If we do create our own reality....

[Goddessa]

Originally Posted by markings

If we do create our own reality then I ask is Christianity the best we could come up with?

I think this Christian reality has been created for us. People just follow Christianity blindly without ever really questioning it. I think the same goes for many other organised religions too. As a young girl, when I used to ask the hard questions about Christianity I was always told to just "have faith". Later on I just figured that these people don't know the answers and they are truly blindly following a prepared script.

[awareness]

Originally Posted by The Necromancer

God coming down and wiping out all the 'evil guys' to make the world a nicer place for everybody else, so that they all can live in peace sounds like an 'okay God' to me....

Are you sure you understand Advaita Vedanta? You may repeat almost word-for-word the classic interpretations that many Advaitins speak, yet that fairy tale about a "god" coming down to wreak vengeance is a tired myth, and has nothing whatsoever to do with a true non-dual understanding.

It has never occurred and will never occur as an actual reality. At best, all a person can do is wish and hope that such a god exists, and for a time even seem to summon or manifest one. . .all the while seeing such vengeance would never make you feel "pure love" as you claimed you'd feel. That is a joke. A total contradiction of love-based consciousness.

Whenever my God lops off the head of a greedy, arrogant, malevolent character, my heart leaps up into my throat and quivers out of pure love...not fear.

That silly statement bears an uncanny resemblance to video games like Mortal Kombat (which I am aware was influenced by ancient mythology, such as with the four-armed character named "Sheeva"), and nothing that any ardent student/teacher of Advaitic awareness would be so greatly interested in.

All that "vengeful" stuff is allegory, it is myth, it is maya, and in your innermost wisdom you know it, my dear.

Just as Jesus never preached that he "came with a sword" instead of peace. These kinds of fear-based scriptural interpretations of various eras and societies were deliberately put in by lower-ego centered people who had barely a clue as to what figures like Jesus, Buddha and Krishna (for example) really taught and represented.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by awareness

Are you sure you understand Advaita Vedanta? You may repeat almost word-for-word the classic interpretations that many Advaitins speak, yet that fairy tale about a "god" coming down to wreak vengeance is a tired myth, and has nothing whatsoever to do with a true non-dual understanding.

It has never occurred and will never occur as an actual reality. At best, all a person can do is wish and hope that such a god exists, and for a time even seem to summon or manifest one. . .all the while seeing such vengeance would never make you feel "pure love" as you claimed you'd feel. That is a joke. A total contradiction of love-based consciousness.



That silly statement bears an uncanny resemblance to video games like Mortal Kombat (which I am aware was influenced by ancient mythology, such as with the four-armed character named "Sheeva"), and nothing that any ardent student/teacher of Advaitic awareness would be so greatly interested in.

All that "vengeful" stuff is allegory, it is myth, it is maya, and in your innermost wisdom you know it, my dear.

Just as Jesus never preached that he "came with a sword" instead of peace. These kinds of fear-based scriptural interpretations of various eras and societies were deliberately put in by lower-ego centered people who had barely a clue as to what figures like Jesus, Buddha and Krishna (for example) really taught and represented.

What is wrong with having a love-based consciousness anyway? Doesn't God kill out of love also?

For his whole lifetime, Adi Shankaracharya was torn between his Advaitic knowledge/understanding and experience and a love for the Divine which was 'beyond himself' (not himself). I am similarly afflicted.

For example, my avatar, Lord Shiva displays all of the attributes that have become associated with Shiva and I have witnessed and experienced Him in similar form...however, Brahman is Shiva and Brahman is totally formless - hence the conundrum - how can I love and worship a formless 'concept' which is essentially, according to Advaitic teachings, myself? (Thou art that?). The whole conundrum is totally irreconcilable and I was forced to choose between the path of Duality or Non-Duality, even after having experienced the Non-dual state...my love for Shiva in form, still existed...how can that be?

So, this is why the apparent contradiction (and blister) exists within me, within myself and within my soul.

How can an Advaitin experience Bhakti (divine love?) they cannot. They can experience the bliss of self-awareness, and being 'god' themselves, but they can't experience that which encompasses the whole process of awareness and actually feel it...the love.

Yes, it is a myth, but it is also allegorical, in much the same way as the ego tries to relate a personal, subjective experience with the hope another may be able to understand it - which is what's going on here.

I also have become aware that Sati means 'mindfulness' in Buddhism - a curious coincidence which wasn't wasted on me almost directly after I made that post here:

http://www.spiritualforums.com/vb/sh...0&postcount=85

It all ties together in the end, as all my threads (sutras) seem to do.

[Honza]

The reason why I would choose Christianity is that I would like God to exist and be real and I would like a saviour to save me from this world. That is the attraction of Christianity over other religions. The alternative is that I AM is all that there is. Which would mean that I am God and that I created the world - which is hideous in many ways.
Christianity explains the worlds evil by saying we are FALLEN. It makes sense to me. I AM explains the evil of the world by saying what? It does not make much sense to me.
The reason why I argue with I AM so much is because it places all the blame in my court. But I have no idea how to remedy all the wrong in the world....

[awareness]

Originally Posted by The Necromancer

What is wrong with having a love-based consciousness anyway?

My friend, I will just respond specifically to this first line of yours (I didn't read the rest yet).

That is a great question one may ask oneself. . .but if you are referring to something that you thought you read in my last message, there was nothing implying anything wrong with it at all, and in fact I was stating the opposite.

Perhaps my statement would have read better as "A total contradicting of love based consciousness."

Even without me "correcting" it by exchanging the word "contradicting" for "contradiction," the entire body of my response, as a whole, was, if carefully read and understood, an obvious promotion of love-based consciousness.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by awareness

My friend, I will just respond specifically to this first line of yours (I didn't read the rest yet).

That is a great question one may ask oneself. . .but if you are referring to something that you thought you read in my last message, there was nothing implying anything wrong with it at all, and in fact I was stating the opposite.

Perhaps my statement would have read better as "A total contradicting of love based consciousness."

Even without me "correcting" it by exchanging the word "contradicting" for "contradiction," the entire body of my response, as a whole, was, if carefully read and understood, an obvious promotion of love-based consciousness.

I await your thorough reading of my response and perhaps a treatise on the whole Puranic culture I was weaned on (obviously to the apparent detriment of the Vedic one). *sigh*

[awareness]

Necromancer, there is no real division between Bhakti and deep Advaitic consciousness. Most Hindus make this silly mistake of imagining such a division. There is none.

In terms of The Absolute, or that which one may call "Source," "God," it doesn't matter. . .when it comes to our True Nature,

Divine Love and non-dual awareness are exactly the same Reality.

It is this that you are not comprehending. In fact, this very "truth" is echoed throughout Vedic Science.

There is no actual divide between what is perceived as spiritual paths or different Yogic paths.

You bought into the delusion, my friend.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by awareness

Necromancer, there is no real division between Bhakti and deep Advaitic consciousness. Most Hindus make this silly mistake of imagining such a division. There is none.

In terms of The Absolute, or that which one may call "Source," "God," it doesn't matter. . .when it comes to our True Nature,

Divine Love and non-dual awareness are exactly the same Reality.

It is this that you are not comprehending. In fact, this very "truth" is echoed throughout Vedic Science.

There is no actual divide between what is perceived as spiritual paths or different Yogic paths.

You bought into the delusion, my friend.

How can the Vedas and Puranas be thus so contradictory? as per my previous post asks you to explain to me.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by awareness

Necromancer, there is no real division between Bhakti and deep Advaitic consciousness. Most Hindus make this silly mistake of imagining such a division. There is none.

In terms of The Absolute, or that which one may call "Source," "God," it doesn't matter. . .when it comes to our True Nature,

Divine Love and non-dual awareness are exactly the same Reality.

It is this that you are not comprehending. In fact, this very "truth" is echoed throughout Vedic Science.

There is no actual divide between what is perceived as spiritual paths or different Yogic paths.

You bought into the delusion, my friend.

Simple question, if there is no 'difference' why do both/all these paths exist? why not just stop at the Upanishads and have that being the end of it all? or just stop at Rig Veda and Rudra Shiva...why confuse the butt off every Hindu out there?

I still don't understand why Bhairava and Veerbhadra affects me in this way...they just do and it just happens. I am in total awe and adoration of it....fully realising it's just a 'that's just my thing' thing, but I mentioned it anyway.

Perhaps I have a deranged/warped sense of love, but it fills my heart and soul nonetheless, despite what anybody else says about it. It's something that 'cannot be helped' nor do I wish it to be 'helped' because it's so amazingly awesome when it happens...mithya or no mithya...the sublime state is such that I couldn't care less.

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Honza

The reason why I would choose Christianity is that I would like God to exist and be real and I would like a saviour to save me from this world. That is the attraction of Christianity over other religions. The alternative is that I AM is all that there is. Which would mean that I am God and that I created the world - which is hideous in many ways.
Christianity explains the worlds evil by saying we are FALLEN. It makes sense to me. I AM explains the evil of the world by saying what? It does not make much sense to me.
The reason why I argue with I AM so much is because it places all the blame in my court. But I have no idea how to remedy all the wrong in the world....

This is why I do not subscribe to the I AM theory, because if I created the whole universe, then surely I would recall doing so.

I guess that I AM explains the evil in the world by saying "Everybody IS" and the 'evil of the world' is the result of people forgetting that which they really ARE.

As for the difference between being 'fallen' and 'not connecting with the source', it's much of a muchness. IMHO

This whole thread has become like a dog chasing it's tail.

Awareness still needs to 'reach me' in a way...and I am reveling in the whole pun and play on words that creates.

However, Shiva has already told me that being aware is nothing without the actualisation of such awareness and the perpetuation of it through existence.

...also just placing this thing squarely in my lap:

http://www.thedragonscave.org/archiv...i/RAMKRSN1.TXT

All I know is that I have a deep connection to the Divine (Shiva) and things wouldn't happen like this if that were not so. It is something I just need to trust and have faith in....all will be answered in due course.

However, even Ramakrishna was caught between 'tasting sugar' and 'being sugar' so the delusion Hindus buy into affects even the most awakened and self-realised among us.

For some, Bhairava is the formidable Avatar of Shiva which cut off Brahma's head for lying about finding the end of Jyotir Lingam and being arrogant about being the creator of the whole universe...

For others, Bhairava is synonymous with formless Shiva...

The conundrums will never cease anyway and in the end, it's whatever path we take up that mountain...one thing I know after this though, one cannot reach the top of the mountain, descend it again and go "I think I'll try a different path"...that don't work.

So, it's whatever you feel deep inside, Honza...deep inside your heart that nobody else can question or shake you out of and it isn't a question of 'belief' or even 'knowing'...it's just the way things are...and if anybody says 'that's not it' you get to say 'please get to where I am and then tell me so'.

It's all a matter of perspective and 'whatever works' for you and if I AM doesn't work for you, that's fine, nobody ever said it had to or needed to.

Because, when all is said and done, even "I" and "AM" are relative, dualistic terms being that of subject and predicate.

For now, I just love Shiva and whatever divine passtimes He chooses to show me, whether another mortal considers them relevant and worthy of my love or not...that is totally unimportant in the overall scheme of things.

Search your heart, my dear. Ball is in your court now and thank you for taking the time to outline the reason behind you starting this thread in the first place.

Oh and 'having faith' is something that can never be understated!

Necro out.