Religion

One of the most widespread religions on earth, Buddhism derives its fundamental principles from the teachings of the Buddha. The followers of Buddhism are expected to display unconditional love for all and try to attain the Ultimate Truth.

These fundamentals of Buddhism are reflected in the rites practised in a Buddhist funeral. After the death of a person in a Buddhist family, certain rites have to be followed in order to make sure that the deceased’s soul is elevated to a higher stage of life after death. The positive energies of the dead are evoked to pray and wish the best for the dead person’s life cycle beyond this birth.

The first task in funeral rites is that of giving a traditional wash to the body. Then comes the stage of chanting of religious texts by the priests, thereby directing the soul to the path of spiritual freedom. The teachings of the Buddha, which speak of the value of practising virtue and compassion in life, are recited aloud. The body is meanwhile made ready for the final rites. Friends and family members often keep some money in the casket of the deceased person. This is to pay for the deceased’s journey across the River of Three Hells.

Then the casket is exhibited to the family and friends to enable them to pay their final respects by putting it at the altar. Attendees are required to pray for the deceased and the family and friends give their condolences. Monks who carry out the rituals continue to chant the appropriate sutras. Everyone present have to bow at the altar when this chanting is over. The family members then thank the visitors for shouldering their sorrow by giving them token gifts.

After these rituals are carried out, the deceased may then be either cremated or buried in accordance with the beliefs of the family members. These rituals are meant to allow the family to alleviate their grief by offering prayers that will elevate the deceased to a higher pedestal of enlightenment and knowledge.

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Many books have been written and many speakers have built platforms on one single yet very critical concept: What you believe, you can achieve. Re-stated, this means that you, as an individual, have the capacity to power your mind. Your accomplishments and achievements are the direct result of the thoughts you choose to focus on.

That’s right. Thinking is a choice. The thoughts you choose to focus on are a choice. You get to decide.

Just think of it like you are an automobile. No matter what shape, size, or make your vehicle is it needs an engine to get from point A to point B. Without one you won’t be able to get anywhere.

But now also consider what you put into your engine. If you want your engine to run smoothly, you must feed it with high quality gasoline, be sure it has adequate quantities of high quality oil, and so on. You determine what will fuel your engine.

When you power your mind, you do the same thing. You infuse your mind with high quality information, suggestive positive thinking, and focused thoughts. What you put into your mind-or choose to focus on in your thinking-directly impacts how fast and how far you will go toward accomplishing things in your life. Remember the analogy: It’s like an automobile.

If by chance you choose to bypass fueling your mind properly you won’t get very far. When you choose to skip oil changes and revert back to standard gasoline for your vehicle, it will eventually cease to function all together. The same is true when your mind isn’t fed positive and focused thoughts throughout the day.

Are you wondering where these thoughts come from that help you power your mind? The truth is they are all around you. Anything you hear and take in will have an impact on your thoughts. A great example of this is when you listen to a depressing newscast every day. Over time you may start to feel depressed or pessimistic in your views. This is because what you hear impacts what you think. It’s your subconscious mind hard at work.

Just remember, you power your mind. If you don’t want to get down about the weather, don’t listen to the depressing weather reports. Think about what it feels like after a long cold winter and when that first day of spring comes around. Everyone is out and about, washing cars, getting their vitamin D from the sun, rolling down the windows while they drive, and just enjoying the weather. Wouldn’t you love to have every day feel like the first sunny day of spring? All you have to do is hear and list to positive messages that will help you start thinking positively and focus on a better life.

So what it really comes down to is what you take in throughout the day. Is there something in particular that your subconscious mind is exposed to on a daily basis? This is what guides you in your day-to-day life. It’s even possible to not consciously think about it, but see it take place. This is because the subconscious mind makes it your reality.

In order to have a successful life and reach your goals, you have to power your mind with positive thinking. If you want more peace in your life then think of peaceful thoughts. Anything is possible if you learn how to power your mind.

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Tattoo designs have undergone a sea change these days with a number of good artists and tattoo vendors venturing into the design and promotion of these through online efforts. But still, finding the best and the ones of your dreams would still be a cumbersome task. Of late, a trend has been observed where people are interested in tribal tattoos. Tattoo designs US, which is an online seller of such tattoo designs and ideas, is probably the best source of such designs for people who have been searching online for tribal motifs for months.

Tattoos, especially the personalized ones, convey to other the best facet of your personality and your tastes. Your religion, thought patterns, age group, personality and everything else that are hidden can be disclosed in a trice just by the look and feel of the tattoo inscribed on your body.

Another major trend is the name tattoo designs, which are great means to advertise your loyalty and love towards someone else. Other popular motifs include the nature-based ones, those molded on star signs, and cool designs shaped on historical, astronomical and mythological ideas. Some tattoos are specifically designed for a particular area of the body, like the lower back, upper back, arms, legs, belly etc that are easily noticeable for every onlooker.

But finding the best-suited tattoos may not be easy. But joining this website by paying some dollars would enable you to gain access to umpteen tattoo design ideas, including tribal tattoos, along with many freebies. The product, which helps locate designs and themes, can be downloaded directly, but a DVD version is also available. The tattoo gallery provided in the product is simply mind blowing both in terms of quantity and quality.

The freebies included consist of two widgets, one for translating English phrases to some select languages like Chinese, Arabic and Hebrew and another one that supports unlimited design searches online. All other matters related to tattoo design, tribal tattoos, tattoo safety etc are also provided as another free gift. The downloaded package can be viewed both on Windows and Mac computers and major Internet browsers like Internet Explorer, Firefox and Netscape supports the product.

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Following on from my successes at predicting the outcome of the UK general election, and England’s chances in the world cup, I now present what I predict will occur when His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI arrives tomorrow for his state visit to the United Kingdom. This I have done by comparing the Pope’s birth-chart with the transits which are occurring at this time.

Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Alois Ratzinger) was born on 16th April 1927 at Marktl-Am-Inn in Bavaria, Germany, at 0830 local time. He is due to touch down in the UK at 1030 am (British Summer Time) tomorrow – 16th September 2010 – at Edinburgh International Airport. Inputting this data into AstroDienst.com I have come up with a chart which one compare the Pope’s birth chart (inner ring) with the transits occurring during the visit (outer ring) – see diagram.

Generally speaking in astrological terms, there is a currently Square aspect between three planets. Jupiter and Uranus are conjunct in Pisces: whilst Pluto squares both of them in Capricorn. What makes this interesting is that these three form a “T” with Pope Benedict’s ascendant – which itself is conjunct his natal Mars and Caput Draconis.

Uranus and Jupiter squaring his natal ascendant (etc) presages that Pope Benedict will manage to stir up a major incident of controversy or a crisis during this trip – relating to the nature of the his job as Pope. The Mars influence suggests that the Pope, blinded by overconfidence, will have an outburst of anger which will alienate a lot of people. The Caput Draconis influence indicates that this major incident will coincide with one of his public speeches which happens to be about a popular religious, philosophic, educational, or cultural trend.

We should not be surprised if Pope Benedict suffers some sort of accident involving physical injury during this visit.

As it happens, retrograde Neptune is conjunct his natal MC, and square to his natal Venus. The Pope may feel that he is in the middle of a career-crisis! The influence of his natal Venus is a strange one: were it not for the fact that the Pope is (supposedly) celibate, his chart would indicate now would be a good time for him to embark on a new love-affair!!

(This is what happens when you try to learn astrology from books intended for members of the general public, not the heads of major religions).

Pope Benedict’s apparent woes are reinfoced by Saturn transitting his 5th natal house. This indicates that he has issues over how deserving he is of attention from others, and he may feel unloved. (Compare this with the criticism that the Pope’s visit has been receiving from people such as Richard Dawkins, Peter Tatchell and Iain Paisley) However, the Pope also has a long-term opportunity to improve his standing and that of the church (nb: by long-term I mean it probably won’t occur during the duration of the visit itself, but only make itself apparent afterwards).

On the plus side, Pluto’s influence means that the Pope’s ambition and drive to succeed are incredibly strong now. He feels a compulsive need to achieve. The Pope may also find that some of the people he meets will turn out to be very important to him, and become hugely influential – even to the extent of presenting a new opportunity of mutual benefit to themselves and the Pontiff.

The conjunction of transitting Uranus & Jupiter with natal Mercury indicates that this is an auspicious time for the Pope to use his state visit as a public relations exercise. Specifically, he will find it easy to come up with new ideas, make decisions, deliver speeches, and generally put himself across. Also: his natal Venus, which is in his twelfth house (ruled by Mercury), will also be affected, so he will feel the need to promote and improve his relationships with others and to establish new ones as well. The internet and electronic-media will greatly help in this regard. I note that one of his plans is to visit a school assembly which will be broadcast live over the web.

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To London on Saturday to attend a talk on the Qabalah by Z’ev Ben Shimon Halevi (which is the Hebrew name of an English gentleman named Warren Kenton). Interestingly enough it was being held at Dion Fortune’s place in Chalk Farm, London. We were even privileged to use Dion Fortune’s own temple room, though I understand this was only because it was a special occasion – the Society of the Inner Light’s Director of Studies told me they don’t usually let hoi polloi in there as it is “consecrated ground.”

Anyway: Z’ev, who has mixed Sephardic and Ashkenazic ancestry, teaches what he calls the “Toledano tradition” of the Kabbalah, which is a particular form of the Sephardic school which derives from mediaeval Toledo in Spain. Z’ev said that he was first moved to study the Kabbalah after having lived in Toledo in a past-life. From what I can make out, the Toledano tradition is fairly similar to the conventional Kabbalah though with a few peculiarities such as their focus on the “Great Tree,” which appears to be a concatenation of the regular Tree of Life in the four worlds of Atziluth, Briah, Yetzirah and Assiah.

I picked up the following tid-bits from Z’ev’s presentation:

o Despite the Kabbalah being the mystical tradition of the Hebrews, its inner meaning is a Perennial tradition which has been known to different cultures at different times, even those unconnected with one another: e.g. China, Tibet, Babylon, etc. This is even shown in iconography from these regions which all purport to show variants of the Tree of Life.
o The story of Noah’s Ark is metaphorical: the real Ark was in fact knowledge of the Kabbalah itself, whilst the various animals that were saved were particular aspects of that knowledge, which Noah managed to preserve for posterity. In that respect the Great Tree was the blue-print for the Ark described in Genesis. (Alex thinks: Hmm, I wonder if the Royal Ark Mariners have ever considered this?)
o Z’ev takes a curiously wary view of Angels. He used the metaphor of a corporation: God is the boss of the company; Man is the boss’ son; whilst the Angels are the boss’ employees. Thus whilst it is entirely if possible that if one were to approach God directly, He would instruct one of His Angels to help: but an Angel would not necessarily be helpful if approached directly. In fact, according to Z’ev, an Angel might be downright troublesome. Z’ev took the view that if one asked an Angel to help, one might end up “paying with one’s soul.” At first this makes it seem that Angels are hardly any different from Goetic spirits: although by viewing angels this way it might explain why e.g. Enochian angels are often reported to troublesome when invoked.
o Z’ev believes in the existence of spirit guides – Maggidim – but avers that they are they are human spirits, rather than “Holy Guardian Angels” (this is probably connected with the dim view that he takes on Angels generally – see above). Z’ev himself claims that he is guided by the spirit of a Kabbalist who lived in the 11th century. He also believes that everyone has within their psyche an “Inner-Teacher” which is equivalent to Daath. From the way he described it, the Inner Teacher seemed to be equivalent to Freud’s notion of the Super-Ego.
o Apparently, in every age at any one time there is an “Alpha-Qabalist” (Aleph-Qabalist?)living, who is like a Secret Chief, world teacher or Qabalistic version of the Messiah. The identity of this Alpha-Qabalist is always secret: he or she always keeps him-or-her-self to him-or-her-self. Z’ev was far too modest to hint in anything other than the mildest terms that it was himself

After lunch, Z’ev led those assembled on a Qabalistic pathworking exercise. From the ease with which he interpreted peoples vision-experiences I very much suspected that he had done this kind of thing many times in the past, and consequently knew every type of symbolism that commonly cropped up!

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News today that Stephen Hawking has said God was not necessary for the Universe to be created. Actually it’s not news at all, he’s been saying this for a long time, it’s just that he’s got a book to promote. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

People like Hawking, Dawkins etc always fall into the same trap, no matter which side of the debate they are on, i.e. they assume that if God exists at all, then (a) He created the Universe; and (b) it must be the Judaeo-Christian-Islam model of God. Hence if there is no evidence that the Universe was created by anyone, they assume that God does not exist.

However,if one rejects the Judaeo-Christian-Islam model of God and substitute that of most Pagan religions, one finds that Hawking et al have nothing to say, because one realises that the existence of God does not depend upon Him / Her having created the Universe.

Most forms of Paganism, no matter how disparate, tend to follow the line that the current patron God(dess) of mankind is not the creator of the Universe at all, which was instead created by a more ancient or primordial force. For example: Zeus is the ruler of the Olympus not because he created the Universe but because he took over the role. Odin is the All-Father, not because He created the worlds, but because he is the mightiest of the Aesir.

Thus if Hawking etc were to say to a pagan, there is no evidence that God created the universe – therefore God does not exist – the pagan would send him away with laughter ringing in his ears. Yet because the critics of Hawkings, Dawkins and their ilk implicitly accept their terms of reference, they never get to the root of what is really wrong with their arguments.

In any case, we should remember that the “Supreme Creator” is only one aspect of Divinity. Another aspect, and one which is probably far more important to most people in their daily lives, is “Supreme Moral Authority,” given that most people are concerned with God’s existence to give meaning to their lives. Prove that there is a Supreme Moral Authority in the Universe and you have proved the existence of God in a far more meaningful and relevant way than any argument based on creationism. In fact – prove that Morality exists in objective terms, and Creationism can go hang altogether!

***
Alex Sumner is a novelist and writer on the occult. After having written several non-fiction articles for the Journal of the Western Mystery Tradition, in 2009 he came out with his first novel, “The Magus,” which he followed in 2010 with a sequel, “Opus Secunda.” Alex lives in Essex, England.

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Could you imagine wearing a hangman’s noose around your neck? Or, a small guillotine as a necklace? And yet Christians wear jewelry in the form of a cross all the time! For example: cross pendants and necklaces, cross earrings, and even cross fashion apparel. From devoted Christians to atheist, it seems as if we mindlessly wear this symbol of death in several forms and fashion. The cross and crucifixion was one of the heartless and excruciatingly painful means of execution by the Romans. Does it appear as if Christians are obsessed with this symbol of death? Not at all! Read on to better understand.
Wearing Christian jewelry, and more specifically the Christian Cross, for a believer is about so much more than adornment or fashion. It is a reminder of the love that Jesus had for us and all of mankind that He would lay down His life so that we could have ever lasting life! It is a representation of God’s love for us that He would sacrifice His only beloved Son to pay for our penalty of sin. It is a symbol of how powerless we are to save ourselves no matter what good deeds we do!
As followers of Christ we know that His life was given as ransom for the sins we could never pay for. Ironically the cross demonstrated God’s love for us. Christ was the perfect sacrificial lamb dying a painful death of crucifixion upon that cross.
So what do we really think of the cross? And, more specifically, what do we think of the cross as it relates to Jesus Christ? Christians view the cross as a symbol of hope and love, and as a constant reminder of the tremendous price paid for our salvation.
As Christians we wear our Christian jewelry, and more specifically our Christian crosses, not as an obsession with torture and death, but as a reminder of the actual meaning of the cross:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 (NKJV)
It’s curious that a person can adorn themselves with a symbol of death, isn’t it? Yet, for the Christian…the Christian cross is everything!
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The religion of Christianity and world religions all come down to one thing… a need to believe in a higher power for different reasons.

Even though there are many religions Christianity stands out in two different ways. Here are two major facts concerning the religion of Christianity and world religions…

1. Christianity says, We cannot be good enough for God… or to be our own god.”

Most world religions are just a set of instructions, rules, and regulations on how to be good enough to please God in order to obtain His mercy. We simply cannot ever be good enough for God… or to be our own god. Many world religions teach you how you are your own god.

The religion of Christianity and world religions like to refer to Christianity as the “religion of Christianity.” However, it isn’t so much a religion, but a relationship. Religion can be defined as man seeking God (or a god), while Christianity is simply God seeking man.

2. Christianity says, we need a “Savior.”

Because of our inherited evil nature, we all need a Savior. We simply cannot be good enough to earn our way to God. Unfortunately, if the world’s religions aren’t teaching us to earn our way, they’re teaching us that we are our own god.

We MUST have a Savior… and Jesus Christ is that Savior! There is no other name under heaven which we must be saved. Since we could not come to God because of our sin, He came to us. He got down on our level, became human, took our sin upon Himself and nailed it to a cross and bought our salvation.

Conclusion

Again, what the world calls the religion of Christianity and world religions all come down to a need to believe in a higher power. But, the need goes much deeper! That God-shaped hole in every one of us can only be filled by God Himself, and only through an acceptance of Jesus Christ.

On the third day, Jesus arose, walked the earth, and then ascended into heaven. There is life after death, and we can spend eternity in heaven with Him simply by accepting the gift of salvation… a simple relationship with Jesus.

Jesus is alive and well! He is the only way to God and to heaven. He said, “No one comes to the Father but Through Me” (John 14:6).

Where are all the leaders of popular world religions today? Most are dead and buried, such as Muhammad, Buddha, and Confucius. Those leaders who are still living on earth today will soon die like every one else, and then they will awaken… unfortunately, without a Savior.

The religion of Christianity and world religions all need a Savior, but not all of them have one. In fact, only one offers a Savior.

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Mt Moriah in the ancient city of Jerusalem is the world’s most valuable piece of real estate. Not because of its value in dollars but due to the religious and political significance it holds. The most important part of the mountain is contained in a walled man-made platform known as the Temple Mount. It covers an area of approximately 144,000 square meters.

Mount Moriah became famous when Abraham was ordered by God in 2000BC to set out from Beersheva to sacrifice his son Isaac on the mountain. Abraham obeyed god and when he was getting ready to kill Isaac his son, God intervened and provided a ram in stead to be slaughtered as an acceptable sacrifice to God.

King David conquered the southern part of the mountain in 1000BC. He built himself a palace and brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. The Ark travelled around for 480 years since its building at Mt Sinai. King David then started the planning for a temple to be built where the Ark of the Covenant could be placed permanently. God did not allow David to build a Temple but he bought the threshing-place of Araunah, just north of the City of David, on Mt Moriah, for this purpose.

Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia destroyed the Temple of Solomon in 586BC and the Ark of the Covenant, containing the stone tablets give to Moses on Mt Sinai by God, was not heard of ever again. The inhabitants of Jerusalem were taken in captivity to the kingdom of Babylonia.

Fifty years later the Jews were allowed to return and they built the Second Temple, a modest restoration of Solomon’s Temple in 516BC. This temple, as well as the retaining walls of the Temple Mount, where the Wailing Wall is, was renovated and expanded by King Herod the Great. This was the Temple and Temple Mount known and frequented by the disciples as well as Jesus.

Judaea was under Roman rule during the time that Jesus Christ. King Herod was a Jew, appointed by Rome, but granted the freedom to not only upgrade the Second Temple, but also the Temple Mount. In 66AD the Jews rebelled against Roman occupation adn this led to the complete destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70AD. After another uprising in 135AD the ruins of the Temple Mount from the destruction in 70AD were razed to the ground and the debris used

In the fourth century the whole of the Roman Empire turned to Christianity. The Christian Church “returned” to Jerusalem and identified many different place of significance like the place of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ where the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was erected. The Temple Mount was however ignored by the Romans.

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ProfessorGA.com

Main Center for Non-Believers
PURPOSE OF WEBSITE

1)OurHaven:

2) Remove the negative connotation behind the non-religious community across the United States and the rest of the Planet in an attempt to end discrimination

3) Provide a New and Brighter Image for Atheists, Agnostics, and Freethinkers

4) Educate people using information and evidence, there is enough content on this site to make people think twice about their faith

5) This websites target audience is the approx. 1.1 Billion individuals across the globe who consider themselves to be non religious, and the millions of moderately religious individuals who haven’t really given their beliefs much questioning and are curious of what it means to embrace the universe as it is.

6) This website is welcome to everyone, but religious fanatics might take the evidence on this site offensively, although I hope everyone keeps an open mind to the scientific evidence and the right to freedom of speech in such a controversial issue.

7) Add Weight and Respect to the Non-Religious World
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The Main Center for Non-Believers contains articles and videos ranging from Famous Non-Believers to Religion in Politics. Our website has original and interesting content which will change the course of humanity slowly, but surely since radical change is not possible. All information comes from reliable sources and the data is based on scientific evidence, supported claims, and researched information.

OurHaven is a social networking plaform provided by ProfessorGA.com and is for atheists, agnostics, freethinkers, secular humanists, and non-believers.

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Everyone need to stay updated with our Atheist and Agnostic Facts and Quotes from encyclopedias, famous scientists and comedians.
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Articles & Videos : Atheism

1) Famous Atheists & Agnostics

2) Religulous

3) The God Delusion

4) The Worst Argument used by All Religions throughout world history: The Miracle and Coincidence Argument

5) Rankings of World Religions

6) Morality

7) Modern Day Galileo

The Many Pevious Gods in World History

9) Highly Imaginative Human Mind

10) Where Do Non-Believers Go When They Die?

11) Dangers of Radical Religion

12) The Whole World Could Use Some Change

13) Weighing the Options

14) Extraterrestrial Life

15) Neutral Secular Government

16) Neutrality = Innovation = Progress

17) Mental Defense Mechanisms

18) Evolution VS. Creationism

19) Blind Faith is No Virtue

20) Every Blackhole Contains Another Universe

21) Stop Childhood Indoctrination

Many more to come……
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The entire world would be better off without the powerful barrier that is religion. Think about all of the massacres and lives ruined thanks to religion throughout world history. Religious leaders fear the advancement of science, because science has always triumphed over religion and any ideas of Gods.

Science uses evidence to back its claims unlike religion which has a series of claims with absolutely no evidence.

This website will inspire a generation of 1.1 billion Non-Believers to spread the word and come out of the closet for the benefit of society.

Eventually childhood indoctrination will completely stop, and the newer generations will be able to choose after examining the options and chances are they will make the smart decision which is Non-Belief.Free social networking for Non-Believers

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