Guest guest Posted June 1, 2001 Report Share Posted June 1, 2001 It is interesting to observe how association works. In spite of his so-called atheism and scientific behavior, Shvuji is in fact a Christian. Christians believe that God has created this world by the first time and everything is under a experimental stage. This is a very powerful dogma in West. In West even if one states that he is a scientist and an atheist, he cannot be freed from this very ancient samskara deeply printed in his mind and he starts from the premise that this world a new invention. Never before there was a world like that and by natural evolution nowadays 'Homo sapiens' is discovering its origin and final destiny. These living entities recently had also discovered how to write and they consider as historical all facts narrated in the short period after this fantastic discovery. They not even consider that kala is very powerful and may destroy all the evidences of any kind of writings in a very short lapse of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jijaji Posted June 1, 2001 Report Share Posted June 1, 2001 The Date of The Mahabharata War B.S.V. Prasad The seeds of Death and Immortality Both reside in Man; Death arises out of Desire, And Immortality from Truth. - Santi Parva, The Mahabharata The Mahabharata is the largest and greatest epic of mankind at some 100,000 verses. It is in many ways central to India's ethos. As a story, the Mahabharata is basically about empire building; its central event is a war for succession among cousins. Like all great epics, it has a grand scheme, with hundreds of characters, dozens of intertwining stories, and a strong central message of pacifism, moral rectitude, and man's destiny. The historicity of the Mahabharata is unfortunately still questioned on the basis of the lack of archeological and epigraphical evidence, and the supposed unreliability of traditional Indian sources of history. The problem is compounded by some Indian historians who are attempting to push all events in Indian history back by a few millenia. It is further compounded by the avoidable confusion between the dates of the events in the epic and those of the writing of its parts; clearly large portions of the epic have been written much later than the events they describe, and are naturally couched in the language and mores of the time of their writing. There are many compelling reasons to believe that the central event of the epic, the Mahabharata war, actually took place some 5000 years back (in 3138 BC, to be more exact), as the epic itself asserts. Here are my arguments in favour of, if not the traditional date, at least a date earlier than 2000 BC: Balarama's Pilgrimage Balarama, Sri Krishna's older brother, refuses to take part in the Mahabharata war and goes on a pilgrimage to the holy spots on the banks of the Saraswati river. From the graphic descriptions of the holy spots in the epic it can be surmised that the river must have been well and flowing at the time. We now know that the river dried up not later than 1500 BC, and probably as early as 1900 BC7. The Mahabharata Belonged to the Late Vedic Period It should be noted that many of the events described in the epic might not have happened exactly as described, or at the time stated; the epic grew greatly with later additions. The main characters and events, however, clearly belong to the late Vedic period, when suktas were still being added to the undivided Veda. Vasishtha Ganapati Muni, one of the great Vedic scholars of the 20th century, concluded that the story has been much distorted in the epic. Here is a summary of his findings8: The Pandavas and the Kauravas were not really cousins, but belonged to rival clans (this has been conjuctured by many other researchers also; the two rival clans have been generally identified with the Kurus and the Panchalas3). The great grandfather of the Pandavas, Santanu, was the youngest brother of Devapi, a famous early Vedic seer and author of several suktas in the Rg Veda. Sri Krishna's guru Angirasa, his son Kanva and grandson Narada were all authors of Rg Vedic suktas. His another guru Upamanyu and his father Vyaghrapada were also Vedic seers (in fact, The Pandavas belonged to the gotra of Vyaghrapada). Arjuna himself could be the Vedic seer of the same name. Mention of all the main characters, and major episodes in the Mahabharata can be found in the Rg Veda. Names of most characters are different but recognisable. For example, the Pandavas were called Ambarisha, Bhayamana, Rjraswa, Suradhasa and Sahadeva; they have a common wife called "Ghosha"; their mother was called "Vrshni", and father "Switra". The battle between Karna and Rjraswa has been described; it is Sri Krishna (who was called "Souradeva", and drove Rjraswa's chariot) breaks the chariot of Karna and kills him, when Rjraswa is unable to overcome him, and actually tries to runs away from the battlefield! The upshot of this is that the events described in the Mahabharata must be ancient, and belong to the late Vedic period prior to the desiccation of the Saraswati river, around 3000-2000 BC. Internal Astronomical Evidence This topic is so extensive that it actually requires its own page! There exists a great deal of internal astronomical evidence in all the chapters of the Mahabharata using which the dates of all major events (such as the birth dates of the Pandavas and Sri Krishna, the date of performance of the Rajasuya by Yudhishthira, dates of the exile of the Pandavas, date of Sri Krishna's embassy, dates of various events in the war, as well as the date of Sri Krishna's passing) can be established4,5,6. The authors I have quoted here, as well as many others supporting the traditional date, have shown that the dates are consistently and unambiguously stated in the epic, and can not be easily dismissed as interpolations. For example, the war started exactly one week after the failure of Sri Krishna's embassy, on a new moon when three tithis, Trayodasi, Chaturdasi and Amavasya occurred on the same day; an extraordinary event whose date can be established accurately. In addition, there was a conjunction of seven planets in Vrschika (Capricorn), and Saturn and Jupiter had been in retrogression in the neighbourhood of star Visakha for nearly a year. Given such detail, and the corroboration with the dates of other events in the war, it is difficult to doubt the traditional date of the war. However, I feel that the dates of some of the earlier events could be incorrect. For example, based on the given birth dates, all the protagonists would be very old at the time of the war; Yudhishthira would be 91, Bhima and Duryodhana 90, and Arjuna and Sri Krishna 89 years old; other warriors, such as Bhishma and Drona, would be even older! Sri Aurobindo's Thesis The central part of the epic, the Jaya, has generally been accepted as its oldest part, much older than the other parts. Sri Aurobindo3 remarked on the grace, austerity and grandeur of its language, pointing to an extraordinary author, and a considerably earlier date of composition than the rest of the epic. It was perhaps composed within a century of the war by Krishnadwaipayana Vyasa, who is traditionally credited with not only authoring the epic, but also with the compilation of the original Purana, and the Vedas. The war was an extraordinary event that captured popular imagination; in India such events have always led to the creation of elegiac poems that were preserved by bardic tradition. The Jaya might have been preserved by bardic tradition for several generations before being written down (the famous sloka in which Vyasa says he remembered 8800 verses (of the Jaya), his son Suka another 8800 and Sanjaya, a similar number, may be a pointer to this). Much of the remaining epic, including the Bhadavad Gita, clearly dates to the late BC and early AD centuries. Attestation of Magasthenes Magasthenes, the Greek ambassador in Chandragupta Maurya's court, heard from Indians that 138 generations of kings had passed between Sri Krishna and Chandragupta1. I see no reason to disbelieve the statement or the number. The Puranas give a similar number of generations, but have been disbelieved by historians because they assign reigns of 60 or more years to some kings; this could be because of gaps in their lists of dynastic succession. Allowing on average 20 years for each generation, we get a date not far from the traditional date for the war. Among modern researchers, the latest date for the war of 950 BC is given by F.E. Pargiter2 and some others. Pargiter arrived at this date from the Puranic dynastic lists, by allowing rather short individual reigns, and making no allowance to kings missing from the lists. On the other hand, some Indian authors have tried to push the Mahabharata war beyond 4000 BC by allowing reigns of 40 years or more for each king in the Puranic lists. The figure of 40 years is arrived at by averaging the reigns of some kings of the early period such as Mahapadma, Bindusara, Asoka etc who all reigned long; I feel that such early dates are equally untenable. Traditions of the Kali Era The tradition that the Kali era started after the passing of Sri Krishna in 3101 BC has been very strong all across India for at least two millenia. Well known astronomers such as Aryabhatta have used this date in their books. The famous Aihole inscription of the western Chalukya king Pulakesin II and numerous other early inscriptions attest to this date. The Yudhishthira era, which starts with the coronation of Yudhishthira in 3138 BC, is still followed in some parts of India. Age of Empire Building The Mahabharata war led to the consolidation of a strong empire; the first such in India. The period of the war is consistent with consolidation of empires elsewhere in the world. In Egypt the Lower and Upper kingdoms were united by the First Dynasty around this time. Similar events have occurred in China and the Middle East. Conclusion I find it unbelievable that while other comparable civilisations have history dating back to 3000 BC and earlier, the Indian civilisation should have only a civilisation and no notable events beyond 1500 BC or so. There do not seem to be any compelling reasons to disbelieve the greatest epic of mankind on dates and events it takes great care to put down in detail. I wish to conclude this page by mentioning the rather curious discovery, during the earlier part of this century, of several copper plates in Karnataka, purporting to be dana sasanas (endowment edicts) of Janamejaya, great grandson of Yudhishthira, recording gifts of land. The dates given in these sasanas jell very well with the date of Janamejaya's reign as calculated from the traditional date of the war; other incidental details (such as the gotra of Janamejaya) also match. The sasanas are probably clever medieval forgeries, but their existence proves the strength of the tradition, and shows that the chronology of Mahabharata was very well known to people in the medieval period and earlier. Bibliography 1. Plutarch, Life of Alexander the Great in "Lives", and other ancient Western sources. All sources depend heavily on Magasthenes' "Indica", which is no longer available now. 2. F.E. Pargiter, "Ancient Indian Historical Tradition", Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi, 1997. 3. Sri Aurobindo, "On the Mahabharata", Aurobindo Ashram, Pondicherry, 1996. Sri Aurobindo was a great scholar of Sanskrit and of the Indian tradition, but apparently hadn't written down much of his research in these fields. Sri Aurobindo gives the date of 1190 BC for the Mahabharata war in the book, but one must appreciate that this was probably the earliest date he could have advocated at the time, nearly a century ago. 4. Satya Prakash Sarasvat, "Mahabharat: An Astronomical Proof from the Bhagavat Puraan", and also several links therefrom. 5. Kota Venkatachalam's book on the date of the Mahabharata war. This is a well-known, authoritative and excellently researched book supporting the traditional date. I read it several years back and made notes, but unfortunately I have a neither copy now, nor can I recall its title. 6. Veda Vyasa, "Mahabharata Kala Nirnayam (Date of the Mahabharata)" in Telugu, University of Vedic Sciences, Hyderabad, 1998. This is a fairly well researched book, as far as the date of the Mahabharata itself is concerned, but the presentation is poor. There are many repetitions, and some conclusions (not connected with dates) are insufficiently or improperly supported. 7. See the Saraswati Sindhu site for a great deal of material on the Saraswati river, maps, photographs, as well as further links. However be forewarned that the site is extensive and somewhat confusing. 8. Guntur Lakshmikantam, "Nayana", A biography of Vasishtha Ganapati Muni in Telugu, 1998 edition. The material cited here appears as an appendix. ------------------ PEACE NOW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jijaji Posted June 1, 2001 Report Share Posted June 1, 2001 Satya says; "Shvuji is in fact a Christian" Is this true...? ------------------ PEACE NOW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shvu Posted June 1, 2001 Author Report Share Posted June 1, 2001 Magasthenes, the Greek ambassador in Chandragupta Maurya's court, heard from Indians that 138 generations of kings had passed between Sri Krishna and Chandragupta 1. A common misconception cooked up by someone. Megasthenes never mentioned Krishna anywhere in the existing portions of the Indica. The king in question who came many generations before Chandragupta, can in no way be considered as Krishna. This topic came up several months ago on this forum and I had posted some details to prove this. Although some Indian scholars complain about other scholars being unethical, they themselves are experts at it. If our people do large scale misinterpretations today, why not 1000 years back? After all, man from a 1000 years back, was no better than he is today. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jahnava Nitai Das Posted June 1, 2001 Report Share Posted June 1, 2001 The Date of The Mahabharata War B.S.V. Prasad Nice article. In fact there are hundreds of archeological findings that would push the date of Indian civilization back thousands of years. There are also many unexplained findings, such as iron pillars and the such, predating the supposed discovery of iron. Unfortunately, no one wants to rewrite history. Any archeological find that disagrees with the 'accepted' world view is rejected for no logical reason at all. To perpetuate these modern day myths is just a big scam to continue receiving research funding. Those with alternative views can't receive the type of funding that traditionalists receive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dharma Posted June 2, 2001 Report Share Posted June 2, 2001 Love, It is from the World Island review. But do not tell the copyright police, OK? I do not know if it is true or not, but am planning to go there one day and see. It is very interesting to me. Others. I do not think it is unusual for archeological findings that conflict with stories of creation and give acurate evidence as to the true age of mankind to be covered up. Belief and ignorance will always battle to perpetuate itself. Mankind is much more ancient than what science currently says. More and more evidence is surfacing reguarding the age of man. Recently near Okinawa and Yonaguri divers located a gigantic pyramid like stucture. Its about 240 ft in length. It is surprising that it was not front page news and little is known or publicised about this and other such discoveries. I am wondering why. I am wondering if it is much like the mindset during the days of Columbus when he had the audacity to say that the world was round. Or perhaps Copernicus who debunked the scriptures and suffered greatly as a result. Is it connected to the oldest ego game in the history of mind- "I am right-you are wrong" meaning "experts" will be embarassed? Would we on the whole rather pepetuate ignorance than appear to be mistaken? In Kaliyuga that is a good possibility. Or maybe such discovery will not jive with the story (estimated arrival time)of creation of man according to religion of the day. In some instances-amazingly such phenomena is credited ato aliens rather than admit the true age of mankind! Thus is the condition of man. Or perhaps it is just the astronomical cost of rewriting history. Here are some underwater city links that I would have thought would be front page news. www.eagle-net.org/phikent/japan/japan.html www.eagle-net.org/phikent/japan/japan2.html www.lauralee.com/japan/japan1.htm www.lauralee.com/japan/japan2.htm www.forteantimes.com/artic/114/japan.html www.mozingodesigns.com/brainrape/html/japans_pyramid_pictures.html Another interesting phenome is a miracle in a Buddhist monastery. Many Buddhists were enraged by it and claimed it was impossible. Here is the article: "Flowers that bloom only once every 3,000 years are budding on the head of a sacred Buddhist statue." "Buddhist priests in South Korea say the legendary flowers blossoming on the forehead of Kian Yin the Compassionate only appear when the 'Sage King of the Future' comes into the world, which one Buddhist leader called, a delight that gives joy beyond description." "The Miracle of the Flowers, as it's now being called, happened in the Chonggyesa Temple in a suburb of Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Tens of thousands of pilgrims are flocking to see the white blossoms on the tip of the eyebrow of the shining, gilded statue of Kuan Yin." "'Kuan Yin is a gentle Buddhist deity who refused to enter paradise (Nirvana--J.T.) because she heard the cries of suffering humanity,' says religious expert Dr. Kenneth Ireland 'She is acknowledged to save the soul of everyone on Earth, turning her back on none. Many are now saying that the monastery of Chonggye-sa could become the Buddhist Lourdes because many cures are being performed there.'" "According to the monks, 21 threadlike stems are growing from the statue of Kuan Yin, each with a tiny white flower 'no bigger than the tip of a ballpoint pen.' This is the first time in the 1,000-year history of the monastery that the flowers have blossomed. 'Buddhists say sighting the flowers is like witnessing the birth of Buddha,' he added." "Experts say it's unthinkable that the 500-year-old statue of Kuan Yin, gilded every three years over the (original) woodwork, could produce growing flowers without divine intervention. 'Botanically, the flower is related to the ficus,' says botanist William Grant. 'There is just no way it could take root in the statue.'" "Dr. Ireland says the flowers are regarded as divine in India, Japan and China and are believed to bloom only when a momentous event is about to happen. Buddhist monks are currently keeping a prayer vigil at the statue, waiting for the event that will change mankind's future forever." Anyone ever directly witness such a miracle? The world will never want for wonder. Another one is at http://www.skyboom.com/ddasa/index21.html This phenomena has angered as many as it has helped. When asked about that particular phenomena, the sage said that it was a marriage between religion and science. That they have been seperated for much too long. Still many are upset by miracles and discoveries. [This message has been edited by Dharma (edited 06-01-2001).] [This message has been edited by Dharma (edited 06-01-2001).] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
talasiga Posted June 8, 2001 Report Share Posted June 8, 2001 Dear Shvu The dating of a written scripture cannot be equated with its date of origin. In any great oral tradition a revelation may be passed on for thousands of years by spoken word or song before being written. No-one may know when it was originally revealed. Logically, in such a situation, all that can be known by the evidence of the first written version is that AT LEAST it must be that old noting that AT LEAST is not the same as AT MOST. Yours in writing on 8 June 2001 (point first conceived in oral discussions in 1960's) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vishal krishna das Posted June 8, 2001 Report Share Posted June 8, 2001 Dear SHVU, here's a quote from the Jaina Kalpa Sutra which I find apropos- 'Reverence to the Venerable Ascetic Mahavira, the Adikara, the last of the Tirthakaras who was predicted by the former Tirthakaras, &c. I here adore the Revered One yonder, may the Revered One yonder see me here!' With these words he adored, he worshipped the Venerable Ascetic Mahavira, and sat down on his excellent throne facing the east. Then the following internal, reflectional, desirable idea occurred to the mind of Sakra, the chief of kings and gods: (16) 'It never has happened, nor does it happen, nor will it happen, that Arhats, Kakravartins, Baladevas, or Vasudevas, in the past, present, or future, should be born in low families, mean families, degraded families, poor families, indigent families. beggars' families, or brahmanical families. (17) For indeed Arhats, Kakravartins, Baladevas, and Vasudevas, in the past, present, and future, are born in high families, noble families, royal families, noblemen's families, in families belonging to the race of Ikshvaku, or of Hari. or in other such-like families of pure descent on both sides. (18) *I find the reference to 'Baladevas and Vasudevas' interesting, along with the Heliodorous column of 300bc, describing the benefactor as a follower of Vasudeva, divinity of divinities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
animesh Posted June 12, 2001 Report Share Posted June 12, 2001 Do Hindu scriptures say anything about Adi Buddha? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 5, 2002 Report Share Posted August 5, 2002 300 B.C?! That's not possible. Why? Observe: 1) The British, upon arriving in India, surpressed and warped the Indian culture to suit their own needs (Aryan Invasion, etc.), and they also could not believe that any other religion could precede christianity, so they arbitrarily gave those dates. 2) Have you ever really read Mahabharata and Ramayana. Obviously, no. In the Mahabharata and the Ramayana clear dates are -given- by sage Vedavyas, according to the nakshatra and rasi and all (this means he gave a precise date based on position of the stars.) All these dates have been traced back and confirmed. 3) Archeological proof exists of temples, palaces, and artifacts from both Ram and Krishna's time (treta and dvapara yugas.) 4) Just because Buddha was against vedic philosophy doesn't mean he's not an incarnation of Krishna. At that time the Brahmanas were usurping the people, so Krishna came as Buddha to establish Buddhism. 5) Without other false religions, how can there be Kali yuga? Kali yuga means falsehood. In the trinity, is Vishnu not considered the Maintainer? How can one maintain the status of kali yuga without having the symptoms of Kali Yuga? In fact, the incarnation of Kali was sent -by- Krishna to establish Kali yuga, and the personification of Kali is not really evil, but it's his job to create disorder in this age. Therefore, it can be stated that Buddha Avatara is there to confirm the status of Kali Yuga. Also, it can be noted that Shri Shankaracharya is actually Shiva, and was sent by Krishna to establish Mayavad philosophy. Don't think that God is limited in his actions. Buddhism and Mayavadi philosophy is all part of his master plan. The idea that God is part of his own religion exclusively and vehemently is a purely western misconception. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gauracandra Posted August 6, 2002 Report Share Posted August 6, 2002 As Vaisnavas we accept the Buddha as an incarnation of the Lord. Buddhists see it differently. Either way, its not that big of a deal. I know some devotees see Buddhism and Mayavada as "suicide of the soul" for trying to merge into the Brahma jyoti. My own view is that a person who lives as a Buddhist is a good person. They may not accept a personal God, but a true Buddhist lives his/her life in an exemplary fashion. So we don't need any discord between any groups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxvvii Posted August 8, 2002 Report Share Posted August 8, 2002 As Vaisnavas we accept the Buddha as an incarnation of the Lord. Buddhists see it differently. It's easy to understand. If Buddhists accept it, they have to admit the subjection of Buddhism to hinduism at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avinash Posted August 9, 2002 Report Share Posted August 9, 2002 Why can't it be said that if Hindus don't believe that Buddha was an avatar of Visnu, then they have to accept the subjection of Hinduism to Buddhism? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 1, 2002 Report Share Posted October 1, 2002 The achievments and success of Bhudda speaks volumes in itself. How can we doubt this influence to be anything but the act of an Avtar??. In Kaliyug, goodness will slowly evaporate to leave only darkeness or evil. If a Bhuddist beleives in bhrahm only then that is his destiny. We have the chance to follow a path that will take us directly to the abode of God, where we will serve Him. How many births has it taken for us to reach this exculsive stage?. It is surley our destiny to reach Parbrahm Purshottam so lets battle vigilantly against our inner enemies such as lust and anger and spend this life as a devotee of God , for it is the nature ,action and attiutde of the mind in this life that will determine our destination after death. Jay Satchitanand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shvu Posted October 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2002 The achievments and success of Bhudda speaks volumes in itself. How can we doubt this influence to be anything but the act of an Avtar??. The achievements and success of Mohammad speaks volumes in itself. How can we doubt this influence to be anything but the act of an Avatar?? In Kaliyug, goodness will slowly evaporate to leave only darkeness or evil. If a Bhuddist beleives in bhrahm only then that is his destiny. We have the chance to follow a path that will take us directly to the abode of God, where we will serve Him. How many births has it taken for us to reach this exculsive stage?. It is surley our destiny to reach Parbrahm Purshottam so lets battle vigilantly against our inner enemies such as lust and anger and spend this life as a devotee of God , for it is the nature ,action and attiutde of the mind in this life that will determine our destination after death. The Buddhist also battles vigilantly against his inner enemies such as lust and anger for it is the nature, action and attitude of the mind in this life that will determine his destination after death. Cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 26, 2002 Report Share Posted December 26, 2002 Animesh made the following statement: "It is wrong to say that Buddha denied the existence of God. It will be more accurate to say that he did not want to say anything regarding God." The notion that the Buddha "did not want to say anything regarding God" doesn't hold water. Many of the Vedic gods are mentioned by him, so why would he avoid mentioning "God" if he believed that such a being existed? The facts are: there are several Sutras (Suttas) in the Digha Nikaya collection (from the Pali Canon) in which the Buddha clearly denies the existence of a creator god. In at least one Sutra, he condemns the doctrine that the universe is coexistent with Self (= Paramatma). In the Samyutta Nikaya, he flatly denied being a god. In Anguttara Nikaya, the Buddha stated that he did not worship any gods, but that the Dharma was the only worthy object of reverence to him. I agree with what some others posted: you can either believe in the Buddha as an avatar, or believe in his teachings, but not both. As a Buddhist, my position is obvious. I respect the right of others to believe as they choose, but it seems ridiculous to attribute godhood to someone who clearly denied it. Peace, Metta Jon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 25, 2003 Report Share Posted March 25, 2003 Maybe this can help http://www.ambedkar.org/buddhism/Depicting_Buddha_as_Hindu.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 2, 2003 Report Share Posted April 2, 2003 BSV Prasad garu, Pandit Kota Venkatachalam was my maternal grandfather. The book that you have referred to, authored by my grandfather, is titled "The Plot in Indian Chronology". Please let me know if you require additional information. I am not a member of this forum, and just stumbled upon it accidentally. Please send me an Email to my personal account - sastryy@. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 4, 2003 Report Share Posted April 4, 2003 There are many reasons why Lord Buddha incarnated on earth and I think the concept of Buddhas appearing simply to decieve the corrupt brahmin caste is a very immature and partial explanation of a truth far more loving and compassionate. Some may disagree with me but it is my opinion that buddha is an avatar of vishnu. Through out time there have always been people who have refused to believe in a personal God or even a God at all. Buddha descended to show people a way or system of thought that would allow them to purify their minds, and conciousnous while nullifying their karma. He preached a philosophy of love and compassion for all life just as all god concious people have done. For the people who refused to believe in God, Vishnu descended as the Buddha. Although he did not teach vedic thought or even the concept of a deity, He convinced these people to follow him and in so doing they unknowingly followed God. I think the story of Buddha can show us just how much God loves us. He is not restricted or owned by any one religion and he is free to use any aspect of his nature to bring souls back to him. Praise God, Praise Buddha! Tom S. D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 13, 2003 Report Share Posted April 13, 2003 Friend, you obviously have never actually studied the teachings of the Buddha. He not only denied the concept of a supreme being; he also denied being a god. The scriptures of Buddhism quote him as denying his own godhood; but the scriptures of Hinduism (which came into existence at a much later time, by the way) say that he was an incarnation of Vishnu. They cannot both be true. Obviously, the texts which were in existence closer to the time of his life would be more likely to represent what the historical Buddha said about himself. Gotama (Gautama) Buddha, who stated that he was NOT a god, also stated that Buddhas never lie. One who deliberately tells lies is capable of doing any manner of evil, according to the words of the Buddha --see Majjhima Nikaya, Sutta (Sutra) #61, Advice to Rahula at Ambalatthika. If your assertion were true--that Vishnu incarnated as the Buddha, but then denied being a god--he would have been lying. Is a god who tells falsehoods worthy of worship? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raguraman Posted April 13, 2003 Report Share Posted April 13, 2003 If your assertion were true--that Vishnu incarnated as the Buddha, but then denied being a god--he would have been lying. Is a god who tells falsehoods worthy of worship? Sometimes a lie can save many deserving people. This is why many times Lord Visnu fooled asuras. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raguraman Posted April 13, 2003 Report Share Posted April 13, 2003 Hare Krishna, Mahabaratham Santhi Parva (46.107) Bhishma tells that Krishna would take the form of an auxiliary Avatara as Aadhi Buddha and mislead the non- believers. This Aadhi Buddha is different from the Siddartha Goutama Buddha of historical fame. Also Maha Maya was the mother of Siddartha Gautama Buddha; she was the wife of Raja Suddhodana according to Buddhist sources. Let us see what Bhagavatam tells of aadhi Buddha. Srimad Bhagavatham (1:3:5) Thereafter in the Age of Kali His birth as Lord Buddha from Anjanâ in Gayâ will take place in order to delude the ones envious with the theists. More information on the following site. http://www.salagram.net/Buddha-dev.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 13, 2003 Report Share Posted April 13, 2003 So Lord became very much compassionate these poor animals, and He appeared as Lord Buddha, and His philosophy was nonviolence. His philosophy was atheist because He said that “There is no God. This combination of matter is a manifestation, and you dismantle the material elements, there will be void and there will be no sense of pleasure and pain. That is the nirvana, ultimate goal of life.” -Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Los Angeles, February 18, 1970 Where Buddha was 'born' was indeed at Bodh Gaya. Prince Siddharta was born in Lumbini, but was not Buddha until around his 37th year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 13, 2003 Report Share Posted April 13, 2003 sri prabhupada sya that we must accept the vedic literature as it is and in whole, without rejecting any part. so we accept bhagabatam in full. bhagavatan says buddha is an avatar of vishnu (krishna). so, it is an avatar. however, we do not follow buddha's teachings. still buddhism is better than atheism or islam etc. it seves a step towards vaishnavism. sooner or later a buddhist soul will become a krishna devotee. jai sri prabhupada! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted August 7, 2003 Report Share Posted August 7, 2003 umm u guys seem to know enough bout the hindhu religion...i was wondering if u know any good websites (in english) where i can learn more bout the hindu religion..i'm very eager to learn more bout the hindhu relgion...and the culture... thanks... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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