[Turtle]

___I don't believe I ever have seen the Bhagavad Gita or any of the Vedas mentioned in any religious discussions here. I have to wonder why inasmuch as they predate the other major religious texts.
___Back in the 70's a Hare Krisna gave me a nice harbound copy of Bhagavad Gita As It Is. Good old Arjuna & Krisna really rocked it up I must say.
___Anyway, it seems the guys get short shrift. Discuss.

[Erasmus00]

Originally Posted by Turtle

___I don't believe I ever have seen the Bhagavad Gita or any of the Vedas mentioned in any religious discussions here. I have to wonder why inasmuch as they predate the other major religious texts.
___Back in the 70's a Hare Krisna gave me a nice harbound copy of Bhagavad Gita As It Is. Good old Arjuna & Krisna really rocked it up I must say.
___Anyway, it seems the guys get short shrift. Discuss.

I think its less known than the other major religious works, though I too have a copy given me by a Hare Krisna. I'm only a third of the way in, but thus far, it seems to me as if a movie I saw a few years ago, The Legend of Bagger Vance must have been based on this tale.

And I agree, they deffinately get the short shrift.
-Will

[Turtle]

___I'll keep my eye open for the movie. I have given over my copy to another library, however over the years I read it near a dozen times. Some of those reads I included the purports, & others not. I recommend it to everyone.

[Biochemist]

Originally Posted by Turtle

..it seems the guys get short shrift...

I think we ought to do our job to lengthen the shrift (whatever that is).

I think the issues that mitigate broader discission of the BV are that:

1) it is a minority religion (14% according to one chart here:http://www.adherents.com/Religions_By_Adherents.html)
2) Hinduism is not known for prosletyzing, hence:
3) The fraction of Hindus is decreasing over time
4) Most Hindus are poor, hence they do not automatically have influence (versus, the Jews, by contrast) to broadcast their views

My two cents.

[Turtle]

___Shrift is an archaic form of shrive. which is the act of confession by a penitent & the absolution given. In the phrase "short shrift" it refers to the time given for confession to a condemmed prisoner.
___So you seem to say the substance of the text in regard to any truth is subjugated by economics. Very interesting.
___Maybe an informal poll here about how many have read the Gita or any of the Vedas?

[Skippy]

Originally Posted by Turtle

___I don't believe I ever have seen the Bhagavad Gita or any of the Vedas mentioned in any religious discussions here. I have to wonder why inasmuch as they predate the other major religious texts.
___Back in the 70's a Hare Krisna gave me a nice harbound copy of Bhagavad Gita As It Is. Good old Arjuna & Krisna really rocked it up I must say.
___Anyway, it seems the guys get short shrift. Discuss.

Never read it and don't think I ever will, not interested. BUT, in a comparative religion course years ago we had a group of Hare Krishnas come in and talk about their beliefs. Frankly it kind of struck me as a non-militaristic communism, like Marx envisioned. I suspect that their communes are more like what Orwell described in Animal Farm though, as they did talk about various heirarchical levels within their sect.

[bumab]

Originally Posted by Turtle

So you seem to say the substance of the text in regard to any truth is subjugated by economics. Very interesting.

Perhaps not the substance, but the influence in the world?

Originally Posted by Turtle

___Maybe an informal poll here about how many have read the Gita or any of the Vedas?

I've read it, and many of the vedas. Very interesting and informative.

[Turtle]

The truth is where you find it, & once you have found it in one place, it is still the same truth wherever you go. And when you go where you go & look around, if truth is there you recognize it. If you don't recognize it, it isn't there.
The holy texts of all cultures contain the descriptions of truths beheld. As there is at the base of 'All Truth', a single 'Truth', one has to wonder why these texts are so long. It is because seeing the truth - or knowing the truth if you will - is not the same as describing the truth.
The truth is available to everyone & they may know it without having others show it to them. We call this occurence the 'epiphany'. The child's self-relization 'hey, I can stand up', is just one such example of 'epiphany'.
Krisna is very patient in explaining to Arjuna how the truth works in order to force him to conclude he must fight.

[Turtle]

Originally Posted by Skippy

Never read it and don't think I ever will, not interested. BUT, in a comparative religion course years ago we had a group of Hare Krishnas come in and talk about their beliefs. Frankly it kind of struck me as a non-militaristic communism, like Marx envisioned. I suspect that their communes are more like what Orwell described in Animal Farm though, as they did talk about various heirarchical levels within their sect.

Now this is the heart of the problem. I engaged in a spirited discussion (to say the least) with a good friend on the topic of reading the Bhagavad Gita, & he took Skippy's attitude, ie. "I don't need to read it". Furthermore, the Hare Krisnas in my view do not at all reflect the heart or truth of the work. I say this because I read the work numerous times & found the Hare Krisnas interpretation lacking.

What kind of ground does one stand on who argues from ignorance?

[sanctus]

Turtle, Ididn't read the bhagavad gita, but I read a book dealing very much with ....surprise... bible and the bhagavad gita. i don't know if it is translated but if anyone has read something like "new world order" by armin risi I would like to discuss it.
But anyway the bhagavad gita seemed to me one step further than the bible as all the passage he took out from the book didn't need a long interpretation.
But I can't really judge as I haven't read enough of both.

A part from that, I'm sure that economics plays role mainly in making a rligion known on the net in a forum.