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Aupmanyav
Forum Plebian
Joined: 06 Aug 2008
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Local time: 4:25 AM
Location: New Delhi
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 Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 3:12 am Post subject: |
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| helloween_metal wrote: | you know if you can speak american english in india then you can earn lot of money.like my brother  my accent sucks  |
They teach you that. It is part of the training. Making others understand what you are saying, understanding what others are saying.
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"Brahma Satyam Jagan-mithya" (Brahman is the truth, the observed is an illusion)
"Sarve Khalu Idam Brahma" (All this here is Brahman) |
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CET
The Spiritual Atheist
Joined: 02 Apr 2003
Posts: 12826
Local time: 1:25 AM
Location: SoCal, USA
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| Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:24 am Post subject: |
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| Aupmanyav wrote: | | Compassion for all life, human and non-human, is central to Jainism. Human life is valued as a unique, rare opportunity to reach enlightenment. To kill any person, no matter their crime, is considered unimaginably abhorrent. It is the only religion that requires monks and laity, from all its sects and traditions, to be vegetarian. Some Indian regions have been strongly influenced by Jains and the majority of the local non-Jain population is vegetarian. |
My understanding is that Jains are not vegetarians, but fruitarians; they only eat the products of life (fruit, beans, honey, milk, seeds). Whereas eating vegetables destroys the plant.
| Aupmanyav wrote: | | Anekantavada, a foundation of Jain philosophy, literally means "The Multiplicity of Reality", or equivalently, "Non-one-endedness". Anekantavada has tools for overcoming inherent biases in any one perspective on any topic or in reality in general. Another tool is The Doctrine of Postulation, Syadvada. Anekantavada is defined as a multiplicity of viewpoints, for it stresses looking at things from others' perspectives. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anekantavada#Jain_doctrines_of_relativity) |
Interesting stuff. The Jainist path is an interesting study, though it seems to go to extremes. For example, the "Death Fast" seems a bit extreme.
| Aupmanyav wrote: | | I am sorry that Haloween_Metal is so much against the atheistic religion in which he was born. I respect Mahavira as a great thinker. His views were far advanced of his time. I take 'Ahimsa' (non-violence) in Indic religions as a gift of Jainism. Mahavira was a radical. There was no middle way for him. If he was for non-possession, he even discarded his clothes. If it was non-violence, then he did not react even when village boys stoned him or put nails in his ears. If it was spurning comforts of life, then he wanted to be reminded by pulling of his hair rather than having it tonsured by a barber. He was a revolutionary. |
That was his choice. Raising children in such a manner is not a choice for the child. That's not a judgment, but simply coming back to the point of going to extremes. Very few people can go to an extreme and not become dangerous to themselves or others in one way or another, because the extremity itself is an attachment.
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Namaste,
CET 
The Spiritual Atheist
"Much of the suffering in the world comes from the delusion that we are separate from one another." - Gautama Buddha
"Those who dance are considered insane by those who can't hear the music." - George Carlin |
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CET
The Spiritual Atheist
Joined: 02 Apr 2003
Posts: 12826
Local time: 1:25 AM
Location: SoCal, USA
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| Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:30 am Post subject: Re: Jainism |
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| Aupmanyav wrote: | | Putting oneself to pain is a nice way not to take facilities of life for granted. |
This is one way to be reminded of the beauty of an "normal" body and an "normal" day. When tragedy strikes, we often wish that it were just an normal day. This is why when people ask me how my day is, I usually smile and say, "Normal, thank you." The fact that we have to suffer repeatedly in order to appreciate that isn't clicking with me though. I have suffered before, and I can meditate upon that and be reminded of the beauty of normality.
_________________
Namaste,
CET
The Spiritual Atheist
"Much of the suffering in the world comes from the delusion that we are separate from one another." - Gautama Buddha
"Those who dance are considered insane by those who can't hear the music." - George Carlin |
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CET
The Spiritual Atheist
Joined: 02 Apr 2003
Posts: 12826
Local time: 1:25 AM
Location: SoCal, USA
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| Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:34 am Post subject: |
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| Aupmanyav wrote: | | Travelling all the time reduces their attachment to people and places. This is common in hinduism and buddhism too. |
Yes, though it's strange that so many Buddhist monks hold up in monasteries so even though Shakyamuni Buddha told them to go out, travel, and teach. 
Avoiding life because of the fear of attachment is not a practice. Living life, and being aware of the possibility of attachment is a practice.
_________________
Namaste,
CET
The Spiritual Atheist
"Much of the suffering in the world comes from the delusion that we are separate from one another." - Gautama Buddha
"Those who dance are considered insane by those who can't hear the music." - George Carlin |
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Aupmanyav
Forum Plebian
Joined: 06 Aug 2008
Posts: 283
Local time: 4:25 AM
Location: New Delhi
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| Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 8:56 am Post subject: |
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| CET wrote: | My understanding is that Jains are not vegetarians, but fruitarians; they only eat the products of life (fruit, beans, honey, milk, seeds). Whereas eating vegetables destroys the plant.
For example, the "Death Fast" seems a bit extreme.
That was his choice. Raising children in such a manner is not a choice for the child. |
Jains are not supposed to eat root vegetables. They also do not use onion, tomato, or garlic. Many other communities also were not using the last three (for example in my community, Kashmiri Brahmins).
*I think this is because of a distaste of new things. Perhaps onions, garlic, and tomato are later additions to Indian food, and the orthodox considered them taboo. For example, only barley grains are offered to the Gods in a Yajna, and not wheat. I think the staple food of Aryans was barley. Similarly iron is not used in ritual purposes, but copper has no such restrictions, indicating that when the practice arose, Aryans might be using copper. Again, wool or silk is considered pure, cotton is considered impure. Grass (Kusha) is considered pure and given as seat to Gods.* Just a guess by a lay person.
I agree death-fast is a bit extreme and initiation of children as monks is ethically wrong. Even many Jains are against it. I do not think if Mahavira advocated this. As for Halloween_Metal, I find him a little rash in debunking Jainism and even hinduism. He is but a young man.
_________________
"Brahma Satyam Jagan-mithya" (Brahman is the truth, the observed is an illusion)
"Sarve Khalu Idam Brahma" (All this here is Brahman) |
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Aupmanyav
Forum Plebian
Joined: 06 Aug 2008
Posts: 283
Local time: 4:25 AM
Location: New Delhi
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| Posted: Thu Aug 14, 2008 9:00 am Post subject: |
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| CET wrote: | | Avoiding life because of the fear of attachment is not a practice. Living life, and being aware of the possibility of attachment is a practice. |
True, non-attachment can be practised even when fully participating in life (Geeta).
_________________
"Brahma Satyam Jagan-mithya" (Brahman is the truth, the observed is an illusion)
"Sarve Khalu Idam Brahma" (All this here is Brahman) |
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