XBK Chat (unofficial archive) A former meeting place for past members of Brahma Kumaris    FAQ   Search   Memberlist   Usergroups   Profile   You have no new messages   Log out   Concerns about the knowledge... EVEN IF it is true Goto page Previous  1, 2          XBK Chat Forum Index -> XBK discussions View previous topic :: View next topic   Author Message wahl Joined: 19 Jan 2005 Posts: 187 Location: Essex, England Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:59 pm    Post subject: Hello Uddhava, Atma wrote Quote: the 5000 years cycle, which repeats eternally and identically. We are told, simplisticaly, that (the first) half is happiness and (the second) half is sorrow. The 5000 year cycle.........maybe it's true, maybe it isn't. Perhaps it's just meant to be symbolic so that we keep in mind the cyclic aspect and appreciate the balancing out and completion of karma. The alternative is to ignore the whole picture and dissect a 'frame' of time and see the limited events within it as imbalanced and unfair............. Atma wrote Quote: We are told that souls can never gain permanent liberation from this cycle. What's this? Some kind of sick joke? What's the point? Uddhava wrote Quote: but then there are some kinds of suffering that is just sickening and makes me think - is there really a need for this, what purpose does this serve? _________________ om shanti wahl uddhava Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 142 Location: Paramdham Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:19 pm    Post subject: wahl wrote: Hello Uddhava, The 5000 year cycle.........maybe it's true, maybe it isn't. Perhaps it's just meant to be symbolic Ok fine with me, but the BK view is that it is literally true, not 'maybe it's symbolic'. wahl Joined: 19 Jan 2005 Posts: 187 Location: Essex, England Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2005 12:55 am    Post subject: Hello Uddhava, It doesn't matter what the BKs, or anyone else for that matter, say is literally true. We can spend eternity (literally!) trying to prove or disprove it (bhakti?). All I am saying is that it is can be good to think in a more abstract way. The concept of time can be perceived in a limited or in an unlimited way. What is the difference..............? _________________ om shanti wahl uddhava Joined: 20 Jan 2005 Posts: 142 Location: Paramdham Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2005 4:20 pm    Post subject: wahl wrote: Hello Uddhava, It doesn't matter what the BKs, or anyone else for that matter, say is literally true. It does matter what BKs believe in the sense that religious groups are largely defined by their beliefs, and so the reason that I am not a BK is that I don't presently subscribe to BK-specific beliefs, in particular that the the world is going to end soon and that when this happens, only BKs go to heaven. When I was in classes I would sometimes think to myself 'am I the only person here who thinks this stuff might be metaphorical?' On the other hand I can understand that perhaps it has to be understood literally and the whole BKWSU thing wouldn't work if it was understood metaphorically. I mean would there be excitement and spiritual intoxication over a metaphor? Would brahmins spend so much effort in propagation if what they were revealing to people was a metaphor? At the end of the day I think it's a karmic thing that I am pre-disposed to interpreting it metaphorically whereas BKs are pre-disposed to interpreting it literally. Who is right, I don't know. I can't say it doesn't matter who is right because if it turns out to be literally true, I will be kicking myself. But it doesn't matter in the sense that I'm not gonna worry about it, I'm just gonna get on with my life, doing my best, and if I drop dead tomorrow, so be it Anyway I don't mean to derail Atma's thread re assuming that it is true, so if there is any more of this maybe it shoud be somewhere else... wahl Joined: 19 Jan 2005 Posts: 187 Location: Essex, England Posted: Tue Apr 05, 2005 4:40 pm    Post subject: Quote: When I was in classes I would sometimes think to myself 'am I the only person here who thinks this stuff might be metaphorical?' No, you were not alone Uddhava. _________________ om shanti wahl Display posts from previous: All Posts1 Day7 Days2 Weeks1 Month3 Months6 Months1 Year Oldest FirstNewest First         XBK Chat Forum Index -> XBK discussions All times are GMT - 5 Hours Goto page Previous  1, 2 Page 2 of 2   You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group