Subba Row Defends Esoteric Buddhism
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Faith and the Fear of Death Jonathan Jong
Stories of Faith & Science I Faith and the Fear of Death Jonathan Jong The making of a priest takes many years. A calling must be discerned, not only by the individual but by the Church also, who will test him repeatedly by observation and interview. The candidate must be trained and formed in sanctuaries and seminaries and soup kitchens. He must be examined and found — in the words of the ordinal — “to be of godly life and sound learning.” Some of us wonder how we got through; many of us wonder how other people did too. At the end of this process, the act of ordination itself takes no time at all. In the parish church of a medieval Oxford village one mild English summer’s afternoon a few months before my thirtieth birthday, the bishop, his hands like a veil upon my head, his voice grave and tender in equal measure, invokes the Holy Spirit to come down upon this servant of God for the office and work of a priest in the Church. Done. Priest made. I had known since I was sixteen that I was going to be ordained, but neither when nor how. It came to me when, in a Methodist church in my hometown on the northwestern tip of Malaysian Borneo, I asked to hold the pastor’s collar in my own hands, a request he had never heard before but fulfilled anyway. Much has happened since. I moved to New Zealand not long after and majored in experimental psychology — rather than theology, as might be expected of an aspiring cleric. -
India's "Tīrthas": "Crossings" in Sacred Geography
India's "Tīrthas": "Crossings" in Sacred Geography The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Eck, Diana L. 1981. India's "Tīrthas": "Crossings" in sacred geography. History of Religions 20 (4): 323-344. Published Version http://www.jstor.org/stable/1062459 Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:25499831 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA DianaL.Eck INDIA'S TIRTHAS: "CROSSINGS" IN SACRED GEOGRAPHY One of the oldest strands of the Hindu tradition is what one might call the "locative" strand of Hindu piety. Its traditions of ritual and reverence are linked primarily to place-to hill- tops and rock outcroppings, to the headwaters and confluences of rivers, to the pools and groves of the forests, and to the boundaries of towns and villages. In this locative form of religiousness, the place itself is the primary locus of devotion, and its traditions of ritual and pilgrimage are usually much older than any of the particular myths and deities which attach to it. In the wider Hindu tradition, these places, par- ticularly those associated with waters, are often called tirthas, and pilgrimage to these tirthas is one of the oldest and still one of the most prominent features of Indian religious life. A tZrtha is a "crossing place," a "ford," where one may cross over to the far shore of a river or to the far shore of the worlds of heaven. -
The Philosophy of Religion Past and Present: Philosophical Theology Or the Critical Cross
“The Philosophy of Religion Past and Present: Philosophical Theology or the Critical Cross- Examination of Institutionalized Ritual and Belief?”1 Bryan Rennie Vira I. Heinz Professor of Religion Westminster College October, 2014 Abstract The disciplinary or “traditional” philosophy of religion has come under increasing attacks that claim that it is unacceptably focused on specifically monotheist, and even specifically Christian, issues to such an extent that it does not merit the appellation “philosophy of religion.” It should, it has been claimed, more honestly and accurately be termed “philosophical theology.” A discipline more reasonably entitled “philosophy of religion” or perhaps “philosophy of religions” should expand its focus to include the traditionally philosophical questions of ontology, epistemology, and ethics raised not only by the history of the Christian, or even the other Abrahamic, traditions but by all such institutionalized systems of ritual and belief. Contemporary movements in both Philosophy and the Study of Religion have begun to raise this point with increasing emphasis. What might such a reformed philosophy of religion(s) look like, and what role might it play in the future of the academy? What Do I Mean by “Philosophy”? At the outset it behooves me to make some attempt to clarify what I mean by (Western) philosophy. The word, of course, has a plurality of senses, and one is never justified in claiming that any given singular sense is the “right” one. Philosophy does mean a personal, possibly very 1 The following paper draws heavily on previously published work, especially Rennie 2006, 2010, and 2012. Rennie Philosophy of Religions: Past and Present 2 loose, system of beliefs relative to some identifiable class, as in “my philosophy of life.” It can also mean speculative metaphysics, as in “The subject of the attributes of deity was until recent times reserved for the speculations of theology and philosophy” (Pettazzoni 1956: 1). -
Going Beyond Vaikuntha.Pdf
Going Beyond Vaiku√†ha çrî çrî guru-gaurå∫gau jayata˙ Going Beyond Vaiku√†ha Çrî Çrîmad Bhaktivedånta Nåråya√a Mahåråja V®ndåvana, Uttar Pradesh, India Other titles by Çrîla Nåråya√a Mahåråja: The Nectar of Govinda-lîlå Bhakti-rasåyana Çrî Çikßå߆aka Ve√u-gîta Çrî Prabandhåvalî Çrî Bhakti-rasåm®ta-sindhu-bindu Çrî Mana˙-çikßå Bhakti-tattva-viveka Çrî Upadeçåm®ta Çrî Gau∂îya Gîti-guccha Çrîmad Bhagavad-gîtå Çrîmad Bhakti Prajñåna Keçava Gosvåmî – His Life and Teachings Çrî Harinåma Mahå-mantra Jaiva-dharma Beyond Nirvå√a Çrî Vraja-ma√∂ala Parikramå Çrî Bhajana-rahasya Çrî Brahma-saμhitå The Origin of Ratha-yåtrå Çrî Navadvîpa-dhåma Parikramå Çrî Gîta-govinda Rays of the Harmonist (periodical) Please see the following websites for in-depth transcendental content: PureBhakti.com / BhaktiArt.com / BhaktiProjects.com ISBN 81-86737-04-9 © 2006 Gau∂îya Vedånta Publications – all rights reserved. Cover painting is © Çyåmarå√î dåsî. Used with permission. Photo of Çrî Çrîmad A.C. Bhaktivedånta Swami Prabhupåda is © courtesy of The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc. (www.krishna.com). Used with permission. First printing: June 1994 – 1,000 copies Second printing: September 1997 – 2,000 copies Third printing: September 2006 – 1,000 copies Contents Introduction i Ma∫galåcara√a iii Chapter 1. ...The Bråhma√a Meets Gopa-kumåra 1 2.....Gopa-kumåra’s Remarkable Journey 19 3.....The Superiority of Nåma-sa∫kîrtana 35 4.....The Moods of Intimacy and Sweetness 43 5.....Bhagavån’s Incarnations are One 57 6.....K®ß√a’s Glories are Inconceivable 71 7.....Bhagavån’s Inconceivable Potency 85 8.....The Glories of Yogamåyå 101 9.....K®ß√a Gives Prema Even To His Enemies 115 10.. -
A Theory of Religion Revised
A Theory of Religion Revised What feature do all and only religions share in virtue of which they are religions? Philosophers lately tend to agree that there is merely a 'family resemblance' between religions (to use Wittgenstein's term), a network of features generally shared, most of which belong to each religion, no one of which belongs to every religion. The best way to show that a question is not misguided is to answer it, as I tried to do in my paper 'A Theory of Religion.'1 I've become persuaded, however, that the theory presented there provides at best a sufficient condition for religion, not a necessary one. None the less I believe the theory can be revised so that it expresses a necessary condition too. That is the project of this paper. In what follows I will briefly recapitulate the old theory, explain why it fails, then amend it so that it answers the question that begins this essay. Finally I will apply it to hard cases and consider putative counterexamples. Religion has an essence, I will maintain, which the new theory reveals. The Old Theory The feature of religions that provided the basis for my theory is that a religion can be practiced. Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism each involve activities that, when done in the right way for the right reasons, constitute the practice of that religion. A religion is a kind of system of practices. But what differentiates religious from non-religious practices? A religion, I wrote, must be rationalized by beliefs that articulate an account of the universe, or an account of the reality that underlies the universe, according to which there is the possibility of fit. -
Aspects of Buddhism
ASPECTS OF BUDDHISM PROCEEDINGS OF THE INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON BUDDHIST STUDIES LIW, 25 JUNE 1994 Edited by Agata Bareja-Starzy´nska and Marek Mejor Oriental Institute Warsaw University 1997 ISSN 1232-4663 °c 1997 Instytut Orientalistyczny, Uniwersytet Warszawski Krakowskie Przedmie´scie26/28, 00-927 Warszawa, Poland This book has been typeset by TEX system. LATEX style designed by Jacek Starzy´nski. Printed by ZakÃladGraficzny Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego Zam. nr 630/97 Aspects of Buddhism i Contents Foreword ii Abbreviations iii 1 Agata Bareja-Starzy´nska The Essentials of Buddhism in the Ciqulaˇ kereglegˇci, a 16th Century Mongolian Buddhist Treatise1 1 2 Jens Braarvig Bhavya on Mantras: Apologetic Endeavours on Behalf of the Mah¯ay¯ana 31 3 David P. Jackson On the Date of the Tibetan Translation of A´svaghos.a’s Buddhacarita2 39 4 Helmut Krasser rNgog lots¯abaon the sahopalambhaniyama proof in Dharmak¯ırti’s Pram¯an. avini´scaya 59 5 Per Kværne Discovering Buddhist Art of Kinnaur 83 6 Christian Lindtner Bhavya on M¯ım¯am. s¯a 85 7 Marek Mejor A Note on Buddhist Studies in Poland 117 8 Marek Mejor On the Formulation of the Prat¯ıtyasamutp¯ada: Some Ob- servations from Vasubandhu’s Prat¯ıtyasamutp¯adavy¯akhy¯a 125 9 Marek Mejor On Vasubandhu’s Prat¯ıtyasamutp¯adavy¯akhy¯a3 139 10 Michael Torsten Much S¯am¯an¯adhikaran. ya in Dign¯aga,Uddyotakara and Dharmak¯ırti 149 11 Tom J.F. Tillemans Dharmak¯ırtion prasiddha and yogyat¯a4 161 12 Vladimir L. Uspensky Some Rare Oirat Manuscripts in the Collection of the St. -
Esoteric Buddhism by A.P
Esoteric Buddhism by A.P. Sinnett Esoteric Buddhism by A.P. Sinnett Author also of The Occult World President of the London Lodge of the Theosophical Society Fifth edition, annotated and enlarged by the author London, Chapman and Hall Ltd 1885 Page 1 Esoteric Buddhism by A.P. Sinnett CONTENTS Preface to the Annotated Edition Preface to the Original Edition CHAPTER I - Esoteric Teachers Nature of the Present Exposition - Seclusion of Eastern Knowledge - The Arhats and their Attributes - The Mahatmas - Occultists generally - Isolated Mystics - Inferior Yogis - Occult Training - The Great Purpose -Its Incidental Consequences - Present Concessions CHAPTER II - The Constitution of Man Esoteric Cosmogony - Where to Begin - Working back from Man to Universe - Analysis of Man - The Seven Principles CHAPTER III -The Planetary Chain Esoteric Views of Evolution - The Chain of Globes - Progress of Man round them - The Spiral Advance - Original Evolution of the Globes - The Lower Kingdoms CHAPTER IV -The World Periods Uniformity of Nature- Rounds and Races - The Septenary Law - Objective and Subjective Lives - Total Incarnations - Former Races on Earth - Periodic Cataclysms - Atlantis - Lemuria - The Cyclic Law CHAPTER V - Devachan Spiritual Destinies of the Ego - Karma - Division of the Principles of Death - Progress of the Higher Duad - Existence in Devachan - Subjective Progress - Avitchi - Earthly Connection with Devachan - Devachanic Periods CHAPTER VI - Kâma Loca The Astral Shell - Its Habitat - Its Nature - Surviving Impulses - Elementals - -
World Christianity and “Protestant America”: Historical Narratives and the Limits of Christian Pluralism Chandra Mallampalli
, World Christianity and “Protestant America”: Historical Narratives and the Limits of Christian Pluralism Chandra Mallampalli merica’s identity as a Protestant nation has long been a This mythology views the Gospel as necessarily producing a A topic of extensive research. Relationships between certain type of history, one that begins in either chaos or tyranny America’s “civil religion,” exceptionalism, and global mission and leads ultimately to a stable, powerful, and prosperous have sparked reflection across many disciplines.1 Into the world democracy. of the twenty-first century, two momentous yet paradoxical If the southward expansion of Christianity levels any cri- developments are casting new light upon America’s identity and tique at all of Protestant America, it is by delinking the Gospel mission. The first is the dramatic growth of Christianity in Africa, from grand narratives that are used to explain American progress.3 Latin America, and Asia. The second is the rise of America to a Liberalism, rational debate, free enterprise, and rule of law are status of unrivaled military and economic power. Demographi- cherished ideals of both America and the former British Empire. cally, the global South has created new Christian centers. But Within these histories such ideals have come to represent a even as this trend continues, America remains the world’s politi- Judeo-Christian imprint on modernity, a biblical way of respect- cal and economic center, whose religious heritage continues to ing persons, creating wealth, and holding states accountable to a sanction its political mission.2 higher law. Today, however, Christian congregations flourish in I use this paradox as an occasion to reflect upon historical places where these institutions are at best partially formed. -
Manuscript Production and Akṣara Mysticism in the Bhīma Svarga Aditia Gunawan
Manuscript Production and Akṣara Mysticism in the Bhīma Svarga Aditia Gunawan To cite this version: Aditia Gunawan. Manuscript Production and Akṣara Mysticism in the Bhīma Svarga. 2017. halshs- 03227776 HAL Id: halshs-03227776 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-03227776 Submitted on 17 May 2021 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. YUSOF ISHAK INSTITUTE NALANDA-SRIWIJAYA CENTRE WORKING PAPER SERIES NO. 26 MANUSCRIPT PRODUCTION AND AK ṣARA MYSTICISM IN THE BHĪMA SVARGA Aditia Gunawan MANUSCRIPT PRODUCTION AND AK ṣARA MYSTICISM IN THE BHĪMA SVARGA Aditia Gunawan Aditia Gunawan is a philologist at the National Library of Indonesia. He completed his Masters at the Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales (INALCO), Paris. He can be contacted via [email protected]. The ISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute (ISEAS, formerly the Citations of this electronic publication should be Institute of Southeast Asian Studies) is an autonomous made in the following manner: organization established in 1968. It is a regional centre Aditia Gunawan, Manuscript Production and Ak ṣara dedicated to the study of socio-political, security, and Mysticism in the Bhīma Svarga, Nalanda-Sriwijaya economic trends and developments in Southeast Asia Centre Working Paper No 26 (Dec 2017). -
BLAVATSKY,HP Key to Theosophy Pp 1-15 and 19-20.Docx Page 1 of 8
BLAVATSKY,HP Key to Theosophy pp 1-15 and 19-20.docx Page 1 of 8 H.P. BLAVATSKY The Key to Theosophy pp. 1-15 and 19-20 On religious intolerance pp. 1-15 Section 1 THEOSOPHY AND THE THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY THE MEANING OF THE NAME ENQUIRER. Theosophy and its doctrines are often referred to as a new-fangled religion. Is it a religion? THEOSOPHIST. It is not. Theosophy is Divine Knowledge or Science. ENQUIRER. What is the real meaning of the term? THEOSOPHIST. "Divine Wisdom," (Theosophia) or Wisdom of the gods, as (theogonia), genealogy of the gods. The word theos means a god in Greek, one of the divine beings, certainly not "God" in the sense attached in our day to the term. Therefore, it is not "Wisdom of God," as translated by some, but Divine Wisdom such as that possessed by the gods. The term is many thousand years old. ENQUIRER. What is the origin of the name? THEOSOPHIST. It comes to us from the Alexandrian philosophers, called lovers of truth, Philaletheians, from phil "loving," and aletheia "truth." The name Theosophy dates from the third century of our era, and began with Ammonius Saccas and his disciples (1), who started the Eclectic Theosophical system. ENQUIRER. What was the object of this system? THEOSOPHIST. First of all to inculcate certain great moral truths upon its disciples, and all those who were "lovers of the truth." Hence the motto adopted by the Theosophical Society: "There is no religion higher than truth." (2) The chief aim of the Founders of the Eclectic Theosophical School was one of the three objects of its modern successor, the Theosophical Society, namely, to reconcile all religions, sects and nations under a common system of ethics, based on eternal verities. -
The Theosophical Society's Ongoing Problem of Emotion and Control
Taming the Astral Body: The Theosophical Society’s Ongoing Problem of Emotion and Control John L. Crow Florida State University Abstract In New York City in 1875, a group interested in Spiritualism and occult science founded what would become the Theosophical Society. Primarily the creation of Henry Steel Olcott and Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, the Theosophical Society went through a number of early incarnations. One original version promised to teach occult powers. After Blavatsky found that she could not honor earlier promises to teach occultism, she shifted the focus of the Society to one that promoted Universal Brotherhood instead, highlighting notions of the body and demanding the control of emotion as a means to rebuff demands for training. With this refocusing, Blavatsky reestablished control of the Society and asserted herself as the central channel of esoteric knowledge. Thus, by shifting the focus from the attainment of occult powers to the more ambiguous “spiritual enlightenment,” Blavatsky erected an elaborate, centralized system of delayed spiritual gratification, a system contingent upon the individual’s adoption of specific morals and values, while simultaneously maintaining control of the human body on all its levels: spiritual, social, physical, mental, and especially emotional. Introduction During a meeting of the Theosophical Society in New York City on October 18, 1876, the co-founder and legal counsel for the newly established organization, William Quan Judge (1851– 96), gave a lecture about his personal experiences in the study of Theosophy. He spoke about his recent experiences of astrally traveling and implanting his thoughts and ideas into the minds of others. He did this through focusing his will and commanding his “double,” or astral body, to go to these places and influence others. -
NARAKA HELLS - an Account of Punishment for Sinful Living Entities
If you ever wondered where you going after death, just look at the pictures. - PUNISHMENT IN 28 NARAKA HELLS - An account of punishment for sinful living entities Naraka (Sanskrit: नरक) meaning Hell, is a place of punishment for sinful living entities, where sinners are punished and tormented after death. In many scriptures we find details about various hells and sufferings therein. The Śrīmad Bhāgavatam Purāṇa describes different hells called Naraka. Naraka, as a whole, is known by many names conveying that it is the realm of Yama called Yamaloka or Mṛtyuloka – the realm of Death. Naraka-Loka - the hellish planets Naraka or Naraka-loka is also the abode of Yama, the god of Death. After death, the messengers of Yama called Yamadūtas bring all beings to the court of Yamarāja, where he weighs the virtues and the vices of the living beings and accordingly passes the appropriate judgement. Yama-rāja, as Lord of Justice, is also called Dharma-rāja. Yama sends the virtuous to Svarga-loka, the heavenly planets, to enjoy the luxuries of paradise. He also assesses the vices of the sinful and accords judgement, assigning them to appropriate hells as punishment commensurate with the severity and nature of their sins. The hellish planets are ruled by Yamarāja, the son of the sun-god. He resides in Pitṛloka with his personal assistants, performing his duty according to the rules and regulations laid down by the Supreme Lord. At the time of death, when the heart stops beating, the living entity, namely the soul, along with the subtle material body consisting of mind, intelligence and false ego, is dragged out by the subtle creatures, the Yamadūtas, the servants of the lord of death, from his gross material body consisting of earth, water, fire, air and ether.