Category: Philosophy

Neo-Tech Views On Ayn Rand And Objectivism

Posted by NathanShaw in Philosophy

     

Ayn Rand valued Aristotle’s philosophy and developed her own philosophy of reason called Objectivism. Aristotle’s philosophy adhered to the logic of A ‘is’ A, but Alfred Korzybski took ‘is’ away. Frank R Wallace replaced it all with Neo-Tech Objectivism.

Frank R Wallace quoted Ayn Rand saying ’save me from the Radians’. Ayn Rand was her self repulsed by the cult-ish obsession coming from Objectivists at that time.

Ayn Rand, the founder of Objectivism, was an inspiration to Frank R Wallace. Ayn Rand’s influence on early versions of Neo-Tech Power is obvious. Wallace showed great admiration for Objectivism, particularly Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged.

Neo-Tech sought to convert that rigid dogmatic cult following of Ayn Rand into a highly leveraged force of intelligence and influence.

Wallace once suggested that Ayn Rand’s character John Galt had influential powers probably beyond realistic possibility. Ayn Rand claimed that her hero’s revealed the reality of man. Ayn Rand’s Objectivism seems to have provided no such real life hero (that I am aware of). Wallace’s Neo-Tech later went on to describe The Greatest Discovery Ever! and the ‘wpgsh’ phenomenon of societal influence.

In fact, reading Ayn Rand’s early fiction, you can clearly see a natural dislike of reality that Rand seems to have imbued. Cuts from The Fountainhead show Howard Roarke as almost schizophrenic in his lack of mindfulness. I seem to remember the character even claiming he was incapable of love. He clearly seemed that way in the cut edits that never made it into the published version of The Fountainhead. Neo-Tech approaches human experience from a very different angle. Neo-Tech’s evolution rises from research into the history of love, with human happiness as being the primary goal. This was not clearly expressed in Ayn Rand’s writings. Perhaps it would have been her next novel.

I believe Ayn Rand’s Objectivism cleared a path for Neo-Tech to evolve for providing the ‘human’ side of the hard facts of reality.

What differences are there between Neo-Tech and Objectivism?

Objectivism used 5 classifications of philosophy. Here they are with Objectivism keyword for each category in the brackets.

I’m going to call them Objectivism Metaphysics (Reality), Objectivism Epistemology (Reason), Objectivism Politics (Capitalism), Objectivism Aesthetics (never defined), and Objectivism Ethics (self-interest).

Neo-Tech’s definitions for Neo-Tech Metaphysics (Business), Neo-Tech Epistemology (Neo-Think), Neo-Tech Politics (Free competition), Neo-Tech Ethics (Value production), and Neo-Tech Aesthetics (Value reflection).

Perhaps Frank R Wallace and Ayn Rand would have come to rather narrow agreements in a personal discussion. Wallace would certainly have seen far and wide. Ayn Rand might have slapped his face.

Neo-Tech broadens the reach of Objectivism, both philosophically, and commercially.

Similarities between Neo-Tech and Objectivism

Both Neo-Tech and Objectivism posit the primacy of existence to consciousness. In easier language that simply means that reality exists ‘before’ consciousness has a place to exist. Platonic mysticism and Kant would argue that consciousness is primary, that reality is seated within this thing we call consciousness. Both Neo-Tech and Objectivism strongly disagree.

Nathan Shaw has begun a site on Neo-Tech history, Neo-Tech Publishing, and The Neo-Tech Discovery and Nouveau-Tech. Nathan has also created an Life Direction and Career Development Workshop program online at Life Direction

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Are We The Makers Of Our Destiny?

Posted by Vgevge in Philosophy

     

The concept of destiny has fascinated humans since time immemorial. Is our success predestined? Or is it in our hands? Most modern thought has deemed that our endeavor alone determines our success. But with competition intensifying, changes accelerating and many unpredictable and uncontrollable factors determining results in today’s complex world, many people are re-examining this belief.

For example, a brilliant student, despite diligent studies, gets average marks, whereas a mediocre student, with last-minute cramming, gets high grades. Why? Are we just unwitting players in a cosmic lottery, with chance as the supreme arbiter? Or are results handed down by destiny, under the sanction of a just God? Some people recoil at the very mention of destiny. They fear that lazy people may opportunistically argue, “As the result is predestined, why work hard?” and so become irresponsible and fatalistic.

However knowledge of destiny does not justify fatalism because the Mahabharata clarifies, “Destiny determines the results of our actions, not our actions themselves.”

The Vedic texts explain that these two ideologies, karmavada (endeavor, karma, alone determines success) and daivavada (destiny, daiva, alone determines success) are the two extremes of the pendulum of human imagination.

In reality, success requires both endeavor and destiny. For example, in agriculture, a good harvest requires both diligent ploughing and timely rains. Ploughing represents endeavor and rains signify destiny. Despite ploughing, no harvest can result, if there are no rains. Similarly sometimes, despite our best efforts, we may fail, due to adverse destiny. When people are uninformed about the role of destiny in determining results, failures make them feel hopeless, “I am worthless and cannot do anything well”, even when they have the potential to perform in the future.

Consequently today many of our brothers and sisters are unfortunately and needlessly suffering from mental problems like inferiority complex, low self-esteem, depression and self-pity.

Lord Krishna gives us hope in the Bhagavad-gita by pointing out that though we don’t determine the result, we do play a significant role. Going back to the farmer analogy, the farmer must plough the field for favorable rainfall to produce crops. Similarly we must endeavor for destiny to produce results. Hence the Gita urges us to perform our God-given duty without attachment.

We need detachment because our material happiness and distress in this life are predestined by our own karma from past lives. We cannot change them no matter how hard we work. But by doing our present duties industriously and honestly, we can get our destined happiness. Also we can make for ourselves a bright future destiny, even if our present is bleak.

Moreover, even at present, destiny limits only our material happiness, not our spiritual happiness. All of us have equal and complete opportunity to awaken our dormant love for God and experience oceanic happiness thereof. This supreme fulfillment is available at our tongue tips, just by the chanting of the Holy Names of God, Krishna.

In the spiritual world the Absolute is always absolute; the name, form, quality and pastimes of the Absolute are all as good as the Absolute Himself. As such, one is understood to be an eternal servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead if he considers himself an eternal servant of the holy name and in this spirit distributes the holy name to the world. One who chants in that spirit, without offenses, is certainly elevated to the platform of understanding that the holy name and the Personality of Godhead are identical.

To associate with the holy name and chant the holy name is to associate with the Personality of Godhead directly. Whatever instruments we need to chant names of God are already provided, no one has to purchase a tongue. We also have ears with which to hear the sound that the tongue vibrates.

Therefore we have all the instruments we need with us — a tongue and ears. We only have to chant Hare Krsna and use our ears to hear this vibration, and all perfection will be there for us. No inimical destiny can obstruct us in achieving divine bliss; rather when we take one step towards God, He takes a thousand steps towards us. Even a little spiritual dynamism brings enormous returns. And as we are intrinsically spiritual beings and as our lasting satisfaction comes from spiritual devotion, we can rejoice in knowing that our real happiness is not destined, but is in our own hands.

Hence intelligent people are cautious to not let over-endeavor for flickering material aggrandizement deprive them of the time and energy to strive for lasting spiritual enlightenment.

Let us therefore do our best (materially and spiritually) and leave the rest (to God faithfully).

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books. You can find the best marketplace for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books at these sites for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and destiny books.

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Invest In Your Eternal Bank Account

Posted by Vgevge in Philosophy

     

Imagine a share advertisement declaring, “A 100% guarantee: you will lose every single penny invested here!” And if you found millions of people investing all their life’s savings in such a share, wouldn’t you lament their misfortune and imprudence? But isn’t this what almost all of us are doing? We are born with a death sentence written on our bodies.

Despite all scientific advancement, the death rate was, is and will always be 100%; everyone who is born has to die without exception. And yet almost everyone spends his entire life pandering to the demands of the body and its extensions. Sometimes people imagine that death is a very peaceful end to all our life’s struggles. But let’s consider: here in this life, when we lose a small amount of our hard-earned money, we feel so distressed. Then at death, when we lose everything that we have given our sweat, blood, heart and life to obtain, how much more will be our suffering?

The Garuda Purana, an ancient Vedic scripture, compares the agony of death to the pain of 40,000 simultaneous scorpion bites.

But hold on - there’s also good news. Each of us has the power to save ourselves from this enormous suffering. We are all eternal souls, beloved children of God, temporarily situated in material bodies. Our bodies have to die but we don’t have to suffer at death. The pain at death is wholly due to the agony of losing all that is very dear to our hearts. If during our lifetime, we have made God our dearmost object, then death will not separate, but unite us, with our object of love.

Love for God is natural for us but is currently dormant in our hearts. This sleeping love can be most easily awakened by the divine sound of the holy names of God. The state of conditioned life in the material world is just like a man lying unconscious, having been bitten by a snake. This is because both such unconscious states can be ended by the sound of a mantra.” When a man is snake-bitten he does not die immediately, but first becomes unconscious and remains in a comatose condition. Anyone who is in the material world is also sleeping, as he is ignorant of his actual self or his actual duty and his relationship with God

So materialistic life means that one is bitten by the snake of maya, illusion, and thus, without any Krishna consciousness, he is almost dead. Now, the so-called dead man bitten by a snake can be brought back again to life by the chanting of some mantra. There are expert chanters of these mantras who can perform this feat. Similarly, one can be brought back into Krishna consciousness from the deadly unconscious state of material life by hearing of the holy names of the Lord.

Therefore every moment utilized in chanting the names of God is like an investment in our eternal bank account, which we can draw on in our future lives. An intelligent executive always saves to prepare for his future retirements, however pressing the present demands for money are. Similarly a wise person invests time in serving God to prepare for his inevitable death and afterlife, no matter how busy he is.

Srila Prabhupada, the founder of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), gave a prominent Mumbai businessman precious insights into transcendental business, “In the ledger of your life, all the time you have spent on your body, is loss and all the time you have spent for Krishna (God) is profit.” Therefore just as a materially shrewd businessman carefully counts every note he earns, let us carefully count every name of God we chant. This is the process of Bhakti-yoga, it is so simple, pure and easy that a child can practice without difficulty. One can begin by simply chanting Holy Names of God.

Krishna is very merciful to those who engage in His service, by chanting His divine names, and He helps in various ways that devotee who is fully surrendered to Him so he can understand Him as He is. The Lord gives such a devotee sufficient intelligence so that ultimately the devotee can attain Him in His spiritual kingdom. Therefore any amount of energy we expend in Krishna consciousness or service to the Lord remains our eternal benefit or credit that will carry us to next destination after death.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books. You can find the best marketplace for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books at these sites for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and reincarnation books.

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The Importance Of Celibacy And Chastity

Posted by Vgevge in Philosophy

     

There exists considerable evidence from the field of psychiatry to indicate a definite relationship between the sex gland and the brain. Spermatozoa may have an internal function that is necessary for the normal metabolism of the brain, and dementia praecox (schizophrenia) may be due to an alteration of deficiency of their production due to degeneration of the seminiferous (pertaining to the formation of semen) tubules of auto-intoxication (due to having been poisoned). This may result from masturbation and sexual excess in causing a chemical withdrawal from the circulation necessary for the nutrition of the brain.

We must remember that lecithin is a chief constituent of the myelin sheaths of the nerve-cells and essential for their activity, during which it is consumed-for it is the nerve-oil that keeps the fire of nerve and brain activity burning. Since lecithin is also a principal constituent of the semen, we can readily understand why excessive sexual activity should lead to lecithin deficiency and under-nutrition of nerve and brain cells. The sex glands influence the brain. Their influence on the nerves, however, is more immediate and profound.

Conservation of semen means conservation of sex hormones and increased vigor, while loss of semen means loss of hormones and diminished vitality. Also chronic deficiency of such hormones leads to the symptoms of senility.

“We tell you that at every emission of semen you’re losing the nutrients and the best portion of the (blood) corpuscles, inasmuch as every particle of semen which is ejected will be replaced by more taken from the blood. This is enough to convince you that when you are ejecting semen, which should stay in the body and become reabsorbed so as to form the oil in the joints, in new muscles, in the brain tissues and as well as every other part of the body. That process gets restricted when one indulges in sex.

Lord Krishna says, “Real happiness is to transcend material happiness and unhappiness, and real misery is to be implicated in searching for sex pleasure (kama-sukha). A wretched person is one who cannot control his senses, whereas one who is not attached to sense gratification is a real controller. One who attaches himself to sense gratification is the opposite, a slave.”

The search for mundane sex pleasure, kama-sukha, is not appreciated by Krishna. The art of lust is portrayed in the book kama sutra, and of course, it is not meant for persons wishing to make spiritual advancement.

Gandhi: “The horror with which ancient literature regarded the fruitless loss of vital fluid was not a superstition born of ignorance. Surely it is criminal for a man to allow his most precious possession to run to waste.”

“But we tell you that when you see paralysis, palsy, apoplexy and brain softening you may set it down that there have been sexual losses and a waste of the bodily substance from the sexual orgasm. We assure you nothing can be so enervating as this sexual excess, and any sexual mating is an excess if it is not for the purpose of having children.”

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books. You can find the best marketplace for Krishna art, religious gifts from India, and Hare Krishna books at these sites for Bramachari art, Bramachari gifts from India, and Bramachari dhoti.

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Making The Connection Between Your Well-being And Living In Abundance Brings Happiness

Posted by CarmB in Philosophy

     

Your well-being can affect your ability to live in abundance, because your well-being affects your ability to attract abundance in your life. If we want to live well, live wise, and live wealthy, we must pay close attention to our well-being.

Many people do not understand what is meant by the concept well-being or how to achieve it. And most people honestly do not feel that their well-being can affect their ability to prosper or attract abundance in their lives. Our well-being is always first when we choose to live in abundance. Our human potential is related to our well-being. Our level of wellness will determine the energy we have to devote to our purpose in life. Although exercise and eating the best foods for the body are crucial to our health and our vitality, the mental aspects of our being is just as crucial.

The person who commits to thinking well will also live well. This type of thought-force requires us to study and open ourselves to truth, meaning, and purpose. As we open ourselves to truth, meaning, and purpose, we are able to understand the world and our lives in at a level which goes beyond what we can see with our eyes. And in this study we will find the science of well-being.

So, how is all this related to happiness? Well-being is wondrous state of being. In fact, a better way to see it is that well-being is about–being happiness. That is correct being happiness instead of experiencing fleeting moments of joy. Happiness should never be something we turn on and off depending on how our day goes. It is a continuous state of being. Nothing can affect it but our thoughts and expectations. This continuous state of vibrancy attracts wealth, success, optimal health, love, and empowering relationships–and this is abundance.

We can continue to remain in a state of happiness by making the connection between our well-being and true abundance. As a result of this state of well-being, we are in direct alignment with prosperity, hope, kindness, elation, joy, and vitality which are all the ingredients for abundance. That means we must think well and expect goodness in order to attract abundance.

However, when we become distracted (dis-attracting) with fetters of life, trying to control situations and trying to manipulate people, our state of well-being is distorted. This distortion is caused by thoughts of fear, expectations of failure, and feelings of inadequacy.

Yes, everyone wants to be happy, but we must learn to be happiness. How can we remain in a state of well-being and happiness? We can accomplish this by speaking joy into our lives and letting go of our illusions and ego. The key is to let go of our ego and realize our true self. When we realize our true self, we see the goodness that lies with in us and those feelings of inadequacy disappear. We become aligned with the divine flow of goodness and when we are aligned with goodness, our vibration changes and we become a magnet for prosperity, health, joy, peace, order, wisdom, love, and devotion.

Remembering to not resist change will get us in this flow. As such, if this requires that you change your facial expressions, align with the flow and change your facial expressions. If it requires that you change your mind, align with the flow and change your mind. If it requires that you change your language, then align with the flow and change your language. Whatever it takes to align with the flow, for the sake of prosperity, hope, vitality, and your own happiness; get on with it and get with the flow.

Carmellita M. Brown is an author, online publisher, and
Holistic Life Specialist. She invites you to join the online course
Abundance Training 101: The
Universal Law of Abundance
.

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Srila Prabhupada’s Presentation Of Sastras

Posted by Vgevge in Philosophy

     

Srila Prabhupada did not present Shastra as a dry academic subject to be theorized and armchair-philosophized about. Instead of giving abstruse explanations, he spoke and more importantly lived the essense of shastra. He repeatedly emphasized the point of all sastra: “You are not this body. Surrender to Krsna.”

Srila Prabhupada repeatedly said that by reading his books we get in touch with the previous acaryas. Indeed, his purports to the sastra draw on the realization of the previous acaryas whose commentaries Prabhupada consulted before composing his own. A special feature of Srila Prabhupada’s purports, however, is that he was the first to show how the Srimad Bhagvatam’s principles can be applied in practical circumstances in the human society. Also for the first time ever, he comprehensively presented Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy, replete with all subtleties and complexities, in a non-Indian language.

Prabhupada’s explanation of Vedic philosophy is simple, clear, and uncomplicated English is an unprecedented achievement in literary history. English is a mleccha-bhasa (language of meat eaters), but Srila Prabhupada purified it. Quoting Srila Prabhupada’s purports is as authorized as quoting from the Original Sanskrit shastras. Infact, the words of the acharya are even more potent because without the acharya’s explanations, ordinary people would not be able to understand the meaning of shastra.

Srila prabhupada’s lectures were simple, straightforward bhagavad philosophy. Prabhupada’s songs are preferable to any of the dozens of styles of melodius kirtans because there is a different level of potency altogether. Srila prabhupada’s presentations whether it is the songs he sung or the purports he wrote, everything was always Krishna centric and at no point were for material sensual pleasure. His intense purity and compassion for the fallen conditions souls manifest in all his work. Being a pure devotee of the lord, his words are infallible, totally correct and spoken for upliftment of all concerned.

His words enter the heart of a living entity and purify it. The potency in his works is so strong that even though he has written for everyone, it seems to the reader that he is speaking personally to the individual reader and whatever he has written makes complete sense to the honest inquisitive.

Srila Prabhupada’s works reflected his inadvertent strong-mind and principles. There were no contradictions or interpretations. He presented the message as it is. Srila Prabhupada make Krsna and the Hare Krsna mahamantra famous all over the world even though non-devotees don’t know much about him. This is due to his presentation of Shastra as a messenger. He never took credit for this great benediction that he was giving and continues to give to fallen conditioned souls through his books.

The philosophy he preached through his books was sound in theory and practically applicable under all circumstances. Srila Prabhupada saw nothing as different from Krsna. He saw Krsna everywhere and in everything, and everything in Krsna. Whatever he wrote is a living example or rather an extention of this premise that he lived by. He wanted to engage everything and everybody in Krsna’s service. His works and method of presentation of shastras are still inspiring thousands of people to take up the sublime method of Krsna consciousness practically in their lives. His objective of developing a Krsna conscious movement, which is not limited to study of literature, however is built on how he presented the message of Krsna and Lord Chaitanya throughout the world.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant at http://www.VedicBooks.info/. VedicBooks.info offers Vedic books and Vaisnava literatures from many authorized sources. Please browse through our selection of Latest Additions here: http://www.VedicBooks.info/category/latest-additions.html.

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