Anyone interested in Yogiism, Hinduism, Krishna-type stuff??

Anyone feel like getting into a discussion about Hinduism, or other Eastern religions. I know just a little about them, but have kind of rekindled an interest lately.

For example, how do you interpret someone who says that the world is "maya" or an illusion? What about karma, how do you understand it -- does it work over lifetimes, can anyone really understand the why's and what's behind karma? Do you believe in it?

What about Dharma - can anyone explain that? Are there any favorite web sites or readings that you like?

Thanks!

as long as it's not the phony baloney new age Hollywood celebrity version of the stuff.

What have you read? what do you like? Any particular teacher?

Here is a book I started off with, and there are others in this series taht are pretty good (though I would recommend some over others, depending on what you were after).

I used to hang with some Krishnas from Philly, they were cool cats and gave me yummy Prasadam :)

One of my favorite hardcore bands are Krishnas, Shelter

He's the one who introduced me to Dogen and his spin on the issue of Maya.

http://www.wwzc.org/translations/gabyo.htm

In painting a rice cake you use the same materials as you would to paint a landscape. You can use blue pigment to paint mountains and rivers and powdered rice to paint a rice cake. The work of composition is the same. This being so, sesame cakes, vegetable cakes, milk cakes and so on are all this "painted rice cake." There is no difference between paintings, rice cakes, or any thing6 at all and you should understand that these rice cakes in front of you that you are about to eat are all "painted rice cakes." If you are looking for these "painted rice cakes" anywhere else you still don't know how to eat a rice cake. Sometimes they appear as rice cakes, sometimes not. However, they completely transcend any coming or going, old or new and it is in this7 that the realm of "painted rice cakes" reveals itself.

I had an interesting experience. I was going to bring my Gary Snyder book to Kyoto. It vanished in a puff of smoke. I had to go alone, just me and my Japanese phrase book. About two weeks after I got home, then my book re-appeared.

That is really hard to understand..lol. I think I kind of get it, but... Haven't read Gary Snyder, but maybe I'll look into it. Thanks!

You'll never be sorry! Enjoy!

But its hard to discuss it in a way that's appropriate to DU, suffice to say that being open to diverse religions is wise. But here's my take:

Maya: Literally means "measurer", and refers to the illusion of finite things that keep us from percieving infinite truth. I take maya to mean the reality we experience in our brains, rather than the reality that actually is. In this latter reality, we are one with everything, made of the same undefinable stuff, which is infinite.

Karma: Based on the above statement, where the truth is that we are all one, anything you do to another is actually being done to yourself. Maya, the measurer/divider, keeps this from being apparent through dividing events through people and time...So punching somebody is punching yourself, but the actual event of you getting punched after you punched somebody may come much later, and from a different person. And we may forget, but it is ourself that punched ourself.

Also, being closer to the Infinite truth, seems to have the effect of accelerating Karma, meaning things come back faster. Those who are farther from truth, who have a lot more to go through, will seem to "get away" with things more...Those who are closer to it will get smacked right as they do something bad. This theory works over lifetimes, so they say.

In light of karma, the words of Jesus make sense: Do unto others as you would have done unto you"!

"Also, being closer to the Infinite truth, seems to have the effect of accelerating Karma, meaning things come back faster. Those who are farther from truth, who have a lot more to go through, will seem to "get away" with things more...Those who are closer to it will get smacked right as they do something bad. This theory works over lifetimes, so they say."

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You're right! It is hard to talk about, because it's easy to sound kind of trite I guess. The paragraph above though make me think about stories about 'more enlightened' people who seem to have those kind of experiences - or at least the stories seem to make it seem so.

I took a class in mysticism one time, and had a really interesting teacher who covered the mystic side of the major religions. Christianity was really interesting, because we learned about the mystic communities in the old eastern Christian church. I think there was someone named Meister Ekhart? (His books are in Amazon.) It was really cool. And then there's the book about the Russian wanderer....can't remember the title at the moment. ANyone know?

Is something I've observed in my own life and lots of tales of gurus/saints. The compassion of the ones who see truth most clearly is such that if they were to hurt others they would feel it instantly, if even through highly increased sense of empathy that accompanies the elevated.

I will check out Ekhart...I've heard the name, but I haven't read him...The only mystical russian I can think of is rasputin, but I'm sure that's probably not it.

sect "worshipped", dont' you? Basically orgies out there in Siberia.

No, there's some book out of the Russian orthodox tradition I guess about a man who wanders and finds enlightenment via Christianity.

This professor I had, said that in this day and time there really is very little true mysticism in the world. It's mostly been corrupted, forgotten, or died out. It all has something to do with the 'great cycles' or something...

Yeah, bet you'll like Eckhart.

In 1985 the Pope, John Paul II, said: "Did not Eckhart teach his disciples: 'All that God asks you most pressingly is to go out of yourself - and let God be God in you'? One could think that, in separating himself from creatures, the mystic leaves his brothers, humanity, behind. The same Eckhart affirms that, on the contrary, the mystic is marvelously present to them on the only level where he can truly reach them, that is in God."

i.e. through truth, not maya. I love it already! Thanks!!!

Is the Russian story. Here's a link...

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0486427129/qid=1120788100/sr=8-6/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i6_xgl14/002-0768753-2878463?v=glance&s=books&n=507846

He had a talent for expressing eastern thought in a way that the western mind could more easily understand.

He wrote about Zen And Taoism a great deal but also eastern thought in general including the topics you mentioned.

He taught me more than any other author on those subjects. I highly recommend everything he ever wrote.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/102-6957816-2904162

If that link doesn't work just do a search for "Alan Watts" at Amazon

..although it's been abit ago. It reminds me of the book "Be Here Now", but I dont think he had anything to do with it. Maybe there were some stories about him in there..??

I seem to connect that with him as well, but I'm pretty sure that Ram Dass Wrote "Be Here Now". Perhaps Alan mentioned it in one of his essays.

Truth is, it has been over 15 years since I was totally immersed in eastern thought. I don't remember the books so well anymore, but I did learn a great deal.

Ironically one quote that comes to mind when discussing eastern thought is "The way that can be named is not the eternal way"

"Existence is beyond the power of words to define.
Terms may be used, but are none of them are absolute"

In the beginning of heaven and earth there were no words"

(I did tend to dwell the most on Taoism.)

But I've never been able to steal those pik-a-nic baskets.

and am fascinated with the parallels and similarities between Indian and Celtic beliefs. In many dictionaries, you will find a map showing the origins of Indo European languages eminating from the Black Sea. There is also a lot of common symbolism. Below is an example.

The Celtic God Curnunnos:



The Hindu God Shiva:



Note the snake, the right hand holding a trident / torc, the yogic seating position..

I guess when I think about it, I'm as interested in any mystic tradition I just know more about some rather than others. I don't know much about the Celtic tradition, although that is my ethnic background. What do you find particularly interesting about it?

is the most accessible I've ever encountered.

Not only does he get to the very heart of the Bhagavad Gita, he does so with wit along with wisdom.

Also, read "How To Know God" The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali translation/commentary by Swami Prabhavananda & Christopher Isherwoood.

Again, their commentary makes the teaching accessible and eminently practical.

These two books are indispensable.

:)

I looked at the Yoga Aphorisms on Amazon. I think I read an earlier edition of that, but I don't have it anymore. That would be good to get, along with the new translation.

:thumbsup:

I like www.dharma-talks.com (I think that's the right link) - audio files.

And I've been studying yoga for years. I love reading Hindu scriptures. :)

I guess this is true, but sometimes it's not. Guess I never understood Buddhism very well...lol.