Theos-Talk Archives (September 2007 Message tt00096)

MKR,

Are you asking about the spiritual angle to the present religious war the Wahabbis are waging against the West? But maybe I don't understand the question.

What I mainly wanted to say was that your post evoked in me a rememberance of Annie Besant's Theosophical book on Dharma. I had for years heard of and read the word 'Dharma' and I got the idea of 'duty' 'work' etc. but it never started to sink in until I read her little book years ago. Then I reread it a couple of months ago and I got a much deeper understanding of the concept, only this time like it was for the first time I read where she was talking about the "warrior" class/caste where she said that was what they did, make wars and fight battles, and she told what it was they were learning, discipline, etc. I was more than a little shocked at reading this--I had actually thought war and killing was a bad thing and should be eliminated from our psyche--but she said it so matter-of-factly like it was a rite of passage we all had to go through. 

I know that Besant is on the "out list" here but I wanted to mention the idea of Dharma and war and see what everybody thought of it, because it seems to be going on right now, speaking of war. 

Scribe

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: M K Ramadoss 
  To: theos-talk@yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Friday, September 07, 2007 11:37 PM
  Subject: Re: Theos-World Webcasting programs by TSA in America FREE, open to allt


  Thanks for the post even though the TS does not seem to be interested in
  "marketing" them!

  I visited the website and it was interesting to find the topic:

  "The Spiritual Dimensions of War and Its Healing" by Ed Tick

  War is ugly. Destruction everywhere. No winners. Man causing suffering to
  fellow men, women and children. Young men and women in their prime of life
  sacrificed for the good of the
  country. Reminds me of the days of old when there was human sacrifice
  to appease gods. To us today that looks very barbaric. However, most
  do not even wink an eye when young men and women come back in body
  bags.

  It would be very interesting to see what Spiritual Dimensions are there in
  War. May be when we are in the battle field and targeted by enemies,
  spiritual aspirations come to the forefront when the scared soldier starts
  praying to his or her favorite god.

  Years ago, during WWII, when Jiddu Krishnamurti was asked to assist in US
  war effort even in a civilian capacity, he did not want any part of it. So
  the Govt told him to stay in Ojai till they find a transportation to take
  him back to India. He was told not to give any talks and had to report to
  the local police every week. When I read about it years ago, I could not
  reconcile his stand with that of some leading theosophists who were
  discussing the white forces and dark forces and right side and wrong side of
  the war. In retrospect, when I saw on the TV the destruction of the country
  and its infra-structure and the
  suffering of men, women and children - also the 2 million refugees, I
  was able to understand.

  Would like to hear about any spiritual angle to the war!

  mkr

  On 9/7/07, MarieMAJ41 <MarieMAJ41@aol.com> wrote:
  >
  > Friends, below is taken from the website of the Theosophical Society in
  > America. This gives you free access to the simulcasting events that are
  > scheduled to begin soon.
  >
  > The link is
  > www.theosophical.org
  >
  > Schedule
  > All times are given in US Central Time. (CST)
  > To convert to your timezone, please visit the World Clock website,
  > then enter the date and time according to the schedule below, and choose
  > Chicago for the Place/City.
  >
  > The Olcott Institute's First Webcast Course: Echoes from the Gnosis
  > Wednesdays, 7:30 - 9:00 PM, September 12 - October 31
  >
  > Starting September 12th, this eight week class on G.R.S. Mead's classic
  > Echoes from the Gnosis will be webcast live from 7:30 to 9:00 PM each
  > Wednesday evening. Online handouts will be available prior to each class.
  > Students will be able to contact the instructors Rev. Robert Cokinis & Dr.
  > Anton Lysy with questions and comments during the class via e-mail. The
  > required text is Echoes from the Gnosis. CLICK HERE for class schedule.
  >
  > To register for Echoes from the Gnosis send your name, location (city,
  > state), and TS group affiliation (if any) via email to the REGISTRAR.
  >
  > Class prep for 9/12
  >
  > Other Webcast programs
  >
  > 9/13, 7 PM, "The Spiritual Dimensions of War and Its Healing" by Ed Tick
  > 9/20, 7 PM, "Religion, God, and Violence" by Jim Kenney
  > 9/27, 7 PM, "Phillip K. Dick: Modern Gnostic" by Stephan Hoeller
  > 9/29, 1-4 PM, "The Gnostic Worldview as shown in The Secret Book of John"
  > by Stephan Hoeller
  > 10/18, 7 PM, "The Gospel of Thomas" by Ron Miller
  > 11/1, 7 PM, "Olcott and Blavatsky: Theosophical Twins" by John Algeo
  >
  > For program details, please see "Programs at National Center."
  >
  > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
  >
  > 
  >

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