Theos-Talk Archives (May 2008 Message tt00876)

--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "Anand" <AnandGholap@...> wrote:


> I want to add one more point. In the Theosophical Society it is always
> mentioned that one should not blindly believe, every one should use
> his own judgement and intuition in order to decide whether to accept
> certain idea or reject it. 
> Now comes interesting point. We can assume that people use to some
> extent intuition and reason while following certain religion or
> rejecting it. Now, if most of the humanity's intuition tells them that
> God exists and so they follow religions with God as central idea, 
> and if very few people's intuition tells them to believe Buddhist
> philosophy of no-God, then it can be assumed that Buddhist no-God idea
> is wrong. 


As I see it, the only problem with your assumed statistical supremacy 
of the 'God' religions over Buddhism is this: children who were born in 
Hindu, Jewish, Christian and Muslim families did nor really have a 
choice. They became members of the religions they parents were members 
of. They did not "intuit" which one is better. This is simply a case of 
social, cultural and historical conditioning, not intuition.

Now let me give you a contemporary example of independent, self-
thinking choice in matters of religion: a year or so ago a poll was 
conducted among many young people in Australia regarding their attitude 
towards religion. One of the results was that more than 50% of them 
declared themselves to be atheists who would not have anything to do 
with religion at all. Mind you, many of them were born in religions 
families, but later in life they decided, through their own choice, to 
ditch religion altogether.

Well, Anand, I have got to go and prepare for the church service this 
morning. Let me leave you with the words of a great poem:


OM, AMITAYA! measure not with words
Th' Immeasurable; nor sink the string of thought
Into the Fathomless. Who asks doth err,
Who answers, errs. Say naught!

Ye suffer from yourselves. None else compels,
None other holds you that ye live and die,
And whirl upon the wheel, and hug and kiss
Its spokes of agony.

Before beginning, and without an end,
As space eternal and as surety sure,
Is fixed a Power divine which moves to good,
Only its laws endure ...

			Sir Edwin Arnold (From "The Light of Asia")



Pedro