Disturbing, disquieting indeed! On Feb 24, 8:47 am, "sreenivas v.p" <[email protected]> wrote: > --- On Wed, 24/2/10, sreenivas vp <[email protected]> wrote: > > From: sreenivas vp <[email protected]> > Subject: Fw: Bulletin - 22 February 2010 > To: [email protected] > Date: Wednesday, 24 February, 2010, 9:14 AM > > --- On Wed, 24/2/10, Rationalist International <[email protected]> wrote: > > From: Rationalist International <[email protected]> > Subject: Bulletin - 22 February 2010 > To: [email protected] > Date: Wednesday, 24 February, 2010, 1:47 AM > > www.rationalistinternational.net > > > > INDIA: Murderous Blessings > A TV program with Sanal Edamaruku puts a stop > to a crazy 'godman's' horrifying activities > > Though Katihar in east Bihar is proud on its Medical College, there are > hundreds of people living in the nearby villages who would not seek modern > medical treatment for their children when they fall ill. They submit them to > a local 'godman' instead, who claims to have magic powers to cure anything > from malaria to malnutrition. Baba Jamun Yadav made the poor and illiterate > villagers believe that he was able to transfer divine energy through the > soles of his feet to their ailing little children. And they allowed him to > perform a barbaric ritual. > > A camera team of the Indian TV channel Headlines Today caught horrifying > scenes of the crazy baba trampling brutally on the tender bodies of hapless > infants. He puts one foot with his full weight on their thighs and genitals, > the other on their throat, muzzling their screams of deadly terror till they > nearly suffocate. > > This is nothing but child torture in the garb of religion. But nobody ever > stopped the crazy 'holy man' – neither the gullible villagers, nor police and > authorities. These cruelties are allegedly going on for some twenty years > now. The perpetrator is even making a living out of them as the deluded > villagers would shed away gifts and money for his 'blessings'. Nobody knows > how many babies have suffered dangerous injuries and sooner or later died as > a result of this 'treatment'. And nobody knows what deep psychological wounds > and scars this haunting experience has caused in the survivors. > > Sanal Edamaruku on Headlines Today > see an abbreviated version of the program (in English) on our YouTube > channel:www.youtube.com/rationalists > In a live program on Headlines Today, Sanal Edamaruku called for an immediate > stop to this madness and for action against the 'godman'. He accused the > authorities of tolerating these crimes in the name of religion for political > expediency. During the program, pressed for a statement, the Health Minister > of Bihar refused to take any action as tradition and religion were involved. > Nikhil Chaudhary, member of Indian parliament (from the Hindu nationalist > BJP), elected from Katihar where this happened, said: if people are benefited > by this ritual they have the right to have it performed. He did not hesitate > to defend this barbarism as a respectable part of the local tradition. So did > the Shankaracharya swamy, spiritual head and chief priest of Kashi Sumeru > peeth. Sanal Edamaruku urged him in the program, over telephone, to use his > immense influence among believers and stop such dangerous superstitions. > > The program made an enormous impact. After less than 24 hours, the godman > was arrested for child torture. > > > > Fabricating Memories and Identities > 'Past Life Regression Therapy' hits Indian television > Hunting for higher TRP (television rating points), the Hindi language > entertainment channel in India NDTV Imagine has come up with a sensationalist > and bizarre reality show. Raaz Pichhle Janam Ka (Secrets of past life) > invited viewers to witness every evening another glossy and highly dramatic > session of so-called Past Life Regression Therapy with one Dr. Tripty Jain. > The practitioner put her TV patients – many among them aspiring stars and > starlets – in hypnotic trance and made them allegedly 'remember' the secrets > of their past lives. They were the key, she claimed, to all their present > problems such as fear from flying, water, crowds and snakes. What came to > light were heart-wrenching tales of love, revenge, betrayal, rape and murder > across the centuries and continents – all nicely pre-recorded to provide the > colorful backdrop for the tearful procedures on the couch. And finally, but > certainly not surprisingly, it would turn out that those > afraid of flying in their present lives had earlier died in an air crash and > those afraid of crowds had once (or even twice!) been lynched. > > "The main problem with Past Life Regression Therapy is that there is no past > life", said Sanal Edamaruku in one of the discussion programs in other TV > channels, reacting to the obscure show. "All those ‘memories’, however vivid, > are delusion and self-deception. They are prompted by the ‘therapist’ with > questions and suggestions, and shaped by the subject’s own experiences, > knowledge, imagination and desire. Such pseudo-memories and fabricated past > identities can sometimes appear quite real to the patient. That makes this > 'therapy' so dangerous, as any negative impact of haunting false memories > cannot easily be corrected. Past Life Regression Therapy has no scientific > base. It is occultism rather than therapy. How could possibly memory - stored > as it is in neurons - be transmitted after death from the decayed brain cells > to another brain?" > Through different TV channels, responding to the Past Life program, Sanal > Edamaruku mobilized Indian public opinion and opened up a wide education plan > through the media. He explained that the show was unscrupulously capitalizing > on superstitions and the old belief in karma and unchangeable fate that > damages people's mindset and paralyses all personal and social development. > "It is inhuman and unethical also. Take for example the case of a man, who > suffers from stunted growth and short legs. In the show, he is made to > 'remember' that he broke his legs in a former life when he tried to escape > the punishment of a furious crowd for raping a woman! Such programs have to > be stopped for violating the general code of public ethics," Sanal demanded. > > Though the Past Life TV show was stopped in NDTV Imagine after some episodes, > the producers are planning an English remake for the British viewers. > > Headlines Today, earlier, invited Sanal Edamaruku and Dr. Hans Tendam, the > pioneer of 'Regression Therapy' from The Netherlands, for a TV debate on the > obscure practise. Dr. Tendam has trained many Indian Past Life Therapy > practitioners. Excerpts of this interesting encounter are available on > YouTube. > > Sanal Edamaruku vs. Past Life Therapist Dr. Hans Tendam - > see an abbreviated version of the debate (in English, 2 parts) on our YouTube > channel:www.youtube.com/rationalists > > > > New: Rationalists' Channel on > > www.youtube.com/rationalists > > Visit our new channel on YouTube presenting TV programs with Sanal Edamaruku. > There are new uploads every week. You can keep yourself updated by > subscribing the free YouTube service. You can also become a friend of our > channel. > As per today, there are alreay 10 videos uploaded. Among them are the three > parts of the legendary Great Tantra Challenge that created TV history. They > show how the tantrik Pandit Surendra Sharma tries for several hours on Live > TV to kill Sanal Edamaruku by mantra and tantra, finally performing the > 'Ultimate Destruction Ritual' against him - at night and with burning wood > from the cremation ground. Of course, Sanal and Rationalism "won the day", as > James Randi commented in apprecciation. These videos have been seen by > millions on TV in May 2008 and ever since, they were a hit on YouTube. > Recently, they have been reloaded by us and got a new web address on > Rationalitsts' YouTube channel. If you have earlier embedded the clippings on > your website, please change the link accordingly. > > The Great Tantra Challenge > Part 1:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bmo1a-bimAM > Part 2:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpwCuv_izn4 > Part 3:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9taL2vcOJ0 > > > > Recipients of this Bulletin are permitted to reproduce, publish, post or > forward its articles and reports with acknowledgment of the source: > "Rationalist International Bulletin onwww.rationalistinternational.net" > > Rationalist International Bulletin is available in English, French, Spanish, > German, Finnish and Polish. To subscribe, please send a blank mail to the > following address, with the language in the subject line. > [email protected] > RATIONALIST INTERNATIONAL > President: Sanal Edamaruku > Honorary Associates: > Dr. Pieter Admiraal (The Netherlands), Prof. Mike Archer (Australia), > Katsuaki Asai (Japan), Jocelyn Bézecourt (France), Prof. Colin Blakemore > (UK), Dr. Bill Cooke (New Zealand), Dr. Helena Cronin (UK), Prof. Richard > Dawkins (UK), Jan Loeb Eisler (USA), Pekka Elo (Finland), Prof. Antony Flew > (UK), Tom Flynn (USA), Jim Herrick (UK), Christopher Hitchens (USA), Ellen > Johnson (USA), Prof. Paul Kurtz (USA), Lavanam (India), Dr. Richard Leakey > (Kenya), Iain Middleton (New Zealand), Dr. Henry Morgentaler (Canada), Maryam > Namazie (Iran), Dr. Taslima Nasreen (Bangladesh), Steinar Nilsen (Norway), > Prof. Jean-Claude Pecker (France), James Randi (USA), Prof. Ajoy Roy > (Bangladesh), Dr. Younus Shaikh (Pakistan), Barbara Smoker (UK), Richard > Stallman (USA), Prof. Rob Tielman (The Netherlands), David Tribe (Australia), > K Veeramani (India), Bary Williams (Australia), Prof. Richard Wiseman (UK), > Prof. Lewis Wolpert (UK). Deceased: Sir Hermann Bondi (UK), Prof. Vern > Bullough (USA), Joseph Edamaruku (India), Dr. G N Jyoti Shankar (USA). > > > > > > If you want to unsubscribe to this bulletin, please send a mail to > [email protected] with "unsubscribe" in the subject line. > > Your Mail works best with the New Yahoo Optimized IE8. Get it NOW!. > > Your Mail works best with the New Yahoo Optimized IE8. Get it > NOW!http://downloads.yahoo.com/in/internetexplorer/
-- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/greenyouth?hl=en-GB.
