Moving on

[ekim]

Would you put the 'Tibetan Book of the Dead' on a par with the other stories you mentioned eki,?  I really dislke that sort of writing, it seems to airy fairy to me.  Like astrology.  I might have liked it when I was a teenager.  Many years ago a younger person gave me a book called, "The Celestine Prophecy'', I just couldn't get into it, nor did I see the point of it, yet it was very popular amongst youngsters for a while.  I suppose all things have their season.

Brownie

It's been many, many years since I read through that book and I didn't return to it.  It was at a time when I was also looking at theosophy and anthroposophy.  I only mentioned it as I seem to remember that it had something common to this thread i.e. dying, reincarnation etc.  As you say ' all things have their season' and your initial reaction is probably the best to follow, unless you are exploring Tibetan Buddhism.

[Brownie]

Thanks ekim.

[Sriram]

It's even worse than that since Chomsky says science only has to go out as far as say sociology to lose it's reliability.

That's actually quite true. There are areas called Exact Sciences where observations, analysis and predictions are expected to be very precise (Physics....and related areas like cosmology, astronomy)...Chemistry is less so..biology and medicine are even less so. As we venture into Psychology, sociology and other areas....precision is obviously lost. Attempts are being made to look at even Economics as a science. It becomes quite 'iffy'.

[Shaker]

Do you think that chemists and biologists would agree with your assessment of their disciplines as lacking the precision of, say, physics?

[Hope]

That's actually quite true. There are areas called Exact Sciences where observations, analysis and predictions are expected to be very precise (Physics....and related areas like cosmology, astronomy)...Chemistry is less so..biology and medicine are even less so. As we venture into Psychology, sociology and other areas....precision is obviously lost. Attempts are being made to look at even Economics as a science. It becomes quite 'iffy'.

The problem with this is that science refers to 'knowledge' and pretty well all 'exact' or pure sciences are no more than that.  Before science can actually be of any real use to humans, it has to be applied.

[Sriram]

I don't know how many people here realize that even Spirituality is a science! By spirituality I of course don't mean appeals to a God. I mean self development and spiritual growth.

Yoga and meditations are science in the sense that they are secular, can be taught, progress can be monitored and certain predicted results in terns of mental states and consciousness can be achieved. 

[Sriram]

By the way...tonight (7.3.16)  is a special night for Hindus. It is Maha Shivaratri (The great night of Shiva). 

It is the night when Shiva is married to Shakti. Allegorically it is when Universal Consciousness unites with Nature. It is considered a very powerful night for Yoga and meditations.   

Most Hindus will stay awake the whole night doing advanced Yoga and meditations....singing bhajans and other devotional practices.

For information.

Sriram

[Bubbles]

By the way...tonight (7.3.16)  is a special night for Hindus. It is Maha Shivaratri (The great night of Shiva). 

It is the night when Shiva is married to Shakti. Allegorically it is when Universal Consciousness unites with Nature. It is considered a very powerful night for Yoga and meditations.   

Most Hindus will stay awake the whole night doing advanced Yoga and meditations....singing bhajans and other devotional practices.

For information.

Sriram

Sounds interesting.

Presumably you get tomorrow off work?

[Sriram]

Sounds interesting.

Presumably you get tomorrow off work?

No....holiday was yesterday....to perform puja, fast, visit temples etc.  Today one has to manage after a night of meditation. Or take leave. Many people wouldn't stay awake the whole night anyway. Only some hardy souls would do that.