Ask the Hindu

[Wicked Willow]

The demons are the esoteric representations of the evil tendencies in the human mind like anger,lust etc. The angels or devas are just the opposite and denote divine qualities. All Demons by themselves are not obstacles for the acquisition of immortality. Let us take anger - anger directed against others and for unworthy purposes is evil. The same anger when directed against your own passions, your own weaknesses etc acquires a divine quality. Both asuras and devas churn the milk ocean ( which represents the pure intellect) and obtain immortality. The idea is to use the demons as an ally to the angels. The angels by themselves are unable to confer immortality and they need the aid of demons to obtain the exilir of immortality. Once the immortality is attained , deceive and dump the demons and that is what is done in the original story too!

Interestingly, this pretty much corresponds to (parts of) the Western Esoteric tradition, where "demons" are perceived in a similar light: as manifestations of the potentially ruinous, subconscious parts of the soul that need to be confronted, controlled and harnessed in service to the Great Work.
The Goetia, which are attributed to Solomon (but most definitely date back no further than the Middle Ages), would be a prime example of this, even though numerous "demons" listed inside are but demoted deities from other pantheons.

 

[AskTheFamily]

...and they followed the sorcery recited on the reign of Sulaiman, and Sulaiman did not disbelieve but the devils did, teaching humans sorcery...(Quran).

 

[Wicked Willow]

...and they followed the sorcery recited on the reign of Sulaiman, and Sulaiman did not disbelieve but the devils did, teaching humans sorcery...(Quran).

Aye, Islam has this tradition of King Salomon employing jinns/demons/spirits to build the Temple. That's pretty much what the Goetia draws on. The rituals described therein pretty much have you recite a list of all the major patriarchs and the way they served as instruments of the One God - and then have you doing the same, invoking the power of the LORD to help you overcome the demons and bully them into submission.

 

[AskTheFamily]

Aye, Islam has this tradition of King Salomon employing jinns/demons/spirits to build the Temple. That's pretty much what the Goetia draws on. The rituals described therein pretty much have you recite a list of all the major patriarchs and the way they served as instruments of the One God - and then have you doing the same, invoking the power of the LORD to help you overcome the demons and bully them into submission.

Sulaiman (as) had permission to use his power and his authority manifested. It has nothing to do with this ritual stuff that people start using Jinn to perform magic. And Quran is pretty clear it was only meant as one time show to manifest power of the perfect humans, but it would not befit anyone after him to have this kingdom even though other humans were very much capable with God's permission to do so.

Also have a look at this Du'a, it teaches a bit of what the ring of Sulaiman (as) represents: Dua-e-Sabaasab

 

[rahul_sharma]

bump

 

[Supreme]

I have a question for Hindus: I hear there are many branches of your faith. Are these branches close to one another, and what are the key differences in belief between them?

 

[Wicked Willow]

If I may: "Hinduism" is a vast (and mostly imprecise) umbrella term coined by foreigners who wanted to describe the diverse religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions of the Indian sub-continent. Western scholars have attempted to further sort this vast plethora of different aspects into specific "schools", just to render the confusing jumble more accessible - but you need to keep in mind that most of these categories are artificial projections from the outside, rather than pre-existing categories formed by insiders.
Perhaps it would be wiser to speak of "Hinduisms", just to do justice to the sheer multi-facetedness of the branches that are arrayed under that term.

 

[CreedIsChrist]

Has anyone seen the Hindu Milk Miracle?

YouTube - Milk Miracle

YouTube - Milk Miracle Aug 21 2006

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfRoJxv3nbY

 

[indianx]

If I may: "Hinduism" is a vast (and mostly imprecise) umbrella term coined by foreigners who wanted to describe the diverse religious, spiritual, and philosophical traditions of the Indian sub-continent. Western scholars have attempted to further sort this vast plethora of different aspects into specific "schools", just to render the confusing jumble more accessible - but you need to keep in mind that most of these categories are artificial projections from the outside, rather than pre-existing categories formed by insiders.
Perhaps it would be wiser to speak of "Hinduisms", just to do justice to the sheer multi-facetedness of the branches that are arrayed under that term.

I agree that the term 'Hinduism' is one of foreign origin. It is also true that the set of beliefs that come under the term Hinduism are more diverse than those of the Abrahamic faiths. We have no religious structures (although we do have monasteries and ashrams which have long spiritual lineages) to declare certain beliefs or interpretations as being heretical. That is not to say that there aren't orthodox and heterodox traditions of thought within our religion.

But, if I may, I disagree with the contention that the different schools or categories of thought within Hinduism were the constructions of Western scholars. The four main traditions within the religion - Shaivism, Vaishnavism, Smartism, and Shaktism - have been clearly delineated for millennia. Scholars and philosophers within each of the traditions have actively engaged and debated with those of the others for much of that time.

 

[CreedIsChrist]

Interesting.So you must be the right guy I post my questions.

How can u prove that Krishna is The Lord?

How can you prove that Mohammed was a prophet?

Miracles and prophecy are one of the things one can use to test. For instance Christ raised the dead, walked on water, multiplied food, healed sickness, turned water in wine, and predicted the fall of the Temple in A.D. 70..

I know some Muslims say the Quran is a miracle in itself. But I myself have found similar writings like the Quran from writings of the Baha'ullah and Sufi mystics

 

[Penumbra]

Ok.

1. What is the core of what all versions of Sanatana Dharma preach? After talking to numerous Hindus, it is difficult for me to discern any one thing that they all share in common that also is different from other religions. Even some of the most fundamental claims seem to differ. For instance, some Hindus say that the ultimate truth is that all beings and God are one, and the final destination is to become one with God, like a river that flows into an ocean. Others disagree, and say that all beings are not God. If God is a superset of everything, as most Hindus seem to claim, then I don't see how anything in it could not be God.

2. This question tends to tie into the first question, because its answer will likely depend on its answer, but if a Hindu could more concisely describe what they believe our true "self" to be, that would be interesting. I've seen so many different views here. Some Hindus tell me that Atman = Brahman, and that is the ultimate truth. Others disagree, and state that Atman, our true self, is not Brahman. I've heard it described as the sky, with clouds being thought. If that's the case, then are all Atman identical to one another, just blank consciousness?

3. I spent some time at a Sanatana Dharma forum, but this is one question I wasn't able to resolve: What are the Hindu beliefs for why suffering and ignorance exist? Many Hindus describe the universe as being cyclical, with periods of creation and destruction. They also say that suffering is caused by ignorance of the true nature of things, or falling for the "illusion" that is this world. But my question is, from whence does this ignorance arise? If beings begin by being with God, how is it that they become ignorant? Are beings created, or always existent?

-Lyn

 

[rainycity]

For instance, some Hindus say that the ultimate truth is that all beings and God are one, and the final destination is to become one with God, like a river that flows into an ocean. Others disagree, and say that all beings are not God. If God is a superset of everything, as most Hindus seem to claim, then I don't see how anything in it could not be God.

This question tends to tie into the first question, because its answer will likely depend on its answer, but if a Hindu could more concisely describe what they believe our true "self" to be, that would be interesting. I've seen so many different views here. Some Hindus tell me that Atman = Brahman, and that is the ultimate truth. Others disagree, and state that Atman, our true self, is not Brahman.

This is the main division of Hindu philosophy, dvaita (brahman and atman are different) and advaita (brahman and atman are non-different). There is also a middle ground, between this two positions.

2. I've heard it described as the sky, with clouds being thought. If that's the case, then are all Atman identical to one another, just blank consciousness?

According to advaita, all atman are identical, but I don't think blank consciousness is an accurate description.

3. I spent some time at a Sanatana Dharma forum, but this is one question I wasn't able to resolve: What are the Hindu beliefs for why suffering and ignorance exist? Many Hindus describe the universe as being cyclical, with periods of creation and destruction. They also say that suffering is caused by ignorance of the true nature of things, or falling for the "illusion" that is this world. But my question is, from whence does this ignorance arise? If beings begin by being with God, how is it that they become ignorant? Are beings created, or always existent?

there are different philosophical positions on this. As far as I know, they all include maya in their answer to this question. Some say brahman and maya are two separate dualities which interact, causing ignorance and suffering. Some say there is no duality and brahman and maya are not separate but ultimately the same. I don't know about any philosophies which say beings were created at some point, but there are probably some dvaita philosophies that say this.

 

[rainycity]

Western scholars have attempted to further sort this vast plethora of different aspects into specific "schools", just to render the confusing jumble more accessible - but you need to keep in mind that most of these categories are artificial projections from the outside, rather than pre-existing categories formed by insiders.

any schools which western scholars have described are not artificial projections from the outside. The schools of philosophy and the main religious sects are pre-existing categories formed by insiders.