Tibetan Oracles
The miraculous feats of the Tibetan oracles are well known sources of mysticism. Stories of men who can bend metal swords with their bare hands, dance wildly and proclaim the future have piqued the curiosity and fascination of many. However, most rationale people will question, how real is the Tibet oracle? Are these men really visited by the deities who they claim to be visited by or are they merely masters of illusion? “The desire to know the future is probably as old as the human race. Early cultures all over the world have left fragments of evidence telling us that divination was of paramount importance in their daily lives.” (Housdan, 7) This desire causes most Tibetans to fervently believe in the power of these oracles. Like most other cultures, the Tibetans are curious about the future and use the methodology of the Oracle as a means for divination. The Tibetan oracles are highly respected members of the community whom the Tibetans consult to find out the future of their own lives as well as the future of the Tibetan country.
Despite the Tibetan’s belief in the spiritual nature of the trance, anthropologists who have studied it have been able to come up with other explanations for the trance state that do not involve the religious belief in spirit possession. These explanations often involve subjects such as psychology and neurology that look at the physiological state of the body during the trance. Through scientifically analyzing the trance state, it raises the question of whether or not the oracles who enter into these trances are able to do so intentionally and if an oracle can willfully enter into a trance, then how does an oracle become valid? The Tibetan oracles are both sources of mysticism but they have also been sources of great controversy in Tibet for these questions involving the authenticity of the oracle.
The traditional Tibetan belief is that Tibetan deities will take possession of men or women in society who act as mouthpieces of the gods. “Spiritual possession is defined as an altered state of consciousness that is characterized by desertion of a person’s original personality, followed by temporary replacement of another.”(AvRuskin, 286) The god enters into the body of the medium and the medium will enter a trance-like state during which the deity is using the mediums body as a tool.
There is lots of evidence in the Lizzie Borden murders, but is it enough to say Lizzie Borden killed Mr. and Mrs. Borden? Mr. and Mrs. Borden were killed in their home on August 4th 1892. Their daughter Lizzie Borden was the suspected killer. She was found to be innocent, yet many people still think that Lizzie borden murdered her parents that day. There is a lot of evidence that points to Lizzie being the killer. A lot of things she did and said were very suspicious. Lizzie Borden is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Further, prayer and medicine interplay to paint a classical image of the Native’s creed, yet, for many obsolete or preposterous existences of the shaman. To re-install beliefs present in the world for thousands of years, but have been disappearing, writers such as Neidhardt introduce the element of the
Lizzie Borden lived a pleasant life before the murders. Many believe that because Andrew didn’t buy everything and didn’t waste his money on Lizzie, that he was putting her at a disadvantage. So, it rumored that this was “Lizzie’s drive to kill her father”. In article #2, it explains, “Borden’s father, Andrew Borden, became known as an evil man who did not provide for his daughters. But Martins says the journals and letters paint Andrew Borden differently.” Mr. Borden was a wealthy man, but he did not live in a new modern house or have luxurious household items. Not spending all of his money on brand new appliances would mean that in the end, Lizzie and her sister would inherit a lot more money. Furthermore, this would later on put them at an advantage because they wouldn’t have to worry about money in the later years. Mr. Borden wanted his girls to live a good life throughout it all, so he was saving for their futures. Andrew Borden not providing for Lizzie would not be a lead on why Lizzie would murder him, because he gave her a no money-stress
The famous axe murders of Fall River in 1892 shocked everyone for years and many believe that it was Lizzie Borden or was it? Lizzie Borden is accused of killing her parents with an axe. Many believe that she committed this crime but was never caught. I believe that Lizzie Borden is guilty of killing her parents. Lizzie had a rocky relationship with her stepmother before and a week before the murders Lizzie got into an argument with her father and stepmother. When police searched the house there was no sign of anyone who had tried to break into the Borden house on the day of the murders and Lizzie was the only one in the house
Lizzie was well aware of the disadvantages of being a woman condemned to a narrow societal image and used her unrecognized intelligence to her advantage. By murdering her father and stepfather she was able to gain everything she could have wanted; a large house on the hill, tremendous wealth, and rid herself of a detested stepmother. Although it is a morbid circumstance, Lizzie Borden proved herself to be a clever women of her era. She played the male system, knowing that regardless of what the facts say, the male ego was much more powerful. To question moral, innocent Lizzie meant the men in power must question their ways of thinking and everything they had worked so hard to create, the perfect woman.
Rudiger, C. (2003, September 2). World War II and Propaganda. Retrieved March 29, 2014, from Stanford : http://www.stanford.edu/class/e297a/World%20War%20II%20and%20Propaganda.htm
Propaganda is the dissemination of information to influence or control large groups of people. In totalitarian regime like Nazi Germany, propaganda plays a significant role in consolidate power in the hands of the controlling party (Nazi propaganda).The propaganda used by the Nazi Party in the years leading up to and during Adolf Hitler's leadership of Germany (1933–1945) was a crucial instrument for acquiring and maintaining power, and for the implementation of Nazi policies. The pervasive use of propaganda by the Nazis is largely responsible for the word "propaganda" itself acquiring its present negative connotations (definition).
During Hitler’s reign in Germany, propaganda was his main method of control. He and the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, or Nazis, believed that to remain in control, it is necessary to prevent any and all internal unrest through strictly regulated popular opinion. The mission was to keep public opinion in favor of the Nazi party’s ideology. One of the primary aspects of their ideology was extreme anti-Semitism and racial inequality. Within years they were able to introduce this belief to nearly all of the German people through heavy influence by propaganda. Hitler was able to stabilize and dictate his Germany for years through propaganda aimed to control the lives of the youth, the opinions of the general public, and beliefs about the war effort and well-being of the country.
Since 2010, there were 45 states that have adopted the same educational standards called Common Core State Standards (CCSS). The initiative is sponsored by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief State School Officers and seeks to establish consistent education standards across the states. The Common Core Standards is initiative state-led effort that established a single set of clear educational standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English and Mathematical standards. These standards help to educate all of the students equally, they help children who move from state to state, as well as they help to prepare students for college and workplace. The common core standard helps to provide a clear understanding for teachers and parents of what is expected of the students to learn. It is designed to help educate our children for the future; it gives them the knowledge and skill they need to be prepared for post secondary education and employment. "The standards are designed to be robust and relevant to the real world." (National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, Council of Chief State School Officers)
Heller, A. (2007). Discoveries in western Tibet and the western Himalayas essays on history, literature, archaeology and art : PIATS 2003, Tibetan studies, proceedings of the Tenth Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Oxford, 2003. Leiden: Brill.
In an attempt to synthesize my own personal academic area of interest, that is: the history of the psychedelic movement in twentieth century America, with the content of the Asian Religions course, I have elected to study the relationship between the influx of Buddhist philosophy and the psychedelic counter-culture movement of the 1960’s and 1970’s. The subject, although highly specific, has nonetheless generated intellectual interest substantial enough to warrant a sub-field of study, in terms of Buddhist/American History examination. This paper will focus on the thought of the main harbingers of this movement, specifically Aldous Huxley, Alan Watts, and Dr. Timothy Leary. This study will also examine the corruptions of classical Buddhist philosophy wrought by these intellectuals concerned with integrating the psychedelic experience in an Eastern context. The connection between Buddhism and psychedelics in the American experience is a subject of contention because of the controversial associations of chemically altered perception as compared to traditional Bodhicitta, or the mind of enlightenment. The author Emma Layman, in her book Buddhism in America, asserts:
Introductory Paragraph: Propaganda is a tool of influence that Adolph Hitler used to abuse the German population by brainwashing them and completely deteriorating an entire race. How does one person get the beliefs of an entire country? Hitler put Joseph Goebbels in charge of the propaganda movement. Goebbels controlled every element of propaganda, there were many varieties of Nazi Propaganda. Propaganda was also being used as a tool to gain the support of the German population for the war, and supporting their government. The Jew’s were the targeted race and were completely pulverized by the Nazi’s. Hitler not only tried to destroy an entire race, he gained complete control of an entire country.
“In Tantric Buddhism, we are dealing with a misogynist, destructive, masculine philosophy and religion which is hostile to life – i.e. the precise opposite of that for which it is trustingly and magnanimously welcomed in the figure of the Dalai Lama.”[1] Within Tibetan Buddhism, there is an inherent contradiction regarding the status of women. Although in many aspects women are seen and treated as inferior to men, several of the ancient and fundamental values of Tibetan Buddhism, and more specifically Tantric Buddhism, emphasize equality of the sexes, universal compassion, and most importantly the significant and essential role of the woman. Tibetan Buddhist nuns have been trying to correct this contradiction for years to remove the inferior and degrading stereotype that defines them and to be seen as equal to men. Beginning with the emergence of Tibetan Buddhism from India until today, the status of women, both physically and symbolically has declined due to the patriarchal system adopted by Tibet. “The mystery of Tantric Buddhism consists in the sacrifice of the feminine principle and the manipulation of erotic love in order to attain universal androcentric power.”[2] In their patriarchal society, the symbol of the woman is used by men now as an instrument; manipulated by men in order to acquire control and power.
Oracles, especially chief oracle-priests, have always had major roles in the Tibetan government. In fact, as Avedon notes in In Exile from the Land of the Snows, for the last 1300 years the chief oracle-priest or state-oracle oracle has had the final say on “virtually every key decision of the state.”[1] This disproportionate degree of influence that the chief oracle-priests exercised on the internal as well as the external affairs of Tibet, had often led to situations where “the chief medium became the playball of political intrigues.”[2] The present Tibetan government in exile continues to heavily rely on the state-oracle oracle and others including a rainmaker and two other oracles, who are part of the Dalai Lama’s core group of advisors. Some even claim that the state-oracle oracle’s influence has never been as dominant as it is now in Dharamsala, the home of the Tibetan community in exile[3]. The Tibetan government needs to rectify this imbalance of power and employ a more democratic way of making political decisions. In other words, they need to reduce the oracles’ roles in the Tibetan government.
In Tibet one might use the words “religion” and “culture” almost as synonyms, especially for the arts—literature, drama, painting, and sculpture. Not only were they inspired by religion, but religion was their very raison d’être (Pal 18).