rAmAnuja list posting/moderation guidelines

[Guest guest]

srImathE rAmAnujAya namah

 

 

 

 

dear devotees,

 

 

 

 

The following are the guidelines for posting/discussion on the

 

 

rAmAnuja list. These guidelines are discussed frequently by

 

 

the rAmAnuja moderation team. Please adhere to these guidelines

 

 

to the extent possible. We welcome suggestions from the

 

 

members. Please email your suggestions to emberumanar

 

 

 

 

Also, please restrict cross-posting (i.e. do not cc: the rAmAnuja

 

 

list with many other lists). Most members of the rAmAnuja list

 

 

are members in other groups also, and crossposting an article

 

 

serves no additional purpose than just flooding their mailboxes.

 

 

 

 

adiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan,

 

 

varadhan

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. The rAmAnuja email list's primary purpose is to serve as a

 

 

discussion forum for people interested in the "rAmAnuja philosophy"

 

 

way of life.

 

 

 

 

2. The appropriate topics of discussion are - (i) any primary text

 

 

(pramANa) - e.g. the divine outpourings of the AzhvArs, the divine

 

 

poetry of the great teachers, the commentaries on multitude of

 

 

primary texts, upanishands, vEdAnta and life histories and practices

 

 

of the great teachers.

 

 

 

 

3. Discussions on temples, current day AchAryAs, current day

 

 

practices, organizations and leaders of the rAmAnuja sampradAya are

 

 

welcome. Please note that discussions/posts cannot be *against* a

 

 

particular person/temple etc.

 

 

 

 

4. The posts should be clear and intelligible to the regular reader.

 

 

 

 

 

5. To the extent possible, the post must delineate opinions and quotes

 

 

from teachers. One should quote from teachers/texts/commentaries

 

 

*only* if s/he is certain of the accuracy/validity of the attribution

 

 

(i.e. do not attribute things in error)

 

 

 

 

6. The purpose of the above is very simple - We do not want any

 

 

wrong interpretation of a teaching/quote to be attributed to

 

 

any of our hallowed AchAryAs. Personal observations, opinions

 

 

on the commentaries and teachings are clearly welcome as long

 

 

as they are marked clearly.

 

 

 

 

7. A simple disclaimer at the beginning/end of the post that says

 

 

"All the above/what follows below is my opinion only and there may

 

 

be inaccuracies in it" will not be allowed as a replacement for

 

 

posts where the AchARyAs teachings/quotes are intertwined with

 

 

personal opinion without clear distinction.

 

 

 

 

8. Questioning is encouraged. One may question any relevant topic

 

 

to our sampradAyam - teachings, meanings of sacred texts, why

 

 

an AchAryA did this/that, why do we practice A/B/C, what is the

 

 

relevance of practice X to the current day etc.. The questions

 

 

should be honest questions. Rhetoric questions and questions

 

 

designed to prove a point must be avoided.

 

 

 

 

9. If a post contains obvious inaccuracies, the moderators will send

 

 

the message back to the sender for correction.

 

 

 

 

10. For the purposes of this list, the rAmAnuja sampradAya refers to

 

 

the collection of teachings, texts, leaders, practices, symbols

 

 

and institutions associated with the following lineage of teachers -

 

 

 

 

srIman nArAyaNa

 

 

periya pirAtti (lakshmi)

 

 

srI vishwaksEna

 

 

srI saTakOpa

 

 

srI nAthamuni

 

 

sri puNdarIkAksha

 

 

srI rAma mishra

 

 

srI yAmunAchArya

 

 

srI parAnkusa dAsa (and associated teachers of rAmAnujA)

 

 

srI rAmAnuja

 

 

srI embAr (gOvinda bhattar)

 

 

srI kUrattAzhvAn

 

 

srI mudaliyANdAn (and the other 73 chosen perceptors)

 

 

srI parAsara bhattar

 

 

srI nanjIyar

 

 

srI nampiLLai

 

 

srI vadakku-th-thiruveedhi-p-piLLai

 

 

srI periyavAccAn piLLai

 

 

srI vEdAnta dEsika

 

 

srI piLLai lOkAchAriAr

 

 

srI azhagiya maNavALa-p-perumAL nAyanAr

 

 

srI thiruvAymozhi-p-piLLai

 

 

srI maNavALa mAmuni

 

 

 

 

Not every AchArya is mentioned above due to space considerations.

 

 

All teachers whose teachings did not deviate from the AzhvArs' divine

 

 

outpourings, the vEdAnta primary texts and rAmAnuja's teachings -

 

 

written, or otherwise are considered to be part of the

 

 

wealth of the rAmAnuja sampradAya.

 

 

 

 

11. The moderation policy is not designed to censor/restrict open

 

 

discussion. It is designed to maintain an element of accuracy to what

 

 

is being said on the list. This list serves almost 1000 members, and

 

 

is read by many people. So, it is absolutely important that the

 

 

material on this list is as accurate as possible.

 

 

 

 

12. The moderation policy is designed such that the list is a

 

 

democratic forum. However, the primary consideration of the

 

 

moderators is to preserve the accuracy and spirit of our teachers'

 

 

messages. Whenever there is a conflict between democratic moderation

 

 

and preservation of the accuracy of the teachings of the rAmAnuja

 

 

sampradAya, priority will be given to the preservation of accuracy.

 

 

 

 

13. Please maintain common courtesy/etiquette. Please do not flame

 

 

others. Remember - everyone is here to learn, and noone is here to

 

 

point blame/fault at anyone else. If one perceives some material to be

 

 

"offensive", it probably was not intended by the author to be

 

 

offensive. So, please exercise some judgement while replying to such

 

 

messages.

 

 

 

 

14. Moderation is not fun. Moderators, like most of the members of

 

 

the list, are novices and beginners as well. There may be occasions

 

 

where the moderators make a mistake. Please do point out the mistakes

 

 

as it will result in a better list for everyone of us. To the extent

 

 

possible, the moderators will discuss/seek the advice of learned

 

 

people in cases where there is a question of accuracy of the message.

 

 

 

 

15. Fundraising (other than projects approved by the rAmAnuja

 

 

list/VEDICS organization board) of any sort is not allowed on the

 

 

list.

 

 

 

 

16. Any applicant for membership of the list must read, and agree to

 

 

the above guidelines for posting, before they are admitted to the

 

 

list.

 

 

 

 

grievance policy:

 

 

If a member beleives that his/her post was rejected due to unjust

 

 

cause, s/he may bring the issue to the VEDICS board at

 

 

emberumanar VEDICS board will discuss the topic

 

 

in this next board meeting, and make a decision. The decision will

 

 

then be conveyed to the member bringing up the issue, and the posting

 

 

will be allowed on rAmAnuja if the board determines that the

 

 

moderation was unjust.