It’s unfortunate that in Hinduism the worship of goddesses is sometimes closely associated with bloody animal sacrifices such as the Gadhimai festival in Nepal. This goes against the central Hindu virtue of “ahimsa,” or harmlessness, and stems partly from a misunderstanding of Hindu theology, in which goddesses represent Shakti, the divine feminine principle.

As the active force which moves the universe, Shakti is often associated specifically with violent, destructive force, and so some practitioners believe that by indulging in violence and destruction themselves they are worshiping Shakti. This ignores the fact that Hindu spiritual practice is not about blind indulgence, but harnessing and disciplining one’s nature to achieve a higher state of consciousness.

The proper use of violent force, and the dangers of giving it free reign, are both portrayed in the origin story of Kali, one of the most popular goddesses (and sadly, most often sacrificed to). She is said to have come to Earth in order to defeat a plague of demons, but because every drop of blood shed would invariably birth another demon, Kali was forced to drink it in order to prevail. However, she herself then became drunk on the blood, and went on a wild rampage which itself threatened to destroy all life on Earth, necessitating the self-sacrifice of her husband Shiva to quell her bloodlust and bring her to her senses again.

The moral message is clear: even if violence is occasionally necessary against extreme evil, we must always avoid indulging in bloodlust, or else we risk becoming as wicked as the enemy we would seek to defeat. Yet many self-identified Hindus have overlooked or ignored this lesson, and by needlessly slaughtering hundreds of thousands of innocent animals as a form of “worship,” participants in Gadhimai and other sacrifices more closely resemble demons than the goddesses who combat them.

(Featured image: Hindu saint Caitanya preaching to the animals, who dance with joy in his presence)

It’s unfortunate that in Hinduism the worship of goddesses is sometimes closely associated with bloody animal sacrifices such as the Gadhimai festival in Nepal. This goes against the central Hindu virtue of “ahimsa,” or harmlessness, and stems partly from a misunderstanding of Hindu theology, in which goddesses represent Shakti, the divine feminine principle.

As the active force which moves the universe, Shakti is often associated specifically with violent, destructive force, and so some practitioners believe that by indulging in violence and destruction themselves they are worshiping Shakti. This ignores the fact that Hindu spiritual practice is not about blind indulgence, but harnessing and disciplining one’s nature to achieve a higher state of consciousness.

The proper use of violent force, and the dangers of giving it free reign, are both portrayed in the origin story of Kali, one of the most popular goddesses (and sadly, most often sacrificed to). She is said to have come to Earth in order to defeat a plague of demons, but because every drop of blood shed would invariably birth another demon, Kali was forced to drink it in order to prevail. However, she herself then became drunk on the blood, and went on a wild rampage which itself threatened to destroy all life on Earth, necessitating the self-sacrifice of her husband Shiva to quell her bloodlust and bring her to her senses again.

The moral message is clear: even if violence is occasionally necessary against extreme evil, we must always avoid indulging in bloodlust, or else we risk becoming as wicked as the enemy we would seek to defeat. Yet many self-identified Hindus have overlooked or ignored this lesson, and by needlessly slaughtering hundreds of thousands of innocent animals as a form of “worship,” participants in Gadhimai and other sacrifices more closely resemble demons than the goddesses who combat them.

(Featured image: Hindu saint Caitanya preaching to the animals, who dance with joy in his presence)

RT.COM  DISPATCH  |  IN THE MIDST OF AN ALMOST TOTAL AMERICAN MEDIA BLACKOUT, A HISTORICAL VISIT MARKED BY radical and unprecedented PRONOUNCEMENTS.

---

“This system is by now intolerable. So let’s not be afraid to say it: we need change; we want change…it must be done, and it can be done. ” ——Pope Francis

[dropcap]P[/dropcap]ope Francis has urged the people of Latin America to stand up to the world’s capitalist system and change the world economic order by creating a “truly communitarian economy” based on distribution of goods among all.

Starting his speech with the need to instigate change, he called on the faithful to fight to protect human dignity in a “system” where farm workers end up without land or home and laborers without rights.

“Do we realize that that system has imposed the mentality of profit at any price, with no concern for social exclusion or the destruction of nature?” he asked at a powerful speech before a gathering of social movements in Bolivia.

Once “capital” becomes an “idol” and guides individuals and once “greed for money presides over the entire socioeconomic system,” it ruins society, Francis said. It enslaves individuals and destroys “ fraternity,” a system which “excludes, debases and kills.”

“This system is by now intolerable. So let’s not be afraid to say it: we need change; we want change,” Pope Francis said.

The Pope called on his followers to create a “truly communitarian economy,” a system that would guarantee the three “L’s” of land, lodging and labor.

“It is no utopia or chimera. It is an extremely realistic prospect. We can achieve it. Working for a just distribution of the fruits of the earth and human labor is not mere philanthropy. It is a moral obligation,” the Pope said in the city of Santa Cruz to participants of the second world meeting of popular movements, an international body that brings together organizations of people on the margins of society.

The Argentinian-native Pope urged the crowd to tackle “three great tasks”.

The first task is to create an economy at the ”service of peoples” not at the “service of money” Such an approach, the Pope believes, will focus on service rather than profits which in return will protect “Mother Earth.”

---

The second task is to unite our peoples on the “path of peace and justice” to defend their sovereignty against “colonialism.”

“The new colonialism takes on different faces. At times it appears as the anonymous influence of mammon: corporations, loan agencies, certain free trade treaties, and the imposition of measures of austerity which always tighten the belt of workers and the poor.”

“Monopolizing communications” is yet another example of consumerism and “new colonialism” for the Pope that ultimately denies countries the right to development.

Pope Francis called on social movements to protect their culture, their language, their social processes and their religious traditions.

The third task is environmental: to “defend Mother Earth,” by breaking down the current “system” which ravishes the planet’s ecology.

The pontiff issued a fierce condemnation of the world’s governments for what he calls “cowardice” in defending the Earth, calling it “a grave sin.”

“We cannot allow certain interests – interests which are global but not universal – to take over, to dominate states and international organizations, and to continue destroying creation,” Pope Francis concluded.

---

addendum | By RT.COM

‘Not to share wealth  with poor is to steal’: Pope slams capitalism as ‘new tyranny’

[dropcap]P[/dropcap]ope Francis has taken aim at capitalism as “a new tyranny” and is urging world leaders to step up their efforts against poverty and inequality, saying “thou shall not kill” the economy. Francis calls on rich people to share their wealth.

The existing financial system that fuels the unequal distribution of wealth and violence must be changed, the Pope warned.

“How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points?” Pope Francis asked an audience at the Vatican.

The global economic crisis, which has gripped much of Europe and America, has the Pope asking how countries can function, or realize their full economic potential, if they are weighed down by the debts of capitalism.

“A new tyranny is thus born, invisible and often virtual, which unilaterally and relentlessly imposes its own laws and rules,” the 84-page document, known as an apostolic exhortation, said.

“To all this we can add widespread corruption and self-serving tax evasion, which has taken on worldwide dimensions. The thirst for power and possessions knows no limits”,the pope’s document says.

He goes on to explain that in this system, which tends to devour everything which stands in the way of increased profits, whatever is fragile, like the environment, is defenseless before the interests of a deified market, which has become the only rule we live by.

Shameful wealth

Inequality between the rich and the poor has reached a new threshold, and in his apostolic exhortation to mark the end of the “Year of Faith”, Pope Francis asks for better politicians to heal the scars capitalism made on society.

“Just as the commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ sets a clear limit in order to safeguard the value of human life, today we also have to say ‘thou shalt not’ to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills,” Francis wrote in the document issued Tuesday.

His calls to service go beyond general good Samaritan deeds, as he asks his followers for action “beyond a simple welfare mentality”.

“I beg the Lord to grant us more politicians who are genuinely disturbed by the state of society, the people, the lives of the poor,” Francis wrote.

A recent IRS report shows that the wealth of the US’s richest 1 percent has grown by 31 percent, while the rest of the population experienced an income rise of only 1 percent.

The most recent Oxfam data shows that up to 146 million Europeans are at risk of falling into poverty by 2025 and 50 million Americans are currently suffering from severe financial hardship.

“As long as the problems of the poor are not radically resolved by rejecting the absolute autonomy of markets and financial speculation, and by attacking the structural causes of inequality, no solution will be found for the world’s problems or, for that matter, to any problems,” he wrote.

Named after the medieval saint who chose a life of poverty, Pope Francis has gone beyond general calls for fair work, education, and healthcare.

Newly-elected Pope Francis has stepped up the fight against corrupt capitalism that has hit close to home – he was the first Pope to go after the Vatican bank and openly accused it of fraud and shady offshore tax haven deals.

In October, Pope Francis removed Vatican bank head Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, after revelations of alleged mafia money laundering and financial impropriety.

[printfriendly]

Remember: All captions and pullquotes are furnished by the editors, NOT the author(s). 

---

What is $5 a month to support one of the greatest publications on the Left?

---

---

---

---

---

Personal Journeys—

I was a born-again Christian in my youth. Headed the Baptist Youth Fellowship at my church. Then I actually read the Bible. In it, God demanded animal sacrifices because He enjoyed the smell of their burning flesh! He condoned the killing of disobedient children! He ordered the murders of unfaithful wives! He killed babies and committed the greatest genocide in history! (The Great Deluge).  Aside from the humans he killed, all those millions of innocent animals died!

I decided God was evil. Now I am sure He doesn’t exist!

Animals didn’t fare too well under Jesus, either. He ran a herd of pigs off a cliff, and ate fish. Not a real loving god to those animals that died because of him!

And, if you buy into the Trinity, Jesus and God are the same person. So Jesus was in on all the atrocities of the Old Testament, animal sacrifice, slavery, and all. Of course He might have changed His mind about all that, but the very idea of a God who changes His mind to reflect current social values doesn’t sound like much of a God!

The whole premise of Christianity is that we all need to be saved from Original Sin, which we all inherited from Adam and Eve. Problem is that there never was an Adam and Eve. Humans evolved from a community of some 10,000 hominids in Africa. No Adam and Eve, no Original Sin. No reason for Christ to have died. Not to mention that the whole concept of an “original sin” is downright idiotic.

The Bible, supposedly the Word of God, is a mishmash of folklore, Bronze Age superstition, myth and lies. Cure leprosy by killing a dove and dripping its blood on your big toe? Kill children for dissing their parents? Get a wife by raping a virgin? Buy slaves from your neighbors? Talking snakes? And on and on.

The New Testament is just as screwed up. In Matthew, Jesus’ genealogy differs from the one listed in Mark! In one of his letters (Epistle to Philemon), Paul tells a Christian slaveowner how to properly treat his Christian slave!

And this is only one of thousands of religions people have believed in across the centuries.

Do you believe in Baal? Ra? Thor? Jupiter? Zeus? Horus? Isis? Odin? Caesar?

Then you, too, are an atheist (at least about most of the gods in history).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Roland Windsor Vincent is an Animal Rights activist, political strategist, attorney, public speaker, and writer. He is now TGP’s Special Editor for Socialism, Environment & Animal Rights.

Friend him on Facebook: www.facebook.com/RolandWindsorVincent
Follow his blog:
www.ArmoryOfTheRevolution.com