Freethought & Rationalism Archive

ohwilleke · 01-03-2002, 04:24 PM

This is from a story that appeared in the Time of India:

Quote:

IJNOR: In a gruesome incident, a temple priest chopped the head of a eight year-old boy with a dagger to propitiate a deity by human sacrifice in a town in Bijnor district, police said on Thursday.

The incident came to light when the boy hailing from Kalagarh was reported missing after he had gone to the Shiv temple to play with his friends, police said.

His body was later recovered from the nearby bushes.

On interrogation, the priest confessed to the crime, police said adding the priest has been arrested.

Go figure. The question you ask is where on the continum of legitimate to illegitimate is this guy. Is he on a bar with a Catholic parish priest who ends up killing someone in an excorcism or a faith healing that refuses medical treatment to someone (i.e. dangerous but not entirely out of that religion's mainstream), or more like a minister who tries to summon a demon to achieve his ends (i.e. loopy and insane even by extremists in his religion).

RyanS2 · 01-04-2002, 01:50 AM

Weirdo no matter what. I remember that according to Hindu tradition, Kali, considered one of the most bloodthirsty Gods, only needed one human sacrifice every 1000 years. (Guess it is the year 2000... but do Hindu's use the Christian calendar time schedule?)

hinduwoman · 01-05-2002, 05:43 PM

This is on the same level as any Christian who kills believing the other needs to be saved, or is suffering from demons etc.

I suppose it is one tradition that Kali needs only 1 human sacrifice per 1000 years, but that is not a frquently heard one.

lpetrich · 01-05-2002, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by hinduwoman:
<strong>I suppose it is one tradition that Kali needs only 1 human sacrifice per 1000 years, but that is not a frquently heard one.</strong>

Seems to me like a bowdlerization. It reminds of this story:

The legendary Greek king Agamemnon was out hunting one day when he killed some deer sacred to the goddess Artemis. She got pissed, and vowed revenge. So when King Agamemnon led a Greek expeditionary force to Troy, Artemis sent a storm to keep it from proceeding, and King A found that he could only make it go away by sacrificing his daughter Iphigenia. So he sent for her, and sacrificed her. Artemis, her thirst for blood slaked, then allowed his expeditionary force to continue onward.

This was bowdlerized by later storytellers into Artemis saving Iphigenia from being sacrificed, whereupon Iphigenia becomes a priestess of Artemis.

RyanS2 · 01-06-2002, 02:59 PM

Well, the original source is "Kalika Purana", in Joseph Campbell's, "The Masks of God: Oriental Mythology" pg. 6.

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01-04-2002, 01:50 AM	#2
RyanS2 Regular Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Louisiana Posts: 216	Weirdo no matter what. I remember that according to Hindu tradition, Kali, considered one of the most bloodthirsty Gods, only needed one human sacrifice every 1000 years. (Guess it is the year 2000... but do Hindu's use the Christian calendar time schedule?)

01-05-2002, 05:43 PM	#3
hinduwoman Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: India Posts: 6,977	This is on the same level as any Christian who kills believing the other needs to be saved, or is suffering from demons etc. I suppose it is one tradition that Kali needs only 1 human sacrifice per 1000 years, but that is not a frquently heard one.

01-06-2002, 02:59 PM	#5
RyanS2 Regular Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Louisiana Posts: 216	Well, the original source is "Kalika Purana", in Joseph Campbell's, "The Masks of God: Oriental Mythology" pg. 6.

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