Guest guest Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Dear Chandrashekarji,Sheevaniji,Lalit,Ramanarayanji,RKDa & Group, Some thoughts to ponder over Comments/discussions welcome are most welcome Regards, aavesh Om Namah Sivaya "Para-vidya (Higher knowledge), is that by which we know God. All else, scriptures, philosophy,logic, grammer etc only burden and puzzle the mind. The Granthas(book) are sometimes Granthis (knots). They are good only when they lead to the higher knowledge." ----Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa "Of all the scriptures in the world, it is the Vedas alone that declare that even the study of the Vedas is secondary. The real study is that by which we realize the Unchangeable. And that is neither reading, nor believing, nor reasoning, but Superconscious perception, or samadhi." -----Sri Swami Vivekananda Sri Swami Vivekananda asked us to be rational when we read scriptures or hear things from others, rather than simply accepting or believing (word by word). We should never switch-off our rational faculty (which is God given gift), otherwise we start to believe any nonsense and can become extremely Superstitious. I have come across Muslims from many different nationalties, they told me that they should simply accept every word of Quran and should never question or confused, otherwise at the day of Judgement (after death) they will be punished for being rational.They also told me that people can't never realise God, only their prophet who NEARLY realised God, their prophet will recommend at the day of Judgement who can enter pradise (where apparently they can maximise their sensual pleasures) or hell.T his is the main reason ( i.e switching -off rational faculty) I think that Islam has produced lots of dodgy people than any other religion. Being a Hindu, we have the liberty to be rational, we can raise questions like: Why a story has been told in different ways in different puranas (often contridictory) ? Do we have the original verses written by Sri Vaysa? How can be assured that scriptures haven't been altered by corrupt people over time? Why not there are transaltion erros (often Sanskrit words have many meanings)? The Puranas were written to popularise the religion of the Vedas. They contain the essence of the Vedas. The aim of the Puranas is to impress on the minds of the masses the teachings of the Vedas and to generate in them devotion to God, through concrete examples, myths, stories, legends, lives of saints, kings and great men, allegories and chronicles of great historical events. The sages made use of these things to illustrate the eternal principles of religion. The Puranas were meant, not for the scholars, but for the ordinary people who could not understand high philosophy and who could not study the Vedas. Schools of philosophy are very stiff. They are meant only for the learned few. Sri Adi Sankara never wrote any commentary on any puranas.The Puranas are meant for the masses with inferior intellect. Misunderstanding created by the Puranas is not a new problem. Sri Arumuga Navalar (1822-1879) was a devout and brilliant Saivite Saint working to reeducate the Saiva community of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, following the departure of the Portuguese and two centuries of foreign domination and anti-Hindu preaching. The Christians were criticizing Hinduism as superstitious, childish and polytheistic, quoting from the Puranas to prove their point. Navalar boldly defended his faith, even translating the Bible into Tamil to show its own failings and immaturities. The missionaries loved the Puranic tales which speak ("absurdly," Navalar declared) about the marriages of the God s and promote a multiplicity of Supreme Gods. Navalar believed in the Gods, the Mahadevas, and worshiped Lord Murugan (Skanda) devoutly. But he knew his faith spoke of a single Supreme Being Siva and wanted his fellow Saivites, who were languishing under missionary assaults, to understand the traditional view. He spoke against the storybook aspects of the Puranas, making it clear to Saivites that the Vedas and Agamas are spiritually superior and should be the source of their faith and practice. Still, he defended the greatness of the Skanda Maha Purana, which he saw as high-minded and inspiring, as it is mainly devoted to Jnana (Spiritual Knowledge) section of the Vedas. He succeeded in bringing Saivism back to life by showing his people the true, mystical purity of Hinduism. The point that Sri Arumuga Navalar was making is: don't take the Puranic stories too literally. They are a major source of misconceptions about Hinduism. When the Puranas are taken as the authority on Hinduism, the high philosophy of the revealed scriptures is obscured and confusions arise. We need to take into account when we read vedas/Puranas about the target audience, devotee of which deity a message was addressed to? whether it was aimed at a man/woman, a householder or a renounciate, etc. It is important to note that Hindu religion is the pluralist religion, which accept that the same God can be approached in many different ways, as the mother, father, friend,lover, preserver, liberator,etc. There are various sects in Hindu religion to suit the taste and temperament of different individuals, and spiritual evolution. Whatever be the path they choose, ultimately they reach the same goal, union with the Lord. The Hindu Sages have always declared that the spiritual path is not a STEREOTYPED one, the same drug for all diseases, the same food for all people at all ages (from infancy to old age!), but that the spiritual life is adapted (within broad limits) to the needs of each individual. Everyone pursues the path or the combination of paths suited to him, and ULTIMATELY reaches the SAME goal; RE-UNITE with the Supreme Being. Of course, people in an initial stage of the spiritual path are puzzled when they go through Siva Purana and Vishnu Purana, etc. In Siva Purana, Lord Siva is highly eulogised and an inferior position is given to Lord Vishnu. Sometimes Vishnu is belittled. In Vishnu Purana, Lord Hari is highly eulogised and an inferior status is given to Lord Siva. Sometimes Lord Siva is belittled. This is only to increase the faith of the devotees in their particular Ishta-Devata. Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu are one. This was the declaration of both Saivite and Vaishnaivate saints who had had the Highest Realisation. For example : A Great Saivite Saint Appar says: “Everything is the manifestation of Lord Siva. Siva is Narayana, Brahma, the four Vedas, the holiest, the oldest, the perfect. Though Siva is all these, He is none of these. He is without name, without birth, death or disease. He is at once the transcendent and immanent. " A Great Vaishnavite Saint Poygai Alwar says: "God who is variously called Siva and Hari, that His vehicle is either Garuda or a Bull, and that His action is either destruction or preservation. He says also that the Supreme Lord is one and the same, though He appears in two forms as Hara and Narayana." Another Great Vaishnavite Saint Peyalwar states that he saw the Lord at Venkata Hill (Tirupati) as Siva with His matted locks and axe, and as Hari with His discus and crown. Sivaya Namah You are managing the group through Grouply.You to individual emails for this group. | Update your Subscription settings4 messages in this conversation, including this one | Add a commentView this message on Grouply so you can rate, tag, bookmark, and see what others think about it. Y! Messenger Want a quick chat? Chat over IM with group members. John McEnroe on Join him for the 10 Day Challenge. Y! 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Guest guest Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Om Namah Shivaye. Namaste Aavesh ji, Thank you for the thought provoking article.. Hinduism is not a religion that be easily explained.. it is as wide as it is deep.. It is a very liberal,all accomodating way of living, without a fanatical set of rules.. To an outsider,, it is incomprehensible to have so many dieties and options, they see it as lack of structure and clarity, hence lacking credibility.. Yet it is a very versatile religion that caters for all human types, the illiterate to the scholar,, the materialistic to the spiritual astetic, the child to the expert... We as human beings have different motivational needs and strengths,, some prefer the course of being of service, others need information in the form of written language, yet others operate on sheer blind devotion and faith, and chant names/mantras. The stories, myths and legends in the puranas do inspire you and help increase the faith and devotion towards their Isht Dev.. but their true worth comes when u start to reflect on the true meaning within the tales.. Most people are happy to stay at that level, they consider themselves knowledgeable etc.. and partake in the constant arguments of My God is better, bigger, more powerful etc.. But the next stage of this spiritual journey is where a human as an uncut diamond, is refined and begins to sparkle as a wonderful individual.. His burden is lightened,, as he now works selflessly, with greater devotion, but without attachment.. The level of understanding increases, and he becomes a spectator witnessing the play of the Supreme.. Warmest regards Sheevani Vedic Astrologyandhealing , aavesh t <aavesh_s wrote: > > Dear Chandrashekarji,Sheevaniji,Lalit,Ramanarayanji,RKDa & Group, > > Some thoughts to ponder over > > Comments/discussions welcome are most welcome > > Regards, > > aavesh Om Namah Sivaya > > " Para-vidya (Higher knowledge), is that by which we know God. All else, scriptures, philosophy,logic, grammer etc only burden and puzzle the mind. The Granthas(book) are sometimes Granthis (knots). They are good only when they lead to the higher knowledge. " > ----Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa > > > > " Of all the scriptures in the world, it is the Vedas alone that declare that even the study of the Vedas is secondary. The real study is that by which we realize the Unchangeable. And that is neither reading, nor believing, nor reasoning, but Superconscious perception, or samadhi. " > > -----Sri Swami Vivekananda > > > > Sri Swami Vivekananda asked us to be rational when we read scriptures or hear things from others, rather than simply accepting or believing (word by word). We should never switch-off our rational faculty (which is God given gift), otherwise we start to believe any nonsense and can become extremely Superstitious. I have come across Muslims from many different nationalties, they told me that they should simply accept every word of Quran and should never question or confused, otherwise at the day of Judgement (after death) they will be punished for being rational.They also told me that people can't never realise God, only their prophet who NEARLY realised God, their prophet will recommend at the day of Judgement who can enter pradise (where apparently they can maximise their sensual pleasures) or hell.T his is the main reason ( i.e switching -off rational faculty) I think that Islam has produced lots of dodgy people than any other religion. > > Being a Hindu, we have the liberty to be rational, we can raise questions like: Why a story has been told in different ways in different puranas (often contridictory) ? Do we have the original verses written by Sri Vaysa? How can be assured that scriptures haven't been altered by corrupt people over time? Why not there are transaltion erros (often Sanskrit words have many meanings)? > > The Puranas were written to popularise the religion of the Vedas. They contain the essence of the Vedas. The aim of the Puranas is to impress on the minds of the masses the teachings of the Vedas and to generate in them devotion to God, through concrete examples, myths, stories, legends, lives of saints, kings and great men, allegories and chronicles of great historical events. The sages made use of these things to illustrate the eternal principles of religion. The Puranas were meant, not for the scholars, but for the ordinary people who could not understand high philosophy and who could not study the Vedas. Schools of philosophy are very stiff. They are meant only for the learned few. Sri Adi Sankara never wrote any commentary on any puranas.The Puranas are meant for the masses with inferior intellect. > > Misunderstanding created by the Puranas is not a new problem. Sri Arumuga Navalar (1822-1879) was a devout and brilliant Saivite Saint working to reeducate the Saiva community of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, following the departure of the Portuguese and two centuries of foreign domination and anti-Hindu preaching. The Christians were criticizing Hinduism as superstitious, childish and polytheistic, quoting from the Puranas to prove their point. Navalar boldly defended his faith, even translating the Bible into Tamil to show its own failings and immaturities. The missionaries loved the Puranic tales which speak ( " absurdly, " Navalar declared) about the marriages of the God s and promote a multiplicity of Supreme Gods. > > Navalar believed in the Gods, the Mahadevas, and worshiped Lord Murugan (Skanda) devoutly. But he knew his faith spoke of a single Supreme Being Siva and wanted his fellow Saivites, who were languishing under missionary assaults, to understand the traditional view. He spoke against the storybook aspects of the Puranas, making it clear to Saivites that the Vedas and Agamas are spiritually superior and should be the source of their faith and practice. Still, he defended the greatness of the Skanda Maha Purana, which he saw as high-minded and inspiring, as it is mainly devoted to Jnana (Spiritual Knowledge) section of the Vedas. He succeeded in bringing Saivism back to life by showing his people the true, mystical purity of Hinduism. > > The point that Sri Arumuga Navalar was making is: don't take the Puranic stories too literally. They are a major source of misconceptions about Hinduism. When the Puranas are taken as the authority on Hinduism, the high philosophy of the revealed scriptures is obscured and confusions arise. > > > We need to take into account when we read vedas/Puranas about the target audience, devotee of which deity a message was addressed to? whether it was aimed at a man/woman, a householder or a renounciate, etc. It is important to note that Hindu religion is the pluralist religion, which accept that the same God can be approached in many different ways, as the mother, father, friend,lover, preserver, liberator,etc. There are various sects in Hindu religion to suit the taste and temperament of different individuals, and spiritual evolution. Whatever be the path they choose, ultimately they reach the same goal, union with the Lord. The Hindu Sages have always declared that the spiritual path is not a STEREOTYPED one, the same drug for all diseases, the same food for all people at all ages (from infancy to old age!), but that the spiritual life is adapted (within broad limits) to the needs of each individual. Everyone pursues the path or the combination of paths suited to him, > and ULTIMATELY reaches the SAME goal; RE-UNITE with the Supreme Being. > Of course, people in an initial stage of the spiritual path are puzzled when they go through Siva Purana and Vishnu Purana, etc. In Siva Purana, Lord Siva is highly eulogised and an inferior position is given to Lord Vishnu. Sometimes Vishnu is belittled. In Vishnu Purana, Lord Hari is highly eulogised and an inferior status is given to Lord Siva. Sometimes Lord Siva is belittled. This is only to increase the faith of the devotees in their particular Ishta-Devata. Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu are one. This was the declaration of both Saivite and Vaishnaivate saints who had had the Highest Realisation. > For example : > A Great Saivite Saint Appar says: " Everything is the manifestation of Lord Siva. Siva is Narayana, Brahma, the four Vedas, the holiest, the oldest, the perfect. Though Siva is all these, He is none of these. He is without name, without birth, death or disease. He is at once the transcendent and immanent. " > A Great Vaishnavite Saint Poygai Alwar says: " God who is variously called Siva and Hari, that His vehicle is either Garuda or a Bull, and that His action is either destruction or preservation. He says also that the Supreme Lord is one and the same, though He appears in two forms as Hara and Narayana. " > Another Great Vaishnavite Saint Peyalwar states that he saw the Lord at Venkata Hill (Tirupati) as Siva with His matted locks and axe, and as Hari with His discus and crown. > Sivaya Namah You are managing the group through Grouply. > You to individual emails for this group. | Update your Subscription settings > 4 messages in this conversation, including this one | Add a comment > View this message on Grouply so you can rate, tag, bookmark, and see what others think about it. > > Y! Messenger > Want a quick chat? > Chat over IM with > group members. > > John McEnroe > on > Join him for the > 10 Day Challenge. > > Y! Groups blog > The place to go > to stay informed > on Groups news! > > > Why delete messages? Unlimited storage is just a click away. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 11, 2008 Report Share Posted March 11, 2008 Dear Aavesh, What Ramakrishna and Vivekananda said is also the statement of Mundaopanishada. This is also reiterated by Puranas. It is unfortunate that many Hindus try to portray various Vedas and Vedangas as Para Vidya. It is not the scriptures or other vedic sciences that are Para Vidya by themselves, it is how they are used that will make them Para or Apara. If the sciences or any knowledge is used to get some good results for one self or even others they will be Apara Vidya and if they are used to know the Parabrahman, within oneself, they will be the Para Vidya. Unfortunately these days there is a trend to portray the ancient sciences as Para vidya by themselves, perhaps so that people equate the teachers of these sciences as equal to the Paramguru (Lord Shiva and the Guru tatwa flowing through him). Take care, Chandrashekhar. aavesh t wrote: Dear Chandrashekarji,Sheevaniji,Lalit,Ramanarayanji,RKDa & Group, Some thoughts to ponder over Comments/discussions welcome are most welcome Regards, aavesh Om Namah Sivaya "Para-vidya (Higher knowledge), is that by which we know God. All else, scriptures, philosophy,logic, grammer etc only burden and puzzle the mind. The Granthas(book) are sometimes Granthis (knots). They are good only when they lead to the higher knowledge." ----Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa "Of all the scriptures in the world, it is the Vedas alone that declare that even the study of the Vedas is secondary. The real study is that by which we realize the Unchangeable. And that is neither reading, nor believing, nor reasoning, but Superconscious perception, or samadhi." -----Sri Swami Vivekananda Sri Swami Vivekananda asked us to be rational when we read scriptures or hear things from others, rather than simply accepting or believing (word by word). We should never switch-off our rational faculty (which is God given gift), otherwise we start to believe any nonsense and can become extremely Superstitious. I have come across Muslims from many different nationalties, they told me that they should simply accept every word of Quran and should never question or confused, otherwise at the day of Judgement (after death) they will be punished for being rational.They also told me that people can't never realise God, only their prophet who NEARLY realised God, their prophet will recommend at the day of Judgement who can enter pradise (where apparently they can maximise their sensual pleasures) or hell.T his is the main reason ( i.e switching -off rational faculty) I think that Islam has produced lots of dodgy people than any other religion. Being a Hindu, we have the liberty to be rational, we can raise questions like: Why a story has been told in different ways in different puranas (often contridictory) ? Do we have the original verses written by Sri Vaysa? How can be assured that scriptures haven't been altered by corrupt people over time? Why not there are transaltion erros (often Sanskrit words have many meanings)? The Puranas were written to popularise the religion of the Vedas. They contain the essence of the Vedas. The aim of the Puranas is to impress on the minds of the masses the teachings of the Vedas and to generate in them devotion to God, through concrete examples, myths, stories, legends, lives of saints, kings and great men, allegories and chronicles of great historical events. The sages made use of these things to illustrate the eternal principles of religion. The Puranas were meant, not for the scholars, but for the ordinary people who could not understand high philosophy and who could not study the Vedas. Schools of philosophy are very stiff. They are meant only for the learned few. Sri Adi Sankara never wrote any commentary on any puranas.The Puranas are meant for the masses with inferior intellect. Misunderstanding created by the Puranas is not a new problem. Sri Arumuga Navalar (1822-1879) was a devout and brilliant Saivite Saint working to reeducate the Saiva community of Jaffna, Sri Lanka, following the departure of the Portuguese and two centuries of foreign domination and anti-Hindu preaching. The Christians were criticizing Hinduism as superstitious, childish and polytheistic, quoting from the Puranas to prove their point. Navalar boldly defended his faith, even translating the Bible into Tamil to show its own failings and immaturities. The missionaries loved the Puranic tales which speak ("absurdly," Navalar declared) about the marriages of the God s and promote a multiplicity of Supreme Gods. Navalar believed in the Gods, the Mahadevas, and worshiped Lord Murugan (Skanda) devoutly. But he knew his faith spoke of a single Supreme Being Siva and wanted his fellow Saivites, who were languishing under missionary assaults, to understand the traditional view. He spoke against the storybook aspects of the Puranas, making it clear to Saivites that the Vedas and Agamas are spiritually superior and should be the source of their faith and practice. Still, he defended the greatness of the Skanda Maha Purana, which he saw as high-minded and inspiring, as it is mainly devoted to Jnana (Spiritual Knowledge) section of the Vedas. He succeeded in bringing Saivism back to life by showing his people the true, mystical purity of Hinduism. The point that Sri Arumuga Navalar was making is: don't take the Puranic stories too literally. They are a major source of misconceptions about Hinduism. When the Puranas are taken as the authority on Hinduism, the high philosophy of the revealed scriptures is obscured and confusions arise. We need to take into account when we read vedas/Puranas about the target audience, devotee of which deity a message was addressed to? whether it was aimed at a man/woman, a householder or a renounciate, etc. It is important to note that Hindu religion is the pluralist religion, which accept that the same God can be approached in many different ways, as the mother, father, friend,lover, preserver, liberator,etc. There are various sects in Hindu religion to suit the taste and temperament of different individuals, and spiritual evolution. Whatever be the path they choose, ultimately they reach the same goal, union with the Lord. The Hindu Sages have always declared that the spiritual path is not a STEREOTYPED one, the same drug for all diseases, the same food for all people at all ages (from infancy to old age!), but that the spiritual life is adapted (within broad limits) to the needs of each individual. Everyone pursues the path or the combination of paths suited to him, and ULTIMATELY reaches the SAME goal; RE-UNITE with the Supreme Being. Of course, people in an initial stage of the spiritual path are puzzled when they go through Siva Purana and Vishnu Purana, etc. In Siva Purana, Lord Siva is highly eulogised and an inferior position is given to Lord Vishnu. Sometimes Vishnu is belittled. In Vishnu Purana, Lord Hari is highly eulogised and an inferior status is given to Lord Siva. Sometimes Lord Siva is belittled. This is only to increase the faith of the devotees in their particular Ishta-Devata. Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu are one. This was the declaration of both Saivite and Vaishnaivate saints who had had the Highest Realisation. For example : A Great Saivite Saint Appar says: “Everything is the manifestation of Lord Siva. Siva is Narayana, Brahma, the four Vedas, the holiest, the oldest, the perfect. Though Siva is all these, He is none of these. He is without name, without birth, death or disease. He is at once the transcendent and immanent. " A Great Vaishnavite Saint Poygai Alwar says: "God who is variously called Siva and Hari, that His vehicle is either Garuda or a Bull, and that His action is either destruction or preservation. He says also that the Supreme Lord is one and the same, though He appears in two forms as Hara and Narayana." Another Great Vaishnavite Saint Peyalwar states that he saw the Lord at Venkata Hill (Tirupati) as Siva with His matted locks and axe, and as Hari with His discus and crown. Sivaya Namah You are managing the group through Grouply. You to individual emails for this group. | Update your Subscription settings 4 messages in this conversation, including this one | Add a comment View this message on Grouply so you can rate, tag, bookmark, and see what others think about it. Y! Messenger Want a quick chat? Chat over IM with group members. John McEnroe on Join him for the 10 Day Challenge. Y! Groups blog The place to go to stay informed on Groups news! Why delete messages? Unlimited storage is just a click away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 Resp Sri Chandrashekhar Ji and Aavesh Sir, By reading these noble thoughts we are educating ourselves, only we say in the whole world that one needs to do experimentations with his faith and philosphy, I did and got to know many things. God is though invisible but if u have urge, he never hesitates to appear to show his love to u. regards, Lalit. Vedic Astrologyandhealing , Chandrashekhar <sharma.chandrashekhar wrote: > > Dear Aavesh, > > What Ramakrishna and Vivekananda said is also the statement of > Mundaopanishada. This is also reiterated by Puranas. It is unfortunate > that many Hindus try to portray various Vedas and Vedangas as Para > Vidya. It is not the scriptures or other vedic sciences that are Para > Vidya by themselves, it is how they are used that will make them Para or > Apara. If the sciences or any knowledge is used to get some good results > for one self or even others they will be Apara Vidya and if they are > used to know the Parabrahman, within oneself, they will be the Para Vidya. > > Unfortunately these days there is a trend to portray the ancient > sciences as Para vidya by themselves, perhaps so that people equate the > teachers of these sciences as equal to the Paramguru (Lord Shiva and the > Guru tatwa flowing through him). > > Take care, > Chandrashekhar. > > > > > aavesh t wrote: > > Dear Chandrashekarji,Sheevaniji,Lalit,Ramanarayanji,RKDa & Group, > > > > Some thoughts to ponder over > > > > Comments/discussions welcome are most welcome > > > > Regards, > > > > aavesh > > > > > > > > > > > > Om Namah Sivaya > > > > > > " Para-vidya (Higher knowledge), is that by which we know God. All > > else, scriptures, philosophy,logic, grammer etc only burden and > > puzzle the mind. The Granthas(book) are sometimes Granthis > > (knots). They are good only when they lead to the higher knowledge. " > > ----Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa > > > > > > > > " Of all the scriptures in the world, it is the Vedas alone that > > declare that even the study of the Vedas is *secondary*. The real > > study is that by which we realize the Unchangeable. And that is > > neither reading, nor believing, nor reasoning, but *Superconscious > > perception, or samadhi*. " > > ** > > / -----Sri Swami > > Vivekananda / > > > > > > Sri Swami Vivekananda asked us to be rational when we > > read scriptures or hear things from others, rather than simply > > accepting or believing (word by word). We should never switch- off > > our rational faculty (which is God given gift), otherwise we start > > to believe any nonsense and can become extremely Superstitious. I > > have come across Muslims from many different nationalties, they > > told me that they should simply accept every word of Quran and > > should never question or confused, otherwise at the day of > > Judgement (after death) they will be punished for being > > rational.They also told me that people can't never realise God, > > only their prophet who NEARLY realised God, their prophet > > will recommend at the day of Judgement who can enter > > pradise (where apparently they can maximise their sensual > > pleasures) or hell.T his is the main reason ( i.e switching - off > > rational faculty) I think that Islam has produced lots of dodgy > > people than any other religion. > > > > Being a Hindu, we have the liberty to be rational, we can raise > > questions like: Why a story has been told in different ways in > > different puranas (often contridictory) ? Do we have the original > > verses written by Sri Vaysa? How can be assured that scriptures > > haven't been altered by corrupt people over time? Why not there > > are transaltion erros (often Sanskrit words have many meanings)? > > > > The Puranas were written to popularise the religion of the Vedas. > > They contain the essence of the Vedas. The aim of the Puranas is > > to impress on the minds of the masses the teachings of the Vedas > > and to generate in them devotion to God, through concrete > > examples, myths, stories, legends, lives of saints, kings and > > great men, allegories and chronicles of great historical events. > > The sages made use of these things to illustrate the eternal > > principles of religion. The Puranas were meant, not for the > > scholars, but for the ordinary people who could not understand > > high philosophy and who could not study the Vedas. Schools of > > philosophy are very stiff. They are meant only for the learned > > few. Sri Adi Sankara never wrote any commentary on any puranas.The > > Puranas are meant for the masses with inferior intellect. > > > > Misunderstanding created by the Puranas is not a new problem. Sri > > Arumuga Navalar (1822-1879) was a devout and brilliant Saivite > > Saint working to reeducate the Saiva community of Jaffna, Sri > > Lanka, following the departure of the Portuguese and two centuries > > of foreign domination and anti-Hindu preaching. The Christians > > were criticizing Hinduism as superstitious, childish and > > polytheistic, quoting from the Puranas to prove their point. > > Navalar boldly defended his faith, *even translating the Bible > > into Tamil to show its own failings and immaturities*. The > > missionaries loved the Puranic tales which speak ( " absurdly, " > > Navalar declared) about the marriages of the God s and promote a > > multiplicity of Supreme Gods. > > > > Navalar believed in the Gods, the Mahadevas, and worshiped Lord > > Murugan (Skanda) devoutly. But he knew his faith spoke of a single > > Supreme Being Siva and wanted his fellow Saivites, who were > > languishing under missionary assaults, to understand the > > traditional view. He spoke against *_the storybook aspects_* of > > the Puranas, making it clear to Saivites that the Vedas and Agamas > > are spiritually superior and should be the source of their faith > > and practice. Still, he defended the greatness of the Skanda > > Maha Purana, which he saw as high-minded and inspiring, as it is > > mainly devoted to Jnana (Spiritual Knowledge) section of the > > Vedas. He succeeded in bringing Saivism back to life by showing > > his people the true, mystical purity of Hinduism. > > > > The point that Sri Arumuga Navalar was making is:* _don't take the > > Puranic stories too literally_*_._ They are a major source of > > misconceptions about Hinduism. When the Puranas are taken as the > > authority on Hinduism, the high philosophy of the revealed > > scriptures is obscured and confusions arise. > > We need to take into account when we read vedas/Puranas about the > > target audience, devotee of which deity a message was addressed > > to? whether it was aimed at a man/woman, a householder or a > > renounciate, etc. It is important to note that Hindu religion > > is the *pluralist** *religion, which accept that the same God can > > be approached in many different ways, as the mother, father, > > friend,lover, preserver, liberator,etc. There are various sects in > > Hindu religion to suit the taste and temperament of different > > individuals, and spiritual evolution. Whatever be the path they > > choose, ultimately they reach the same goal, union with the Lord. > > The Hindu Sages have always declared that the spiritual path is > > not a STEREOTYPED one, the same drug for all diseases, the same > > food for all people at all ages (from infancy to old age!), but > > that the spiritual life is adapted (within broad limits) to the > > needs of each individual. Everyone pursues the path or the > > combination of paths suited to him, and ULTIMATELY reaches > > the SAME goal; RE-UNITE with the Supreme Being. > > Of course, people in an initial stage of the spiritual path are > > puzzled when they go through Siva Purana and Vishnu Purana, etc. > > In Siva Purana, Lord Siva is highly eulogised and an inferior > > position is given to Lord Vishnu. Sometimes Vishnu is belittled. > > In Vishnu Purana, Lord Hari is highly eulogised and an inferior > > status is given to Lord Siva. Sometimes Lord Siva is belittled. > > This is only to *increase the faith of the devotees in their > > particular Ishta-Devata*. Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu are one. > > This was the declaration of both Saivite and Vaishnaivate saints > > who had had the *_Highest Realisation_*. > > For example : > > A Great Saivite Saint Appar says: " Everything is the manifestation > > of Lord Siva. Siva is Narayana, Brahma, the four Vedas, the > > holiest, the oldest, the perfect. Though Siva is all these, He is > > none of these. He is without name, without birth, death or > > disease. He is at once the transcendent and immanent. " > > A Great Vaishnavite Saint Poygai Alwar says: " God who is variously > > called Siva and Hari, that His vehicle is either Garuda or a Bull, > > and that His action is either destruction or preservation. He says > > also that the Supreme Lord is one and the same, though He appears > > in two forms as Hara and Narayana. " > > Another Great Vaishnavite Saint Peyalwar states that he saw the > > Lord at Venkata Hill (Tirupati) as Siva with His matted locks and > > axe, and as Hari with His discus and crown. > > Sivaya Namah > > > > > > Grouply Groups <http://www.grouply.com/> > > You are managing the group through Grouply. > > You to individual emails for this group. | Update your > > Subscription settings > > <http://www.grouply.com/settings.subscriptions.php> > > 4 messages in this conversation > > <http://www.grouply.com/ygroup.php//7770#7835>, > > including this one | Add a comment > > <http://www.grouply.com/ygroup.php//7770#AddComm ent> > > View this message on Grouply > > <http://www.grouply.com/ygroup.php//7835> so > > you can rate > > <http://www.grouply.com/ygroup.php//7835>, > > tag > > <http://www.grouply.com/bookmark.php//7835>, > > bookmark > > <http://www.grouply.com/bo% 20okmark.php//7835>, > > and see what others think about it. > > Y! Messenger > > Want a quick chat? > > <http://us.ard./SIG=13o4lvfvo/M=493064.12016274.12445679.8674 578/D=groups/S=1705366658:NC/Y=/EXP=1204470404/L=/B=FxyVF9FJq24- /J=1204463204519771/A=3848583/R=0/SIG=11umg3fun/*http://us.rd..co m/evt=42403/*http://messenger.> > > Chat over IM with > > group members. > > John McEnroe > > on > > <http://us.ard./SIG=13ot5gsf5/M=493064.12016283.12445687.8674 578/D=groups/S=1705366658:NC/Y=/EXP=1204470404/L=/B=GByVF9FJq24- /J=1204463204519771/A=5202321/R=0/SIG=11aijbghb/*http://new.groups.yah oo.com/allbrangroup> > > Join him for the > > 10 Day Challenge. > > Y! Groups blog > > The place to go > > <http://us.ard./SIG=13oj7sm5v/M=493064.12016258.12582637.8674 578/D=groups/S=1705366658:NC/Y=/EXP=1204470404/L=/B=GRyVF9FJq24- /J=1204463204519771/A=5191953/R=0/SIG=112mhte3e/*http://www.ygroupsblo g.com/blog/> > > to stay informed > > on Groups news! > > > > > > ------ > > Why delete messages? Unlimited storage is just a click away. > > <http://in.rd./tagline_mail_1/*http://help./l/in/yah oo/mail/mail/tools/tools-08.html/> > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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