This is a continuation of a discussion that began in the Time Travel thread about reincarnation, Buddhism and ETs. Recap below.

Quote Originally Posted by Longeyes View Post
Don't get my wrong I'm a fan of Christianity. I was brought up Church of England. Christian values are what has helped form the western world. But if you want to understand the nature of mind and why you are really here the bible - doesn't say much. It tells you about forgiveness, how to forgive others and yourself, but there is no mention that you can achieve liberation by any other means than prayer and leading a good life. That is no doubt possible but what you really need is some form of meditation to understand the true nature of mind. From a buddhist perspective even gods are subject to karma, only when you attain enlightenment and become in someway completely aligned with the perfect action of the universe are you free from karma. That means acting completely for others, being completely open to every situation. There are similarities there if you can see them.
In Buddhism there are demons, all kinds of spirits, ghosts, goblins, other worlds, lesser gods, gods and there conditions are all explained, a great master can tame them and bring them to the truth. Christianity leaves you with little understanding other than briefly mentioning angels and demons and from my knowledge that is far too simple to describe the world. Half the roadmap is missing. It does a great job on ethics but next to nothing on practicalities.
Fore talks about higher mind and how that all works it's all in buddhist teachings if you look. Meditation practice can bring you psychic powers, telepathy, the ability to fly, change shape, walk through walls, the dalia lama has an oracle, rainmakers, the list goes on. What people are realising in forums like this is that those kinds of things maybe possible. Explanations of the chakras and pyschic channels go back to the hindu traditions. East and west need to some extent meet.
What Christianity fails to mention is that you can attain liberation right here right now, you don't have to wait until you die. Reincarnation is not mentioned in the bible but I know you guys all believe in it. If so how does it work? and more importantly why.
I don't think these ideas need to be exclusive of God because really we are all aiming for the same thing we are just unsure of where that place is. At least in Buddhism you have great masters who have got there and can tell you how to get there.

Atmjjc what were the religions like in all your other lives can you remember details? Was there always Christianity? Hinduism? Islam? If so a what point in the past did the felines split? Different times? How did people's approach to religion different in these alternate universes?

Don't set the chihuahuas on me!
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Quote Originally Posted by Sansanoy View Post
If I understand Buddhism correctly, (forgive me if I am way off) it is a means of liberating yourself from yourself. When I talked with another Buddhist we tried to understand where we diverged. We came to an agreement that we are both viewing the same thing from the start, lets say a bird in a cage. The bird doesn't know what it's like to fly in the open skies, he's been caged his whole life. He agreed that both religions intend to free the bird from the cage. The difference I discovered was that in Buddhism the bird never leaves the cage (in that cycle) and yet becomes free of the cage as well as the sky. I guess among other things it is a separation from ideas of purpose? In Christianity the bird is freed and he gets to be the best version of a bird and fly the open skies. It's not just being forgiven but becoming fulfilled, becoming the best possible version of yourself. That begins right now but is completed at death, it is what we mean by born again.

As I understand it in Buddhism the gods are irrelevant to core Buddhism they may or may not exist. You could be a Buddhist Atheist for example. It's true, if you just read the Bible straight up you probably won't get a good understanding of demons, lesser gods, and angels. The Bible is just the collection of books that remain but the beliefs and context behind the writers and their words are available. All those things get laid out, but only when you know the context of the writer. In other parts of the Bible you can tell there are more detailed books about the subject but they are lost. The book of Enoch was one such case that has been found later. So the Bible doesn't have a lot of that stuff in direct detail, but the whole theology of Christianity and Judaism is pretty detailed on it.



If I have read Fore correctly, he had this before he became a Christian, and now that he is a Christian he no longer has the intention to use these sorts of things. Even though these abilities increase ones ability to accomplish things, even theoretically good things that doesn't make the abilities necessarily good abilities. There may be unseen spiritual consequences. That is not to say that I wouldn't want them, who wouldn't want to be a super hero? I just know my want for that is not based on a goodness, just an illusion of me doing good things. In all my day dreams of it, it is my ego that desires it, not any goodness within myself. Buddhism definitely has those things, and Christianity does not have them in the psychic sense, but they do have them a gifts from God with a life of their own. They work according to Gods purposes rather than our own.

I don't believe in reincarnation in the fullest extent but I do believe that the prominent belief is based on something real. The Bible kind of mentions it in Hebrews 7 where Levi pays a tenth to Melchizedek because he was in his father Abraham's loins. I get the sense that a part of the parents are a part of the soul of the child which would also explain the persistence of sin nature, and the continuation of the Neshama. But beyond that I wouldn't understand the ontology of a full reincarnation structure, or the purpose. Now that said I do share Origens inclination of Pre-existence. But I don't let myself hold that as a theology, but the thought and inclination is always very much in my mind. I think there is a real thing that is responsible for the varying beliefs of pre-existence and all the religious and scientific views on reincarnation I just don't think anyone has discovered what it really is yet.
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