Getting to the point

Getting to the point

Sometimes I have a difficult time being concise.  Bhakti Sudhir Goswāmī reminded me of this the other day. Once we got a call from some devotees who were stranded on the freeway in San Francisco. The station wagon had overheated. We had to make a decision. Goswāmī asked my opinion. According to his version, I proceeded to explain the workings of the internal combustion engine. 

If you ask me what time it is I might build a watch. 

I have a hard time getting to the point. 

I started this latest series of articles by writing about the "End of the world as we know it." I have some observations to make about the current state of affairs and how we're strangling the planet. But it's interesting to me to reflect not only on the end of our own civilisation, but how previous civilisations ended.

Perhaps by studying previous civilisations and how they ended, we may be able to see what lies ahead, or at least understand the dysfunctional society we are so busy creating.

So I began with the beginning: how the present Iron Age of Kali came into being, according to the version of the Puranas.

I began with the decline of the ancient Vedic civilisation in India, and its pre-emption by Buddhism. Buddhism itself became corrupted in India and was replaced by Shankar's Vedanta. Since there is a tie-in between the history of ideas and the rise and fall of civilisation, my next topic was Christianity. 

I wanted to take up the question of Christianity as  distinct from the teachings of Jesus himself.  Unfortunately for me, this is such a big subject that it is hard to reduce to a few words. If it takes me forever to get to the point with something so simple as telling the time, it gets more difficult with a big subject. 

Also, Jesus somehow ignites passion.

If I write about the destruction of the Yadus, almost nobody reads my blog. But write about Jesus and immediately I get reactions.

Here's an example: JBK writes:

 By the way Christianity is not what Jesus taught. Christianity was not the religion of Jesus, but a religion about Jesus that was fabricated by Peter and Paul by compromising the pure teachings of Jesus with much pagan superstition that was carried over from the mystery cults of Egypt and the Levant. People are programmed to think that Christianity is the teachings of Jesus, but in fact is a conglomeration of multiple belief systems.

I don't know if "fabricated" is the best verb here. But since I was planning to take up the dichotomy between Jesus and his teachings versus the Christian religion that developed after he ended his ministry, I found JBK's remarks useful in helping me focus my purpose.

But before entering into the discussion, I thought it useful to map my own personal religious experience.

I am convinced that one's spiritual realisation is personal. The title of this blog is "Journey to Surrender." But I'm not trying to force anyone into thinking the way I do. I'm merely putting up my own reflections for those interested. Sometimes I argue my point of view with a bit of passion; but I encourage you to seek for yourself. You might not agree with me or find what I find. If you get there before me, send up a smoke signal.

That said, I plan to continue giving some background on the teachings of Jesus and the evolution of the spiritual movement that grew up around him while respecting both.

While some may not find this approach satisfying, I'm avoiding taking sides in the argument. Christianity has treated the ancient wisdom traditions of India as mythology. I will return the favour and explore Christianity and the life of Jesus as if it were mythology.

At the same time, I think mythology has much to teach about spiritual reality. There is a thin line between the mythological and the divine. It has been said that "mythology is someone else's religion."  Ancient Greek Religion is mythology because my teacher told me so. Modern Christianity is "religion" because the priest says so.  But it may be worth examining the line between mythology and religion to see what we really know and experience about the divine.

So, when my friend alleges that Pauline Christianity was "fabricated" out of "superstitions" he's making a historical point. But how are superstition, fantasy,  mythology, and religious experience connected? How do multiple belief systems "conglomerate?" And what validity, if any, do these things have for us? If Christianity were merely a fabricated conglomeration of superstitions and belief systems gleaned from pagans in Levant during the 1st Century, why would it have such transcendence over a period of 2000 years?  It's not so easy to dismiss Christianity as a fraud.  

Christianity has had an enormous influence on other belief systems and religious views throughout the world. How that influence has informed philosophy and spiritual experience is a subject that I'll take up in the coming days. And what exactly were the "pagan superstitions" and "mystery cults" of Egypt? So, I thank JBK for his perspicacious observations. I hope to be "getting to the point" soon. In the meantime, enjoy the ride.