Uniformity of the Universe - Embarrassment for atheists

One of the remarkable features of the universe is that above a certain scale (about 10²⁴ metres) it is highly uniform in structure. This degree of uniformity is an embarrassment to cosmologists.
According to relativity theory, there should be no causal connection between points separated by distances greater than c multiplied by t (where c is the velocity of light and t is the age of the universe). Extrapolating this back to the Big Bang suggests that the primordial universe was partitioned into about 10⁸⁰ causally separate regions.
Nevertheless, all these disconnected regions had to expand at the same rate to maintain the observed degree of uniformity! Coincidence or co-operation?
Small wonder that Paul Davies (I hope the atheists know him) comments:“It is hard to resist the impression of something - some influence capable of transcending spacetime and the confinement of relativistic causality - possessing an overview of the entire cosmos at the instant of its creation, and manipulating all the causally disconnected parts to go bang with almost exactly the same vigour at the same time, and yet not so exactly co-ordinated as to preclude the small scale, slight irregularities that eventually formed the galaxies, and us.”

ARE ZEUS AND THOR FORGOTTEN GODS

I read somewhere the Atheists argument that if God was so omnipresent and forever how come no one worships Thor and Zeus, the Gods who were so powerful just a few centuries ago.

What Atheists forget is that the names of Gods like Zeus, Thor and others are just a way of making Gods look human.

Why? You will ask, of course. Why try to humanize God?

I tried to analyze it and my personal explanation is that the attempt to humanize God was made to make people aware of the various attributes and powers of God.
It is clear that appearances are important and even atheist are ready to convert if they can see God. If the educated class (that is what Atheist try to project themselves as) also believe only in the existence of objects that can be seen how can they not understand the needs of the less privileged.
Our ancestors understood this very well that it is easier to explain to people with form. The recognizable attributes were given form to make people connect directly with God.

Slowly, people forgot the purpose of the creation of form for Gods and started worshiping the idols. It is convenient for certain sections that people get attached to idols and forget that God is formless, omnipresent and most powerful.

Religion which starts as a way of life becomes a slave of rituals and diminishes the sanctity of the thought of God.

When people realize that the forms are not needed to worship the forms loose their importance . Zeus and Thor are forms which outlived their utility as people understood that the attributes that Thor and Zeus represent are actually part of the same God everyone wants to be close to.

Zeus and Thor and several other forms just represent the attributes of God who is formless, omnipresent and all powerful.

Manoj

WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO PROVE THE EXISTENCE OF GOD

Most debates on the existence of the Almighty are based on the inability of theists to provide proof of the existence.

This I agree is difficult. Most of our beliefs are either based on what is always being considered as the acceptable truth or on personal experiences which point out to the existence.

Personal experiences are unique and although a small incident like getting cured of cancer when all hope is lost or unexpectedly meeting someone who helps you through a crisis may be a big event for you, for the non believer, it is just fluke/ chance or coincidence.

There are many events in everyday life which are difficult to explain through science. How events tie up to bring success where it is least expected and how worship alone makes things happen are easy to be pooh poohed and treated as a matter of probability but that may be for someone not involved. For the person involved it is God even when he does not appear in front of us.

If God did not exist why do atheist try so hard to prove it. It should be acceptable to all if there was proof.

Produce it my dear friends or let us live with our faith and belief.

Two Questions Test on God

An educated man also an atheist meets a pious man and they start discussing religion, god and faith.

The theist responds calmly to all his questions and seeing that he is heading nowhere the atheist decides to subject his debater to the two question test on the existence of God.

The questions were:

If god exists what is his form? and
What is fate?

The theist who had been calm till then rose from his seat, walked up to the questioner and slapped him hard.

Why? asked the questioner.

To give you an answer, replied the theist. Do you feel pain? he asked.

Yes.

What is the form? If you cannot give me the form of the pain how do you say that the pain exists. This is the answer to the first question.

Did you know that I would slap you? Did you dream yesterday that I would slap you? This is fate and this is the answer to your second question.

Too simplistic, my friends would say. But then I would answer "why should everything be defined by some complex formula."

DO YOU NEED TO CONFESS IF YOU START ON THE PATH OF HONESTY

Hello,

Being honest is not easy at all.

But confessions of dishonesty in the past is far more difficult.

If you start on the path of honesty late in life several people are likely to point fingers and say "what the hell, he had lied about so and so a few months ago" or "If he is so honest why does he not say that he had not been clean in his dealings in the past".

It will be likened to a cat becoming pious after it has feasted on 100 rats.

So how do we get rid of the baggage we carry.

Is a public confession the only way out?

Take the example of Mark Sanford. He cheated on his wife and then confessed on TV. They say he has committed political suicide. OK, so what at least he is making an effort to save his marriage and his wife appreciates the effort. And maybe this honesty will actually help him.

But he was the Governor of South Carolina and a front runner for the Republican Presidential nominations for 2012. He was cornered and if he had not confessed it would be dug out by the press that turns brutal in such matters. So in this case public confession was actually the only way out. Now if he is back into public life he can confidently say that he had been dishonest and has confessed. If he now takes the path of honesty he can save his marriage and then come back into the presidential race at a later date.

In contrast, if a layman like me decides to walk down the path of honesty what does he do with the old baggage he is carrying. I do not have access to TV and my confession would mean nothing to the TV viewers. But I have been dishonest in the past. So what do I do?

I choose the person, if any, who was hurt by my dishonesty and confess. I suppose this should suffice. Here is the guy who was hurt by my dishonesty and by confessing I give him a chance to forgive me and forget the past or punish me and get even. Once this is done I can start on the path of honesty I have now chosen.

In case I am scared of doing that I do the next best thing. I confess in front of God. I say it aloud and take it out of my system. I confess in front of the almighty that I had been dishonest. I beg forgiveness and start on the new path of honesty. The beauty of this option is that you are assured forgiveness and there is no one taking advantage of your confessions which can weaken your resolve to being a better human being. This would suffice as well.

There is no harm in the cat trying to turn pious after it has feasted on 100 rats.
Because now it chooses the difficult path. The path less trodden. The path to God.

Regards,
Manoj

DOES GOD ACTUALLY EXIST

Many people question the existence of God, forgetting conveniently that they question their own existence with their doubts.
They ask whether one has seen God and if not then how can one believe in his existence they say.

There are others who are great believers but say that they are yet to see God. These people also forget that when they say that have not seen God they question their own existence.

God is present in every human being. He is omnipresent, he is form and he is formless.

Questioning the presence of God is like questioning the presence of feelings, the joy of triumph, the sorrow on the departure of a loved one, the love for your child, the empathy for a fellow being. This is God. Being Human and feeling Human is part of God.

Man can say he has not seen God only if he can confirm that he has not seen his feelings and if he says he has seen his feelings then he can never dispute the existence of God.

Next time a person asks you if you have seen God ask him in return if he has seen joy, sadness, love and empathy. If his answer is yes then your answer is not required.

CLOSER TO GOD

When you pray, pray as if you are seeing God.

For though you see Him not, He is seeing you."

Obviously, our worship will be at its best when performed with that feeling. Praying means striving for excellence in achieving piety, through an overwhelming feeling of closeness to God.

For anyone seeking spiritual purification, this is the goal.

But the joy of the person who says he has achieved closeness to God in his prayers is incomplete.
While it is great that he feel that way while praying, but, does he have the same feelings when he is dealing with others?

Does he feel closeness to God in his relations with spouse and children? In relations with friends and relatives? In all social relations?
Social relations and dealings with others is also a religious issue.
You must become a good human being before you can ever become close to God.

This message destroys a disastrous and tragic misconception that reduces Religion to only the performance of the ritual acts of worship---the pillars---thus robbing it of much of the rest of the building.
A very important and integral section of that building deals with our social relations. It is concerned with how we behave in the family. How we interact with relatives, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and all the rest of humanity.
The cornerstone of every religious teaching states that we do not cause anyone any hurt through our words or actions.
A person who, through his intentional or careless actions or words inflicts unjustified pain on others is not worthy of being called close to God.

A small example of how not to hurt a person and still be honest to yourself:
Whenever you see someone commit a wrong that needed to be corrected in public for the education of others, you should mention it in general terms, not naming the person who did it. You have therefore not only overcome the temptation to compromise on the issue of right and wrong to avoid hurt feelings but also fought against the temptation to correct the wrong with total disregard to the fact that one might be insulting or injuring the other person.
While we may see these extreme attitudes in people who seem to be poles apart in terms of their practice of religion, both stem from the same narrow vision of religion that holds our dealings with others as worldly affairs, outside the realm of religion!

It is good to remember that rligion is a way of life. We must submit our whole life, not a small subset of our choosing, to the commands of our God.
Our commitment to religion must not only be life-long but also life-wide.

Steps you can take to learn about your true self

Hello,
When I think about what is the easiest step I can take towards getting to understand my true self, the answer I generally get is that the easiest is not to tell any lies of any kind.
Try to fight the temptation of telling lies for small things like when someone in office asks you "Why are you late?" Try to tell the truth. I found that it is a real stress reliever - like the other day when our boss asked a colleague the question, he replied honestly. "I overslept", he said. The moment he told the truth the tension disappeared and all of us were laughing and cracking jokes about the reason for oversleeping.
It is easy to trick people with small lies like "I am in a meeting, can I call you later" lie we say when we want to avoid saying no to someone. The fact is that the more we delay more the other person dislikes us when we finally say no. He is happier if he gets the feedback immediately so that he can try someone else and not waste his energy thinking about what your answer is going to be.
Saying things which are untrue is ungodly and take us away from our true identity.
Stop telling lies. See how good you feel at the end of the day.
Best regards,
Manoj

Are you lost, unloved, helpless and defeated

Hello,

Many lives are wasted when man goes through life feeling lost, unloved, helpless, and defeated.

When we feel lost, uncared for and good for nothing we accept defeat. We take the broad path that seems so easy. This is when we loose the opportunity to get closer to the road that leads to God. Our heart is filled with hatred and envy and we forget that this is not the purpose of our life. This is not the real us.

Until we replace the hatred and envy with the huge amount of power and love that lives within us, the God within us we will continue to find ourselves in such an unhappy space.

So the path to God requires us to push out negative thoughts and feeling and allow the positive thoughts dominate our actions. Positive action is Godly action and a sure shot way to getting near God i.e. seeing your true self.

Best regards,

Manoj

SILENCE - THE WAY TO KNOW GOD

'THE TAO WHICH CAN BE NAMED IS NOT THE TRUE TAO'

'THE REALITY OF THE FORMLESS AND THE UNREALITY OF THAT WHICH HAS FORM - IS KNOWN TO ALL

MANIFESTED TAO HAS NO OBJECTIVE VALUE; HENCE SILENCE IS BETTER THAN ARGUMENT. IT CANNOT BE TRANSLATED INTO SPEECH; BETTER THEN SAY NOTHING AT ALL. - LAO TZE

IF ANY ONE WERE TO DEMAND OF NATURE WHY IT PRODUCES IT WOULD ANSWER IF IT WERE WILLING TO LISTEN AND SPEAK: YOU SHOULD NOT ASK QUESTIONS BUT UNDERSTAND BY KEEPING SILENCE - PLOTINUS

PEACE BE ON US - ONE GOD

ADDRESS OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
DOME OF THE ROCK
JERUSALEM
12 MAY 2009

Dear Muslim Friends,

As-salámu ‘aláikum! Peace upon you!

I cordially thank the Grand Mufti, Muhammad Ahmad Hussein, together with the Director of the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf, Sheikh Mohammed Azzam al-Khatib al-Tamimi, and the Head of the Awquaf Council, Sheikh Abdel Azim Salhab, for the welcome they have extended to me on your behalf. I am deeply grateful for the invitation to visit this sacred place, and I willingly pay my respects to you and the leaders of the Islamic community in Jerusalem.

The Dome of the Rock draws our hearts and minds to reflect upon the mystery of creation and the faith of Abraham. Here the paths of the world’s three great monotheistic religions meet, reminding us what they share in common. Each believes in One God, creator and ruler of all. Each recognizes Abraham as a forefather, a man of faith upon whom God bestowed a special blessing. Each has gained a large following throughout the centuries and inspired a rich spiritual, intellectual and cultural patrimony.

In a world sadly torn by divisions, this sacred place serves as a stimulus, and also challenges men and women of goodwill to work to overcome misunderstandings and conflicts of the past and to set out on the path of a sincere dialogue aimed at building a world of justice and peace for coming generations.

Since the teachings of religious traditions ultimately concern the reality of God, the meaning of life, and the common destiny of mankind – that is to say, all that is most sacred and dear to us – there may be a temptation to engage in such dialogue with reluctance or ambivalence about its possibilities for success. Yet we can begin with the belief that the One God is the infinite source of justice and mercy, since in him the two exist in perfect unity. Those who confess his name are entrusted with the task of striving tirelessly for righteousness while imitating his forgiveness, for both are intrinsically oriented to the peaceful and harmonious coexistence of the human family.

For this reason, it is paramount that those who adore the One God should show themselves to be both grounded in and directed towards the unity of the entire human family. In other words, fidelity to the One God, the Creator, the Most High, leads to the recognition that human beings are fundamentally interrelated, since all owe their very existence to a single source and are pointed towards a common goal. Imprinted with the indelible image of the divine, they are called to play an active role in mending divisions and promoting human solidarity.

This places a grave responsibility upon us. Those who honor the One God believe that he will hold human beings accountable for their actions. Christians assert that the divine gifts of reason and freedom stand at the basis of this accountability. Reason opens the mind to grasp the shared nature and common destiny of the human family, while freedom moves the heart to accept the other and serve him in charity. Undivided love for the One God and charity towards ones neighbor thus become the fulcrum around which all else turns. This is why we work untiringly to safeguard human hearts from hatred, anger or vengeance.

Dear friends, I have come to Jerusalem on a journey of faith. I thank God for this occasion to meet you as the Bishop of Rome and Successor of the Apostle Peter, but also as a child of Abraham, by whom “all the families of the earth find blessing” (Gen 12:3; cf. Rom 4:16-17). I assure you of the Church’s ardent desire to cooperate for the well-being of the human family. She firmly believes that the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham is universal in scope, embracing all men and women regardless of provenance or social status. As Muslims and Christians further the respectful dialogue they have already begun, I pray that they will explore how the Oneness of God is inextricably tied to the unity of the human family. In submitting to his loving plan for creation, in studying the law inscribed in the cosmos and implanted in the human heart, in reflecting upon the mysterious gift of God’s self-revelation, may all his followers continue to keep their gaze fixed on his absolute goodness, never losing sight of the way it is reflected in the faces of others.

With these thoughts, I humbly ask the Almighty to grant you peace and to bless all the beloved people of this region. May we strive to live in a spirit of harmony and cooperation, bearing witness to the One God by generously serving one another. Thank you!

Courtesy whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com

ARE YOU TALENTED - SURE YOU ARE - GET TO KNOW

Most of us go through our lives feeling that we have no talent.

A burden on Earth - we consider ourselves to be of no use. We don’t do well at our jobs, we are not good looking pretty, we are sitting alone at parties, we have no sense of humor, and it keeps going on and on.

With so many negatives in our head we make sure that we feel lousy and depressed all the time. But this is just half of the story.

Take a peep into the other side. Be curious about your other side and you will be surprised by what you see. You need to open the door to the other half.

Explore the good in you. Every time you have a negative thought about yourself think about one positive, one good thing about yourself you can be proud of, one good thing you admire in yourself.

Once you start balancing the bad with the good you will be able to shake off the old and negative identity that has been following you.

Creating a good and positive image about yourself is a daunting task once you allowed the negative and bad image dominate for so many years but it not impossible.

Take baby steps and see the stirring of the stagnant pond within you!

Once you start doing this see your performance at the office improve, see the radiance of your thoughts make you look beautiful, see how people seek your company and laugh at your jokes.

Let this feeling take over and let the stagnant water of the pool flow with a new current.

You are born to succeed. Work at it. It is never too late.

EXPERIENCE GOD - FIND HIM WITHIN YOURSELF

Hello,
Where is God? Who is God?
Are these questions that trouble you?

• God can be experienced and felt once you know how to access the truth. There is no point in debating the existence or non existence of the Almighty.

• God is not something to believe in. Just like we do not need anyone to tell us what we look like after we have seen our reflection in the mirror, we do not need any debate on God once we have known him, experienced him.

• Knowledge is strength and knowledge does not come from debate. Knowledge comes from silence. Knowledge will come to you when you become one with God.

• Once you realize that you are the Creator, the Preserver and the Destroyer your reason to question the existence will vanish. Once you have seen your true reflection in the mirror there is no debate on what you look like.

Regards,

Manoj

GEETA TEACHINGS - BE READY FOR CHANGE

Whatever happened, it happened for good.
Whatever is happening, is happening for good.
Whatever that will happen, it will be for good.
What have you lost for which you cry?
What did you bring with you, which you have lost?
What did you produce, which has destroyed?
You did not bring anything when you were born.
Whatever you have, you have received from Him.
Whatever you will give, you will give to Him.
You came empty handed and

you will go the same way.

Whatever is yours today was somebody else’s yesterday and will be somebody else’s tomorrow.

Change is the law of the universe.

Access to Truth

Though everyone is free to access the truth about themselves very few actually get to know it. People who know their true self are people who have self discipline, non- attached to the material and steadfast in their approach.

Though the truth is out in the open not many have the courage to grasp it as the search always provokes doubt and vacillation. The difficulties about living with the truth about self scares many and is a burden very few are ready to shoulder.

The one who knows the self does not need help. He is nearest to God.

Best regards,
Manoj