Friday, January 31, 2020

Religion and Truth Essay Example for Free

Religion and Truth Essay All Religion is TruthWhat is insanity of the religion? According to Ramakrishna, no One religion is truth, however, all the integral transmissions of sacred wisdom and contemplative practice that survive the test of time are true. (43) That means, the complete devotion to the source of knowledge and actions through prayer are the fundamental and most important walks of life that constitute to the wholeness of truth. These most important aspects of religion constitute to the wholeness of truth by what they place on the individual, which is the Grace of God. The belief that My Religion Alone is true is not the correct belief because all religions are truth from what the religion does to the practitioner. If the practitioner is in complete consciousness of God and life, that alone is the key to truth. So the basis of all these religions, be it Hindu, Christian, Jew or Muslim is primarily through the sanctity of God and that is the willingness to devote time and life through veneration to the Divine Reality, which is God, that brings all the religions together. As time transcends and religion expands, reality becomes the critical starting point through where we begin our destiny of truth. That means, knowledge is transcendent and that it is the gauntlet or tool that creates the value of truth within the individual. To understand this point fully, we must break down what Ramakrishna meant by integral transmissions of sacred wisdom. Integral means the completeness of the whole, and in this case it is used to exemplify the wholeness of truth in being the basis of knowledge. By the basis it is then completed through transmission or rather a passage of possibly enlightenment of knowledge. That is why knowledge is referred to as sacred, because of the qualities of truth that it brings within the individual. Furthermore, what constitutes to truth is the emphasis the individual places on eternal goal or spiritual peace by a means of illuminating the sacredness of knowledge. Persistence of intense awareness is the truth that Ramakrishna is trying to convey. Moreover, the goal of achieving a manifested state of sanctity is through complete sincerity. That is sincerity works in the favor of the practitioner because they not only work for truth and knowledge for themselves but indeterminately for God alone, and this is what is achieved in all religions, in essence making them very connected and similar. According to Ramakrishna, its supposed to be about what we fight for in religion, not what we fight for outside of religion. In addition, what we fight for is suppose to be for the ultimate being, God, through Divine Nature. Divine Nature is achieved through a balance of realization in our daily life. The key tool is sincerity. Sincerity is about being genuine and honest; however it is about being honest first and foremost to the individual. Because without being able to be truthful to yourself, there would be no decisive factor that contributes to inspired belief and thus creating a problem within the individual. The way to obtain divine nature is not simple, because it takes time, but those who are sincere can and will achieve it. Divine nature consists of being able to learn from our daily trials and tribulations and learning very critically from them. At the same rate, the most fundamental thing that helps us on our path is the presence of God within us. (42)Why does Ramakrishna refer to God being the only living presence within us and how do we achieve this? The benefits of having God within us are bliss and freedom. What it means to have bliss could potentially lead to freedom, freedom of the self. It is freedom of the self because the presence of God is the only thing that we become conscious of and creates a sort of ripple within us that really brings out the bliss of God. Moreover, it is the awareness of God that structure our daily life and thus creates a Divine Nature that we live. Religions create a sense of supreme happiness and that reveal an urgent desire to be at peace. Through understanding that God is present everywhere is the beginning stages of awareness, but moving to the stage that God is present with in us creates motivation and an incentive for the individual to complete his or her goal in life. Furthermore, in order to maintain a balance of the spiritual self, there are certain spiritual ideals that are really crucial in understanding the truth in all religions. Devotion seems to sound easy, whereas it is serves as a purpose for the individual. Devotion is the dedication to belief in God and resulting in profound piety. It is correlated with the idea of ideals. Ideals are processes that work hand in hand in achieving the individuals ultimate goal, which is developed by the means of devotion. Ideals are the realization of something more and that something more is the supreme presence. Ideals exist in the mind but at the same time in the heart and the entire body. It takes form in the individuals day to day action and helps in creating a balance within the individuals spiritual conscience. Once this process of ideals is followed up by proper actions and proper living, then harmony is reached in the form of the manifestation of God. Manifestation of God means that the cause of being completely habituated in living the proper way creates the effect of harmony. Harmony is a consistent pleasing effect that is caused by this absolute idea of consciousness and bliss. That is to say that all the important aspects that were stated from the beginning to now, are the primary purpose of the truth in all the religions, in essence showing the beauty that God brings forth through each and every religion. Finally we must go back to the original question of insanity. Ramakrishna in essence is saying that it is insane to believe your religion is the only and ultimate truth for we have no basis for that belief. We can see through the process of spiritual development that the beauty lays in the truth and sincerity each and every religion places on the individual in such a balanced and consistent manner. BIBLIOGRAPHY1. Philip Novak. The Worlds Wisdom: Sacred Texts of the World. Harper SanFrancisco. -1st ed. Pg 42-44.

Thursday, January 23, 2020

Adeline Yen Mahs Falling Leaves Essay -- Mah Falling Leaves Gender

Adeline Yen Mah's "Falling Leaves" Works Cited Missing   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  For years, the world has been oblivious to the painful, degrading traditions toward women that take place behind the â€Å"Bamboo Curtain† of China. Falling Leaves , by Adeline Yen Mah, unveils the darker side of Chinese culture through her eyes as an unwanted Chinese daughter. Shocking mistreatment, of not only the author, but also the females in her extended family keep suspense alive throughout the book. My heart sobs at each account of Adeline’s tortured life, but through it all, there was a flicker of her spirit that could not be put out.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In China, girls are seen as a possession or a â€Å"cheap commodity† (Yen Mah 100). Sons, especially the eldest, are given far more attention and praise. Families that are well off keep their daughters and marry them off to prominent families’ sons through a marriage broker (â€Å"mei-po†). Rich daughters often had their feet bound, a process by which the â€Å"four lateral toes of the foot are forced with a bandage under the sole so that only the big toe protruded. (It was) tightened daily for a number of years (so as to) permanently arrest the foot’s growth in order to achieve tiny feet so prized by Chinese men† (Yen Mah 11). Their inability to walk with ease is a symbol of submissiveness, weakness, and wealth. This tradition is becoming more rare, but still many older women bear its pain today. Adeline’s grandmother went against these traditions by not torturing her own daughter i...

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

There Is Another Sky

Poem: There is another sky by Emily Dickinson There is another sky, Ever serene and fair, And there is another sunshine, Though it be darkness there; Never mind faded forests, Austin, Never mind silent fields — Here is a little forest, Whose leaf is ever green; Here is a brighter garden, Where not a frost has been; In its unfading flowers I hear the bright bee hum: Prithee, my brother, Into my garden come! * Theme: depression, death * Imagery: Visual imagery * Tone: dark * She is inviting people into her â€Å"garden,† perfectly.I think that the poem itself can be interpreted as a forest that is always green since when you write something down it's going to stay that way. However, I think that what Emily really tries to refer to is her soul of warmth and compassion which always wants to offer itself to those who are suffering. I think that this is the true forest that is never withered or cold because it's always there. Even with her dead, one gets a sense that if this type of compassion can exist from a person then at least someone at some point cared.Emily had a very special spirit in my opinion and a searingly powerful inner beauty – almost one that is so full of this inner radiance that it spills out for others as well. And the very act of trying to reach out to another and show him/her how deeply you care is enough to comfort a person and invite them into that warm acreage of soothing. Austin is her brother. It is him she is talking to throughout the whole poem. Prithee means prey thee, so the line is ‘prey thee, my brother, Into my garden come! ‘ She is praying for her brohter to come in to her world of peace and tranquilty rather than stay in his dark one.

Monday, January 6, 2020

Should Stricter Gun Laws Be Banned - 1690 Words

On December 14th 2012, it was a normal Wednesday for me until around 10 a.m. I took out my headphones as I heard my school’s principal come on the loudspeaker to alert the school that we were going into a lockdown. This didn’t worry me because we always had these drills, but as we had been in lockdown for an hour with no explanation, I began to become nervous. I didn’t realize that at the time, no more than a mile away, there had been a shooting at the local elementary school. This had completely changed Newtown Connecticut forever as we had lost twenty-six beloved souls. I personally mentored a young boy who had lost his younger sister in the shooting and I saw how forever changed he was by the terrible event. It is hard to ever put yourself in the position of someone has experienced loss from a shooting until you have actually experienced it. As I think of the boy I mentored and all the victim’s families that were affected, I wonder if stricter gun laws would have stopped the shooting that day? Or would the gunman still have been able to commit such an unspeakable act? We often see too much gun related violence in today’s news. Throughout the years we have seen a large increase of shootings in the United States. According to the Huffington Post, from January 2013 to October 2015 there has been 994 shootings out of the 1,004 days. It is no doubt that we are in living in a society where these shootings are becoming a repeated occurrence. This is a highly controversial topicShow MoreRelatedShould Guns Be Outlawed?898 Words   |  4 PagesShould Guns be Outlawed in America? †¯Ã¢â‚¬ ¯Ã¢â‚¬ ¯Ã¢â‚¬ ¯ While there are a multitude of reasons that all†¯guns should be banned, even implementing more strict laws restraining these weapons would save numerous lives.†¯Although guns were traditionally intended for protection, they are commonly utilized for more insidious activities such as school shootings, armed robberies and armed break-ins. In some states,†¯there are stricter gun laws and studies have shown that because of these tighter restrictions there are, onRead MoreBennett Dorton. English 11. 1-26-17.Gun Control In America.1270 Words   |  6 PagesBennett Dorton English 11 1-26-17 Gun Control In America Every time a gun injures or kills in self defense it is used seven times in a criminal assault or homicide; furthermore the main argument against stricter gun laws is the fact that they are needed for self defense. 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