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Go Back   Spiritual Forums > Religions & Faiths > Interfaith

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  #41  
Old 16-09-2019, 11:24 PM
BigJohn BigJohn is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ariaecheflame
Such an interesting comment.

I can vouch for such questioning.

I spent many years as an atheist and I also spent quite a lot of time exploring these sorts of ideas and feelings.

As a result, when someone asks me what religion I am or what I believe, I now say that I am a 'nothing' - as in I believe in the beingness contained or the possibility of being contained within the nothing.

I currently have no other name for this state other then 'nothing' lol.

So I went from believing in nothing to being a nothing so that I could be a something... Lol...
I tell them I am a mongrel..... a little bit of this and a little bit of that.
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        Happiness is the result of an enlightened mind whereas suffering is caused by a distorted mind.
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  #42  
Old 07-10-2019, 04:22 PM
Molearner Molearner is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SlayerOfLight
What I noticed from studying and annalysing ndes, many people have different experiences. Some of them will tell you there is a devil and a hell, while others won't. One can talk about a ''hell of their own making'' but then why are Christ and/or God present in some of those ndes confirming the whole thing to be true? Is this a false god that they also created subconsciously?

SlayerOfLight,

Interesting. Yes, we can create a hell of our own making and conversely we can create a heaven of our own making. Either one is created by our own imagination. It is my belief that imagination is the creative force that is in play. It would be wrong to interpolate that this process creates imaginary hells or heavens. They can both be real because we have brought them to life. I come at this from a Christian background so I am reminded of scriptures to substantiate my thinking. My construct is formed by these scriptures and/or beliefs:

1. God is a god of love. He loves all of us.....this includes those of every belief(Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, atheists, etc.). Christianity, as practiced, errs in insisting on exclusivity when, by their own scriptures, is reminded that God is inclusive.

2. Don't you know that we are Gods? We are gods by virtue of possessing free will. Therefore we are free by process of our imagination to create our individual beliefs and these are IMO genuine creations.

3. With God all things are possible. I ascribe to Pascal's wager to the extent that we must make a choice.....understanding that to say you are making no choice is, in reality, a choice.

4. John 14:2...."In my house there are many mansions" indicates that once again this implies that there are mansions for those of all beliefs/constructs.

These, for me, are the basics. As a Christian I can share this here under the province that the internet affords of anonymity. Uttered in my church I would be assailed for not insisting on exclusivity of the Christian religion. I must say I am very comfortable with my Christian affiliation. My beliefs would mark me as one more suited to be a Baha'i......LOL....:) But once again I assert my belief in the validity of all religions. That is not to say that I do not think that Christianity is not the preferred path for me....because it is.

In a previous posting of mine I pointed to what I perceive as a difference between Christianity and Buddhism. It is my understanding that Buddhism believes that completion of the Noble Eightfold Path results in reaching nirvana.....thus it is a 'do it yourself' process. Christianity, on the other hand, relies on the grace of God. In other words, Christians are to submit themselves to God and when they do they are aided by God via grace. IMO this represent a 'shortcut' to the ultimate goal. Buddhists, on the other hand, following an unaided path are faced with an indeterminate number of re-births. Christians can also experience the necessity of reincarnations until they are able to accept the grace of God. Nevertheless, Christians always have the caveat of the willingness of God to aid them.

As an offshoot of this thinking, i.e. the possible difference in the number of re-births between these 2 religions.....Is it possible that is a reason or contributing factor to population growth in the world? We know, for example, that the Asian countries have huge populations.

These are just possible thoughts...…..no one should believe that I have any kind of definitive proof for any of my speculations. In other words by exposing myself in this way I am, you might say, standing naked before the entire world...……:) I fully expect to be eviscerated because many will choose to believe that I presented these speculations as some absolute truth.
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  #43  
Old 16-10-2019, 09:02 AM
ajay00 ajay00 is offline
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As per the Dharmic philosophies of Hinduism and Buddhism, an atheist does not necessarily go to hell provided he adheres to virtuous conduct or behavior.

Precise adherence to virtuous conduct and behavior in itself can lead oneself to enlightenment.

The female enlightened master Rajini Menon is an example of one who attained enlightenment just through virtuous conduct ....

I have explained more on this thread of mine...

http://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/sh...d.php?t=129341

Some sayings in this regard...

Wholesome virtuous behavior progressively leads to the foremost. - Buddha AN 10.1

If you do right, irrespective of what the other does, it will slow down the mind. - Rajini Menon

“When even one virtue becomes our nature, the mind becomes clean and tranquil. Then there is no need to practice meditation; we will automatically be meditating always.” - Swami Satchidananda
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When even one virtue becomes our nature, the mind becomes clean and tranquil. Then there is no need to practice meditation; we will automatically be meditating always. ~ Swami Satchidananda

Wholesome virtuous behavior progressively leads to the foremost.~ Buddha AN 10.1

If you do right, irrespective of what the other does, it will slow down the (turbulent) mind. ~ Rajini Menon
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  #44  
Old 24-10-2019, 04:15 AM
ajay00 ajay00 is offline
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Here is an interesting conversation between the female enlightened sage Anandamayi Ma and a disciple...


Question: Suppose an atheist lives an ethical and righteous life. Is he on a lower level than a faithful devotee?

Ma Anandamayi : An ethical life purifies the mind. Even though one may have no faith in God, if one believes in some Superior Power or pursues a high ideal, this also will serve one's purpose. By living an ethical life, one progresses towards the realization of the Divine. If one believes in supermen, can it be said that one does not believe in God? To believe in God under a particular name is also a way.

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When even one virtue becomes our nature, the mind becomes clean and tranquil. Then there is no need to practice meditation; we will automatically be meditating always. ~ Swami Satchidananda

Wholesome virtuous behavior progressively leads to the foremost.~ Buddha AN 10.1

If you do right, irrespective of what the other does, it will slow down the (turbulent) mind. ~ Rajini Menon
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  #45  
Old 28-10-2019, 11:23 PM
Miss Hepburn Miss Hepburn is offline
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Talking

Question: Will an atheist go to hell?

Miss Hepburnji: No. There is no hell except the one your mind can make.
God loves all His children even the ones that ignore Him.
He just has to wait longer for them to
appreciate Him, even a little, and thus, His yearning for them has to reach further.


*Dial 888- Mis- Hepb ---$10 first minute....$50 the rest.
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*I'll text in Navy Blue when I'm speaking as a Mod. :)


Prepare yourself for the coming astral journey of death by daily riding in the balloon of God-perception.
Through delusion you are perceiving yourself as a bundle of flesh and bones, which at best is a nest of troubles.
Meditate unceasingly, that you may quickly behold yourself as the Infinite Essence, free from every form of misery. ~Paramahansa's Guru's Guru
.


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  #46  
Old 25-11-2019, 10:37 AM
lomax lomax is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by django
Is there really a hell? Would an atheist really go there? Watch this video and see what you think...


https://youtu.be/pmp3UNjeu0k
Just nonsense.But it's what you resonate with.I respect that (lol)
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  #47  
Old 30-11-2019, 12:13 PM
whispershadow whispershadow is offline
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I don't believe in any hell. I think the only people who are refused to go to heaven are the ones who actually did anything really evil when they was alive.

Animals never go to hell, if it exists.
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  #48  
Old 07-12-2019, 06:33 PM
lomax lomax is offline
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Form what i've read,a person who doesn't believe in the afterlife,will find him self wandering in the darkness until he realize his true hypostasis before he can move on.

Others who believe in heavens with angels and harps,will go there and stay for as long as they want.After some time,they'll start to realize that something's wrong with the paradise,and 'cracks' will start to appear.Then the whole thing will collapse in front of them and the real astral world will be revealed.

And since i've been to the lowest astral dimension that surrounds the earth,i could say that the real hell is this 3d world we live in.
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  #49  
Old 09-12-2019, 06:27 PM
Altair Altair is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by lomax
Form what i've read,a person who doesn't believe in the afterlife,will find him self wandering in the darkness until he realize his true hypostasis before he can move on.

From what I've read on NDEs it doesn't seem to matter all that much. Many people describe similar phenomena..

We collect and recollect beliefs with our thoughts, concepts, etc. What will be left of that you think once the brain is dead? What is it that survives and goes to an 'afterlife', and how do you know *it* will have beliefs? And if the soul is divine than does it really need to believe?
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  #50  
Old 12-12-2019, 05:37 AM
BigJohn BigJohn is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by django
Is there really a hell? Would an atheist really go there? Watch this video and see what you think...


https://youtu.be/pmp3UNjeu0k
Why not?

Jesus died and went to Hell for three days.
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        Happiness is the result of an enlightened mind whereas suffering is caused by a distorted mind.
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