NINE BILLION NAMES OF GOD

[Guest guest]

Dear All

 

I have finally finished the 1008 names of Jesus (with references this time)

and i would like to email it to those who were interested in getting the

Names. I remember Brad Stephan and Maria Jewison were interested in them and

if they could please let me have their email addresses i can email it to

them directly. I dont seem to have their names saved...so please email me

directlyu

 

The list extends to 30 pages and so it is difficult to post it to this List

 

In the meanwhile may i share this wonderful little clip of a short story by

Arthur C Clarke (made much shorter and paraphrased in my own words) that I

wrote as part of the " Introduction " to the 1008 Names of Jesus.

 

(Those of you who have not read Arthur C Clarke, will find his writing most

delightful. I am robbing you all of the pleasure of reading this story first

hand and if you wish to do so please refrain from reading this summary of a

story which really does no justice to his wonderful writing...the name of

this short story is " Nine Billion Names of God " and even got a charming

response from the Dalai Lama himself when it was published over 40 years

ago...)

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

PROLOGUE

In one of his enchanting short stories titled " The Nine Billion Names of

God? (that even elicited a response from the Dalai Lama when it was

published),

Arthur C. Clarke, writes of a Tibetan Lama, presenting himself to a Western

computer engineer, with a strange request. The Lama wished to acquire the

latest, automatic sequence, Mark V? computer. The engineer was bewildered at

this request from a self-professed ascetic, living in the deserted plains of

Tibet, for a computer that was one of the most technologically advanced. The

engineer, with due deference, requested to know the reason for such an

acquisition. The Lama explained that for the past three centuries, the

Lamasery,

from the very time that it was founded, had been compiling all the possible

names of God. All the many names of the Supreme Being, he explained, - God,

Jehovah, Allah, and so on were, according to him, only man-made labels. It

was

the Lamasery's conviction, that among all the possible combinations of

letters

in the alphabet, they had devised uniquely for this purpose, there are, what

one

may call, the real names of God. The Lama and his brethren, over

generations, by

systematic permutation of the letters of their alphabet, had been trying to

list

them all, starting at AAAAAAAAA . . . and working up to ZZZZZZZZZ. Buried in

that humongous list would be the REAL names of God. They expected it to take

them about fifteen thousand years to complete the task.

 

But with the help of the Mark V?the process would be cut short to about a

week.

 

Astounded by the tale, the computer engineer, nevertheless, personally

delivered the computer and volunteered to oversee Project Shangri-La?(as it

came to be dubbed) in a remote part of Tibet. It was during the fourth or

fifth

day there, that they learned through a reliable source, close to the lamas,

the

real purpose behind the project. According to this source, once all the

names

were listed (the Lamas had estimated there were, in total, nine billion

names of

God) the purpose of life, as we know it, would have been fulfilled. The

human

race, they had pointed out, will have finished what it was created to do,

and

there would not be any point in carrying on.

 

Upon which God will simply step in and wind things up.

 

Or so, they believed.

 

The source went on to add his own opinion, that, on the chance that God does

not

simply step in and wind things up, they will blame the computer and all hell

will break loose. They will begin to vent their anger on the engineers, on

the

pretext of Divine Retribution?

 

All this made the engineers very nervous and they were just glad that they

had a

couple of days, before the end of the computer run, to ruminate and arrange

a

quick flight out of that remote hinterland, in the nick of time.

 

And so it was, as it so turned out, that the engineers found themselves

striding

briskly towards the tarmac where the pristine figure of a DC-10 was standing

to

haul them away to safety, at the final hour of the computer-run.

The engineers had no intention of finding out whether the Mark V stood up to

its

legendary reputation. They were not waiting to find out what those Nine

Billion

Names of God were or for that matter even one Name of God. They had never

walked

out on a job before, but they had no qualms doing so now. They were thankful

that they would not be around to face the music? that was to sure to ensue,

from the lamasery.

 

As they strode even more briskly towards the plane, fear propelling their

very

movement, one of the engineers realized, looking at his watch, that the Mark

V

should have completed its run at about that very moment.

 

In a sigh of relief, one of the engineers looked up at the night sky,

perhaps in

grateful thanks, that he would soon be hauled to safety.

 

And what he saw in the pressingly dark sky above, made him call weakly to

his

compatriot, asking him, too, to look above.

 

Both of them noticed that

 

Overhead without any fuss, the stars were going out.?

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

 

_______________

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[Guest guest]

Dear Jairam,

 

Thanx for the wonderful story. Here is one similar story that I

enjoyed immensely. It was I think written by Sandeep Chatterjee and

is available on nonduality salon.

 

In the monasteries of Tibet, goes a story thus

 

Randy was the king of Mosquitoes.

 

It so happened that once his fellow subject mosquitoes were searching

for a place for their king Randy to reside.

 

Nothing less would do, as after it was Randy the mosquito and hence

place after place were rejected on one ground or the other.

 

Till they arrived at the ear of an elephant and all agreed that this

was indeed " the " palatial residence fit for their King Randy.

 

Randy inspected the premises and approved to move in.

 

Just before Randy moved his stuff, family etc, he thought it fit to

announce to the elephant his arrival. After all guest should at least

inform the host, thought Randy.

 

" Hey Elephant, I am Randy King of the Mosquitoes. I come from across

those mountains. After a lot of search, it has been decided that your

ear is suitable for me to reside.

You must be honored that I, Randy the III, King of Striped Mosquitoes

have come to reside in your ear.

I along with my family and followers will stay here. For how long, I

cannot say now "

 

Randy waited for a response. None came.

Thinking that the elephant must be overwhelmed with the occasion,

Randy moved in.

 

Being the randy goat that Randy was, soon his family grew by leaps and

bounds. Some friends dropped in over the months, stayed back (as

usually guests of guests do) and soon it was a buzz of activity.

 

Getting a bit squeezed for space (Randy liked a bit of space to

contemplate on the concepts of Life which he kept picking from the

Web through his Web connection), he soon called his council of

ministers and announced that this would no longer do and they better

find another place for the King.

 

" We need space " decreed Randy (speaking in the royal plural for

himself)

 

Soon the search located another suitable place and Randy was ready to

leave.

 

Thinking it was not good manners not to say few words to the elephant

whose ear he had occupied for so long, Randy said

 

" Hey Elephant. I know you will be heartbroken but I am leaving.

Stayed here for a good 6 months, good pad you got here, little

cramped, but generally comfortable. "

 

No answer from the elephant.

 

Randy getting a bit pissed off (nobody ignores Randy not even those

humans), Randy shouted

" Hey Elephant, I am leaving "

 

Again no response.

 

And so Randy fairly screamed and hollered as it was now a question of

pride for the striped Mosquito kingdom that he Randy the III be heard.

 

And finally the elephant turned around and looked around here and

there and espied a tiny wisp of a mosquito, making a song and dance

about something.

 

" Yes? " , asked the elephant.

 

" I am leaving " screamed the rapidly turning purple King of Mosquitoes.

 

" Oh you were there " said the astonished elephant.

" Forgive me, I never knew when you came, when you stayed, when you are

leaving.

Just who are you " replied the elephant.