47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Add this book to your library- I did., January 15, 2005
This review is from: Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled (Paperback)
This a big book. Make no mistake. The materials covered are also big. Big in ideologies. Acharya S. takes apart the age old dogma's piece by piece and not only states what's erroneous, but how it came to be so mistaken. These issues, from creation to judgments did not all occur in the flash of an eye, but across countless several generations of writers seeking to establish a basis for social control. You may not like what she says in Suns, but that does not make it any less factual. Those seeking not only answers, but a basis for those answers would do well to get a copy of this book. Those, however, who have made up their minds, on either side of the fence, will find very little to dispute. Acharya S. has done her work well, and has, I believe, covered the topics exceptionally well. After reaching the last page, the reader will have covered not only the history of the son of god ideology, but the reason so many religions, that may on the surface seem dissimilar, start from the very same mythology. This is a book the serious mythologist or spiritual seeker should have at their disposal.
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45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pulls no punches, February 16, 2007
This review is from: Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled (Paperback)
As a former Christian minister, and perhaps more importantly as a former apologist for the faith I would like to comment on this latest book from Acharya S.
First, and what is often hardest for the faithful to accept, is that she is correct in nearly all of her statements concerning the history of organized religions, especially in the west.
Second, and perhaps equally difficult for those who prefer fantasy to reality, is that she is so direct about it. She makes no bones about her belief, or perhaps lack of belief, and although she and I do not agree on every detail- still, Acharya has pretty much outlined, at least for anyone seriously considering a leap off that fence between belief and disbelief, a required text- a primer of common sense if you wish. I have read the reviews and it would seem that you either loved the book- or hated it. There is no way anyone, regardless of how faithful to their religion they might be, can rate this book any less than 4 stars, if for nothing more than the viable research it involved. One major problem that many find with adherents to religion is their black and white- all or nothing approaches to pretty much everything. They are not open to new ideas or new beliefs- they have a vested interest in staying the course. Recently I was asked to be part of a panel formed to investigate the accuracy of some of the Gnostic texts that were voted out of the official Bible. For purposes of historical and social accuracy, many panel members were using the accepted Bible. This I felt was completely wrong headed- as anyone who sees the Bible as the final edict of historical fact is already refusing to accept or acknowledge any other authority, for example the writers Tacitus and Philo of Alexandria. This ties in to the very basis of Acharya's books- the search for and use of other source materials and mythologies that may perhaps better explain the history of western religions. If we remember that the first synod was in Laodicea a part of modern day Greece, where about 363 AD, a group of men came together to decided which books of the dozens of Gospel accounts were to be aloud to be read in churches. Since that time, there have been almost a dozen similar organizations, headed by Bishops, Popes, and Emperors, that have managed to rule out many of the stories about Jesus that conflicted with the idea that some, and certainly not most, of his original followers held of who he was. They have given us the Bible in it's current accepted edition. Had all the original manuscripts been kept, the Bible of today would be an even bigger jumble of contradiction, confusion, and myth. However, having read most of this material, I think it would certainly would have made for a better read.
Finally, as I explained to the committee- the Gospels are not history; they are religious stories and propaganda. They are contradictory, exaggerated, and in many aspects mythical. To many non-Christian historical researchers, those who deal with cold facts, there remains serious doubt that Jesus ever existed as a real person, although I believe he did. Still, it is impossible to prove anything about him apart from he may or may not have been an historical figure and it is more plausible, as Acharya points out in her first book, that Jesus was the result of myth making, a human process that is indeed historically documented.
Finally, let me say to the faithful, I would recommend avoiding this book- it may well become the fly in your ointment of a faith based life. To others, especially those indoctrinated into religion at an early age- perhaps it is time to seek a foundation for your beliefs in a book other than the Bible. Also I especially enjoyed the FOREWORD.
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110 of 123 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant Account Of Solar Symbolism In World Religions, February 18, 2005
This review is from: Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled (Paperback)
Acharya S is a wonderful scholar who thoroughly ferrets out a picture of the truth behind the world's religions. To a large extent, this truth is the symbolic mythology of astro-theology, which predates all major existing religious belief systems. Acharya S provides extensive references and documentation of her contentions, exposing the lack of historicity for the personalities associated with major religions. One one level, Jesus, Buddha, & Krishna, as well as other deities less significant to our modern era, are personified symbols of the Sun. Reading this book along with her prior Christ Conspiracy is a double whammy that no religion defender will ever attempt to directly challenge. Free your mind from literal acceptance of religious myths and plow through the deep scholarly soil of Acharya's Suns of God! Then learn to connect with your real spiritual essence independent of mythology characters or astral spirits and thought forms who take on the mythic character roles. After all, the Sun itself has been the symbol for the masculine aspect of the Supreme Source/Creator, so we can all learn to see the spiritual "Sun" of God as part of our own essence rather than misinterpreting the astro-theological drama of the Sun, Moon, Planets, & Zodiac that is encoded in religions. I highly recommend Suns of God for its breadth of information and integration of important ideas and evidence. There is an increasing flow of revelations arising about the topic of astrotheology and the secret wisdom, symbolism, and secret society/mystery school tradition - this book is one of the best of the genre.
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