
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Samhain Ceremony To Honor The Spirits Of Animals

Sunday, August 22, 2010
What The Buddhist Saint Said To The King Poson

Adam's Peak, the highest point on the Buddhist island of Sri Lanka (hellotravel.com)
Mahintale (hellotravel.com)
PART 1: The Buddhist saint (arhat, fully enlightened) MAHINDA, son of Emperor Asoka of India, ventured with his saint sister Sanghamitta to the island of Lanka. There he met the king and delivered a discourse based on The Shorter Elephant Footprint Simile. So moved was the king that he and the people of the island converted to Buddhism. This took place on POSON more than 2,000 years ago, the full moon observance day in June.
Thus have I heard. Once the Blessed One was staying near Savatthi at Jeta's Grove in Anathapindika's abbey.
Now at that time, the Brahmin Janussonin was driving out of Savatthi in the middle of the day in a white chariot. He saw Pilotika the wanderer coming from afar and on meeting him said:
"Now where is Master Vacchayana [his clan name] coming from in the middle of the day? Sir, I have come here from the presence of the recluse (WANDERING ASCETIC) Gotama [Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha]. And what does a wise person think about the recluse Gotama's wisdom? Sir, who am I to know the recluse Gotama's wisdom? Wouldn't one have to be his equal to know his wisdom? Master Vacchayana praises the recluse Gotama lavishly indeed!"
"
Visiting a modern wonder - Lions's Rock, Sigiriya (NH53/flickr.com)
"Sir, who am I to praise the recluse Gotama? He is praised by the praised as the best of beings, both human and deva". Seeing what reasons does Master Vacchayana have such high confidence in the recluse Gotama? Sir, suppose an elephant tracker were to enter an elephant forest and see there a large footprint, long in extent, broad in width. That tracker would come to the conclusion, 'What a big bull elephant!'
"In the same way, when I saw four footprints of the recluse Gotama, I came to the conclusion: 'The Blessed One is truly awakened, the Dharma is well-taught by the Blessed One, the "Sangha "of the Blessed One's disciples is practicing in a good way.' What are the four?
Lion's Rock fort, SIGIRIYA, a former Buddhist hermitage (hellotravel.com)
"In one case I see noble warriors (KSHATRIYAS) who are pundits, subtle, skilled in debate, like hair-splitting marksmen. They prowl about, as it were, shooting philosophical positions to pieces with their dialectic. They hear:
"'The recluse Gotama, they say, will visit that village or town.' They formulate a question like, 'Having gone to the recluse Gotama, we will ask him this question of ours. If, having been asked like this, he answers like that, we will refute his teaching this way. If having been asked like that, he answers like this, we will refute his teaching this other way.'
"They hear, 'the recluse Gotama is visiting such and such village or town.' They go to him, and he instructs, urges, rouses, and encourages them with a talk on Dharma. Having been instructed, urged, roused, and encouraged by him with a talk on Dharma, they do not even ask him their question, so how could they refute him? As it turns out, they become his disciples.
"When I saw this first footprint in the recluse Gotama, I came to this conclusion: 'The Blessed One is fully self-awakened; the Dharma is well-taught by the Blessed One; the "Sangha" of the Blessed One's disciples is practicing in a good way.'
FOOTPRINTS
I. FIRST FOOTPRINT: Clever, learned Brahmins visit the Buddha with the intention of refuting his Dharma (Teaching). But after they have been instructed, urged, roused, and encouraged they do not ask questions. They ask to become disciples.
II. SECOND FOOTPRINT: Clever, learned householders (laypersons) visit the Buddha, are instructed, have no more questions, and ask to become disciples.
III. THIRD FOOTPRINT: Clever, learned householders visit the Buddha and end up asking to become disciples.
IV. FOURTH FOOTPRINT: Clever, learned Brahmins go see the Buddha, end up having no more questions and instead ask to becomes disciples, the not long after -- by realizing the Dharma for themselves -- they become arhats (enlightened/liberated beings).
The Brahmin Janussoni then went to visit the Blessed One. With regard to the elephant's footprint, the Buddha told him that a wise person would follow the footprints and other markings left by the elephant until actually seeing that it was a big bull elephant.
What are the footprints of an intrepid Wayfarer (Tathagata) like the Buddha? The first footprint of the Tathagata is... CONTINUED IN PART II
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Henry Adams Prayer To The Virgin Of Chartres

Bible Vs Quran

Christianity and Islam are also
monotheistic religions that respect in one almighty miscarry. The Muslims' holy book-the Qur'an-teaches induction, the animation of angels, that Jesus was a sinless, virgin-born futurist from God, and that here is a heaven, a hell, and a day of send to prison. So with all these similarities, what are the differences relating the Bible and the Qur'an?Muslims respect the Qur'an is a image from God
(Allah) that began to be in words transmitted
nominated the angel Gabriel to Muhammad bearing in mind he was 40 living old (AD 610). They say that higher a 23-year modify Muhammad expected these messages, which he pointed memorized. Brusquely as soon as his death (AD 632) the Qur'an was compiled featuring in a out-of-the-way book. At the moment it is at odds featuring in 114 chapters, or suras, and is about the extent of the Christian New Tribute. Muslims sticky tag the Qur'an in the person Arabic copy to be the definite word of God. They respect it provides divine recommendation for all lenience.
They say Muhammad was God's seat futurist, superseding Christ, and that the Qur'an is God's end image to us all.
The Qur'an on God
The distinguishing character of Islam and the
Qur'an is the unity and transcendence of Allah or God. To become a Muslim one requisite give to somebody for safe keeping the shahadah: "OFFER IS NO GOD BUT ALLAH, AND MUHAMMAD IS HIS COMPETITOR." Yet the God of the Qur'an is not the actual as the God of the Bible.
The Qur'an does derive God as living eternal, all
powerful, all sophisticated, holy, totally, block, and courteous. Nevertheless, distinct the Bible, the Qur'an claims these are character of God's phantom practically than his key. That is to say, God may be called good since he causes good, but holiness is not the human being of his private. The Bible, on the other hand, teaches God is good since his very key and private are holy, totally, and apposite.
The Qur'an further teaches that Jesus is not God's Son,
that he did not die on the grumpy for our sins, nor did he problem from the significant organically three days far ahead. It plus teaches a unitarian view of God practically than the Trinitarian view of the Bible. To respect that here is excellent than one have fun in the Godhead is idolatry to a Muslim.
The Six Crude Doctrines
The Qur'an espouses six basic Muslim doctrines:
.
Offer is one and exclusively one God.
.
Offer clutch been many prophets of God, among
Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad.
.
Allah bent angels ( JINN), some living
good and others evil.
.
The Qur'an is God's inclusive and end
image.
.
A day of send to prison for all is coming, followed by
heaven for the plug and hell for the infidels.
.
God has full knowledge of and military exercises
predestination (QADAR) higher all that occurs in life.
The Qur'an on Use
The Qur'an explains that salvation-a place in
heaven as soon as death-is based on Allah's forgiveness: "To people who respect and do activities of wholesomeness hath Allah promised official pardon and a famous choice"
(Sura 5:9). The yearning of life as soon as death for a Muslim is based on whether their good activities phantom outweigh their bad activities and that Allah phantom be courteous. 48 Yet what distinguishes the Bible from the Qur'an is how a have fun is through apposite with God and obtains eternal life.
The New Tribute (with which Muslims scull)
teaches that
.
"The salary of sin is death, but the free gift of
God is eternal life nominated Christ Jesus our Lord" (ROMANS 6:23).
.
"God loved the world so extensively that he gave his
one and exclusively Son, so that everyone who believes in him phantom not fade away but clutch eternal life" ( John
3:16).
.
"God paid a ransom to measure you...And the ransom he
paid was not water gold or silver. It was the costly blood of Christ, the sinless, gullible Beef of God...Nonstop Christ you clutch come to recognition in God. And you clutch placed your glory and yearning in God since he raised Christ from the dead" (1 PETER 1:18-19, 21).
.
"It is by panache you clutch been saved, nominated
faith-and this is not from yourself, it is the gift of God" (EPHESIANS 2:8 NIV).
.
"Can we show off, next, that we clutch done suchlike
to be standard by God? No, since our stay of execution is not based on good activities. It is based on glory ["in Jesus"]. So we are through apposite with God nominated glory and not by obeying the law" (ROMANS 3:27-28).
The chief differences relating the Qur'an and
the Bible are in the Bible's image of 1) who God is (his holy and
scarcely private and key), 2) how he deals with sin (HIS COURSE OF ACTION OF SUPPORT NOMINATED CHRIST'S ATONING GIVE UP), and 3) how humans magnet a prefigure with him (THROUGH HIS CHILDREN BY PANACHE NOMINATED GLORY IN CHRIST).
This episode in the beginning appeared in "77 FAQS JUST ABOUT GOD AND THE BIBLE" by Sean McDowell and Mock McDowell
(2012). Cast-off by depart from Gather Situate Publishers.
This belief that our good
works are what really matters to God is further under arrest by the crowd of today's supposed Christians. One study by means of supposed Christians in North America revealed that 81 percent alleged the human being of the Christian glory was "exasperating harder to smattering the secret code described in the Bible."
Origin: thelema-and-faith.blogspot.com
Introduction And Welcome

I was raised by my grandparents in a Independent Fundamental Baptist household. They were somewhat hypocritical in choosing somethings in life that would be considered less than favorable in Christian circles. This being said of their religious views, one might also come to the conclusion they were right-wing, Reagan Republicans, which would be correct.
At the age of 4, I started attending an extremely strict, Fundamental Baptist school. I was active in my church and the perfect angelic child, till I became a teen of course. I had always had questions about my religion, questions that even the best Christian scholars around me couldn't answer. So for me, my religion wasn't good enough. It had too many loop holes and exceptions, and not to mention insanely outdated rules most of which were developed by strange old men who thought they were doing us all a favor.
Well, as I mentioned, I became the rebellious teen, just like all teens are at some point in there life. I started dating (Oh no!), became interested in online gaming, and started exploring other religions. I know, it doesn't sound that rebellious does it? But in my family it was. The stress of everything, including feeling like I didn't fit in no matter where I was, was too much to handle. I ended up getting kicked out of my straight-laced Christian school only 5 months before graduation. Why? Because I had a mental break down and left school and went to a friends house.
Anyway, going to public school, even but for a few months, opened my eyes to the fact that the world had different types of people. And they weren't bad and evil like I had been warned about either. It was here that I was introduced to my first real live witch. I never felt more at home than I did there. For once I was happy.
It wasn't until later that I began to embrace the fact that I wanted to be a Wiccan. Well, my husband didn't think it was all that great at all. In fact, it scared the living daylights out of him. So once again, back into the closet I pushed my Wiccan wants and desires.
Two years later, my husband and I are now divorced. I met some one who was a little more open minded and different than any one I had ever met before. After a few months, I decided that I didn't want to hide anymore and I was going to tell him flat out, "Honey, I'm a witch." Much to my surprise, I was met with the simple answer of "OK." I sat there for a moment thinking, "There has to be more to it than that." After a little digging and questioning, I learned he had Wiccan friends and had even been to a few rituals himself.
So now with loving support, I start my journey. I have since joined a local Wiccan group and been to a few rituals myself. I can't say that I've been more at home and happier than I am now. I hope you will enjoy learning as much as I do.
Origin: animals-and-shamanism.blogspot.com
Monday, August 16, 2010
From Maine To Haiti

On the way up we are planning on visiting the National Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. We will get there in time for the 2 PM Mass, Lord willing! Thanks to Mass times.org we know where to find a Mass everyday on our itinerary. Just one of the many advantages to being Catholic!
When we return, I leave the next day for Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. The purpose will be to "scout out" a new area for a medical mission. We will be staying with a priest we met through the Twinning Program of the Americas. It is a Catholic organization that seeks to "twin" parishes in the US with impoverished parishes in the third world. St. Simon and Jude is the name of this new parish and Father Andrew Labatorio is the pastor. We hope to find out what the most pressing needs are and what we can do to meet them. I know one of the needs is money for a for a new church building as well as health care for his parishioners. I would covet your prayers over the next 10 days particularly from 8/19-8/21 while we are in Haiti. God bless.
PS. Song for our brothers and sisters in Haiti here.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Review The Book Of Lucifer
















