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Twirling
Barred Spiral
Registered: 02/03/03
Posts: 2,468
Last seen: 2 years, 1 month
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The concept of sacrifices
#1885540 - 09/05/03 02:17 PM (20 years, 6 months ago) |
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One of my two cats left me a "present" today on my deck, and while cleaning up the unidentified animal carcass, it occurred to me that sacrifices are a part of nature. In this case, a cat was trying to please it?s owner by offering it a ?catch of the day?. It?s saying ?Look at what I bring you, fresh food. I could have eaten this myself, but I?ll make the sacrifice and let you have it.?
I think there is a connection between the ?master/slave?, ?owner/pet? relationship which the animal lower on the food chain, or chain of command, offers something to appease the higher form. All religions seem to work this into its theology. Judaism and Christianity used to sacrifice animals and crops. Hinduism and Buddhism have offerings as well. Many tribal groups have this same sort of pattern, usually in the form of pleasing some god, or making an offer to a deceased spirit. In many ways, I think it?s a way of trying to gain control over the events that happen in life. Thoughts? Ideas? Money?
-------------------- The very nature of experience is ineffable; it transcends cognitive thought and intellectualized analysis. To be without experience is to be without an emotional knowledge of what the experience translates into. The desire for the understanding of what life is made of is the motivation that drives us all. Without it, in fear of the experiences what life can hold is among the greatest contradictions; to live in fear of death while not being alive.
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Seuss
Error: divide byzero
Registered: 04/27/01
Posts: 23,480
Loc: Caribbean
Last seen: 1 month, 19 days
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Re: The concept of sacrifices [Re: Twirling]
#1885605 - 09/05/03 02:35 PM (20 years, 6 months ago) |
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> ?Look at what I bring you, fresh food. I could have eaten this myself, but I?ll make the sacrifice and let you have it.?
The cat could have been thinking, "Look at what I can catch... what have you caught recently?"
This would tend to put things into an "I'm better than you", rather than a "master/slave" or "owner/pet" perspective.
Of course the cat might not have been thinking anything, but rather following simple instincts... -shrug-
-------------------- Just another spore in the wind.
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Mystical_Craven
mentally illpsychonaught
Registered: 06/16/02
Posts: 439
Loc: Earth
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Re: The concept of sacrifices [Re: Twirling]
#1885618 - 09/05/03 02:38 PM (20 years, 6 months ago) |
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Oh yeah, definately...many religions do require some sort of acceptance that we as humans are on a lower 'tier' then whatever 'higher power' happens to be above us, and that we should regularly prove our understanding and acceptance of this chain of command by giving some sort of hommage to said higher power. Sometimes it's in the form of an animal or a plant, sometimes is a cake or bread of some sort, sometimes it's nothing more then the giving of our own personal time in prayer and what have you. It's all about establishing concrete boundaries between the mentor and the protegee.
-------------------- "Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go..." T.S. Eliot
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lucid
Jack's AlteredConsciousness
Registered: 03/29/03
Posts: 6,319
Loc: up on the bidet
Last seen: 10 years, 5 months
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"like the first monkey shot into space" "Without pain, without sacrifice, we'd have nothing" -Tyler Derden, Fight Club Dang I know every line from that flick n I havn't even seen it that often. Powerful movie.
-------------------- "no-mind un-thinks no-thought..."
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