Theos-Talk Archives (March 2002 Message tt00182)

Couple of years ago, I was invited by a local church to discuss about the 
Eastern Religious ideas especially. Lo and behold, when I went in, was 
surprised to find a closet theosophist - none of the other members present 
were aware of it. With my background in theosophy, was able to explain to 
them that the two principles at the foundation of Eastern thought are Karma 
and Reincarnation. Firstly based on the concept that each one of us are 
responsible for all our actions - in thought, word and deed and accounts 
have to be settled. If not now, at some future time and there comes a time 
when all accounts are settled, and nothing more to be accounted for, then 
one graduates.

The idea of self-responsibility was easy for everyone to understand (it is 
easy to pass the responsibility and blame to others!!!) and in this context 
the most plausible "hypotheses" are Karma and Reincarnation, in the absence 
of any other hypothesis other than just taking a stand that anything that 
cannot be demonstrated in a lab with double blind study is false.

The presentation was in stark contrast to what people are used to seeing on 
TV and print media which confuse the day to day socio political going ons 
with that of the fundamental principles of the Eastern Thought.

My .02

mkr


At 08:57 AM 3/8/02 -0800, adelasie wrote:
> Hi Terrie,
> The thing that got me thinking about karma when I first heard about
> it (in this lifetime :-) was the concept of self-responsibility. It's
> so difficult for a western mind, steeped in materialism, to accept
> the vastness of a law that affects everything in the universe. How
> can we prove it? I don't suppose we will be able to do that for a
> long time, being still sort of randy teenagers in terms of evolution.
> (Not that I want to dis teenagers, having raised a bunch of
> delightful ones myself, if I do say so)