Watched an interesting documentary on Discovery Channel today. It was about a 15 yrs old Nepalese boy who medidated under a tree for 10 months (initially, he wanted to medidate for 6 yrs like Buddha, however he disappeared suddenly after 10 months). You can read more about his case here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ram_Bahadur_Bomjon
It was reported that he went without food and drink for 10 months while under deep meditation. He was said to have used a form of Yogi/Tibetan form of meditation call Tummu, and thus was able to survive without food and drink. Sometimes he was spotted sweating profusely, said to be a side-effect from the meditation. Some of his believers claimed to see him "burst into flames" from his chest. Doctors observed him and they used another case study, an 80 yr-old Brahmin priest who went without food for 10 days with no sign of side-effects. Some people commented that science has failed to explain this phenomenon (it was documented that a normal person could die in 3-4 days without any food).
Most interestingly, the boy was said to be a reincarnation of Buddha. His mum has the same name as Buddha's. He told his mum that he wanted to try to achieve what Buddha had attained (Nirvana).
The above story is just one of the many cases which people attempted to reach a higher consciousness/become god. The 80 yr-old Brahmin mentioned above even believed that he can live until 10,000 yrs old without food and drink. However, we know that it is impossible. Many people had attempted and they have failed. The boy and the Brahmin were not the first persons to try and they will not be the last. The boy disappeared after 10 months and he reappeared again. This time he was said to have meditated underground in a bunker until police found him.
One thing which caught my ear in the documentary is "faith is very important to the believer" (one of the person interviewed in the show said that even Christians believe in miracles, that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, and that what the boy did was likewise also a miracle). But what we are sure is, Jesus' case was unique and simply uncomparable. Nobody can be like our Lord, because he is God indeed and he will come one day to judge our sins.
Try as we want, humans can never become god. However, as Christians, we have Christ live in us. Through faith in Christ, we have hope that we can become more Christ-like. God's grace is the key to our salvation. Nothing can be achieved through our own efforts, because we are bound to fail.
I do not envy the boy or the 80 yr-old Brahmin. They are spectacular, but afterall, still human, and thus still faillible. Instead, I pray that I can have more faith in Christ, who is the only way in which we can be saved. Let us depend on God and not ourselves, because without Christ, we can achieve nothing.
It was reported that he went without food and drink for 10 months while under deep meditation. He was said to have used a form of Yogi/Tibetan form of meditation call Tummu, and thus was able to survive without food and drink. Sometimes he was spotted sweating profusely, said to be a side-effect from the meditation. Some of his believers claimed to see him "burst into flames" from his chest. Doctors observed him and they used another case study, an 80 yr-old Brahmin priest who went without food for 10 days with no sign of side-effects. Some people commented that science has failed to explain this phenomenon (it was documented that a normal person could die in 3-4 days without any food).
Most interestingly, the boy was said to be a reincarnation of Buddha. His mum has the same name as Buddha's. He told his mum that he wanted to try to achieve what Buddha had attained (Nirvana).
The above story is just one of the many cases which people attempted to reach a higher consciousness/become god. The 80 yr-old Brahmin mentioned above even believed that he can live until 10,000 yrs old without food and drink. However, we know that it is impossible. Many people had attempted and they have failed. The boy and the Brahmin were not the first persons to try and they will not be the last. The boy disappeared after 10 months and he reappeared again. This time he was said to have meditated underground in a bunker until police found him.
One thing which caught my ear in the documentary is "faith is very important to the believer" (one of the person interviewed in the show said that even Christians believe in miracles, that Jesus was resurrected from the dead, and that what the boy did was likewise also a miracle). But what we are sure is, Jesus' case was unique and simply uncomparable. Nobody can be like our Lord, because he is God indeed and he will come one day to judge our sins.
Try as we want, humans can never become god. However, as Christians, we have Christ live in us. Through faith in Christ, we have hope that we can become more Christ-like. God's grace is the key to our salvation. Nothing can be achieved through our own efforts, because we are bound to fail.
I do not envy the boy or the 80 yr-old Brahmin. They are spectacular, but afterall, still human, and thus still faillible. Instead, I pray that I can have more faith in Christ, who is the only way in which we can be saved. Let us depend on God and not ourselves, because without Christ, we can achieve nothing.
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