21, 2022 22:40:02 GMT
But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life I've often seen this argument made but I don’t think it's accurate. Not all religions throughout different cultures across history have a central concept of an afterlife and of those that do, it's often unpleasant or at least fairly neutral. At best, the idea of a pleasant afterlife accessibile to adherents is a feature of some religions and it's interesting to question why it came about in those religions and not others. True. In Buddhism they have nirvana, which is a release from the cycle of reincarnation. I don't think there's anything past that once you attain it, so it's basically the end of your journey.
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The Lost One
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Post by The Lost One on Nov 21, 2022 22:42:44 GMT
True. In Buddhism they have nirvana, which is a release from the cycle of reincarnation. I don't think there's anything past that once you attain it, so it's basically the end of your journey. Yeah Nirvana is destruction of the self, not exactly something to appeal to someone who wants to live forever |
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Post by rachelcarson1953 on Nov 21, 2022 22:45:59 GMT
I've often seen this argument made but I don’t think it's accurate. Not all religions throughout different cultures across history have a central concept of an afterlife and of those that do, it's often unpleasant or at least fairly neutral. At best, the idea of a pleasant afterlife accessibile to adherents is a feature of some religions and it's interesting to question why it came about in those religions and not others. True. In Buddhism they have nirvana, which is a release from the cycle of reincarnation. I don't think there's anything past that once you attain it, so it's basically the end of your journey. Yeah, like finally being able to retire, permanently. No more struggle to stay alive. Whew!
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Post by gadreel on Nov 21, 2022 22:47:33 GMT
I know. I don`t know if this is accurate, but i have heard that in India, Hinduism is not actually viewed as a religion but a way of life. Also in India if i am not mistaken they call it Sanātana Dharma and not Hinduism.Oh i agree that religion was started by primitive men, i frankly don`t think you need religion, just get rid of it. And some people may think that i am against people believing in God, because i think we can get rid of religion, that is not the case, frankly you don`t need religion to have faith, religion is just away to control people. Our board expert on Hinduism, Aj_June (an apatheist, but born in India) could probably clarify that. But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life, of something beyond the obvious struggle to survive in the real world. It makes people feel 'safer' thinking that an all-knowing deity is watching them and if something bad happens, they will go to Heaven. Of course, some of the Eastern religions believe in reincarnation, with a final achievement of Nirvana (a release from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth). Some Christians believe in reincarnation as well, although I guess it is hard to say it is a religious belief, I dont think any known sects teach a doctrine of reincarnation. It's certainly included in many of the mystic Christian beliefs, although that may have something to do with having to fill our spiritual cup from the east.
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The Lost One
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Post by The Lost One on Nov 21, 2022 23:05:46 GMT
It's certainly included in many of the mystic Christian beliefs, although that may have something to do with having to fill our spiritual cup from the east. Reincarnation actually isn't purely an Eastern idea. You can find it in the works of some of the Ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato. Caesar also records the Gauls as believing in reincarnation. It seems to have entered Christian mysticism via Neoplatonism but more recently there could be more of an Eastern influence. |
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Post by gadreel on Nov 21, 2022 23:29:17 GMT
It's certainly included in many of the mystic Christian beliefs, although that may have something to do with having to fill our spiritual cup from the east. Reincarnation actually isn't purely an Eastern idea. You can find it in the works of some of the Ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato. Caesar also records the Gauls as believing in reincarnation. It seems to have entered Christian mysticism via Neoplatonism but more recently there could be more of an Eastern influence. Hmm, I read it as coming from the East (particuarly India), as most of the books I read the writers learned meditation and so on in Indian schools. I guess most of what I am reading is from around 1900 - 1940 in that field which might colour my perception. I feel like neoplatonism has kind of ebbed and flowed in terms of it's influence, I definately see a lot of similar concepts in what I am reading too. More and more I see similarities between religions rather than differences, meaning the differences are often superficial and the similarities are far more around underlying beliefs. EDIT: I also feel like there was a conservative backlash and maybe some ideas fell out of favour and were reintroduced again from different sources?? That might just be interpretation on my part though.
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The Lost One
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Post by The Lost One on Nov 21, 2022 23:46:11 GMT
Hmm, I read it as coming from the East (particuarly India) I think some have theorised the Ancient Greeks got the idea from India but it could be that both cultures came up with the idea independently. Sounds plausible to me. |
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Post by clusium on Nov 22, 2022 15:33:35 GMT
Some of the more recently created world religions, such as Baha'i and/or Cao Day, etc., try to amalgamate the various world religions into one, by including the founders or holy figures of the different religions in their own ones.
Eg: The Lord Jesus Christ and Gautama Buddha are counted in these religions, despite the different Theological outlooks Of These 2 & various other religious figures.
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Post by gadreel on Nov 23, 2022 6:09:03 GMT
Hmm, I read it as coming from the East (particuarly India) Sounds plausible to me. Sorry just to be clear, I meant what I read has it coming from the east, having said that what I read is mostly post 1900, so likely this is the second round of inception. Yeah it's interesting the debate between spontaneous similarity and migration of ideas
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Post by amyghost on Nov 23, 2022 13:16:59 GMT
I don't think there is any one true religion. All religions are imagined by humans. While some things written might be true, many things are not. I am okay with people following a religion if they are spiritually satisfied. However, I find it extremely disturbing when people go on to the length of believing in ONE TRUE religion. It is this segment of religious people that cause most problems. Well said. As with anything that's based in the imaginary, it's pointless to try and posit any religion as being "the one true". T'aint no such animal, folks.
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Post by amyghost on Nov 23, 2022 13:19:07 GMT
Our board expert on Hinduism, Aj_June (an apatheist, but born in India) could probably clarify that. But as to religion; yes, religion is a way to control people, with its promise of eternal life, of something beyond the obvious struggle to survive in the real world. It makes people feel 'safer' thinking that an all-knowing deity is watching them and if something bad happens, they will go to Heaven. Of course, some of the Eastern religions believe in reincarnation, with a final achievement of Nirvana (a release from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth). A lot of things are used to control people. Politics, country, etc. The problem lies partially in the fact that religions are frequently used (and quite willingly allow themselves to be used) as a powerful adjunct to those above items. "God and country" isn't a saying that just came about by accident.
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Post by clusium on Nov 26, 2022 1:11:01 GMT
Than the one true religion is most likely Hinduism. Now tell me why i am wrong. Back when IMDB had their message forums, there actually was one Hindu poster who believed that Hinduism was the one true religion.
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