the Rostomily brotherhood;
the Planetary Engineers' "...secret castle on the rim of Archimedes Crater..." (p. 220);
the Jovian Republic;
the Engineers' terraforming equipment en route to Europa;
the University of X.
Then the story adds new information. Not only has the Terrestrial anti-technological movement - "the protean enemy" - taken a new form, conservative Hinduism, now including even American Kali-worshipers, but this intensifying conflict threatens to split civilization.
Two observations:
we need to read stories about people living this conflict, not just one sentence summarizing ideological labels;
some people would try not to antithesize but to synthesize Indian spirituality and Western science.
Start with karma yoga: it is better to act than to withdraw from action. Also, somewhere else, I have read propaganda for a Hinduism focused on secular obligations and responsibilities. Abstruse theological arguments were deployed, even including that God manifest is higher than God unmanifest!
9 comments:
Kaor, Paul!
I am frankly puzzled by this seeming affection you for Hinduism. I see nothing of any value or truth that might be found in it which can't be found in a clearer, more sharply defined way in Western philosophy or Judaeo/Christian thought and theology.
To me, the "nicer" bits of Hinduism seem to be merely late accretions piled on top of a crudely morphed together mishmash of pagan pantheons by succeeding cultures and invaders. To say nothing of how the barbaric cruelties and superstitions of the Hindu caste system disgusts me.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
The Vedas, Upanishads, epics and Gita are beautiful scriptures.
Sure, everything, good or bad, is in there so we focus on the parts that we find good and not on others, which is what Hindus do.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
I have no objection to beautiful literature. But what ever is good in Hinduism can be found elsewhere.
Ad astra! Sean
Hatha yoga
Two long epics
Rich mythology and art
Kaor, Paul!
I prefer BEOWULF, THE SONG OF ROLAND, Dante's DIVINE COMEDY, SIR GAWAIN AND THE GREEN KNIGHT, etc.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
Of course you do but that's hardly the point, is it? The Mahabharata, 10 times longer than the 2 Homeric epics combined, is not really comparable to anything else.
"Arabic" numerals, zero and the decimal point came from India although nowadays we compartmentalize aspects of culture so that "religion" and "mathematics" are poles apart.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
I am not denying much that was good or useful came from India, esp. a really practical system of numbers and the zero. And an ancient literature I'm sure many find fascinating. And I continue to find much to disagree with in HINDUISM.
Ad astra! Sean
Sean,
Which brings us back to my point that each of us takes what we find of value from Hinduism and nothing else. I value Krishna's teaching of karma yoga (non-attached action) in the Bhagavad Gita - and Arjuna's vision of Krishna's cosmic form, also in the Gita. "I see all gods within your body... As if the light of a thousand suns should dawn in the sky." Krishna: "The gods are my million faces."
I value:
Krishna, karma yoga;
the Buddha, meditation;
Jesus, the kingdom, meaning a new society and a new consciousness imminent now - but not his later identification with the Suffering Servant, still less Paul's idea that Jesus' death was a sacrifice.
Paul.
Kaor, Paul!
Working out a really satisfactory system of numbers seems to have been surprisingly difficult, till some unknown genius in India invented the numbers we now use, perhaps about a thousand years ago.
No argument, some philosophical concepts from India are at least worth debating about. Whether or not I agree with them is another matter.
Disagree, tho, that Christ came only for His time. And His atoning death on the Cross and Resurrection were not, singly or both, mere inventions of St. Paul. And I believe the Risen One truly did meet Saul of Tarsus on the road to Damascus.
Ad astra! Sean
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