Anonym asked:
thepaganstudygrouppage answered:
First things first, holy shit am I sorry how long this one has taken to come out. I’ve been sitting on this for months and I finally got around to it. Okay, so why they’re considered appropriation.
I’ll start with Karma. You see the word Karma get thrown around a lot in the west as a quick term for “What goes around comes around.” And while this isn’t entirely wrong it addresses such a narrow scope of what Karma actually is it might as well be.
I’ll start with Hinduism. Karma can be split into three distinct categories:
Prarabdha: what most people think when they think Karma, this affects you within the current life time but this is the smallest portion of Karma.
Kriyamana: this is the accumulation of Karma in the current life time which flows into.
Sanchita: the full amount of Karma that follows into your following lives.
Now India used to have a strong Caste system put in place in society and the more positive your Sanchita Karma the higher in the Caste system you were born in your next life, and the more negative, the lower in the Caste system. Now I believe recently India is either attempting or has gotten rid of the Caste system so I’m not entirely sure how that’s going to affect things, I’m just telling you what I know.
And lastly there is Karmic Yoga. Yes, that’s right, Karmic Yoga is a thing. What most Westerners think of as Yoga is a high specialized Yoga that a long time ago was reserved for royalty. Aside from that there are three other types of Yoga: Karmic Yoga, Devotional Yoga, and Mantra Yoga. (Those are absolutely not the names for the other two but I can’t remember the Sanskrit words so I’m using the closest word that accurately represents the idea.)
Karmic Yoga is devoting your actions to the gods and worshiping them through right deeds. Mantra Yoga is repeating prayers or the deity’s name over and over as an act of devotion and worship and devotion. Yoga is devoting your life to the deity, not so much in a monastic sense but more in a layman’s. Every step you take is dedicated to them.
Now Karma in Buddhism works slightly differently. In Buddhism, Karma does not apply to Buddha’s or Arahants. This is because Karma is only generated out of ignorance. The Buddhas and Arahants have completely shed ignorance and see things as they truly are and thus do not generate Karma. Furthermore, in Buddhism, there are 4 types of Karma instead of 3 and Karma Yoga. The list includes:
Reproductive: This is the karma that determines your conditions at birth, rich poor, etc. and is caused by the predominate Karma at the moment of death from the preceding life.
Supportive: This karma appears near the reproductive Karma and it is neither good nor bad but supports the reproductive Karma and helps it to persist throughout life. This one lasts from immediately after conception to the point of death.
Obstructive/Counteractive: This karma, unlike the previous one, tends to interrupt or obstruct the reproductive Karma, someone born with a good reproductive Karma could be ravished with many ailments thus preventing them from enjoying the circumstances of their birth. On the other hand someone born with bad Karma may have something very fortuitous happen such as winning the lottery and pulling them out of their bad circumstances.
Destructive: According to the law of Karma the potential energy of the Reproductive Karma could be nullified by a more powerful opposing Karma of the past, which, seeking an opportunity, may quite unexpectedly operate, just as a powerful counteractive force can obstruct the path of a flying arrow and bring it down to the ground.
As an instance of operation of all the four, the case of Devadatta, who attempted to kill the Buddha and who caused a schism in the Sangha (disciples of the Buddha) may be cited. His good Reproductive Karma brought him birth in a royal family. His continued comfort and prosperity were due to the action of the Supportive Karma. The Counteractive or Obstructive Karma came into operation when he was subject to much humiliation as a result of his being excommunicated from the Sangha. Finally the Destructive Karma brought his life to a miserable end.
There’s more to it but it’s getting a bit too long as is so I’m going to move on to Chakras. Once again I’ll start with Hinduism.
The word Chakra (pronounced Chahkrah, not Chuhkruh or Shockrah) comes from the Sanskrit word Cakra meaning wheel, sometimes referring to the wheel of life. There’s a bit of disagreement on exactly how many Chakras there are: some sources say five, some seven, others eight, The most common is seven though, at least from what I’ve seen. The Chakras are aligned in ascending order from the base of the spine to the top of the head. Each Chakra is visualized as a lotus with a different (increasing) number of petals. In traditional thought each Chakra is associated with a Psychological Function, a Classical Element, and various other distinguishing features. The color association is a more new age thing.
The chakras are thought to vitalise the physical body and to be associated with interactions of a physical, emotional and mental nature. They are considered loci of life energy, or prana, (also called shakti, or chi), which is thought to flow among them along pathways called nadis. The function of the chakras is to spin and draw in this Universal Life Force Energy to keep the spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health of the body in balance.
The chakras are described in the tantric texts the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, and the Padaka-Pancaka, in which they are described as emanations of consciousness from Brahman, an energy emanating from the spiritual which gradually turns concrete, creating these distinct levels of chakras, and which eventually finds its rest in the Muladhara chakra. They are therefore part of an emanations theory, like that of the kabbalah in the west, lataif-e-sitta in Sufism or neo-platonism. The energy that was unleashed in creation, called the Kundalini, lies coiled and sleeping at the base of the spine. It is the purpose of the tantric or kundalini forms of yoga to arouse this energy, and cause it to rise back up through the increasingly subtler chakras, until union with God is achieved in the Sahasrara chakra at the crown of the head.
The earliest known mention of chakras is found in the later Upanishads, including specifically the Brahma Upanishad and the Yogatattva Upanishad. These vedic models were adapted in Tibetan Buddhism as Vajrayana theory, and in the Tantric Shakta theory of chakras. It is the shakta theory of 7 main chakras that most people in the West adhere to, either knowingly or unknowingly, largely thanks to a translation of two Indian texts, the Sat-Cakra-Nirupana, and the Padaka-Pancaka, by Sir John Woodroffe, alias Arthur Avalon, in a book entitled The Serpent Power.
That said, many present-day Indian gurus that incorporate chakras within their systems of philosophy do not seem to radically disagree with the western view of chakras, at least on the key points, and both these eastern and western views have developed from the Shakta Tantra school.
(Disclaimer: this next bit talks about mysticism in Judaism and Islam in which case I know extremely little and most of what is being talked about here is simply what I’ve dug up with research and cannot personally vouch for the accuracy as I wouldn’t know. If I’m incorrect please notify me so I can fix the information.)
There are various other models of chakras in other traditions, notably in Chinese medicine, and also in Tibetan Buddhism. Even in Jewish kabbalah, the different Sephiroth are sometimes associated with parts of the body. In Islamic Sufism, Lataif-e-Sitta ( Six Subtleties ) are considered as psychospiritual “organs” or faculties of sensory and suprasensory perception, activation of which makes a man complete. Attempts are made to try and reconcile the systems with each other, and notably there are some successes, even between such diverged traditions as Shakta Tantra, Sufism and Kabbalism, where chakras, lataif and Sephiroth can seemingly represent the same archetypal spiritual concepts. In Surat Shabda Yoga, initiation by an Outer Living Satguru (Sat - true, Guru - teacher) is required and involves reconnecting soul to the Shabda and stationing the Inner Shabda Master (the Radiant Form of the Master) at the third eye chakra.
Now actually I’m not going to list out the chakras and explain them because as said the descriptions in western texts aren’t bad at that part.
Okay now that I’ve got all that sorted, and again that’s not the full of it that’s still only like half but I feel I explained enough to sufficiently explain the concepts. The reason these are semi closed concepts that can easily wander into cultural appropriative territory is because they are not only very cultural concepts but arguably more importantly very unique Spiritual concepts. They touch upon Mysticism which like Islamic Sufism or Judaic Kabbalah are very important aspects in an attempt to “merging” with the divine in a sense. As such they are very unique and bastardization and prepackaged copies are not only completely missing the point but highly insulting and unacceptable. If anyone tries convincing you otherwise tell them to go straight to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200.
Now introduction to the concepts by a real yogi and taking it seriously is okay as you are being taught by someone with authority and the proper understanding to do so. The issue is with prepackaged, consummeristic, Western, bastardized bullshit.
Sparrow
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(The PSG is no longer answering questions about cultural appropriation.)
Be respectful of what others believe. No matter what their religion, beliefs or philosophy.
Fear keeps us focused on the past or worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we can realize that right now we are okay. Right now, today, we are still alive, and our bodies are working marvelously. Our eyes can still see the beautiful sky. Our ears can still hear the voices of our loved ones.
aspiritualwarrior
Meditation can help us embrace our worries, our fear, our anger; and that is very healing. We let our own natural capacity of healing do the work.
