 Re: Where do we come from?
On 2005-10-19 08:05:23 -0700, "Paul H" <nospam@nospam.com> said:
> I was never one for Adam and Eve and the "big bang theory" always had
> me thinking "So what happened BEFORE the big bang?"
>
> How do the great sages of Yogic science say everything began?
>
> Paul
There are a number of creation myths traced back to vedic texts. The
one I am most familiar with is this one. I believe it is used by
modern Hindus and Buddhists alike.
> This universe existed in the shape of darkness, unperceived, destitute
> of distinctive marks, unattainable by reasoning, unknowable, wholly
> immersed, as it were, in deep sleep.
> Then the Divine Self-existent, himself indiscernible but making all
> this, the great elements and the rest, discernible, appeared with
> irresistible power, dispelling the darkness.
> He who can be perceived by the internal organ alone, who is subtle,
> indiscernible, and eternal, who contains all created beings and is
> inconceivable, shone forth of his own will.
> He, desiring to produce beings of many kinds from his own body, first
> with a thought created the waters, and placed his seed in them.
> That seed became a golden egg, in brilliancy equal to the sun; in that
> egg he himself was born as Brahma, the progenitor of the whole world..
> The Divine One resided in that egg during a whole year, then he himself
> by his thought divided it into two halves;
> And out of those two halves he formed heaven and earth, between them
> the middle sphere, the eight points of the horizon, and the eternal
> abode of the waters.
> From himself he also drew forth the mind, which is both real and
> unreal, likewise from the mind ego, which possesses the function of
> self-consciousness and is lordly.
> Moreover, the great one, the soul, and all products affected by the
> three qualities, and, in their order, the five organs which perceive
> the objects of sensation.
> But, joining minute particles even of those six, which possess
> measureless power, with particles of himself, he created all beings.
The idea of God creating something is completely foreign to the East.
Brahma/god transcends the world of action. The idea that nature is
"created" is absurd. Humans made from clay, or other such absurdities
makes no sense. Humans can create artifacts out of wood, metal or
whatever. But God is non-dual. Creation is only possible in the world
of duality. Creation only exists in opposition to destruction.
Thus "nature" as an artifact is purely a Western invention. Given that
we and our surroundings are all forms in a natural flow (the Tao)
"nature" itself is not translatable into Chinese or Sanscrit. The
closest word would be that for spontaneity. The above text does not
really capture this important aspect to the Eastern creation myth.
Given this transcendental form of God, the myth makes sense as the
beginings of the world we know commences with a split. And the
non-dual becomes dual, while retaining its non-dual nature.
As for the Big Bang theory. It is interesting speculation but it is so
far from being resolved that it carries no real philosophical weight.
Physics is a science limited in scope to measuring the physical world.
It makes predictions based on finding mathematical principals of
physical governance. But this physical realm is but a small part of
human experience. For example take the intellectual realm mathematics
exists in. Here is a realm of concepts and formulae that are not
subject to gravitational pull or atomic measurement. Where does "Force
= Mass x Acceleration" or "E=mc(2)" reside? It may be a description of
a physical phenomenon but its conceptual nature lies in a realm outside
the gross limitations of the physical universe.
So here we have a description of two distinct realms of human
experience, the physical and the intellectual. I with the help of St.
Bonaventura would like to submit a third realm. The contemplative
realm. This is the sphere opened by yogic practice - we catch glimpses
of this realm in our non-dual "experiences" (experience is in quotes
because these happen without the help of the five senses).
In summing - The western creationist myths make an error by insulting
god as a limited being engaged in creation. The Eastern myths describe
a poetic answer servicable to answer the questions of children. And
the "The Big Bang" myth is a form of monism that worships the material
without recognizing the intellectual and spritual realms.
So, where do we come from?
This is a distraction from the real question, "Where are we here and now?".
--
~Stu
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