are there any hindus here who can help expand on some concepts for me? - GoFuckYourself.com

Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life · 06-05-2007, 10:08 PM

I really don't know that this is the place, but I'm going to ask anyhow as I'm having difficulty understanding the concept of Brahman, which I thought was simply a high class of hindu priests.

Quote:

The aspect of the Divine which resides in humans is called Atman; it is not that this Atman is an incomplete piece of Brahman, and that if one were to take the sum of the Divine in all things one would constitute the whole of Brahman. Brahman is indivisible, and so Atman is just the name we apply to Brahman in ourselves.

Coud you explain this in plain english for me? Is Brahman a concept and Brahmin the term for someone practicing it? How do Brahman and Atman correspond with each other, and them together with Maya?

spunkmister · 06-05-2007, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ismokeblunts

I really don't know that this is the place, but I'm going to ask anyhow as I'm having difficulty understanding the concept of Brahman, which I thought was simply a high class of hindu priests.

Coud you explain this in plain english for me? Is Brahman a concept and Brahmin the term for someone practicing it? How do Brahman and Atman correspond with each other, and them together with Maya?

you're prob better off going to your nearest hindu temple and asking one of the priests to try and explain it...

Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life · 06-05-2007, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spunkmister

you're prob better off going to your nearest hindu temple and asking one of the priests to try and explain it...

i only ask here because my last arguement involving hinduism was here, and quite a few people jumped in on it...

You Forgot Poland · 06-05-2007, 10:58 PM

D · 06-05-2007, 11:24 PM

If my memory of 'Intro to Philosohy' serves me (The study of the Upanis.ad was the part I was weakest on)...

The Brahman is Everything. The Atman is the soul. However, in the Hindu concept, everything is a part of everything else. There are no individual forces in the universe. It's all Brahman. So the Brahman and Atman are inseparable and the same thing, essentially.

Everything is Brahman. Everything is Atman. The Self is Brahman. The Self is Atman. That cow's Atman is your Atman and is the Atman of everyone else in the universe, and it is all Brahman.

Fun, stuff, eh? The stuff still makes me dizzy.

"Brahmin" is something different entirely. It's is a class in the Hindu heirarchy. The teachers and priest class. There are a few other castes such as warriors, merchants, and laborers.

All are a part of Brahman and have Atman. The Brahmin (I think "Brahamana" or something like that was the name of the entire caste) are probably (this is my opinion... I'm going out on a limb here) named such because their place in the world brings them closer to understanding the Brahman, and puts them in a place to share their knowledge with others.

Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life · 06-05-2007, 11:30 PM

Yes, I was sort of under the impression that the brahman was the divine everything, and the atman the dvine everything within one's self. i think the terms brahman and brahmin were colliding a bit within my head for some confusion. Still googling my way around, looks like I have a night of reading ahead of me. thanks for the notes D

D · 06-05-2007, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ismokeblunts

Yes, I was sort of under the impression that the brahman was the divine everything, and the atman the dvine everything within one's self. i think the terms brahman and brahmin were colliding a bit within my head for some confusion. Still googling my way around, looks like I have a night of reading ahead of me. thanks for the notes D

No worries, man.... happy to share what limited knowledge I have.

If you ever get a handle on this stuff, and want to be confused again, try reading the philosophies of Descartes and Spinoza... I think I actually felt my head explode a little bit during a lecture one day.

emthree · 06-05-2007, 11:50 PM

Hinduism is pretty deep.
I've been meaning to read up on it.

Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life · 06-06-2007, 12:06 AM

I sat down and read Siddhartha by Herman Hesse from front back this afternoon. It's the second work of Hesse's I've read recently (read Narcissus and Goldmund a few months back) I understood the story fairly well, but feel like I can still find a deeper level in the book if I have a better understanding of the principals the story is based upon. I think Hesse's obsession (and alot of other authors for that matter) with eastern mysticism, and partially my own disgust with modern western civilization has created an interest in the philosophies, religions, and practices of the east. So I'm diving into some more reading on the subject now...

Additionally I read the first few chapters of The Tao of Detox: The Secrets of Yang-Sheng Dao the other day. My roommate handed me it to take a look at the other day (apparently she's on a cleansing fast right now), and it only took a couple chapters to pull me in too...

I'll definitely make a note on your recommendations, as I'm flying into a reading frenzy as of lately. I finished Plato's Republic not long ago, Timothy Leary's Design For Dying, Nietzsche's Twilight of the Idols & The Antichrist, and am still trudging along through his Thus Spoke Zarathustra (I spend about as much time in the dictionary as I do this book, so it's coming along slowly)...

I probably haven't read as many actual books in my entire schooling as I have in the last 4-5 months. Crazy how things change, lol...

OzMan · 06-06-2007, 12:16 AM

Yeah basically what D said

It's been a while since I read anything on Hinduism but to me Brahman is Spirit or universal energy whatever floats your boat.

Atman is an aspect of Brahman that under the illusion of Maya (the physical world of time and space) appears to us to be our separate individual soul/spirit/energy.

06-05-2007, 11:24 PM	#5
D Confirmed User Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Valley Posts: 7,412	If my memory of 'Intro to Philosohy' serves me (The study of the Upanis.ad was the part I was weakest on)... The Brahman is Everything. The Atman is the soul. However, in the Hindu concept, everything is a part of everything else. There are no individual forces in the universe. It's all Brahman. So the Brahman and Atman are inseparable and the same thing, essentially. Everything is Brahman. Everything is Atman. The Self is Brahman. The Self is Atman. That cow's Atman is your Atman and is the Atman of everyone else in the universe, and it is all Brahman. Fun, stuff, eh? The stuff still makes me dizzy. "Brahmin" is something different entirely. It's is a class in the Hindu heirarchy. The teachers and priest class. There are a few other castes such as warriors, merchants, and laborers. All are a part of Brahman and have Atman. The Brahmin (I think "Brahamana" or something like that was the name of the entire caste) are probably (this is my opinion... I'm going out on a limb here) named such because their place in the world brings them closer to understanding the Brahman, and puts them in a place to share their knowledge with others. __________________ -D. ICQ: 202-96-31 Last edited by D; 06-05-2007 at 11:27 PM..

06-05-2007, 11:50 PM	#8
emthree Dialer Kingpin Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: New York Posts: 10,816	Hinduism is pretty deep. I've been meaning to read up on it. __________________ • Sell Patches & Pills •

06-05-2007, 10:58 PM	#4
You Forgot Poland So Fucking Banned Join Date: Jun 2007 Posts: 286

06-05-2007, 11:30 PM	#6
Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life (felis madjewicus) Industry Role: Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In Mom & Dad's Basement Posts: 20,368	Yes, I was sort of under the impression that the brahman was the divine everything, and the atman the dvine everything within one's self. i think the terms brahman and brahmin were colliding a bit within my head for some confusion. Still googling my way around, looks like I have a night of reading ahead of me. thanks for the notes D

06-06-2007, 12:06 AM	#9
Angry Jew Cat - Banned for Life (felis madjewicus) Industry Role: Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: In Mom & Dad's Basement Posts: 20,368	I sat down and read Siddhartha by Herman Hesse from front back this afternoon. It's the second work of Hesse's I've read recently (read Narcissus and Goldmund a few months back) I understood the story fairly well, but feel like I can still find a deeper level in the book if I have a better understanding of the principals the story is based upon. I think Hesse's obsession (and alot of other authors for that matter) with eastern mysticism, and partially my own disgust with modern western civilization has created an interest in the philosophies, religions, and practices of the east. So I'm diving into some more reading on the subject now... Additionally I read the first few chapters of The Tao of Detox: The Secrets of Yang-Sheng Dao the other day. My roommate handed me it to take a look at the other day (apparently she's on a cleansing fast right now), and it only took a couple chapters to pull me in too... I'll definitely make a note on your recommendations, as I'm flying into a reading frenzy as of lately. I finished Plato's Republic not long ago, Timothy Leary's Design For Dying, Nietzsche's Twilight of the Idols & The Antichrist, and am still trudging along through his Thus Spoke Zarathustra (I spend about as much time in the dictionary as I do this book, so it's coming along slowly)... I probably haven't read as many actual books in my entire schooling as I have in the last 4-5 months. Crazy how things change, lol...

06-06-2007, 12:16 AM	#10
OzMan Confirmed User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Los Begas Posts: 9,162	Yeah basically what D said It's been a while since I read anything on Hinduism but to me Brahman is Spirit or universal energy whatever floats your boat. Atman is an aspect of Brahman that under the illusion of Maya (the physical world of time and space) appears to us to be our separate individual soul/spirit/energy.