Actually I was asked to log off since that room (Explorers Lounge ) was for some participants (by invitation only - all NGM employees only) and I was uninvited guest. That did not stop my exploration of NAt. Geo. Society's HQ and went in to listen to their seminar (which also was had some passwords thrown out - so secret stuff perhaps) and also to their library - again restricted access and by appointment only - the good librarian took me outside and got me registered with the security .I had gone to the museum to see the Mongolian exhibit (suprisingly like Hindu Gods - like God of Death - complete with skulls and the third eye - introduced by Buddhism to some Khan there by Third Dalai Lama some centuries ago).However, the main exhibit was the Gospel of Judas - and they even displayed the real pages from the Gospel (declared a heresy by Catholics and Protestants alike ) . Gnostic Gospel as it is called like many others http://www9.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/gospel/feature.htmlis by written by Gnostics :"These people were mystics , " says Meyer. "Mystics have always drawn ire of institutionalized religion. Mystics, after all, hear the voice of God from within and don't need a priest to intercede for them," (National Geographic Magazine , MAy 2006 , pg 88)Further, see the similarity between Gnostics and Yogis - though Yoga system was more systematic (and still is) :"Salvation lay in awakening that divine spark within the human spirit (my note: Kundalini Shakti) and reconnecting with the divine mind. Doing so required the guidance of a teacher , and that, according to Gnostics , was Christ's role. Those who grasped his message could become as divine as Christ himself." (National Geographic ( ibid, pg 88)About this Gospel of Juda and others :"In 1945 Egyptian peasants found a set of long-lost Gnostic texts buried in an earthenware jar near the town of Nag Hummadi. Among them were over a dozen entirely new versions of Christ's teachings including Gospels of Thomas and Philip and a Gospel of Truth. Now we have the Gospel of Judas,"( ibid, Pg 88).Key passage from the Gospel " 'You will sacrifice the man that clothes me.' In plain English or Coptic , Judas is going to kill Jesus - and thus do him a favor. 'That really isn't Jesus,' says Meyer. 'He will atlast get rid of his material , physical flesh, thereby liberating the real Christ, the divine being inside ,' " ( ibid, Pg 91)."The gospel ends abruptly with a brief note reporting that Judas 'received some money' and handed Jesus over to the arresting party," ( ibid, Pg 91).I purchased a copy of May edition from their bookstore - the one with the cover photo of Gospel of Judas - in stores seems to have sold out - I go the subscribers' copy - with Polar Bear in front. Controversy seems to have made it more popular.However, it gels well with Hindu traditions of Yoga and realizing Godhood through meditation and prayer - (like saying as "Aham Brahmasmi - I am God or God relaization, Moksha, Nirvana , Nirvikalpa Samadhi etc -- which gel with what Gnostic Christians believed.More later from the book (I saw the translated and printed and published book of the Gospel of Judas in the museum of the society). However, they seem to have translated 80% of 26 pages available to us in tattered condition (out of a total 66 pages ) of the book .Any comments?UmeshPS: The last RC Pope said that only those portions of religious traditions of other faiths are true which are in accordance with Christian faith. Here it seems that Gnsotic Christians had a lot in common with Hindu/Buddhist Yogi traditions - giving way to phrases like Yogi-Christ etc and similarities between Christ and Krishna by ISKCON's Prabhupad and Yoganand, Vivekanand etc.Gnostic Christians lost out when Roman emperor became Christian -- more from this edition on that later.
umesh sharma <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:Hi,I am currently on a terminal inside National Geographic Society , Washington DC having attended a seminar (partly ) there and seen Gospel of Judas and Mongolian Gods of Buddhism. More later.Umesh
Umesh Sharma
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Ed.M. - International Education Policy
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Class of 2005Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com _______________________________________________
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Umesh Sharma
5121 Lackawanna ST
College Park, MD 20740
1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]
Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005
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Umesh Sharma
5121 Lackawanna ST
College Park, MD 20740
1-202-215-4328 [Cell Phone]
Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com
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