Backyard Skeptics

from

http://www.mukto-mona.com/Articles/skm/soul.htm

Life is a miracle to all mankind.  For millions of years mankind asked following questions: what is life? Why do we die and where shall we go after death? Ancient people could not answer these questions of mysterious life.  Human being did not like to believe that there is no life after death. Hence ancient clever people invented the very simple answer. They first invented soul, the most important ingredient every religion. And then they invented God, angels and life after death. God created man, animals, earth, sky, stars, Sun, Moon everything one can see in this universe.  About the human making—they gave the simplest solution. God made humans with wet mud/sounding clay (just like the Hindu sculptor make Durga’s statute) and gave life (soul) in it by blowing his big holy mouth. This was the first and famous “grandma story” every child was infected with this virus during his/her childhood. Surprisingly, they did not tell how God made animals! That’s it! This is called religious creation theory

Many clever people were born to become prophets and thereby exploited simple people. For some centuries—this simplistic tablet worked quite good to the gullible people. This is simply blind faith!

On Buddhism, from http://nyliberal-utopi.blogspot.com/2007/09/buddhism-is-bad.html

"Buddhism is based on the notion that to avoid suffering and discontentment and thereby attain "inner peace," one must rid oneself of all desires.
That's ALL desires. "Suffering ceases with the cessation of craving" is the third "noble truth" of Buddhism. Material things then - even food, clothing and other necessities - are viewed as mere allurements. Even desiring a loving relationship or good health obstructs man's path to "Nirvana," the eternal peace.
It's hard to imagine a belief system more anti-life than that.
So where do businesspeople fit into such a philosophy? Clearly they don't.
The whole purpose of business is to satisfy desires - the desires of capitalists to earn a profit and the desires of customers for goods and services. So if desires are immoral, then businessmen - from computer giants to corner grocers - are guilty of serving vice."

The Koran's 10 Commandments

(These commandments make much more sense that the Christian's)

1. Worship only God: Take not with Allah another object of worship; or thou (O man!) wilt sit in disgrace and destitution. (17:22)
2. Be kind, honourable and humble to one's parents: Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honour. (17:23) And, out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: "My Lord! bestow on them thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood." (17:24)
3. Be neither miserly nor wasteful in one's expenditure: And render to the kindred their due rights, as (also) to those in want, and to the wayfarer: But squander not (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift. (17:26) Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Evil Ones; and the Evil One is to his Lord (himself) ungrateful. (17:27) And even if thou hast to turn away from them in pursuit of the Mercy from thy Lord which thou dost expect, yet speak to them a word of easy kindness. (17:28) Make not thy hand tied (like a niggard's) to thy neck, nor stretch it forth to its utmost reach, so that thou become blameworthy and destitute. (17:29)
4. Do not engage in 'mercy killings' for fear of starvation: Kill not your children for fear of want: We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you. Verily the killing of them is a great sin. (17:31)
5. Do not commit adultery: Nor come nigh to adultery: for it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils). (17:32)
6. Do not kill unjustly: Nor take life - which Allah has made sacred - except for just cause. And if anyone is slain wrongfully, we have given his heir authority (to demand qisas or to forgive): but let him not exceed bounds in the matter of taking life; for he is helped (by the Law). (17:33)
7. Care for orphaned children: Come not nigh to the orphan's property except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength...(17:34)
8. Keep one's promises: ...fulfil (every) engagement [i.e. promise/covenant], for (every) engagement will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning). (17:34)
9. Be honest and fair in one's interactions: Give full measure when ye measure, and weigh with a balance that is straight: that is the most fitting and the most advantageous in the final determination. (17:35)
10. Do not be arrogant in one's claims or beliefs: And pursue not that of which thou hast no knowledge; for every act of hearing, or of seeing or of (feeling in) the heart will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning). (17:36) Nor walk on the earth with insolence: for thou canst not rend the earth asunder, nor reach the mountains in height. (17:37)

On Scientology, From

http://www.scientology-lies.com/faq/teachings/aliens.html

L. Ron Hubbard writes that, 75 million years ago, the head of the Galactic Federation, made up of 76 planets, was a being named Xenu . Faced with an overpopulation problem, he brought beings to this planet, blew them up with hydrogen bombs, and packaged them. Their spirits now infest our bodies: he says "One's body is a mass of individual thetans stuck to oneself or to the body." Scientologists at this level try to rid themselves of these thetans (spirits) by helping each one to remember the painful experiences of being blown up like that.

There are other Scientology teachings that relate to space aliens. The book "Have You Lived Before This Life?", described in Scientology advertisements as "a cold-blooded account of your last years", contains dozens of case histories of memories experienced by Scientologists, some of which include adventures in outer space.

Even the glossary in Scientology's What Is Scientology? contains a definition for the phrase " space opera", which, according to Scientology, relates to periods on "the whole track  " (that is, our whole history, going back through many lives and millions of years), and it contains "space travel, spaceships, spacemen" and so on.

On Janism

 http://www.greatcom.org/resources/handbook_of_todays_religions/03chap02/default.htm

Hinduism gave birth to three religious factions: Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism. Jainism was its first offspring and though, like any child, it appears in a certain light to be somewhat like its mother, it eventually established itself as a new religion. Within the Hindu religion, Jainism started as a reformation movement but soon found itself as an independent religion based upon the teachings of its founder, Mahavira. Although relatively small in its number of adherents (3 million Indian followers) compared to other religions, Jainism has had an influence disproportionate to its size.