Revelation, marriage, and foreverness

[_Augustus]

I believe in eternal life. The body is temporary, the soul forever. All cultures have believed in an energy body independent of the brain. Even the Babylonians who were so intent on trying to live forever in this world believed in an immortal soul.

All cultures? Are you prepared to show the evidence for that?

Do you have a culture in mind that didn't believe in a soul?

[_Quasimodo]

Yes, but we all know that Buddha was merely an avatar of Vishnu and perhaps one of his other incarnations did know.

Sorry Tobin. That was Krishna. Another great story unrelated to Buddhism. Gautama was not an Avatar. I suggest you read some writings on Buddhism and also the Bhagavad Gita just to keep up. You might also find that they are a great read and a really interesting view on the nature of God.

[_Augustus]

Bhagavad-Gita means Song of God :)

[_Quasimodo]

Bhagavad-Gita means Song of God :)

I love the Gita. I'm not Hindu (or anything else, really), but I find the Gita wonderful to read.

[_Tobin]

Yes, but we all know that Buddha was merely an avatar of Vishnu and perhaps one of his other incarnations did know.

Sorry Tobin. That was Krishna. Another great story unrelated to Buddhism. Gautama was not an Avatar. I suggest you read some writings on Buddhism and also the Bhagavad Gita just to keep up. You might also find that they are a great read and a really interesting view on the nature of God.

I don't think so.

In eighth century royal circles, the Buddha started to be replaced by Hindu gods in pujas. This also was the same period of time the Buddha was made into an avatar of Vishnu.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha_in_Hinduism

[_sheryl]

Hello everyone, I'm new here and would like to share a few ideas of mine. It's my opinion that the Book of Revelation does not belong in the New Testament because it's a false book (about as true as a UFO abduction) and contradicts the Gospels. God is good, not evil. I saw on a Zoroastrian web site once that if one fears God, then one does not know God. God is good. God is love. That's idea number one.

Idea number two is that marriage is not a commandment, but a neutral choice. It's okay to marry and it's okay to stay single. It's in 1 Corinthians 7:8 that it's good to stay single. That's not to say it's not also good to marry, but both are perfectly okay. Thou shalt not commit adultery is a commandment, but thou shalt get married is not.

Idea number three is that we are awareness, not bodies or minds. We have a body and we have a mind, but it's not what we are. We are the awareness behind it all, awareness that is not born and never dies. If we are not born and never die, it opens up lots of possibilities. I believe there are multiple heavens and that reincarnation is a choice. Multiple heavens reflect the various levels of spiritual progression, progression that never ends.

What are your thoughts on any or all of these ideas? Do you believe the Book of Revelation belongs in the Bible along with the Sermon on the Mount which says to Judge Not and to Love Your Enemies? Do you believe everyone must get married? If so, why? What about Jesus and Paul and Buddha? Do you believe we are eternal and there are multiple heavens? Is reincarnation an option?

Hi Augustus!

The Book of Revelation has been greatly misunderstood, as has much that is revealed of God!

From what you have shared on this thread, methinks you might see something in what I am about to share. You said that we are awareness's. Yes, indeed! Everything else is a false self, and it is our attachment to this false sense of self that keeps us from uniting with God. God is one great big awareness that at some point shattered, and we are all sparks or little awareness on a journey of individualization. Part of the process of evolving is the creation of this false self, which is like the shell or husk of a seed. As some point in our evolving it is time to get rid of our shell!

This is what Revelation is all about, it is about the shattering of the shell at different levels, bringing the sparks of awareness, now fully individuated, back into unity with God, the One Great Big Infinite Awareness!

Revelation is a Revelation of Christ, and Christ in full measure shatters all that is not true, which is our false husks giving us a sense of false identity. And for those who are ready, the shattering is bliss. For those who are not ready, the shattering is hell, because they are still attached to that which is being shattered and are under the illusion that they are being shattered with it.

Remember this teaching? Only those who lose their life can find Eternal Life. The life that must be lost is this false shell of a self - a very limited self that goes through ups and downs, pleasure and pain. The Life that is gained is the awareness of self as an Infinite Eternal Being (Awareness).

So Revelation as it stands for those who love God with all their heart, mind, soul and strength and others as themselves is bliss. In fact, Revelation is a picture of the 6th heaven, where all form is shattered. Once we let go of it and are fine being formless, form returns in a purified, redeemed state in the Kingdom.

As far at point two, indeed! To say that we have to get married is unbiblical. In fact, I teach my children that to get married just so they can have sex is the sin.

Shalom!

Sheryl

[_Augustus]

Shalom Sheryl! We agree our reality is awareness and not the ego and not the body. I agree Revelation is misunderstood, but it's such a divisive and confusing book I don't see it as useful or true. I would call it The Nightmare of John. Some Christians still don't believe the Book of Revelation and it was greatly debated about whether to include it in the canon. I think Christianity would be much better off to remove that one book. The New Testament without the Apocalypse would be a Holy Book indeed.

[_Samantabhadra]

Yes, but we all know that Buddha was merely an avatar of Vishnu and perhaps one of his other incarnations did know.

[_Samantabhadra]

hi Augustus, welcome to the board! I'm glad to see someone who holds Buddhism in high regard and also apparently understands a thing or two about Buddhism.

just me, the point is not (exactly) to destroy the ego, but as Augustus says, to tame it. From a tantric Buddhist point of view, there is an irreducible element of individuality that everyone possesses; we are all unique, fundamentally-always-already-enlightened beings. But we are obscured both cognitively and emotionally, and you can consider the ego to be the sum total of those obscurations. So, basically, our ego and our deepest self are not in any way, shape, or form the same thing.

[_subgenius]

Only for physical survival, that's the only reason for an ego. The spirit has no need for physical survival.

sure it does. I can see no reason to assume that experiences akin to "physical survival" have no influence or contribution to the spirit. The spirit and physical are intertwined for this existence - this is a simple fact already in evidence by your typing here.
I rather enjoy the idea that a person is like a car&driver. The car being a wonderful and complex physical machine, reliant on the laws of the universe (physics, chemistry, etc..)...but without a driver, it is without motion and direction.