Religious Texts and Hermeneutics
December 6, 2023 9:46am
Christmas approaches! I was reading selections from the Bhagavad Gita and the Dhammapada when I realized I have little understanding of the age and relationships between the Hindu and Buddhist texts – much less the hermeneutics behind them. So, off I go researching the ages of all the religious texts!
- The oldest appears to the Kesh Temple Hymn written about 2600 BC about polytheistic beliefs.
- Pyramid text – Egyptian – 2400 BC
- Coffin text – Egyptian 2100 BC
- The Epic of Gilgamesh – The first I recognized – 2100 BC
- The Rigveda, another familiar name since I had read the cosmological account in the Rigveda – 1700 BC
The remaining top ten oldest texts are all Egyptian and Hindu, appearing as recently as 1200 BC.
Most Bible scholars believe the Torah (books of the Pentateuch – the first five books of the Old Testament) date to about 500 to 300BC – so they’re relative newcomers to the canon of ancient religious texts.
One final note – I didn’t know until today that the Bhagavad Gita is one part of the world’s longest epic poem – the Mahabharata, and all the Vedas, including the Rigveda are all older and include the Upanishads – the most recent of the Vedas
All these tell their own stories but the one we tell here and now, in my little protected and insular world, is the one of the birth of Christ. Many think this is the only story but I say, open your eyes! Anyway, Happy Advent and Merry Christmas!
Spiritual Evolution
December 9, 2023 2:03pm
Spiritual evolution?
Life must be ubiquitous in the universe. With trillions of planets, it is inevitable. So, with life, consciousness follows. The question now: can we go beyond this?
The logical answer is “NO.”
If the physical, material universe we see around us is all there is, some sort of “super-consciousness” is not possible. But then we must think outside the box. We cannot conceive of the eternal or the infinite because we are finite beings. Once you conclude that maybe the universe is infinite and eternal….and required no “creator”, then you must extrapolate to other possibilities. So perhaps it is possible that life can evolve beyond simple self-awareness or “consciousness” to achieve a state of being that is beyond our comprehension. Perhaps this is independent of any external influence – like artificial intelligence- or more likely, AI is required to make the leap into the next level – the one beyond simple consciousness.
What will we be like then? Only God knows.
Even it Up
December 14, 2023 8:01pm
You know that one day, sooner than you think, something will happen. You suffer an injury, have a stroke or heart attack…. or you get a diagnosis that does not bode well and you’re on that long slide toward oblivion. No one wants to be sick or in poor health fora long time but that may be in the cards. You just play your hand.
I have led an incredibly easy life, so I try to remember that when it happens, it’s just time to even it up. Heart – Even it Up