Nalanda University reopens after hundreds of years!

[SarthakGanguly]

Hindu pandits are Dhars and Bhat while muslims are Dar and Bhatt. Isnt it??

Chalo I wont derail this thread.

Many retain the same spellings. Afzal Guru.

 

[Indrani]

sikhs also had hindu dieties in gurudwara until Gurdwara Reform Movement in 1920s

All Dharmic faiths worshiped each other's gods until some politically induced exclusivism was brought in by vested interests. The Brits and the Marxists had a big role to play in it. Also it was the Brahmins who were the priests in all these places, Gurudwaras, mandirs, Buddhist monasteries, Jain temples.

 

[Water Car Engineer]

Buddha or Siddhartha was worshiped through symbols in the beginning. (chakra, bodhi tree, stupa, empty chariot, throne, etc.) After maybe 1st century AD, it was considered okay to show a physical form of him.

 

[DARIUS]

I don't know about the reddish complexion part, but we definitely do call him "阿彌陀佛" (Amitabha Buddha).

Amitabha supposedly means "Infinite light" which is why we use the term "無量光佛" (Buddha of Infinite Light).

It's also translated as the "Buddha of the Western paradise" (Western paradise referring to the Indian subcontinent).

Yeah but in Sanskrit Amit translates to the Sun and Abha means complexion or Hue.Hence the one with the complexion of the sun (Which might be perceived as reddish) is Amitabha or Amitabh!!

 

[Yogijaat]

Yeah but in Sanskrit Amit translates to the Sun and Abha means complexion or Hue.Hence the one with the complexion of the sun (Which might be perceived as reddish) is Amitabha or Amitabh!!

wiki says Amit means boundless or timeless and abha means light or splendor

 

[sherin616]

Maybe. He was definitely not an egotistical person though, if he saw the enormous statues we made of him, I'm sure he would NOT have been happy with it.

I try to tell this to my friends who are Buddhists but they don't care, lol. For them he is a God to be worshiped, even if that was not Buddha's original intention.

But at least they are still following the fundamental Buddhist principles (like the Noble Eightfold Path "八正道"), so it's not a complete loss. Since that is the most important part.

Like Christians worshiping stone pilgrimage of jesus and cross when it is not allowed in Bible

Good peaceful and meaningful thread to start the month
Just the Buddhist way

 

[Indischer]

Yeah but in Sanskrit Amit translates to the Sun and Abha means complexion or Hue.Hence the one with the complexion of the sun (Which might be perceived as reddish) is Amitabha or Amitabh!!

Actually, Amitabh means Limitless radiance in Sanskrit, which is together taken to mean or refer to the Sun.

Miti/Mitah is the word for limit. And the A at the front acts as the negation of it (similar to Aviveki - without wisdom).

Aabha is the sanskrit word for glow/radiance. (The Sanskrit word for jewellery, Aabharana, comes from this - That which glows/is shiny.)

 

[Guynextdoor2]

This is an ancient rock carving of Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara in Buduruwagala in Sri Lanka.. So even in Theravada school they worshiped Bodhisattva's.. @Chinese-Dragon

Another sculpture of goddess tara from ancient Ceylon at the British museum

I went to the world museum of budhism in Kandy, right next to the sacred Tooth stupa. It was enchanting how different coutries have interpreted the Budha in their own way. (and man the middle girl in the snake dance at the cultural festival was unforgettable too )

 

[somsak]

@Nihonjin1051

Thanx for invitation to good thread again. I would have missed it without your notification.

This is very interesting!. I heard that Nalanta is the world 1st university. I am not sure if the claim is correct.
I read many history books. They said that in Ancient subcontinent, there were Bhuddist teaching & Bhuddist learning centers.
I see the Bhuddist translated texts. There are a lot of them! here in Thailand. I would want to know
"Why Bhuddism is so popular at that time?"
King Asoke adoption of Bhudhism might be one answer. But still it does not answer why ancient silk road was full of Bhuddhism? Why ancient maritime route was full of Bhuddist states? What make Bhuddishm so successful that so many states adopted it as state religous?.

I think Bhuddism was revolution to Hinduism.
Since I know not much about Hinduism, my knowledge might be wrong but this is my initial understanding, which is still open to new updates.

"Bhuddishm different in Hinduism that, once you are a monk, there are no more caste division" "Caste Devision is substantially softer in Bhuddist Belief than Hindu one". "A state that adopt Bhuddism from Hinduism ( a lot here in S.E Asia), is a state that want to lower the level of caste system."

 

[Ragnar]

 

[kṣamā]

Firstly sorry for late reply. I hit the hay very early last night.

@kṣamā Without the central figures there is no story. The attributes people want to emulate is because they are epitomized in those characters. How will you take inspiration from Ramayana without Rama?

Yes I do confer what just said. I do not have any problem with the actors of the story we have been told. I just have problem people being blind to the story morale and blindly worshiping them. They are just tools to propagate an idea. Instead of worshiping the idea, we are worshiping the tool !!

Also as to your questions whether there can be an Elephant headed god or a 10-headed demon you must consider that the perception of what is reality is not the same to all living beings. The Rose may look like a red colored flower to you, does it look the same to the bees who are color blind? Does it look same to the bats who cannot see? How does the world look like to the chameleons with its widely uncoordinated eyes.

What we consider as solid is not even solid. Take the table you are sitting at or the phone you are carrying to access PDF. Those objects are made up of atoms which are made up of subatomic particles spinning at the lighting speed and basically huge unoccupied spaces. Go beyond that subatomic cloud and there is nothing there. So what we consider as hard matter of this world is non-hard. What is physical is nonphysical.

I have mixed feeling trying to interpret this part of your post. I would be more than happy to talk to you about particle physics and quantum mechanics but I would question its aptness. I would like you to explain a bit more. I may be a noob here. So please be patient with me.

I think you are agnostic.

Hmm you can say that but I do not say that God dose not exist. I say its a good theory but common logic and reading between the lines gives us a better understanding of the stories. Hence I am hard pressed to take up the logic part rather than the blind faith part. My philosophy is "Question Everything" but not disprove. Rather find the hidden logic or wisdom behind the preaching. Read between the line and you are bound to discover a lot new stuff.

But all the above rarely stops me form offering my prayer at suitable place of worship.

 

[Gibbs]

Borobudur of Indonesia is the greatest legacy of Nalanda , as Borobudur is a temples complexes dedicated for Mahayana Buddhist teaching

I thought it was the Theravada school that dominated South East Asia.. Including pre Islamic Indonesia and Malaysia.. Myanmar,Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia are strongholds of Theravada Buddhism to this day..

 

[TopCat]

Buddhism was the best thing ever happened to India and Hinduism is the worst thing that always haunted India. I am glad that even the Hindus now realized that and reopened one of the most ancient institution and Buddhist landmark.

 

[TejasMk3]

Well 316 posts, was a good run

 

[Gibbs]

Hopefully now that the gandhara region has been freed from talibitches insects and troops are stationed there the site will be protected... From both those insects n smuggler mofos... They dug up the artefacts n smuggled them to Afghanistan in NATO containers ... A few smugglers were busted through whih police traced an organised mafia and recovered hundreds of relics:


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The talibitches also tried to do that in swat ... And now thankfully the few they tried to destroy have been restored :

Buddha attacked by Taliban gets facelift in Pakistan - Pakistan - DAWN.COM


Pakistan even asked the afghan talibs to spare the bamyan Buddha ..

Magnificent pieces of art.. Hope Pakistani authorities preserve and keep them safe for future generations.. Every single Pakistani should be proud of their cultural heritage