Kapitel 94		Paper 94
Melkisedek-Læren i Orienten		The Melchizedek Teachings in the Orient
94:0.1 (1027.1) DE tidlige lærere i Salem-religionen trængte ind i de fjerneste stammer i Afrika og Eurasien og prædikede altid Makiventas evangelium om menneskets tro og tillid til den ene universelle Gud som den eneste pris for at opnå guddommelig gunst. Melkisedeks pagt med Abraham var mønsteret for al den tidlige propaganda, der gik ud fra Salem og andre centre. Urantia har aldrig haft mere entusiastiske og aggressive missionærer for nogen religion end disse ædle mænd og kvinder, som bragte Melkisedeks lære ud over hele den østlige halvkugle. Disse missionærer blev rekrutteret fra mange folkeslag og racer, og de spredte i vid udstrækning deres lære gennem indfødte konvertitter. De etablerede træningscentre i forskellige dele af verden, hvor de underviste de indfødte i Salem-religionen og derefter gav disse elever til opgave at fungere som lærere blandt deres eget folk.		94:0.1 (1027.1) THE early teachers of the Salem religion penetrated to the remotest tribes of Africa and Eurasia, ever preaching Machiventa’s gospel of man’s faith and trust in the one universal God as the only price of obtaining divine favor. Melchizedek’s covenant with Abraham was the pattern for all the early propaganda that went out from Salem and other centers. Urantia has never had more enthusiastic and aggressive missionaries of any religion than these noble men and women who carried the teachings of Melchizedek over the entire Eastern Hemisphere. These missionaries were recruited from many peoples and races, and they largely spread their teachings through the medium of native converts. They established training centers in different parts of the world where they taught the natives the Salem religion and then commissioned these pupils to function as teachers among their own people.
1. Salemlæren i vediske indien ^top		1. The Salem Teachings in Vedic India ^top
94:1.1 (1027.2) På Melkisedeks tid var Indien et kosmopolitisk land, som for nylig var kommet under den politiske og religiøse dominans af de arisk-anditiske indtrængere fra nord og vest. På dette tidspunkt var det kun de nordlige og vestlige dele af halvøen, der var blevet gennemtrængt af arierne. Disse vediske nyankomne havde bragt deres mange stammeguddomme med sig. Deres religiøse tilbedelsesformer fulgte nøje deres tidligere anditiske forfædres ceremonielle praksis, idet faderen stadig fungerede som præst og moderen som præstinde, og familiens ildsted blev stadig brugt som alter.		94:1.1 (1027.2) In the days of Melchizedek, India was a cosmopolitan country which had recently come under the political and religious dominance of the Aryan-Andite invaders from the north and west. At this time only the northern and western portions of the peninsula had been extensively permeated by the Aryans. These Vedic newcomers had brought along with them their many tribal deities. Their religious forms of worship followed closely the ceremonial practices of their earlier Andite forebears in that the father still functioned as a priest and the mother as a priestess, and the family hearth was still utilized as an altar.
94:1.2 (1027.3) Den vediske kult var dengang i vækst og metamorfose under ledelse af brahman-kasten af lærer-præster, som gradvist overtog kontrollen over det ekspanderende tilbedelsesritual. Sammensmeltningen af de engang treogtredive ariske guddomme var godt i gang, da missionærerne fra Salem trængte ind i det nordlige Indien.		94:1.2 (1027.3) The Vedic cult was then in process of growth and metamorphosis under the direction of the Brahman caste of teacher-priests, who were gradually assuming control over the expanding ritual of worship. The amalgamation of the onetime thirty-three Aryan deities was well under way when the Salem missionaries penetrated the north of India.
94:1.3 (1027.4) Polyteismen hos disse ariere repræsenterede en degeneration af deres tidligere monoteisme, som skyldtes deres opdeling i stammeenheder, hvor hver stamme havde sin ærværdige gud. Denne svækkelse af den oprindelige monoteisme og trinitarisme i det anditiske Mesopotamien var i gang med en resyntese i de første århundreder af det andet årtusinde før Kristus. De mange guder blev organiseret i et panteon under den treenige ledelse af Dyaus pitar, himlens herre; Indra, atmosfærens stormfulde herre; og Agni, den trehovedet ildgud, jordens herre og det rudimentære symbol på et tidligere treenighedskoncept.		94:1.3 (1027.4) The polytheism of these Aryans represented a degeneration of their earlier monotheism occasioned by their separation into tribal units, each tribe having its venerated god. This devolution of the original monotheism and trinitarianism of Andite Mesopotamia was in process of resynthesis in the early centuries of the second millennium before Christ. The many gods were organized into a pantheon under the triune leadership of Dyaus pitar, the lord of heaven; Indra, the tempestuous lord of the atmosphere; and Agni, the three-headed fire god, lord of the earth and the vestigial symbol of an earlier Trinity concept.
94:1.4 (1027.5) En klar henoteistisk udvikling banede vejen for en udviklet monoteisme. Agni, den ældste guddom, blev ofte ophøjet som hele panteonets faderhoved. Guddom-far-princippet, som nogle gange blev kaldt Prajapati, andre gange Brahma, druknede i den teologiske kamp, som Brahman-præsterne senere udkæmpede med Salem-lærerne. Brahman blev opfattet som det energi-guddommelighedsprincip, der aktiverede hele det vediske gudeverden.		94:1.4 (1027.5) Definite henotheistic developments were paving the way for an evolved monotheism. Agni, the most ancient deity, was often exalted as the father-head of the entire pantheon. The deity-father principle, sometimes called Prajapati, sometimes termed Brahma, was submerged in the theologic battle which the Brahman priests later fought with the Salem teachers. The Brahman was conceived as the energy-divinity principle activating the entire Vedic pantheon.
94:1.5 (1028.1) Salem-missionærerne forkyndte Melkisedeks ene Gud, himlens Højeste. Denne skildring var ikke helt disharmonisk med den nye opfattelse af Fader-Brahma som kilden til alle guder, men Salem-doktrinen var ikke-ritualistisk og gik derfor direkte imod brahman-præsteskabets dogmer, traditioner og lære. Brahman-præsterne ville aldrig acceptere Salem-læren om frelse gennem tro, Guds gunst, uden rituelle aktiviteter og offerceremonier.		94:1.5 (1028.1) The Salem missionaries preached the one God of Melchizedek, the Most High of heaven. This portrayal was not altogether disharmonious with the emerging concept of the Father-Brahma as the source of all gods, but the Salem doctrine was nonritualistic and hence ran directly counter to the dogmas, traditions, and teachings of the Brahman priesthood. Never would the Brahman priests accept the Salem teaching of salvation through faith, favor with God apart from ritualistic observances and sacrificial ceremonials.
94:1.6 (1028.2) Afvisningen af det Melkisedekske evangelium om tillid til Gud og frelse gennem tro markerede et afgørende vendepunkt for Indien. Salem-missionærerne havde bidraget meget til tabet af troen på alle de gamle vediske guder, men lederne, vedismens præster, nægtede at acceptere Melkisedeks lære om én Gud og én simpel tro.		94:1.6 (1028.2) The rejection of the Melchizedek gospel of trust in God and salvation through faith marked a vital turning point for India. The Salem missionaries had contributed much to the loss of faith in all the ancient Vedic gods, but the leaders, the priests of Vedism, refused to accept the Melchizedek teaching of one God and one simple faith.
94:1.7 (1028.3) Brahmanerne samlede datidens hellige skrifter i et forsøg på at bekæmpe Salem-lærerne, og denne samling, som senere blev revideret, er gået videre til moderne tid som Rig-Veda, en af de ældste hellige bøger. Den anden, tredje og fjerde Veda fulgte, da brahmanerne forsøgte at krystallisere, formalisere og fastholde deres ritualer for tilbedelse og ofring hos datidens folk. Når de er bedst, kan disse skrifter måle sig med enhver anden samling af lignende karakter, når det gælder skønhed i konceptet og sandhed i erkendelsen. Men efterhånden som denne overlegne religion blev forurenet med tusinder og atter tusinder af overtro, kulter og ritualer i det sydlige Indien, forvandlede den sig gradvist til det mest spraglede teologiske system, der nogensinde er udviklet af dødelige mennesker. En undersøgelse af Vedaerne vil afsløre nogle af de højeste og nogle af de mest nedværdigende opfattelser af Guddommen, der nogensinde er blevet udtænkt.		94:1.7 (1028.3) The Brahmans culled the sacred writings of their day in an effort to combat the Salem teachers, and this compilation, as later revised, has come on down to modern times as the Rig-Veda, one of the most ancient of sacred books. The second, third, and fourth Vedas followed as the Brahmans sought to crystallize, formalize, and fix their rituals of worship and sacrifice upon the peoples of those days. Taken at their best, these writings are the equal of any other body of similar character in beauty of concept and truth of discernment. But as this superior religion became contaminated with the thousands upon thousands of superstitions, cults, and rituals of southern India, it progressively metamorphosed into the most variegated system of theology ever developed by mortal man. An examination of the Vedas will disclose some of the highest and some of the most debased concepts of Deity ever to be conceived.
2. Brahmanismen ^top		2. Brahmanism ^top
94:2.1 (1028.4) Da Salem missionærerne trængte sydpå ind i det dravidiske Deccan, stødte de på et stadig mere udbredt kastesystem, ariernes ordning for at forhindre den racemæssige identitet fra udryddelse overfor den stigende bølge af anden gradens Sangik folk. Da den brahmanske præstekaste var selve essensen af dette system, forsinkede denne sociale orden i høj grad Salem-lærernes fremskridt. Dette kastesystem formåede ikke at redde den ariske race, men det lykkedes at forevige brahmanerne, som til gengæld har opretholdt deres religiøse hegemoni i Indien frem til i dag.		94:2.1 (1028.4) As the Salem missionaries penetrated southward into the Dravidian Deccan, they encountered an increasing caste system, the scheme of the Aryans to prevent loss of racial identity in the face of a rising tide of the secondary Sangik peoples. Since the Brahman priest caste was the very essence of this system, this social order greatly retarded the progress of the Salem teachers. This caste system failed to save the Aryan race, but it did succeed in perpetuating the Brahmans, who, in turn, have maintained their religious hegemony in India to the present time.
94:2.2 (1028.5) Og nu, hvor vedismen blev svækket af afvisningen af den højere sandhed, blev ariernes kult udsat for stigende indtrængen fra Deccan. I et desperat forsøg på at dæmme op for racens udryddelse og den religiøse udslettelse forsøgte brahman-kasten at ophøje sig selv over alt andet. De lærte, at ofringen til guddommen i sig selv var altafgørende, at den var overbevisende i sin styrke. De proklamerede, at af de to essentielle guddommelige principper i universet var det ene Brahman, guddommen, og det andet var Brahmans præsteskab. Blandt ingen andre folk på Urantia formastede præsterne sig til at ophøje sig selv over selv deres guder, til selv at overtage de æresbevisninger, der tilkom deres guder. Men de gik så absurd langt med disse formastelige krav, at hele det usikre system kollapsede over for de nedværdigende kulter, som strømmede ind fra de omkringliggende og mindre avancerede civilisationer. Det store vediske præsteskab selv gik i stå og sank under den sorte flod af inerti og pessimisme, som deres egen selviske og ukløgtige formodning havde bragt over hele Indien.		94:2.2 (1028.5) And now, with the weakening of Vedism through the rejection of higher truth, the cult of the Aryans became subject to increasing inroads from the Deccan. In a desperate effort to stem the tide of racial extinction and religious obliteration, the Brahman caste sought to exalt themselves above all else. They taught that the sacrifice to deity in itself was all-efficacious, that it was all-compelling in its potency. They proclaimed that, of the two essential divine principles of the universe, one was Brahman the deity, and the other was the Brahman priesthood. Among no other Urantia peoples did the priests presume to exalt themselves above even their gods, to relegate to themselves the honors due their gods. But they went so absurdly far with these presumptuous claims that the whole precarious system collapsed before the debasing cults which poured in from the surrounding and less advanced civilizations. The vast Vedic priesthood itself floundered and sank beneath the black flood of inertia and pessimism which their own selfish and unwise presumption had brought upon all India.
94:2.3 (1029.1) Den overdrevne koncentration om selvet førte helt sikkert til en frygt for den ikke-evolutionære fortsættelse af selvet i en endeløs runde af successive inkarnationer som menneske, dyr eller ukrudt. Og af alle de forurenende overbevisninger, der kunne have sat sig fast på det, der måske var en spirende monoteisme, var der ingen, der var så fordummende som denne tro på sjælevandring—læren om sjælenes reinkarnation—som kom fra det dravidiske Deccan. Denne tro på den trættende og monotone runde af gentagne sjælevandringer berøvede de kæmpende dødelige deres længe nærede håb om at finde den udfrielse og åndelige udvikling i døden, som havde været en del af den tidligere vediske tro.		94:2.3 (1029.1) The undue concentration on self led certainly to a fear of the nonevolutionary perpetuation of self in an endless round of successive incarnations as man, beast, or weeds. And of all the contaminating beliefs which could have become fastened upon what may have been an emerging monotheism, none was so stultifying as this belief in transmigration—the doctrine of the reincarnation of souls—which came from the Dravidian Deccan. This belief in the weary and monotonous round of repeated transmigrations robbed struggling mortals of their long-cherished hope of finding that deliverance and spiritual advancement in death which had been a part of the earlier Vedic faith.
94:2.4 (1029.2) Denne filosofisk svækkende lære blev snart efterfulgt af opfindelsen af læren om den evige flugt fra selvet ved nedsænkning i den universelle hvile og fred i absolut forening med Brahman, hele skabelsens oversjæl. Dødeligt begær og menneskelige ambitioner blev effektivt trængt tilbage og næsten tilintetgjort. I mere end to tusind år har Indiens bedre hjerner søgt at flygte fra alt begær, og dermed blev døren åbnet på vid gab for de senere kulter og læresætninger, som praktisk talt har lænket mange hinduers sjæle i den åndelige håbløsheds lænker. Af alle civilisationer betalte den vedisk-ariske den mest forfærdelige pris for sin afvisning af Salem-evangeliet.		94:2.4 (1029.2) This philosophically debilitating teaching was soon followed by the invention of the doctrine of the eternal escape from self by submergence in the universal rest and peace of absolute union with Brahman, the oversoul of all creation. Mortal desire and human ambition were effectually ravished and virtually destroyed. For more than two thousand years the better minds of India have sought to escape from all desire, and thus was opened wide the door for the entrance of those later cults and teachings which have virtually shackled the souls of many Hindu peoples in the chains of spiritual hopelessness. Of all civilizations, the Vedic-Aryan paid the most terrible price for its rejection of the Salem gospel.
94:2.5 (1029.3) Kastesystemet alene kunne ikke holde det ariske religiøse og kulturelle system i live, og da de laverestående religioner fra Deccan gennemtrængte nordpå, opstod der en tidsalder af fortvivlelse og håbløshed. Det var i disse mørke tider at kulten opstod, om ikke at dræbe noget liv, og den har varet lige til denne dag. Mange af de nye kulter var åbenlyst ateistiske, og hævdede, at en sådan frelse, som var opnåeligt kun kunne komme ved menneskets egen indsats uden anden hjælp. Gennem en stor del af denne uheldige filosofi, kan man dog spore forvrængede rester af Melkisedek og endda Adams undervisning.		94:2.5 (1029.3) Caste alone could not perpetuate the Aryan religio-cultural system, and as the inferior religions of the Deccan permeated the north, there developed an age of despair and hopelessness. It was during these dark days that the cult of taking no life arose, and it has ever since persisted. Many of the new cults were frankly atheistic, claiming that such salvation as was attainable could come only by man’s own unaided efforts. But throughout a great deal of all this unfortunate philosophy, distorted remnants of the Melchizedek and even the Adamic teachings can be traced.
94:2.6 (1029.4) Dette var tiden for udarbejdelsen af de senere skrifter i den hinduistiske tro, Brahmanaerne og Upanishaderne. Efter at have afvist læren om personlig religion gennem den personlige troserfaring med den ene Gud, og efter at være blevet forurenet med strømmen af nedværdigende og svækkende kulter og trosbekendelser fra Deccan, med deres antropomorfismer og reinkarnationer, oplevede det brahmanske præsteskab en voldsom reaktion mod disse fordærvende overbevisninger; der var en klar indsats for at søge og finde den sande virkelighed. Brahmanerne satte sig for at befri det indiske guddomsbegreb for de menneskelige træk, men derved snublede de i den alvorlig fejl at depersonalisere gudsbegrebet, og de kom ikke ud med et ophøjet og åndeligt ideal om Paradisets Fader, men med en fjern og metafysisk idé om et altomfattende Absolut.		94:2.6 (1029.4) These were the times of the compilation of the later scriptures of the Hindu faith, the Brahmanas and the Upanishads. Having rejected the teachings of personal religion through the personal faith experience with the one God, and having become contaminated with the flood of debasing and debilitating cults and creeds from the Deccan, with their anthropomorphisms and reincarnations, the Brahmanic priesthood experienced a violent reaction against these vitiating beliefs; there was a definite effort to seek and to find true reality. The Brahmans set out to deanthropomorphize the Indian concept of deity, but in so doing they stumbled into the grievous error of depersonalizing the concept of God, and they emerged, not with a lofty and spiritual ideal of the Paradise Father, but with a distant and metaphysical idea of an all-encompassing Absolute.
94:2.7 (1029.5) I deres bestræbelser på selvopholdelsesdrift havde Brahmanerne forkastet Melkisedeks ene Gud, og befandt sig nu med hypotesen om Brahman, dette ubestemte og forvirrende filosofiske selv, denne upersonlig og impotente det, som har efterladt Indiens åndelige liv hjælpeløst og nedbrudt fra den ulykkelige dag til det tyvende århundrede.		94:2.7 (1029.5) In their efforts at self-preservation the Brahmans had rejected the one God of Melchizedek, and now they found themselves with the hypothesis of Brahman, that indefinite and illusive philosophic self, that impersonal and impotent it which has left the spiritual life of India helpless and prostrate from that unfortunate day to the twentieth century.
94:2.8 (1029.6) Det var på den tid, hvor Upanishaderne blev skrevet, at buddhismen opstod i Indien. Men på trods af dens tusindårige succes kunne den ikke konkurrere med den senere hinduisme; på trods af en højere moral var dens tidlige billede af Gud endnu mindre veldefineret end hinduismens, som havde mindre og personlige guder. Buddhismen måtte til sidst vige pladsen i det nordlige Indien for angrebet fra en militant islam med dens klare opfattelse af Allah som universets højeste Gud.		94:2.8 (1029.6) It was during the times of the writing of the Upanishads that Buddhism arose in India. But despite its successes of a thousand years, it could not compete with later Hinduism; despite a higher morality, its early portrayal of God was even less well-defined than was that of Hinduism, which provided for lesser and personal deities. Buddhism finally gave way in northern India before the onslaught of a militant Islam with its clear-cut concept of Allah as the supreme God of the universe.
3. Den brahmanske filosofi ^top		3. Brahmanic Philosophy ^top
94:3.1 (1030.1) Mens brahmanismens højeste fase næppe var en religion, var den i sandhed en af de mest ædle udfoldelser af det jordiske sind inden for filosofiens og metafysikkens domæner. Da det indiske sind var begyndt at opdage den endelige virkelighed, stoppede det ikke, før det havde spekuleret over næsten alle teologiens faser, bortset fra religionens essentielle dobbelte begreb: eksistensen af den universelle Fader til alle universets skabninger og kendsgerningen, at netop disse skabninger har en stigende erfaring i universet, når de søger at nå den evige Fader, som har befalet dem at være fuldkomne, ligesom han er fuldkommen.		94:3.1 (1030.1) While the highest phase of Brahmanism was hardly a religion, it was truly one of the most noble reaches of the mortal mind into the domains of philosophy and metaphysics. Having started out to discover final reality, the Indian mind did not stop until it had speculated about almost every phase of theology excepting the essential dual concept of religion: the existence of the Universal Father of all universe creatures and the fact of the ascending experience in the universe of these very creatures as they seek to attain the eternal Father, who has commanded them to be perfect, even as he is perfect.
94:3.2 (1030.2) I begrebet Brahman fattede datidens hjerner virkelig ideen om et altgennemtrængende Absolut, for dette postulat blev på én og samme tid identificeret som skabende energi og kosmisk reaktion. Brahman blev opfattet som værende hinsides enhver definition og kun i stand til at blive forstået ved den successive fornægtelse af alle endelige kvaliteter. Det var helt klart en tro på et absolut, endda uendeligt, væsen, men dette koncept var stort set blottet for personlighedsattributter og kunne derfor ikke opleves af de enkelte religiøse.		94:3.2 (1030.2) In the concept of Brahman the minds of those days truly grasped at the idea of some all-pervading Absolute, for this postulate was at one and the same time identified as creative energy and cosmic reaction. Brahman was conceived to be beyond all definition, capable of being comprehended only by the successive negation of all finite qualities. It was definitely a belief in an absolute, even an infinite, being, but this concept was largely devoid of personality attributes and was therefore not experiencible by individual religionists.
94:3.3 (1030.3) Brahman-Narayana blev opfattet som det absolutte, det uendelige DET ER, den oprindelige skabende kraft i det potentielle kosmos, det universelle selv, der eksisterer statisk og potentielt i al evighed. Hvis datidens filosoffer havde været i stand til at gøre det næste fremskridt i opfattelsen af guddommen, hvis de havde været i stand til at opfatte Brahman som associativ og skabende, som en personlighed, der kan kontaktes af skabte og udviklende væsener, så ville en sådan lære måske være blevet det mest avancerede portræt af guddommen på Urantia, da den ville have omfattet de første fem niveauer af den totale guddomsfunktion og måske have forestillet sig de resterende to.		94:3.3 (1030.3) Brahman-Narayana was conceived as the Absolute, the infinite IT IS, the primordial creative potency of the potential cosmos, the Universal Self existing static and potential throughout all eternity. Had the philosophers of those days been able to make the next advance in deity conception, had they been able to conceive of the Brahman as associative and creative, as a personality approachable by created and evolving beings, then might such a teaching have become the most advanced portraiture of Deity on Urantia since it would have encompassed the first five levels of total deity function and might possibly have envisioned the remaining two.
94:3.4 (1030.4) I visse faser førte konceptet om den Ene Universelle Oversjæl som totaliteten af summen af alle skabningers eksistens de indiske filosoffer meget tæt på sandheden om det Højeste Væsen, men denne sandhed nyttede dem intet, fordi de ikke formåede at udvikle nogen fornuftig eller rationel personlig tilgang til opnåelsen af deres teoretiske monoteistiske mål Brahman-Narayana.		94:3.4 (1030.4) In certain phases the concept of the One Universal Oversoul as the totality of the summation of all creature existence led the Indian philosophers very close to the truth of the Supreme Being, but this truth availed them naught because they failed to evolve any reasonable or rational personal approach to the attainment of their theoretic monotheistic goal of Brahman-Narayana.
94:3.5 (1030.5) Karmaprincippet om kausalitetskontinuitet er igen meget tæt på sandheden om den tilbagevirkende syntese af alle handlinger i tid og rum i den Højestes guddomstilstedeværelse; men dette postulat har aldrig givet mulighed for den enkelte religionsudøvers koordinerede personlige opnåelse af guddom, kun for den ultimative opslugning af al personlighed i den Universelle Oversjæl.		94:3.5 (1030.5) The karma principle of causality continuity is, again, very close to the truth of the repercussional synthesis of all time-space actions in the Deity presence of the Supreme; but this postulate never provided for the co-ordinate personal attainment of Deity by the individual religionist, only for the ultimate engulfment of all personality by the Universal Oversoul.
94:3.6 (1030.6) Brahmanismens filosofi kom også meget tæt på erkendelsen af, at Tankeretterne bor i mennesket, men den blev perverteret på grund af en misforståelse af sandheden. Læren om, at sjælen bor i Brahman, ville have banet vejen for en avanceret religion, hvis ikke dette koncept var blevet fuldstændig ødelagt af troen på, at der ikke er nogen menneskelig individualitet bortset fra denne bolig i Den Universelle Ene.		94:3.6 (1030.6) The philosophy of Brahmanism also came very near to the realization of the indwelling of the Thought Adjusters, only to become perverted through the misconception of truth. The teaching that the soul is the indwelling of the Brahman would have paved the way for an advanced religion had not this concept been completely vitiated by the belief that there is no human individuality apart from this indwelling of the Universal One.
94:3.7 (1030.7) I læren om jeget eller sjælens sammenlægning med Oversjælen, undlod Indiens teologer at sørge for, at noget menneskeligt overlevede, noget nyt og unikt, noget, der var født af foreningen af menneskets vilje og Guds vilje. Læren om sjælens tilbagevenden til Brahman er tæt parallelt med sandheden om, at Retteren vender tilbage til den Universelle Faders favn, men der er noget klart forskellig fra Retteren som også overlever, nemlig det morontielle modstykke af den dødelige personlighed. Og dette vitale begreb var fatalt fraværende i den brahmanske filosofi.		94:3.7 (1030.7) In the doctrine of the merging of the self-soul with the Oversoul, the theologians of India failed to provide for the survival of something human, something new and unique, something born of the union of the will of man and the will of God. The teaching of the soul’s return to the Brahman is closely parallel to the truth of the Adjuster’s return to the bosom of the Universal Father, but there is something distinct from the Adjuster which also survives, the morontial counterpart of mortal personality. And this vital concept was fatally absent from Brahmanic philosophy.
94:3.8 (1031.1) Den Brahmanske filosofi er kommet tæt på mange af de faktiske omstændigheder i universet og har nærmet sig mange kosmiske sandheder, men den er alt for ofte blevet offer for den fejl ikke at skelne mellem flere niveauer af virkeligheden, såsom mellem det absolutte, det transcendentale, og det endelige niveau. Den har undladt, at erkende, at hvad der kan være begrænset illusorisk på det absolutte niveau kan være helt rigtig på den endelige plan. Den har heller ikke observeret den væsentlige personlighed hos den Universelle Fader, som personligt kan kontaktes på alle niveauer fra det evolutionære væsens begrænset erfaring med Gud lige op til den Evige Søns grænseløse oplevelse af Paradisfaderen.		94:3.8 (1031.1) Brahmanic philosophy has approximated many of the facts of the universe and has approached numerous cosmic truths, but it has all too often fallen victim to the error of failing to differentiate between the several levels of reality, such as absolute, transcendental, and finite. It has failed to take into account that what may be finite-illusory on the absolute level may be absolutely real on the finite level. And it has also taken no cognizance of the essential personality of the Universal Father, who is personally contactable on all levels from the evolutionary creature’s limited experience with God on up to the limitless experience of the Eternal Son with the Paradise Father.
4. Hindureligionen ^top		4. The Hindu Religion ^top
94:4.1 (1031.2) Som århundrederne gik i Indien, vendte befolkningen i et vist omfang tilbage til vedaernes gamle ritualer, som de var blevet modificeret af Melkisedek-missionærernes lære og krystalliseret af det senere brahmanske præsteskab. Denne, den ældste og mest kosmopolitiske af verdens religioner, har undergået yderligere forandringer som reaktion på buddhisme og jainisme og på de senere indflydelser fra muhammedanisme og kristendom. Men da Jesu lære ankom, var den allerede blevet så vesterlandsk, at den var en “hvid mands religion” og derfor fremmed for hinduernes sind.		94:4.1 (1031.2) With the passing of the centuries in India, the populace returned in measure to the ancient rituals of the Vedas as they had been modified by the teachings of the Melchizedek missionaries and crystallized by the later Brahman priesthood. This, the oldest and most cosmopolitan of the world’s religions, has undergone further changes in response to Buddhism and Jainism and to the later appearing influences of Mohammedanism and Christianity. But by the time the teachings of Jesus arrived, they had already become so Occidentalized as to be a “white man’s religion,” hence strange and foreign to the Hindu mind.
94:4.2 (1031.3) Hinduistisk teologi skildrer i dag fire nedadgående niveauer af guddom og guddommelighed:		94:4.2 (1031.3) Hindu theology, at present, depicts four descending levels of deity and divinity:
94:4.3 (1031.4) 1. Brahman, det Absolutte, det Uendelige Ene, DET ER.		94:4.3 (1031.4) 1. The Brahman, the Absolute, the Infinite One, the IT IS.
94:4.4 (1031.5) 2. Trimurti, hinduismens højeste treenighed. I denne forening opfattes Brahma, det første medlem, som værende selvskabt ud af Brahman—uendeligheden. Hvis det ikke var for den tætte identifikation med den panteistisk Uendelige Ene, kunne Brahma have dannet grundlaget for et koncept om den Universelle Fader. Brahma identificeres også med skæbnen.		94:4.4 (1031.5) 2. The Trimurti, the supreme trinity of Hinduism. In this association Brahma, the first member, is conceived as being self-created out of the Brahman—infinity. Were it not for close identification with the pantheistic Infinite One, Brahma could constitute the foundation for a concept of the Universal Father. Brahma is also identified with fate.
94:4.5 (1031.6) Tilbedelsen af det anden og tredje medlem, Siva og Vishnu, opstod i det første årtusinde efter Kristus. Siva er herre over liv og død, frugtbarhedens gud, og ødelæggelsens mester. Vishnu er ekstremt populær på grund af troen på, at han periodisk inkarnerer i menneskelig form. På denne måde, bliver Vishnu virkelig og levende i indernes fantasi. Nogle betragter både Shiva og Vishnu som de højeste over alle.		94:4.5 (1031.6) The worship of the second and third members, Siva and Vishnu, arose in the first millennium after Christ. Siva is lord of life and death, god of fertility, and master of destruction. Vishnu is extremely popular due to the belief that he periodically incarnates in human form. In this way, Vishnu becomes real and living in the imaginations of the Indians. Siva and Vishnu are each regarded by some as supreme over all.
94:4.6 (1031.7) 3. Vediske og postvediske guder. Mange af ariernes gamle guder, såsom Agni, Indra, Soma, har været som underordnet guder til de tre medlemmer af Trimurti. Talrige andre guder er opstået siden det vediske Indiens tidlige dage, og disse er også blevet indarbejdet i den hinduistiske gudeverden.		94:4.6 (1031.7) 3. Vedic and post-Vedic deities. Many of the ancient gods of the Aryans, such as Agni, Indra, and Soma, have persisted as secondary to the three members of the Trimurti. Numerous additional gods have arisen since the early days of Vedic India, and these have also been incorporated into the Hindu pantheon.
94:4.7 (1031.8) 4. Halvguderne: overmennesker, halvguder, helte, dæmoner, spøgelser, onde ånder, nisser, monstre, alfer, trolde, og helgener fra de senere tiders kulter.		94:4.7 (1031.8) 4. The demigods: supermen, semigods, heroes, demons, ghosts, evil spirits, sprites, monsters, goblins, and saints of the later-day cults.
94:4.8 (1031.9) Mens hinduismen længe har undladt at levendegøre det indiske folk, har den på samme tid som regel været en tolerant religion. Dens store styrke ligger i det faktum, at det har vist sig at være den mest fleksible, formløse af de religioner som er fremkommet på Urantia. Den er i stand til næsten ubegrænset forandring og besidder et usædvanligt fleksibel tilpasningsområde fra den intellektuelle Brahman høje og semimonoteistiske spekulationer til den grove fetichisme og primitive kultpraksis hos de fornedrede og deprimerede klasser af uvidende troende.		94:4.8 (1031.9) While Hinduism has long failed to vivify the Indian people, at the same time it has usually been a tolerant religion. Its great strength lies in the fact that it has proved to be the most adaptive, amorphic religion to appear on Urantia. It is capable of almost unlimited change and possesses an unusual range of flexible adjustment from the high and semimonotheistic speculations of the intellectual Brahman to the arrant fetishism and primitive cult practices of the debased and depressed classes of ignorant believers.
94:4.9 (1032.1) Hinduismen har overlevet, hovedsagelig fordi den er en integreret del af den grundlæggende sociale struktur i Indien. Den har intet storslået hierarki, som kan forstyrres eller ødelægges; den er vævet ind i folks livsmønster. Den har en tilpasningsevne til skiftende forhold, der overstiger alle andre kulter, og den udviser en tolerant holdning til, og vilje til at låne fra mange andre religioner, idet Gautama Buddha og endda Kristus selv hævdes at være inkarnationer af Vishnu.		94:4.9 (1032.1) Hinduism has survived because it is essentially an integral part of the basic social fabric of India. It has no great hierarchy which can be disturbed or destroyed; it is interwoven into the life pattern of the people. It has an adaptability to changing conditions that excels all other cults, and it displays a tolerant attitude of adoption toward many other religions, Gautama Buddha and even Christ himself being claimed as incarnations of Vishnu.
94:4.10 (1032.2) Hvad Indien i dag har mest brug for, er præsentationen af evangeliet om Jesus—at Gud er alle menneskers Fader og menneskerne hans sønner og deraf følgende broderskab mellem alle mennesker, der er personligt realiseret i kærlig tjeneste og social service. I Indien eksisterer de filosofiske rammer, kultstrukturen er til stede; alt, hvad der er brug for, er en vitaliserende gnist fra den dynamiske kærlighed, der skildres i det oprindelige evangelium om Menneskesønnen, renset for de vestlige dogmer og doktriner, der har haft tendens til at gøre Mikaels livsoverdragelse til en hvid mands religion.		94:4.10 (1032.2) Today, in India, the great need is for the portrayal of the Jesusonian gospel—the Fatherhood of God and the sonship and consequent brotherhood of all men, which is personally realized in loving ministry and social service. In India the philosophical framework is existent, the cult structure is present; all that is needed is the vitalizing spark of the dynamic love portrayed in the original gospel of the Son of Man, divested of the Occidental dogmas and doctrines which have tended to make Michael’s life bestowal a white man’s religion.
5. Kampen for sandhed i kina ^top		5. The Struggle for Truth in China ^top
94:5.1 (1032.3) Når Salem missionærerne passerede gennem Asien, og spredte læren om Gud den Højeste og frelse ved troen, absorberede de meget af filosofien og de religiøse tanker fra de forskellige lande de rejste igennem. Disse lærere var udpeget af Melkisedek og hans efterfølgere svigtede ikke deres mission; de trængte faktisk frem til alle folkeslag på det eurasiske kontinent, og det var i midten af det andet årtusinde før Kristus, at de ankom til Kina. Salem lærerne havde i mere end hundrede år deres hovedkvarter i Sii Futsh, hvor de uddannede kinesiske lærere, som underviste i alle områder beboet af den gule race.		94:5.1 (1032.3) As the Salem missionaries passed through Asia, spreading the doctrine of the Most High God and salvation through faith, they absorbed much of the philosophy and religious thought of the various countries traversed. But the teachers commissioned by Melchizedek and his successors did not default in their trust; they did penetrate to all peoples of the Eurasian continent, and it was in the middle of the second millennium before Christ that they arrived in China. At See Fuch, for more than one hundred years, the Salemites maintained their headquarters, there training Chinese teachers who taught throughout all the domains of the yellow race.
94:5.2 (1032.4) Det var som en direkte konsekvens af denne lære, at den tidligste form for taoisme opstod i Kina, en meget anderledes religion end den, der bærer dette navn i dag. Tidlig taoisme eller proto-taoisme var en sammensætning af følgende faktorer:		94:5.2 (1032.4) It was in direct consequence of this teaching that the earliest form of Taoism arose in China, a vastly different religion than the one which bears that name today. Early or proto-Taoism was a compound of the following factors:
94:5.3 (1032.5) 1. Singlangtons overlevende doktriner, som blev bevaret i begrebet Shang-ti, Himlens Gud. Under Singlangtons tid blev det kinesiske folk næsten monoteistisk; de koncentrerede deres tilbedelse om Den Ene Sandhed, senere kendt som Himlens Ånd, universets hersker. Den gule race mistede aldrig helt denne tidlige opfattelse om Guddommen, selvom der i de efterfølgende århundreder sneg sig mange underordnede guder og ånder ind i deres religion.		94:5.3 (1032.5) 1. The lingering teachings of Singlangton, which persisted in the concept of Shang-ti, the God of Heaven. In the times of Singlangton the Chinese people became virtually monotheistic; they concentrated their worship on the One Truth, later known as the Spirit of Heaven, the universe ruler. And the yellow race never fully lost this early concept of Deity, although in subsequent centuries many subordinate gods and spirits insidiously crept into their religion.
94:5.4 (1032.6) 2. Salem-religionen om den Højeste Skaberguddom, som ville skænke menneskeheden sin gunst som svar på menneskets tro. Det er kun alt for sandt, at på det tidspunkt, hvor de Melkisedekske missionærer var trængt ind til den gule races lande, var deres oprindelige budskab blevet ændret betydeligt fra Salems simple doktriner i Makiventas dage.		94:5.4 (1032.6) 2. The Salem religion of a Most High Creator Deity who would bestow his favor upon mankind in response to man’s faith. But it is all too true that, by the time the Melchizedek missionaries had penetrated to the lands of the yellow race, their original message had become considerably changed from the simple doctrines of Salem in the days of Machiventa.
94:5.5 (1032.7) 3. De indiske filosoffers Brahman- Absolut koncept, kombineret med ønsket om at undgå alt ondt. Måske den største udefrakommende indflydelse på Salem-religionens udbredelse østover blev udøvet af de indiske lærere i den vediske tro, som introducerede deres opfattelse af Brahman—det Absolutte—i Salemiternes frelsende tanker.		94:5.5 (1032.7) 3. The Brahman-Absolute concept of the Indian philosophers, coupled with the desire to escape all evil. Perhaps the greatest extraneous influence in the eastward spread of the Salem religion was exerted by the Indian teachers of the Vedic faith, who injected their conception of the Brahman—the Absolute—into the salvationistic thought of the Salemites.
94:5.6 (1033.1) Denne sammensatte tro spredte sig gennem de gule og brune racers lande som en underliggende indflydelse i religiøs-filosofisk tænkning. I Japan blev denne proto-taoisme kendt som shinto, og i dette land, langt væk fra Salem i Palæstina, lærte folkene om inkarnationen af Makiventa Melkisedek, som boede på jorden, for at Guds navn ikke skulle blive glemt af menneskeheden.		94:5.6 (1033.1) This composite belief spread through the lands of the yellow and brown races as an underlying influence in religio-philosophic thought. In Japan this proto-Taoism was known as Shinto, and in this country, far-distant from Salem of Palestine, the peoples learned of the incarnation of Machiventa Melchizedek, who dwelt upon earth that the name of God might not be forgotten by mankind.
94:5.7 (1033.2) I Kina blev alle disse overbevisninger senere blandet sammen med den stadigt voksende kult af forfædredyrkelse. Men aldrig siden Singlangtons tid er kineserne faldet i hjælpeløst slaveri under præsteskabet. Den gule race var den første, der kom ud af barbarisk trældom og ind i en velordnet civilisation, fordi den var den første, der opnåede en vis grad af frihed fra den dybe frygt for guderne og ikke engang frygtede de dødes spøgelser, som andre racer frygtede dem. Kina led nederlag, fordi det ikke formåede at komme videre end sin tidlige frigørelse fra præsterne; det faldt i en næsten lige så katastrofal fejltagelse, nemlig tilbedelsen af forfædrene.		94:5.7 (1033.2) In China all of these beliefs were later confused and compounded with the ever-growing cult of ancestor worship. But never since the time of Singlangton have the Chinese fallen into helpless slavery to priestcraft. The yellow race was the first to emerge from barbaric bondage into orderly civilization because it was the first to achieve some measure of freedom from the abject fear of the gods, not even fearing the ghosts of the dead as other races feared them. China met her defeat because she failed to progress beyond her early emancipation from priests; she fell into an almost equally calamitous error, the worship of ancestors.
94:5.8 (1033.3) Salemlærerne arbejdede alligevel ikke forgæves. Det var på fundamentet af deres evangelium, at de store filosoffer i det sjette århundredes Kina byggede deres lære. Den moralske atmosfære og de åndelige følelser under Lao-tse og Konfutses tid voksede ud af læren fra Salem-missionærerne i en tidligere tidsalder.		94:5.8 (1033.3) But the Salemites did not labor in vain. It was upon the foundations of their gospel that the great philosophers of sixth-century China built their teachings. The moral atmosphere and the spiritual sentiments of the times of Lao-tse and Confucius grew up out of the teachings of the Salem missionaries of an earlier age.
6. Lao-tse og konfutse ^top		6. Lao-Tse and Confucius ^top
94:6.1 (1033.4) Omkring seks hundrede år før Mikaels ankomst forekom det Melkisedek, som for længst havde forladt kødet, at renheden af hans lære på jorden blev bragt i unødig fare af den generelle absorption i de ældre urantianske overbevisninger. Det så for en tid ud til, at hans mission som forløber for Mikael kunne være i fare for at mislykkes. Og i det sjette århundrede før Kristus, gennem en usædvanlig koordinering af åndelige instanser, som ikke alle forstås, selv ikke af de planetariske tilsynsførende, var Urantia vidne til en højst usædvanlig præsentation af mangfoldig religiøs sandhed. Gennem flere menneskelige lærere blev Salem-evangeliet genfortalt og revitaliseret, og som det blev præsenteret dengang, har meget bestået til denne tid.		94:6.1 (1033.4) About six hundred years before the arrival of Michael, it seemed to Melchizedek, long since departed from the flesh, that the purity of his teaching on earth was being unduly jeopardized by general absorption into the older Urantia beliefs. It appeared for a time that his mission as a forerunner of Michael might be in danger of failing. And in the sixth century before Christ, through an unusual co-ordination of spiritual agencies, not all of which are understood even by the planetary supervisors, Urantia witnessed a most unusual presentation of manifold religious truth. Through the agency of several human teachers the Salem gospel was restated and revitalized, and as it was then presented, much has persisted to the times of this writing.
94:6.2 (1033.5) Dette unikke århundrede med åndelige fremskridt var præget af store religiøse, moralske og filosofiske lærere over hele den civiliserede verden. I Kina var de to fremragende lærere Lao-tse og Konfutse.		94:6.2 (1033.5) This unique century of spiritual progress was characterized by great religious, moral, and philosophic teachers all over the civilized world. In China, the two outstanding teachers were Lao-tse and Confucius.
94:6.3 (1033.6) Lao-tse byggede direkte videre på begreberne fra Salem-traditionerne, da han erklærede Tao for at være den ene første årsag til al skabelse. Lao var en mand med store åndelige visioner. Han lærte, at menneskets evige skæbne var “evig forening med Tao, den højeste Gud og den universelle konge.” Hans forståelse af den ultimative årsagssammenhæng var meget skarpsindig, for han skrev: “Enhed opstår ud af den absolutte Tao, og fra enhed opstår kosmisk dualitet, og fra denne dualitet opstår treenighed, og treenighed er den oprindelige kilde til al virkelighed.” “Al virkelighed er altid i balance mellem kosmos’ potentialer og aktualiteter, og disse harmoniseres evigt af guddommelighedens ånd.”		94:6.3 (1033.6) Lao-tse built directly upon the concepts of the Salem traditions when he declared Tao to be the One First Cause of all creation. Lao was a man of great spiritual vision. He taught that man’s eternal destiny was “everlasting union with Tao, Supreme God and Universal King.” His comprehension of ultimate causation was most discerning, for he wrote: “Unity arises out of the Absolute Tao, and from Unity there appears cosmic Duality, and from such Duality, Trinity springs forth into existence, and Trinity is the primal source of all reality.” “All reality is ever in balance between the potentials and the actuals of the cosmos, and these are eternally harmonized by the spirit of divinity.”
94:6.4 (1033.7) Lao-tse lavede også en af de tidligste præsentationer af doktrinen om at gengælde godt for ondt: “Godhed avler godhed, men for den, der virkelig er god, avler ondskab også godhed.”		94:6.4 (1033.7) Lao-tse also made one of the earliest presentations of the doctrine of returning good for evil: “Goodness begets goodness, but to the one who is truly good, evil also begets goodness.”
94:6.5 (1033.8) Han underviste i skabningens tilbagevenden til Skaberen og forestillede sig livet som en personligheds fremkomst fra de kosmiske potentialer, mens døden var som denne skabningspersonligheds hjemvenden. Hans opfattelse af sand tro var usædvanlig, og han sammenlignede den også med “et lille barns holdning.”		94:6.5 (1033.8) He taught the return of the creature to the Creator and pictured life as the emergence of a personality from the cosmic potentials, while death was like the returning home of this creature personality. His concept of true faith was unusual, and he too likened it to the “attitude of a little child.”
94:6.6 (1034.1) Hans forståelse af Guds evige formål var klar, for han sagde: “Den absolutte guddom kæmper ikke, men sejrer altid; han tvinger ikke menneskeheden, men står altid klar til at reagere på deres sande ønsker; Guds vilje er evig i tålmodighed og evig i uundgåeligheden af dens udtryk.” Og om den sande religiøse sagde han, da han udtrykte den sandhed, at det er mere velsignet at give end at modtage: “Det gode menneske søger ikke at beholde sandheden for sig selv, men forsøger snarere at skænke disse rigdomme til sine medmennesker, for det er realiseringen af sandheden. Den absolutte Guds vilje er altid gavnlig, aldrig ødelæggende; den sande troendes formål er altid at handle, men aldrig at tvinge.”		94:6.6 (1034.1) His understanding of the eternal purpose of God was clear, for he said: “The Absolute Deity does not strive but is always victorious; he does not coerce mankind but always stands ready to respond to their true desires; the will of God is eternal in patience and eternal in the inevitability of its expression.” And of the true religionist he said, in expressing the truth that it is more blessed to give than to receive: “The good man seeks not to retain truth for himself but rather attempts to bestow these riches upon his fellows, for that is the realization of truth. The will of the Absolute God always benefits, never destroys; the purpose of the true believer is always to act but never to coerce.”
94:6.7 (1034.2) Laos lære om ikke-modstand og den skelnen, han foretog mellemhandling og tvang, blev senere perverteret til troen på “ikke at se, gøre og tænke noget.” Men Lao har aldrig undervist i sådanne fejl, selvom hans præsentation af ikke-modstand har været en faktor i den videre udvikling af de kinesiske folks fredelige tilbøjeligheder.		94:6.7 (1034.2) Lao’s teaching of nonresistance and the distinction which he made between action and coercion became later perverted into the beliefs of “seeing, doing, and thinking nothing.” But Lao never taught such error, albeit his presentation of nonresistance has been a factor in the further development of the pacific predilections of the Chinese peoples.
94:6.8 (1034.3) Men den populære taoisme på Urantia i det tyvende århundrede har meget lidt til fælles med de ophøjede følelser og de kosmiske begreber hos den gamle filosof, der underviste i sandheden, som han opfattede den, hvilket var: At troen på den absolutte Gud er kilden til den guddommelige energi, som vil genskabe verden, og ved hvilken mennesket stiger op til åndelig forening med Tao, universernes evige guddom og absolutte skaber.		94:6.8 (1034.3) But the popular Taoism of twentieth-century Urantia has very little in common with the lofty sentiments and the cosmic concepts of the old philosopher who taught the truth as he perceived it, which was: That faith in the Absolute God is the source of that divine energy which will remake the world, and by which man ascends to spiritual union with Tao, the Eternal Deity and Creator Absolute of the universes.
94:6.9 (1034.4) Konfutse (Kung Fu-tze) var en yngre nutidig af Lao i det sjette århundredes Kina. Konfutse baserede sine doktriner på de bedre moralske traditioner fra den gule races lange historie, og han var også delvis påvirket af Salem missionærernes tilbageværende traditioner. Hans hovedværk bestod i udarbejdelsen af kloge citater af gamle filosoffer. Han blev afvist som lærer i sin levetid, men hans skrifter og lærer har lige siden haft en stor indflydelse i Kina og Japan. Konfutse angav en ny vej for shamanerne ved at erstatte magi med moral. Han byggede alt for godt; han lavede en ny fetich ud af orden og etablerede en respekt for forfædrenes adfærd, der stadig æres af kineserne på tidspunktet hvor dette skrives.		94:6.9 (1034.4) Confucius (Kung Fu-tze) was a younger contemporary of Lao in sixth-century China. Confucius based his doctrines upon the better moral traditions of the long history of the yellow race, and he was also somewhat influenced by the lingering traditions of the Salem missionaries. His chief work consisted in the compilation of the wise sayings of ancient philosophers. He was a rejected teacher during his lifetime, but his writings and teachings have ever since exerted a great influence in China and Japan. Confucius set a new pace for the shamans in that he put morality in the place of magic. But he built too well; he made a new fetish out of order and established a respect for ancestral conduct that is still venerated by the Chinese at the time of this writing.
94:6.10 (1034.5) Den konfucianske moralforkyndelse var baseret på teorien om, at den jordiske vej er den forvrængede skygge af den himmelske vej; at det sande mønster af tidens civilisation er spejling af himlens evige orden. Det potentielle gudsbegreb i konfucianismen var næsten fuldstændig underordnet vægten på den Himmelske Vej, det kosmiske mønster.		94:6.10 (1034.5) The Confucian preachment of morality was predicated on the theory that the earthly way is the distorted shadow of the heavenly way; that the true pattern of temporal civilization is the mirror reflection of the eternal order of heaven. The potential God concept in Confucianism was almost completely subordinated to the emphasis placed upon the Way of Heaven, the pattern of the cosmos.
94:6.11 (1034.6) Laos undervisning er gået tabt for alle, bortset for et par stykker i Orienten, men Konfutses skrifter har lige siden udgjort grundlaget for den moralske struktur i kulturen hos næsten en tredjedel af Urantianerne. Selv om disse konfucianske forskrifter foreviger det bedste fra fortiden, var de i nogen grad i modstrid med den kinesiske undersøgelsesånd, som havde skabt de præstationer, der blev så æret. Disse doktriners indflydelse blev uden held bekæmpet både af Ch’in Shih Huang Tis kejserlige indsats og af Mo Tis lære, som proklamerede et broderskab, der ikke var baseret på etisk pligt, men på kærlighed til Gud. Han forsøgte at genoplive den gamle søgen efter ny sandhed, men hans lære mislykkedes over for den kraftige modstand fra Konfutses disciple.		94:6.11 (1034.6) The teachings of Lao have been lost to all but a few in the Orient, but the writings of Confucius have ever since constituted the basis of the moral fabric of the culture of almost a third of Urantians. These Confucian precepts, while perpetuating the best of the past, were somewhat inimical to the very Chinese spirit of investigation that had produced those achievements which were so venerated. The influence of these doctrines was unsuccessfully combated both by the imperial efforts of Ch’in Shih Huang Ti and by the teachings of Mo Ti, who proclaimed a brotherhood founded not on ethical duty but on the love of God. He sought to rekindle the ancient quest for new truth, but his teachings failed before the vigorous opposition of the disciples of Confucius.
94:6.12 (1034.7) Som mange andre åndelige og moralske lærere blev både Konfutse og Lao-tse til sidst guddommeliggjort af deres tilhængere i de åndeligt mørke tidsaldre i Kina, der fandt sted mellem den taoistiske tros forfald og perversion og de buddhistiske missionærers ankomst fra Indien. I disse åndeligt dekadente århundreder degenererede den gule races religion til en ynkelig teologi, hvor det vrimlede med djævle, drager og onde ånder, som alle vidnede om den tilbagevendende frygt i det uoplyste dødelige sind. Og Kina, der engang var i spidsen for det menneskelige samfund på grund af en avanceret religion, faldt derefter tilbage på grund af midlertidig manglende fremskridt på den sande vej til udvikling af den gudsbevidsthed, der er uundværlig for det sande fremskridt, ikke kun for den enkelte dødelige, men også for de indviklede og komplekse civilisationer, der karakteriserer kulturens og samfundets fremskridt på en evolutionær planet i tid og rum.		94:6.12 (1034.7) Like many other spiritual and moral teachers, both Confucius and Lao-tse were eventually deified by their followers in those spiritually dark ages of China which intervened between the decline and perversion of the Taoist faith and the coming of the Buddhist missionaries from India. During these spiritually decadent centuries the religion of the yellow race degenerated into a pitiful theology wherein swarmed devils, dragons, and evil spirits, all betokening the returning fears of the unenlightened mortal mind. And China, once at the head of human society because of an advanced religion, then fell behind because of temporary failure to progress in the true path of the development of that God-consciousness which is indispensable to the true progress, not only of the individual mortal, but also of the intricate and complex civilizations which characterize the advance of culture and society on an evolutionary planet of time and space.
7. Gautama siddhartha ^top		7. Gautama Siddhartha ^top
94:7.1 (1035.1) Samtidig med Lao-tse og Konfutse i Kina opstod en anden stor sandhedslærer i Indien. Gautama Siddhartha blev født i det sjette århundrede før Kristus i den nordindiske provins Nepal. Hans tilhængere fik det senere til at se ud, som om han var søn af en fabelagtig rig hersker, men i virkeligheden var han tronarving til en lille høvding, der regerede på tålt ophold i en lille og afsondret bjergdal i det sydlige Himalaya.		94:7.1 (1035.1) Contemporary with Lao-tse and Confucius in China, another great teacher of truth arose in India. Gautama Siddhartha was born in the sixth century before Christ in the north Indian province of Nepal. His followers later made it appear that he was the son of a fabulously wealthy ruler, but, in truth, he was the heir apparent to the throne of a petty chieftain who ruled by sufferance over a small and secluded mountain valley in the southern Himalayas.
94:7.2 (1035.2) Gautama formulerede de teorier, som blev til buddhismens filosofi efter seks års forgæves udøvelse af yoga. Siddhartha kæmpede en beslutsom, men forgæves kamp mod det voksende kastesystem. Der var en ophøjet oprigtighed og en unik uselviskhed over denne unge profetprins, som i høj grad appellerede til datidens mennesker. Han tog afstand fra den praksis at søge individuel frelse gennem fysisk lidelse og personlig smerte. Og han formanede sine tilhængere til at bringe hans evangelium ud til hele verden.		94:7.2 (1035.2) Gautama formulated those theories which grew into the philosophy of Buddhism after six years of the futile practice of Yoga. Siddhartha made a determined but unavailing fight against the growing caste system. There was a lofty sincerity and a unique unselfishness about this young prophet prince that greatly appealed to the men of those days. He detracted from the practice of seeking individual salvation through physical affliction and personal pain. And he exhorted his followers to carry his gospel to all the world.
94:7.3 (1035.3) Midt i Indiens forvirring og ekstreme kultpraksis kom Gautamas sundere og mere moderate lære som en forfriskende lettelse. Han fordømte guder, præster og deres ofringer, men han kunne heller ikke se personligheden af Den Ene Universelle. Da Gautama ikke troede på eksistensen af individuelle menneskesjæle, kæmpede han naturligvis en brav kamp mod den hævdvundne tro på sjælevandring. Han gjorde en ædel indsats for at befri mennesker fra frygt, for at få dem til at føle sig godt tilpas og hjemme i det store univers, men han undlod at vise dem vejen til det virkelige og himmelske hjem for opstigende dødelige—Paradis—og til den evige eksistens’ ekspanderende tjeneste.		94:7.3 (1035.3) Amid the confusion and extreme cult practices of India, the saner and more moderate teachings of Gautama came as a refreshing relief. He denounced gods, priests, and their sacrifices, but he too failed to perceive the personality of the One Universal. Not believing in the existence of individual human souls, Gautama, of course, made a valiant fight against the time-honored belief in transmigration of the soul. He made a noble effort to deliver men from fear, to make them feel at ease and at home in the great universe, but he failed to show them the pathway to that real and supernal home of ascending mortals—Paradise—and to the expanding service of eternal existence.
94:7.4 (1035.4) Gautama var en ægte profet, og hvis han havde lyttet til eremitten Godads instruktioner, kunne han have vækket hele Indien med inspiration fra genoplivningen af Salems evangelium om frelse ved tro. Godad nedstammede fra en familie, der aldrig havde mistet traditionerne fra Melkisedek-missionærerne.		94:7.4 (1035.4) Gautama was a real prophet, and had he heeded the instruction of the hermit Godad, he might have aroused all India by the inspiration of the revival of the Salem gospel of salvation by faith. Godad was descended through a family that had never lost the traditions of the Melchizedek missionaries.
94:7.5 (1035.5) I Benares grundlagde Gautama sin skole, og det var i løbet af dens andet år, at en elev, Bautan, videregav Salem-missionærernes traditioner om Melkisedeks pagt med Abraham til sin lærer; og selvom Siddhartha ikke havde en særlig klar opfattelse af den universelle Fader, indtog han et avanceret standpunkt om frelse gennem tro—simpel tro. Det erklærede han over for sine tilhængere, og han begyndte at sende sine elever ud i grupper på 60 for at forkynde “det glade budskab om gratis frelse; at alle mennesker, høj som lav, kan opnå lyksalighed ved at tro på retfærdighed og retskaffenhed.”		94:7.5 (1035.5) At Benares Gautama founded his school, and it was during its second year that a pupil, Bautan, imparted to his teacher the traditions of the Salem missionaries about the Melchizedek covenant with Abraham; and while Siddhartha did not have a very clear concept of the Universal Father, he took an advanced stand on salvation through faith—simple belief. He so declared himself before his followers and began sending his students out in groups of sixty to proclaim to the people of India “the glad tidings of free salvation; that all men, high and low, can attain bliss by faith in righteousness and justice.”
94:7.6 (1035.6) Gautamas kone troede på sin mands evangelium og var grundlægger af en nonneorden. Hans søn blev hans efterfølger og udvidede kulten betydeligt; han greb den nye idé om frelse gennem tro, men i sine senere år vaklede han med hensyn til Salems evangelium om guddommelig gunst gennem tro alene, og i sin alderdom var hans sidste ord: “Arbejd på din egen frelse.”		94:7.6 (1035.6) Gautama’s wife believed her husband’s gospel and was the founder of an order of nuns. His son became his successor and greatly extended the cult; he grasped the new idea of salvation through faith but in his later years wavered regarding the Salem gospel of divine favor through faith alone, and in his old age his dying words were, “Work out your own salvation.”
94:7.7 (1036.1) Da Gautamas evangelium om universel frelse, fri for ofre, tortur, ritualer og præster, blev forkyndt, da det var bedst, var det en revolutionerende og fantastisk doktrin for sin tid. Og det kom overraskende tæt på at være en genoplivning af Salem-evangeliet. Det bragte hjælp til millioner af fortvivlede sjæle, og på trods af dets groteske perversion i de senere århundreder, er det stadig håbet for millioner af mennesker.		94:7.7 (1036.1) When proclaimed at its best, Gautama’s gospel of universal salvation, free from sacrifice, torture, ritual, and priests, was a revolutionary and amazing doctrine for its time. And it came surprisingly near to being a revival of the Salem gospel. It brought succor to millions of despairing souls, and notwithstanding its grotesque perversion during later centuries, it still persists as the hope of millions of human beings.
94:7.8 (1036.2) Siddhartha lærte langt mere sandhed, end der er overlevet i de moderne kulter, der bærer hans navn. Moderne buddhisme er lige så lidt Gautama Siddharthas lære, som kristendommen er Jesus af Nazarets lære.		94:7.8 (1036.2) Siddhartha taught far more truth than has survived in the modern cults bearing his name. Modern Buddhism is no more the teachings of Gautama Siddhartha than is Christianity the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.
8. Den buddhistiske tro ^top		8. The Buddhist Faith ^top
94:8.1 (1036.3) For at blive buddhist skulle man blot offentligt bekende sig til troen ved at recitere Tilflugten: “Jeg tager min tilflugt i Buddha; jeg tager min tilflugt i Læren; jeg tager min tilflugt i Broderskabet.”		94:8.1 (1036.3) To become a Buddhist, one merely made public profession of the faith by reciting the Refuge: “I take my refuge in the Buddha; I take my refuge in the Doctrine; I take my refuge in the Brotherhood.”
94:8.2 (1036.4) Buddhismen har sin oprindelse i en historisk person, ikke i en myte. Gautamas tilhængere kaldte ham Sasta, som betyder mester eller lærer. Selv om han ikke stillede overmenneskelige krav til hverken sig selv eller sin lære, begyndte hans disciple tidligt at kalde ham den oplyste, Buddha; senere, Sakyamuni Buddha.		94:8.2 (1036.4) Buddhism took origin in a historic person, not in a myth. Gautama’s followers called him Sasta, meaning master or teacher. While he made no superhuman claims for either himself or his teachings, his disciples early began to call him the enlightened one, the Buddha; later on, Sakyamuni Buddha.
94:8.3 (1036.5) Gautamas oprindelige evangelium var baseret på de fire ædle sandheder:		94:8.3 (1036.5) The original gospel of Gautama was based on the four noble truths:
94:8.4 (1036.6) 1. De ædle sandheder om lidelse.		94:8.4 (1036.6) 1. The noble truths of suffering.
94:8.5 (1036.7) 2. Oprindelsen til lidelse.		94:8.5 (1036.7) 2. The origins of suffering.
94:8.6 (1036.8) 3. Ødelæggelse af lidelse.		94:8.6 (1036.8) 3. The destruction of suffering.
94:8.7 (1036.9) 4. Vejen til udryddelse af lidelse.		94:8.7 (1036.9) 4. The way to the destruction of suffering.
94:8.8 (1036.10) Tæt forbundet med læren om lidelse og flugten derfra var filosofien om den ottefoldige vej: Ret sindelag, stræben, tale, adfærd, levebrød, anstrengelse, opmærksomhed og fordybelse. Det var ikke Gautamas hensigt at forsøge at ødelægge al anstrengelse, begær og hengivenhed i flugten fra lidelse; hans lære var snarere designet til at vise det dødelige menneske det nytteløse i at knytte alt håb og alle ambitioner udelukkende til timelige mål og materielle målsætninger. Det var ikke så meget, at kærlighed til ens medmennesker skulle undgås, som at den sande troende også skulle se ud over associationerne i denne materielle verden til realiteterne i den evige fremtid.		94:8.8 (1036.10) Closely linked to the doctrine of suffering and the escape therefrom was the philosophy of the Eightfold Path: right views, aspirations, speech, conduct, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and contemplation. It was not Gautama’s intention to attempt to destroy all effort, desire, and affection in the escape from suffering; rather was his teaching designed to picture to mortal man the futility of pinning all hope and aspirations entirely on temporal goals and material objectives. It was not so much that love of one’s fellows should be shunned as that the true believer should also look beyond the associations of this material world to the realities of the eternal future.
94:8.9 (1036.11) De moralske befalinger i Gautamas forkyndelse var fem i antal:		94:8.9 (1036.11) The moral commandments of Gautama’s preachment were five in number:
94:8.10 (1036.12) 1. Du må ikke slå ihjel.		94:8.10 (1036.12) 1. You shall not kill.
94:8.11 (1036.13) 2. Du må ikke stjæle.		94:8.11 (1036.13) 2. You shall not steal.
94:8.12 (1036.14) 3. Du må ikke være ukysk.		94:8.12 (1036.14) 3. You shall not be unchaste.
94:8.13 (1036.15) 4. Du må ikke lyve.		94:8.13 (1036.15) 4. You shall not lie.
94:8.14 (1036.16) 5. Du må ikke drikke berusende væsker.		94:8.14 (1036.16) 5. You shall not drink intoxicating liquors.
94:8.15 (1036.17) Der var flere yderligere eller sekundære bud, som de troende kunne overholde efter frit valg.		94:8.15 (1036.17) There were several additional or secondary commandments, whose observance was optional with believers.
94:8.16 (1036.18) Siddhartha troede næppe på udødelighed for den menneskelige personlighed; hans filosofi indeholdt kun en form for funktionel kontinuitet. Han definerede aldrig klart, hvad han mente at inkludere i doktrinen om Nirvana. Det faktum, at det teoretisk set kunne opleves under den dødelige eksistens, ville indikere, at det ikke blev betragtet som en tilstand af fuldstændig udslettelse. Det indebar en tilstand af højeste oplysning og himmelsk lyksalighed, hvor alle lænker, der bandt mennesket til den materielle verden, var blevet brudt; der var frihed fra det dødelige livs begær og befrielse fra enhver fare for nogensinde igen at opleve inkarnation.		94:8.16 (1036.18) Siddhartha hardly believed in the immortality of the human personality; his philosophy only provided for a sort of functional continuity. He never clearly defined what he meant to include in the doctrine of Nirvana. The fact that it could theoretically be experienced during mortal existence would indicate that it was not viewed as a state of complete annihilation. It implied a condition of supreme enlightenment and supernal bliss wherein all fetters binding man to the material world had been broken; there was freedom from the desires of mortal life and deliverance from all danger of ever again experiencing incarnation.
94:8.17 (1037.1) Ifølge Gautamas oprindelige lære opnås frelse ved menneskelig indsats, bortset fra guddommelig hjælp; der er ikke plads til frelsende tro eller bønner til overmenneskelige kræfter. I sit forsøg på at minimere overtroen i Indien, forsøgte Gautama at vende mennesker væk fra de åbenlyse krav om magisk frelse. Og ved at gøre denne indsats, lod han døren stå på vid gab for sine efterfølgere til at misfortolke hans lære og proklamere, at al menneskelig stræben efter opnåelse er usmagelig og smertefuld. Hans tilhængere overså det faktum, at den højeste lykke er forbundet med den intelligente og entusiastiske stræben efter værdige mål, og at sådanne præstationer udgør sande fremskridt i kosmisk selvrealisering.		94:8.17 (1037.1) According to the original teachings of Gautama, salvation is achieved by human effort, apart from divine help; there is no place for saving faith or prayers to superhuman powers. Gautama, in his attempt to minimize the superstitions of India, endeavored to turn men away from the blatant claims of magical salvation. And in making this effort, he left the door wide open for his successors to misinterpret his teaching and to proclaim that all human striving for attainment is distasteful and painful. His followers overlooked the fact that the highest happiness is linked with the intelligent and enthusiastic pursuit of worthy goals, and that such achievements constitute true progress in cosmic self-realization.
94:8.18 (1037.2) Den store sandhed i Siddharthas lære var hans proklamation af et univers med absolut retfærdighed. Han underviste i den bedste gudløse filosofi, der nogensinde er opfundet af dødelige mennesker; det var den ideelle humanisme og fjernede mest effektivt alle grunde til overtro, magiske ritualer og frygt for spøgelser eller dæmoner.		94:8.18 (1037.2) The great truth of Siddhartha’s teaching was his proclamation of a universe of absolute justice. He taught the best godless philosophy ever invented by mortal man; it was the ideal humanism and most effectively removed all grounds for superstition, magical rituals, and fear of ghosts or demons.
94:8.19 (1037.3) Den store svaghed ved buddhismens oprindelige evangelium var, at det ikke skabte en religion af uselvisk social tjeneste. Det buddhistiske broderskab var i lang tid ikke et broderskab af troende, men snarere et fællesskab af lærerstuderende. Gautama forbød dem at modtage penge og forsøgte dermed at forhindre hierarkiske tendenser i at vokse frem. Gautama selv var meget social; faktisk var hans liv meget større end hans forkyndelse.		94:8.19 (1037.3) The great weakness in the original gospel of Buddhism was that it did not produce a religion of unselfish social service. The Buddhistic brotherhood was, for a long time, not a fraternity of believers but rather a community of student teachers. Gautama forbade their receiving money and thereby sought to prevent the growth of hierarchal tendencies. Gautama himself was highly social; indeed, his life was much greater than his preachment.
9. Buddhismens spredning ^top		9. The Spread of Buddhism ^top
94:9.1 (1037.4) Buddhismen blomstrede, fordi den tilbød frelse gennem troen på Buddha, den oplyste. Den var mere repræsentativ for de melkisedekske sandheder end noget andet religiøst system, der fandtes i det østlige Asien. Men buddhismen blev ikke udbredt som religion, før den i selvbeskyttelse blev overtaget af lavkaste-monarken Asoka, som ved siden af Ikhnaton i Egypten var en af de mest bemærkelsesværdige civile herskere mellem Melkisedek og Mikael. Asoka opbyggede et stort indisk imperium gennem sine buddhistiske missionærers propaganda. I løbet af en periode på 25 år trænede og udsendte han mere end 17.000 missionærer til de fjerneste grænser i hele den kendte verden. I løbet af en generation gjorde han buddhismen til den dominerende religion i halvdelen af verden. Den blev snart etableret i Tibet, Kashmir, Ceylon, Burma, Java, Siam, Korea, Kina og Japan. Og generelt set var det en religion, der var langt bedre end dem, den erstattede eller overhalede.		94:9.1 (1037.4) Buddhism prospered because it offered salvation through belief in the Buddha, the enlightened one. It was more representative of the Melchizedek truths than any other religious system to be found throughout eastern Asia. But Buddhism did not become widespread as a religion until it was espoused in self-protection by the low-caste monarch Asoka, who, next to Ikhnaton in Egypt, was one of the most remarkable civil rulers between Melchizedek and Michael. Asoka built a great Indian empire through the propaganda of his Buddhist missionaries. During a period of twenty-five years he trained and sent forth more than seventeen thousand missionaries to the farthest frontiers of all the known world. In one generation he made Buddhism the dominant religion of one half the world. It soon became established in Tibet, Kashmir, Ceylon, Burma, Java, Siam, Korea, China, and Japan. And generally speaking, it was a religion vastly superior to those which it supplanted or upstepped.
94:9.2 (1037.5) Buddhismens udbredelse fra sit hjemland i Indien til hele Asien er en af de spændende historier om oprigtige religionisters åndelige hengivenhed og missionerende vedholdenhed. Lærerne af Gautamas evangelium trodsede ikke kun farerne på karavanevejene over land, men stod også over for farerne i Det Kinesiske Hav, mens de forfulgte deres mission over det asiatiske kontinent og bragte budskabet om deres tro til alle folkeslag. Men denne buddhisme var ikke længere Gautamas simple doktrin; det var det mirakuløse evangelium, som gjorde ham til en gud. Og jo længere buddhismen spredte sig fra sit hjem i Indiens højland, jo mere forskellig blev den fra Gautamas lære, og jo mere lignede den de religioner, den afløste.		94:9.2 (1037.5) The spread of Buddhism from its homeland in India to all of Asia is one of the thrilling stories of the spiritual devotion and missionary persistence of sincere religionists. The teachers of Gautama’s gospel not only braved the perils of the overland caravan routes but faced the dangers of the China Seas as they pursued their mission over the Asiatic continent, bringing to all peoples the message of their faith. But this Buddhism was no longer the simple doctrine of Gautama; it was the miraculized gospel which made him a god. And the farther Buddhism spread from its highland home in India, the more unlike the teachings of Gautama it became, and the more like the religions it supplanted, it grew to be.
94:9.3 (1038.1) Buddhismen blev senere meget påvirket af taoismen i Kina, shinto i Japan og kristendommen i Tibet. Efter tusind år visnede og uddøde buddhismen simpelthen i Indien. Den blev brahmaniseret og overgav sig senere ydmygt til islam, mens den i store dele af resten af Orienten degenererede til et ritual, som Gautama Siddhartha aldrig ville have genkendt.		94:9.3 (1038.1) Buddhism, later on, was much affected by Taoism in China, Shinto in Japan, and Christianity in Tibet. After a thousand years, in India Buddhism simply withered and expired. It became Brahmanized and later abjectly surrendered to Islam, while throughout much of the rest of the Orient it degenerated into a ritual which Gautama Siddhartha would never have recognized.
94:9.4 (1038.2) I syd fortsatte den fundamentalistiske stereotype opfattelse af Siddharthas lære på Ceylon, i Burma og på den indokinesiske halvø. Dette er Hinayana-afdelingen af buddhismen, som holder fast i den tidlige eller asociale lære.		94:9.4 (1038.2) In the south the fundamentalist stereotype of the teachings of Siddhartha persisted in Ceylon, Burma, and the Indo-China peninsula. This is the Hinayana division of Buddhism which clings to the early or asocial doctrine.
94:9.5 (1038.3) Men allerede før sammenbruddet i Indien var de kinesiske og nordindiske grupper af Gautamas tilhængere begyndt at udvikle Mahayana-læren om “den store vej” til frelse i modsætning til puristerne i syd, som holdt fast i Hinayana eller “den mindre vej.” Og disse mahayanister gjorde sig fri af de sociale begrænsninger, der lå i den buddhistiske lære, og lige siden er denne nordlige opdeling af buddhismen fortsat med at udvikle sig i Kina og Japan.		94:9.5 (1038.3) But even before the collapse in India, the Chinese and north Indian groups of Gautama’s followers had begun the development of the Mahayana teaching of the “Great Road” to salvation in contrast with the purists of the south who held to the Hinayana, or “Lesser Road.” And these Mahayanists cast loose from the social limitations inherent in the Buddhist doctrine, and ever since has this northern division of Buddhism continued to evolve in China and Japan.
94:9.6 (1038.4) Buddhismen er en levende, voksende religion i dag, fordi den formår at bevare mange af sine tilhængeres højeste moralske værdier. Den fremmer ro og selvkontrol, øger sindsro og lykke og gør meget for at forhindre sorg og savn. De, der tror på denne filosofi, lever bedre liv end mange, der ikke gør.		94:9.6 (1038.4) Buddhism is a living, growing religion today because it succeeds in conserving many of the highest moral values of its adherents. It promotes calmness and self-control, augments serenity and happiness, and does much to prevent sorrow and mourning. Those who believe this philosophy live better lives than many who do not.
10. Religionen i tibet ^top		10. Religion in Tibet ^top
94:10.1 (1038.5) I Tibet kan man finde den mærkeligste kombination af Melkisedeks lære kombineret med buddhisme, hinduisme, taoisme og kristendom. Da de buddhistiske missionærer kom til Tibet, mødte de en tilstand af primitiv vildskab, der var meget lig den, de tidlige kristne missionærer fandt blandt de nordlige stammer i Europa.		94:10.1 (1038.5) In Tibet may be found the strangest association of the Melchizedek teachings combined with Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, and Christianity. When the Buddhist missionaries entered Tibet, they encountered a state of primitive savagery very similar to that which the early Christian missionaries found among the northern tribes of Europe.
94:10.2 (1038.6) Disse simple tibetanere ville ikke helt opgive deres gamle magi og charme. Undersøgelse af de religiøse ceremonier af nutidens tibetanske ritualer afslører et forvokset broderskab af præster med barberede hoveder, der praktiserer et indviklet ritual omfattende klokkeringning, messer, røgelse, processioner, rosenkranse, afbildning, amuletter, billeder, helligt vand, smukke messedragter, og kunstfærdige kor. De har stivnede dogmer og forstenede trosbekendelser, mystiske ritualer og særlige faster. Til deres hierarki hører munke, nonner, abbeder, og storlamaen. De beder til engle, helgener, en Hellige Moder, og guderne. De praktiserer tilståelser og tror på skærsilden. Deres klostre er omfattende, og deres katedraler storslået. De opretholder en endeløs gentagelse af hellige ritualer og tror, at sådanne ceremonier skænker frelse. Bønner er fastgjort til et hjul, og når det drejer rundt tror de disse andragender bliver virkningsfuldt. Blandt ingen andre mennesker i moderne tid kan man finde overholdelsen af så meget fra så mange religioner; og det er uundgåeligt, at en sådan kumulativ liturgi ville blive uforholdsmæssigt besværlig og en ubærlig byrde.		94:10.2 (1038.6) These simple-minded Tibetans would not wholly give up their ancient magic and charms. Examination of the religious ceremonials of present-day Tibetan rituals reveals an overgrown brotherhood of priests with shaven heads who practice an elaborate ritual embracing bells, chants, incense, processionals, rosaries, images, charms, pictures, holy water, gorgeous vestments, and elaborate choirs. They have rigid dogmas and crystallized creeds, mystic rites and special fasts. Their hierarchy embraces monks, nuns, abbots, and the Grand Lama. They pray to angels, saints, a Holy Mother, and the gods. They practice confessions and believe in purgatory. Their monasteries are extensive and their cathedrals magnificent. They keep up an endless repetition of sacred rituals and believe that such ceremonials bestow salvation. Prayers are fastened to a wheel, and with its turning they believe the petitions become efficacious. Among no other people of modern times can be found the observance of so much from so many religions; and it is inevitable that such a cumulative liturgy would become inordinately cumbersome and intolerably burdensome.
94:10.3 (1038.7) Tibetanerne har noget af alle de førende verdensreligioner, bortset fra den enkle lære i Jesu evangelium: Om menneskets slægtskab med Gud, broderskab mellem mennesker, og medborgerskab i det stadigt stigende niveau af det evige univers.		94:10.3 (1038.7) The Tibetans have something of all the leading world religions except the simple teachings of the Jesusonian gospel: sonship with God, brotherhood with man, and ever-ascending citizenship in the eternal universe.
11. Buddhistisk filosofi ^top		11. Buddhist Philosophy ^top
94:11.1 (1038.8) Buddhismen kom til Kina i det første årtusinde efter Kristus, og den passede godt ind i den gule races religiøse skikke. I forfædredyrkelsen havde de længe bedt til de døde; nu kunne de også bede for dem. Buddhismen smeltede snart sammen med de tilbageværende ritualistiske praksisser fra den opløsende taoisme. Denne nye syntetiske religion med sine tilbedelsestempler og bestemte religiøse ceremonier blev snart den alment accepterede kult blandt folkene i Kina, Korea og Japan.		94:11.1 (1038.8) Buddhism entered China in the first millennium after Christ, and it fitted well into the religious customs of the yellow race. In ancestor worship they had long prayed to the dead; now they could also pray for them. Buddhism soon amalgamated with the lingering ritualistic practices of disintegrating Taoism. This new synthetic religion with its temples of worship and definite religious ceremonial soon became the generally accepted cult of the peoples of China, Korea, and Japan.
94:11.2 (1039.1) Selvom det i nogle henseender er uheldigt, at buddhismen først blev udbredt til verden, efter at Gautamas tilhængere havde fordrejet kultens traditioner og lære i en sådan grad, at de gjorde ham til et guddommeligt væsen, viste denne myte om hans menneskelige liv, der var pyntet med et væld af mirakler, sig ikke desto mindre at være meget tiltalende for tilhørerne af buddhismens nordlige eller Mahayana-evangelium.		94:11.2 (1039.1) While in some respects it is unfortunate that Buddhism was not carried to the world until after Gautama’s followers had so perverted the traditions and teachings of the cult as to make of him a divine being, nonetheless this myth of his human life, embellished as it was with a multitude of miracles, proved very appealing to the auditors of the northern or Mahayana gospel of Buddhism.
94:11.3 (1039.2) Nogle af hans senere tilhængere lærte, at Sakyamuni Buddhas ånd med jævne mellemrum vendte tilbage til jorden som en levende Buddha, hvilket åbnede vejen for en ubegrænset fortsættelse af Buddha-billeder, templer, ritualer og bedrageriske “levende Buddhaer.” Således endte den store indiske protestants religion med at blive lænket til netop de ceremonielle praksisser og rituelle besværgelser, som han så frygtløst havde kæmpet imod, og som han så tappert havde fordømt.		94:11.3 (1039.2) Some of his later followers taught that Sakyamuni Buddha’s spirit returned periodically to earth as a living Buddha, thus opening the way for an indefinite perpetuation of Buddha images, temples, rituals, and impostor “living Buddhas.” Thus did the religion of the great Indian protestant eventually find itself shackled with those very ceremonial practices and ritualistic incantations against which he had so fearlessly fought, and which he had so valiantly denounced.
94:11.4 (1039.3) Det store fremskridt i buddhistisk filosofi bestod i forståelsen af, at al sandhed er relativ. Ved hjælp af denne hypotese har buddhisterne været i stand til at forene og korrelere uoverensstemmelserne i deres egne religiøse skrifter såvel som forskellene mellem deres egne og mange andres. De lærte, at den lille sandhed var for små sind, den store sandhed for store sind.		94:11.4 (1039.3) The great advance made in Buddhist philosophy consisted in its comprehension of the relativity of all truth. Through the mechanism of this hypothesis Buddhists have been able to reconcile and correlate the divergencies within their own religious scriptures as well as the differences between their own and many others. It was taught that the small truth was for little minds, the large truth for great minds.
94:11.5 (1039.4) Denne filosofi hævdede også, at Buddhas (guddommelige) natur boede i alle mennesker, og at mennesket gennem sine egne bestræbelser kunne nå frem til erkendelsen af denne indre guddommelighed. Og denne lære er en af de klareste præsentationer af sandheden om de iboende Rettere, der nogensinde er blevet givet af en Urantia religion.		94:11.5 (1039.4) This philosophy also held that the Buddha (divine) nature resided in all men; that man, through his own endeavors, could attain to the realization of this inner divinity. And this teaching is one of the clearest presentations of the truth of the indwelling Adjusters ever to be made by a Urantian religion.
94:11.6 (1039.5) Men en stor begrænsning i Siddharthas oprindelige evangelium, som det blev fortolket af hans tilhængere, var, at det forsøgte en fuldstændig frigørelse af det menneskelige selv fra alle den dødelige naturs begrænsninger ved at isolere selvet fra den objektive virkelighed. Ægte kosmisk selvrealisering er resultatet af identifikation med den kosmiske virkelighed og med det endelige kosmos af energi, sind og ånd, der er afgrænset af rum og betinget af tid.		94:11.6 (1039.5) But a great limitation in the original gospel of Siddhartha, as it was interpreted by his followers, was that it attempted the complete liberation of the human self from all the limitations of the mortal nature by the technique of isolating the self from objective reality. True cosmic self-realization results from identification with cosmic reality and with the finite cosmos of energy, mind, and spirit, bounded by space and conditioned by time.
94:11.7 (1039.6) Men selv om buddhismens ceremonier og ydre skikke blev groft forurenet af de lande, den rejste til, var denne degenerering ikke helt tilfældet i det filosofiske liv hos de store tænkere, der fra tid til anden omfavnede dette tanke- og trossystem. Gennem mere end to tusind år har mange af de bedste hjerner i Asien koncentreret sig om problemet med at fastslå den absolutte sandhed og sandheden om det absolutte.		94:11.7 (1039.6) But though the ceremonies and outward observances of Buddhism became grossly contaminated with those of the lands to which it traveled, this degeneration was not altogether the case in the philosophical life of the great thinkers who, from time to time, embraced this system of thought and belief. Through more than two thousand years, many of the best minds of Asia have concentrated upon the problem of ascertaining absolute truth and the truth of the Absolute.
94:11.8 (1039.7) Udviklingen af et højt begreb om det absolutte blev opnået gennem mange tankekanaler og ved hjælp af snørklede ræsonnementer. Den opadgående stigning i denne uendelighedslære var ikke så klart defineret som udviklingen af gudsbegrebet i hebraisk teologi. Ikke desto mindre var der visse brede niveauer, som buddhisternes sind nåede, dvælede ved og passerede igennem på deres vej til forestillingen om universernes Urkilde:		94:11.8 (1039.7) The evolution of a high concept of the Absolute was achieved through many channels of thought and by devious paths of reasoning. The upward ascent of this doctrine of infinity was not so clearly defined as was the evolution of the God concept in Hebrew theology. Nevertheless, there were certain broad levels which the minds of the Buddhists reached, tarried upon, and passed through on their way to the envisioning of the Primal Source of universes:
94:11.9 (1039.8) 1. Legenden om Gautama. Grundlaget for konceptet var den historiske kendsgerning om Siddharthas, den indiske profetprins’, liv og lære. Denne legende voksede som myte, mens den rejste gennem århundrederne og på tværs af Asiens vidtstrakte lande, indtil den overskred status for ideen om Gautama som den oplyste og begyndte at antage yderligere egenskaber.		94:11.9 (1039.8) 1. The Gautama legend. At the base of the concept was the historic fact of the life and teachings of Siddhartha, the prophet prince of India. This legend grew in myth as it traveled through the centuries and across the broad lands of Asia until it surpassed the status of the idea of Gautama as the enlightened one and began to take on additional attributes.
94:11.10 (1040.1) 2. De mange Buddhaer. Man ræsonnerede, at hvis Gautama var kommet til Indiens folk, så måtte menneskehedens racer i en fjern fortid og i en fjern fremtid have været velsignet med andre sandhedslærere og ville utvivlsomt blive det. Dette gav anledning til læren om, at der var mange Buddhaer, et ubegrænset og uendeligt antal, ja, at enhver kunne stræbe efter at blive en—at opnå en Buddhas guddommelighed.		94:11.10 (1040.1) 2. The many Buddhas. It was reasoned that, if Gautama had come to the peoples of India, then, in the remote past and in the remote future, the races of mankind must have been, and undoubtedly would be, blessed with other teachers of truth. This gave rise to the teaching that there were many Buddhas, an unlimited and infinite number, even that anyone could aspire to become one—to attain the divinity of a Buddha.
94:11.11 (1040.2) 3. Den Absolutte Buddha. Da antallet af buddhaer nærmede sig det uendelige, blev det nødvendigt for datidens hjerner at forene dette uhåndterlige koncept. Derfor begyndte man at lære, at alle buddhaer blot var manifestationen af en højere essens, en evig En med uendelig og ukvalificeret eksistens, en absolut kilde til al virkelighed. Herfra bliver buddhismens gudsbegreb i sin højeste form adskilt fra Gautama Siddharthas menneskelige person og kaster de antropomorfe begrænsninger af sig, som har holdt den i snor. Denne endelige opfattelse af den evige Buddha kan godt identificeres som det absolutte, nogle gange endda som det uendelige JEG ER.		94:11.11 (1040.2) 3. The Absolute Buddha. By the time the number of Buddhas was approaching infinity, it became necessary for the minds of those days to reunify this unwieldy concept. Accordingly it began to be taught that all Buddhas were but the manifestation of some higher essence, some Eternal One of infinite and unqualified existence, some Absolute Source of all reality. From here on, the Deity concept of Buddhism, in its highest form, becomes divorced from the human person of Gautama Siddhartha and casts off from the anthropomorphic limitations which have held it in leash. This final conception of the Buddha Eternal can well be identified as the Absolute, sometimes even as the infinite I AM.
94:11.12 (1040.3) Selvom denne idé om den absolutte guddom aldrig vandt stor popularitet hos de asiatiske folk, gjorde den det muligt for de intellektuelle i disse lande at forene deres filosofi og harmonisere deres kosmologi. Konceptet om Buddha den Absolutte er til tider halvt personligt, til tider helt upersonligt—endda en uendelig kreativ kraft. Selvom sådanne begreber er nyttige for filosofien, er de ikke afgørende for den religiøse udvikling. Selv en menneskelignende Jahve er af større religiøs værdi end buddhismens eller brahmanismens uendeligt fjerne absolutte.		94:11.12 (1040.3) While this idea of Absolute Deity never found great popular favor with the peoples of Asia, it did enable the intellectuals of these lands to unify their philosophy and to harmonize their cosmology. The concept of the Buddha Absolute is at times quasi-personal, at times wholly impersonal—even an infinite creative force. Such concepts, though helpful to philosophy, are not vital to religious development. Even an anthropomorphic Yahweh is of greater religious value than an infinitely remote Absolute of Buddhism or Brahmanism.
94:11.13 (1040.4) Til tider troede man endda, at det absolutte var indeholdt i det uendelige JEG ER. Men disse spekulationer var en ringe trøst for de sultne skarer, der trængte til at høre ord med løfter, til at høre det enkle evangelium om Salem, at troen på Gud ville sikre guddommelig gunst og evig overlevelse.		94:11.13 (1040.4) At times the Absolute was even thought of as contained within the infinite I AM. But these speculations were chill comfort to the hungry multitudes who craved to hear words of promise, to hear the simple gospel of Salem, that faith in God would assure divine favor and eternal survival.
12. Buddhismens gudsbegreb ^top		12. The God Concept of Buddhism ^top
94:12.1 (1040.5) Den store svaghed i buddhismens kosmologi var todelt: dens forurening med mange af Indiens og Kinas overtro og dens sublimering af Gautama, først som den oplyste og derefter som den evige Buddha. Ligesom kristendommen har lidt under optagelsen af megen fejlagtig menneskelig filosofi, bærer buddhismen også sit menneskelige fødselsmærke. Men Gautamas lære er fortsat med at udvikle sig i løbet af de sidste to og et halvt årtusinde. For en oplyst buddhist er begrebet Buddha lige så lidt Gautamas menneskelige personlighed, som begrebet Jehova er identisk med Horebs åndedæmon for en oplyst kristen. Mangel på terminologi, sammen med den sentimentale fastholdelse af gammel nomenklatur, er ofte provokerende for den manglende forståelse af den sande betydning af udviklingen af religiøse begreber.		94:12.1 (1040.5) The great weakness in the cosmology of Buddhism was twofold: its contamination with many of the superstitions of India and China and its sublimation of Gautama, first as the enlightened one, and then as the Eternal Buddha. Just as Christianity has suffered from the absorption of much erroneous human philosophy, so does Buddhism bear its human birthmark. But the teachings of Gautama have continued to evolve during the past two and one-half millenniums. The concept of Buddha, to an enlightened Buddhist, is no more the human personality of Gautama than the concept of Jehovah is identical with the spirit demon of Horeb to an enlightened Christian. Paucity of terminology, together with the sentimental retention of olden nomenclature, is often provocative of the failure to understand the true significance of the evolution of religious concepts.
94:12.2 (1040.6) Gradvist begyndte begrebet Gud, som kontrast til det absolutte, at dukke op i buddhismen. Dets kilder ligger tilbage i de tidlige dage af denne differentiering af tilhængerne af Den Lille Vej og Den Store Vej. Det var blandt den sidstnævnte del af buddhismen, at den dobbelte opfattelse af Gud og det Absolutte endelig modnedes. Skridt for skridt, århundrede for århundrede, har gudsbegrebet udviklet sig, indtil det med Ryonins, Honen Shonins og Shinrans lære i Japan endelig kom til at bære frugt i troen på Amida Buddha.		94:12.2 (1040.6) Gradually the concept of God, as contrasted with the Absolute, began to appear in Buddhism. Its sources are back in the early days of this differentiation of the followers of the Lesser Road and the Greater Road. It was among the latter division of Buddhism that the dual conception of God and the Absolute finally matured. Step by step, century by century, the God concept has evolved until, with the teachings of Ryonin, Honen Shonin, and Shinran in Japan, this concept finally came to fruit in the belief in Amida Buddha.
94:12.3 (1041.1) Blandt disse troende læres det, at sjælen, når den oplever døden, kan vælge at nyde et ophold i Paradis, før den går ind i Nirvana, den ultimative eksistens. Det proklameres, at denne nye frelse opnås ved at tro på den guddommelige barmhjertighed og kærlige omsorg fra Amida, Paradisets Gud i vest. I deres filosofi holder amidisterne fast i en uendelig virkelighed, som er hinsides al endelig dødelig forståelse; i deres religion klynger de sig til troen på den barmhjertige Amida, som elsker verden så højt, at han ikke vil lade en eneste dødelig, som påkalder hans navn i sand tro og med et rent hjerte, fejle i opnåelsen af den himmelske lykke i Paradis.		94:12.3 (1041.1) Among these believers it is taught that the soul, upon experiencing death, may elect to enjoy a sojourn in Paradise prior to entering Nirvana, the ultimate of existence. It is proclaimed that this new salvation is attained by faith in the divine mercies and loving care of Amida, God of the Paradise in the west. In their philosophy, the Amidists hold to an Infinite Reality which is beyond all finite mortal comprehension; in their religion, they cling to faith in the all-merciful Amida, who so loves the world that he will not suffer one mortal who calls on his name in true faith and with a pure heart to fail in the attainment of the supernal happiness of Paradise.
94:12.4 (1041.2) Buddhismens store styrke er, at dens tilhængere frit kan vælge sandhed fra alle religioner; en sådan valgfrihed har sjældent kendetegnet en Urantiansk tro. I denne henseende er Shin-sekten i Japan blevet en af de mest progressive religiøse grupper i verden; den har genoplivet den gamle missionsånd hos Gautamas tilhængere og er begyndt at sende lærere til andre folkeslag. Denne villighed til at tilegne sig sandheden fra alle kilder er virkelig en prisværdig tendens, der er dukket op blandt religiøse troende i første halvdel af det tyvende århundrede efter Kristus.		94:12.4 (1041.2) The great strength of Buddhism is that its adherents are free to choose truth from all religions; such freedom of choice has seldom characterized a Urantian faith. In this respect the Shin sect of Japan has become one of the most progressive religious groups in the world; it has revived the ancient missionary spirit of Gautama’s followers and has begun to send teachers to other peoples. This willingness to appropriate truth from any and all sources is indeed a commendable tendency to appear among religious believers during the first half of the twentieth century after Christ.
94:12.5 (1041.3) Buddhismen selv gennemgår en renæssance i det 20. århundrede. Gennem kontakt med kristendommen er de sociale aspekter af buddhismen blevet stærkt forbedret. Ønsket om at lære er blevet genoplivet i hjerterne hos broderskabets munkepræster, og udbredelsen af uddannelse i hele denne tro vil helt sikkert provokere til nye fremskridt i den religiøse udvikling.		94:12.5 (1041.3) Buddhism itself is undergoing a twentieth-century renaissance. Through contact with Christianity the social aspects of Buddhism have been greatly enhanced. The desire to learn has been rekindled in the hearts of the monk priests of the brotherhood, and the spread of education throughout this faith will be certainly provocative of new advances in religious evolution.
94:12.6 (1041.4) I skrivende stund hviler en stor del af Asien sit håb i buddhismen. Vil denne ædle tro, som så tappert har båret sig igennem fortidens mørke tidsaldre, igen modtage sandheden om udvidede kosmiske realiteter, ligesom den store lærers disciple i Indien engang lyttede til hans proklamation af en ny sandhed? Vil denne ældgamle tro endnu engang reagere på den forfriskende stimulans fra præsentationen af nye begreber om Gud og det absolutte, som den så længe har søgt efter?		94:12.6 (1041.4) At the time of this writing, much of Asia rests its hope in Buddhism. Will this noble faith, that has so valiantly carried on through the dark ages of the past, once again receive the truth of expanded cosmic realities even as the disciples of the great teacher in India once listened to his proclamation of new truth? Will this ancient faith respond once more to the invigorating stimulus of the presentation of new concepts of God and the Absolute for which it has so long searched?
94:12.7 (1041.5) Hele Urantia venter på proklamationen af Mikaels forædlende budskab, ubesværet af de akkumulerede doktriner og dogmer fra nitten århundreders kontakt med religionerne af evolutionær oprindelse. Tiden er inde til at præsentere buddhismen, kristendommen, hinduismen, ja selv folkene fra alle trosretninger, ikke evangeliet om Jesus, men den levende, åndelige virkelighed i Jesu evangelium.		94:12.7 (1041.5) All Urantia is waiting for the proclamation of the ennobling message of Michael, unencumbered by the accumulated doctrines and dogmas of nineteen centuries of contact with the religions of evolutionary origin. The hour is striking for presenting to Buddhism, to Christianity, to Hinduism, even to the peoples of all faiths, not the gospel about Jesus, but the living, spiritual reality of the gospel of Jesus.
94:12.8 (1041.6) [Præsenteret af en Melkisedek fra Nebadon.]		94:12.8 (1041.6) [Presented by a Melchizedek of Nebadon.]