WU-WEI AND TAO

The main principle of Wu-Wei is going with the flow, swimming with the current. Another principle is to live without purpose, and to live in harmony and balance. They definitely don't believe in fighting or showing aggression. The greatest possession is life, and fame, wealth, power, and education are mere illusions. They despisethe fame, pomp, and glory most people seek. In today's society these beliefs would be hard for me to follow. I was raised to state my opinion and not to be afraid to say I don't believe in something. I am a person that basically goes with the flow because I follow laws and rules and basically do what is expected of me. But sometimes I might see someone being treated unfairly and then I need to speak up and defend that person. I don't necessarily believe in fighting but I do believe that people can have different opinions, and that in today's world governments have to be able to defend their people. We are also raised to want an education and wealth. I'm not saying money is everything but most people want finanical security. I think our beliefs are alomst oppsite of those of Tao because we seek to achieve and set goals for ourseves which may include fame, power, and wealth. We are also taught to have a purpose in life which is against another principle of Tao.

Big Questions

Big Questions: What is the ultimate god? What is the nature of the person? What happens to us after death?

Hinduism believes in one god but they accept the beliefs of many gods. Gandhi believed in love, non-violence, and compassion and he shared his views with his poeple. They believe in rebirth and you can move up or down in the caste system depending on how you lived your life.
Buddhism believes the ultimate god is Budda. He wants you to find your own enlightment instead of depending on the gods for their help and support.They believe in reincarnation and Budda felt the combination of birth, death, and rebirth is what makes up the human personality. Jainism feels a person is bound to life because of the Karma they acquire. The individual must acquire the release from the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. A person is freed from matter only by hir or her own actions. Jainism acknowledges the existenceof gods but does not rely on them for help. They believe in reincarnation and they feel a happy or sad life is determined by your actions in a previous life. Sikhism believes in on god whom they call the Unseen. They accept the principle of reincarnation. They believe the spirit of Nanak was reincarnated in the bodies of those gurus who succeeded him as the leaders of Sikhism. They believe people continue to acquire karma and live again and again until they are freed from this cycle. The people are different from some of the other religions because they believe they are the primary creation and are free to kill and eat animals.

"Religion right may commit the sin of political suicide"

According to an article I read, conservative Christian leaders almost unanimously approved a resolution to support a third-party candidate if neither major party nominates someone who is pro-life. James Dobson, founder and chairmanof Focus on the Family, explained that Christian leaders believe any presidential candidate has to commit to traditional moral values, including the sanctity of human life, the institution of marriage and other pro-family principles. At this point John MCCain Has a perfect pro-life record, but he supports federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. He doesn't support Federal Marriage Amendment, which conservatives believe is necessary to protect marriage as between a man and woman. Fred Thompson doesn't support the Federal Marriage Amendment. Mitt Romney fought for same sex unions and embryonic cloning. He is pro-life. Even though Romney shares their belief in Jesus Christ as God, but some of his mormon beliefs cause deep conflicts for the Christian leaders. It will be interesting to see whom they come out and support for the Republican Party. This article made me believe that there is still a strong connection between religion and politics.

Jainism

According to our reading this week I learned that like many other Indian religions, Jainism also viewed life in terms of reincarnation. This is where people live their lives, die, and sre born again. Jainism views people as bound to life because of the karma they acquire. According to Jainism there are two essentially two substances, soul, and matter. Soul is life- it is eternal and valuable. Matter is lifeless, material, and evil. Thus, it is the goal of Jainism to liberate the soul from matter. This belief is also found in some form in Hinduism, Buddhism,Christianity, Islam, and nearly every other major religion in the world. Jainism maintains that release from the cycle of life, death, and rebirth must be acquired by the individual. The soul can only be freed from matter by the actions of the person involved and not from help. Although Jainism may be acknoeledge the existence of gods, it does not rely on them for help. Jainism will go to great lenghs to avoid harming any living creature, that is why they are vegetarians and and avoid leather products. Jainism and Buddism both deny the validity of the Vedas as inspired scripture, and both reject the religious implications of the Indain caste system.

Buddism

We were told to observe those around us and our community during the past week. Well during the past week my only community has been on the softball field or at practices with my teammates. We were getting ready to play five games this weekend. Our first scrimmages as a team so you an image all I have done is eat, sleep, and play softball. During the week there were many spiritual struggles with girls not getting along, the coach getting mad at the team, everyone was tired and of course there was school and homework to deal with too. It was a very long week with 6am running and workouts, the weight room, practices, and going to frozen ropes for batting and conditioning. All I wanted to do was sleep or maybe even give up. There is a lot of pressure on this team to improve its record from last season. Last year the team didn't win a game so the coach is working us hard to try and rebuild the program.
According to Buddism you have to have enlightenment and Budda was much more concerned that people find their own enlightenment than appeal to the gods for help and support. Budda also felt the combinationof birth, death, and rebirth is what makes up the human personality. I felt that these teachings were true with the spiritual struggles my team was facing. It is always easy to say God please let us win, or let me get a hit, or help me catch the ball. But the truth is we can only achieve these goals if we work hard and practice to improve our skills and ourselves. So it is not up to god it is up to my team to find our own enlightenment by practicing, playing hard, and working as a team. Also the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth is also true with my team. The old team is dead and this weekend showed the rebirth of a new team. Our team won all five games this weekend. Believe it or not we went undefeated. I think this team has been reincarnated.

Mohandas Gandhi

Gandhi was a major political and spiritual leader of India and the Indian independence movement. His belief in resistance of tyranny and total non-violence helped to lead India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Gandhi was born a Hindu and practiced Hinduism all of his life. He believed all religions were equal, and rejected all efforts to convert him to a different faith. Gandhi believed that at the core of every religion was truth and love. He felt compassion and nonviolence were the golden rule.
I think Gandhi practiced Hinduism in many ways, he was a vegetarian, he believed in love and non-violence and he never caused violence. He was very spiritual and would spend one day a week without speaking to clear his mind and soul. I think the parts of his religion that he emphasized the most were non-violence, love, and compassion. The part of his religion less important to him was the caste system. He didn't follow the system because he treated everyone fairly and equally. I think Gandhi would have considered himself a good Hindu because he felt strongly about his beliefs and he didn't cause harm to other people. I would agree that Gandhi was a very religious and spiritual man and that he was a good Hindu. He once said," an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind". If only more people believed in this saying and practiced it.

Happy Birthday to Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born October 2, 1869 and he passed away on January 30, 1948. In India he is officially known as the "Father of the Nation" and October second his birthday, is commemorated each year as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday. On June 15, 2007 the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution declaring October 2 to be the "International Day of Non-Violence". I thought it was appropriate to mention Gandhi today on his birthday since we just watched a movie on him and we are learningabout Hinduism.