Crammed in van 15 kids collapse
Imphal, May 23: In what could be termed as corrobo-ration of serious concern fre- quently highlighted by the pa-rents regarding their young kids transported in an un-friendly manner by school van operators and other transpor-ters, no less than 15 students.....
Mute/deaf student shines bright
IMPHAL, May 23: Pukhram-bam Juliana Chanu, who is virtually mute and has very low hearing capacity outshone a large number of her peers when she scored the highest mark (88 out of 100) in Philosophy apart from securing letter marks in four subjects in the.....
Obscurity clouds HSE '13 results
IMPHAL, May 23: Results of the class XII exam conducted by the Council of Higher Se-condary Education Manipur (COHSEM) have confused many people even as some others have started questioning if there were certain lapses or follies in the result. As per .....
Cabinet okays
IMPHAL, May 23: The State Cabinet has today given its approval for the recognition of three tribal dialects. Government Spokesperson, M Okendro said the three tribal dialects recognised by the State Government are Poumai, Liangmai and Gangte. Beside.....
DTO issues 3057 licences in a day
IMPHAL, May 23: One former District Transport Officer (DTO) of Ukhrul issued 3057 driving licences in a single day and the revenue thus collected never reached the Government’s coffer. One G Athui, then Inspector (Mechanical) was given the charge of .....
Educational facilities in Saitu inaugurated
IMPHAL, May 23: Along with inaugurating an Eklavya model residential school at Gamnom Saparmeina, Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam today dedicated two hostel buildings for scheduled tribe boys and girls students at the same area. Eklavya model resident.....
Ukhrul ADC
IMPHAL, May 23: The Ukhrul Autonomous District Council (ADC) has resolved to remove LN Kashung, CEO of Ukhrul ADC from his post for alleged ‘misconduct’ and ‘unbecoming act of a Govt servant’ under Section 32 (2) of the Manipur (Hill Areas) ADC Ac.....
HIV girl secures four letter marks in HSE
IMPHAL, May 23: It is a big morale booster and a source of inspiration to all children living with HIV that a girl living with HIV and undergoing ART secured letter marks in four subjects in the Higher Secondary Examination 2013 conducted by the Council o.....
Director inspects Govt model schools
IMPHAL, May 23: An official team of Directorate of Education (S) led by its Director H Deleep today inspected Wangkhei High School, Keishamthong High School and Lamding High School in connection with the introduction of Mentoring System at a few selected .....
Unidentified man locks Nambol school
IMPHAL, May 23: The Development Protection United Voluntary Organisation has urged the concerned to make a clarification on locking of Nambol Leirel High School by a person who identified himself as an RPF activist yesterday. In a press conference held.....
VA urges authority
IMPHAL, May 23: The Samulamlan Village Authority has urged the authority concerned to complete the installation of Mobile BTS at Samulamlan within June this year. A statement issued by the chief/chairman of Samulamlan VA, K Paohminglen said the VA woul.....
TSA admitted in ATSUM
IMPHAL, May 23: Thadou Students Association-General Headquarters (TSA-GHQ) has formally become the unit of All Tribal Students Union, Manipur (ATSUM). Three of the TSA-GHQ 'officials' have also been inducted to the ATSUM fold today where an oath-takin.....
Kabow Leikai eviction Fasting prayer on May 26 followed by rally, meeting
IMPHAL, May 23: In the backdrop of the alleged forced eviction of Kabow Leikai, a fasting prayer would be organised on Sunday (May 26) in respective Church which would be followed by a peace rally and public meeting on May 27. This was decided during .....
BSF detects IED in Tbl
IMPHAL, May 23: Troops of 116th Bn BSF today detected an IED weighing around 10 Kgs at Wangjing Heituppokpi, Thoubal district. The bomb detected by BSF troops posted at Wangjing was retrieved by a bomb disposal squad of Manipur Police and they set of.....
PMS for SCs
IMPHAL, May 23: The 2nd phase lists of selected SC students of the State for the award of Post Matric Scholarship for the year 2012-13 were notified on the notice board of the Directorate of MOBC & SC located at Old Gauhati HC Complex and on the website w.....
Anniversary observed
IMPHAL, May 23: The Indian Dental Association (IDA), Manipur State Branch has celebrated the 24th anniversary function of the association on May 20 at Classic Hotel, Imphal. The programme was presided by Dr T Nabachandra Singh, president of the IDA (MS.....
Free diabetes camp
IMPHAL, May 23: A one-day diabetes free health camp was held today at Lecture Hall-2 of Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences, Porompat. As chief guest of the event, North East Elderly Women chief editor RK Nayansana Devi noting that diabetes.....
Senapati prepares for Exchange programme
KANGGUI, May 22: Everything is set in order for the one day Cultural and Musical Exchange programme jointly organised by Senapati District Students Association and Kuki Students' Organization, Sadar Hills in association with Student Mobilization Initiati.....
JAC demands exemplary punishment against rapists
IMPHAL, May 23: JAC against the rape of a student of TG Hr Sec School on Oct 20, 2012 has urged the concerned authority to conduct the trial against the rapists fairly. A statement issued by the JAC today reminded that the number of crimes rises due to.....
Raphei Katamnao Long hails ADC
Ukhrul, May 23: The Northern Students’ Union (Raphei Katamnao Long), Ukhrul District has appreciated the ADC, Ukhrul for timely implementation of developmental projects in various departments particularly in the field of Education in the Northern area o.....
Diaspora Speak
By : Dr Irengbam Mohendra Singh
Fringe religion: Church of scientology
In closing my series of articles on major religions (Christianity generated 9, Hinduism 31 and Islam 122 comments on line), in which I have not given any of my opinions, but simply have explained the tenets (religious doctrines that are proclaimed as true without proof) of each religion, I am ending them with Scientology – a belief system. Call it a religion or a faith.
The Church of Scientology is one of the most curious new religious movements of the 20th century, which financially defrauds its members, charging exorbitant fees for its spiritual services. People are drawn to Scientology because of personal difficulties in the way a few people change their own religions to others.
It is a cult, which is any religious group viewed as strange or what may be considered dangerous. There were many cults such as the Moonie cult, or the Unification Church, led by a Korean and his wife in South Korea and America. Reverend Sun Myung Moon (multimillionaire) died September 3 2012, aged 92.
During the 70s and early 80s the cult claimed more than 4 million members (Moonies) in 120 countries. In 1936 Moon claimed to have met Jesus Christ on a Korean hillside. Jesus informed Moon that He had been unable to complete His mission on Earth due to unforeseen circumstances, so Moon had been chosen to succeed Him and to establish the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth.
In 1954 Moon founded his cult from Seoul. It spread to the West in the 60s and 70s.His sermons, which were a blend of hard-sell Christianity and Eastern mysticism proved particularly appealing to the idealistic progeny of affluent Westerners. They were encouraged to hand over their worldly goods, reject their biological parents and accept the Moons (him and his young second wife) as their “true parents”.
He persuaded young Monies to take part in choreographed mass weddings and they were forbidden to sleep together for 40 days, “to get to know each other and prove that their marriage is on a higher plane”.
There is now Kabala cult in London based on Jewish mysticism, to which many celebrities such as Madonna belong.
Fast forward: there were many cults in the ancient world such as the Roman cult of Jupiter, the Persian cult of Mithraism and the Egyptian cult of Isis. All these cults had their own peculiarities.
Without trying to knit all these cults together I will concentrate only on one cult, Scientology, which is currently in the media. Cults come and go and they do not change the course of modern major religions in obvious ways like Cleopatra’s nose and the battle of Actium or the battle of Stalingrad,
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices just like any other religion. It is a self-improvement system based on the writings of L Ron Hubbard, a science fiction writer, who started the cult in1954 as a self-help system. He died in 1986.
In the Unites States of America, where it was born, in 1993, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recognised Scientology as a “non-profit charitable organisation”, but not as religion. In the United Kingdom the Church of Scientology is not classified as a religious institution.
On July 9 2012, Scientology became hot news, because Tom Cruise (50), the top Hollywood star of the Mission Impossible and The Last Samurai, was out filming in the Rockies for his most recent movie shoot, when his third wife Katie Holmes (33) out of the blue, filed for divorce on June 29 2012. The divorce was settled two months from the day Katie called Cruise in Iceland (fastest celebrity divorce because of prenuptial agreement).
The cause of the divorce, it is believed, Katie, brought up as a Catholic in Ohio, wants legal custody of their daughter Suri, because she is worried about Tom’s devotion to sci-fi cult Scientology and the effect the quasi-religious sect may have on their 6-year old daughter.
Scientology, a secretive cult, became a source of media interest in 2006 when it was known that outspoken Scientologist Tom Cruise and wife Katie Holmes, who converted to Scientology from Roman Catholicism, were expecting a child.
Reports that the couple would follow the practice of “silent birth” and Tom Cruise would eat the placenta, though denied by Tom Cruise’s source, until photos were taken of large placards being delivered to the couple’s mansion bearing instructions for the silent birth, such as “Be silent and make all physical movements slow and understandable”.
Silent birth is a birthing procedure advised by L. Ron Hubbard and advocated by Scientologists in which “everyone attending the birth should refrain from speaking to each other as much as possible and where doctors and nurses shout ‘push, push’ and loud or laughing remarks to ‘encourage’ the delivery are avoided.
According to their doctrine, the practice is followed because “any words spoken are recorded in the reactive mind and can have an adverse effect on the mother and the child.” However they have made no attempts to prove this medically or scientifically.
Scientologists blame psychiatry and psychiatric drugs for all the ills on earth. Disconnection from non-scientology parents, which is a source of wrenching headache, and constant leaching of money from the faithful are the most common complaints about the cult.
Those who decide to leave the faith are looked upon as enemies and as ‘suppressive persons’. Family members who stay inside the cult are told to severe relationship from them, causing a lot of grief in the family. Scientology is as secretive as vindictive, like kidnapping members who have recently left the Church.
David Miscavige is now the ecclesiastical leader and as the Chairman of the Board of Religious Technology Centre (RTC) is fully responsible for keeping the standard and pure application of L Ron Hubbard’s technologies and keeping Scientology working.
The international headquarters of the Church of Scientology is located in San Jacinto in California. There are about 500 staff members who live there as well as another 1000 non-Scientologists are employed there.
Scientology holds that an evil alien called Xenu came down to earth 75m years ago with a horde of extraterrestrials and blew them up with atom bombs in volcanoes. It further believes that a human is an immortal alien ie extraterrestrial spiritual being, known as “thetan”, which is trapped on Earth in a physical body.
The aim of scientologists is to connect with their spirits or “thetan”. The thetan had innumerable past lives and it is believed that lives preceding the thetan’s arrival on Earth lived in extraterrestrial cultures.
In order to achieve its goal of making an individual completely free from any limitation Scientologists must learn how to access his own spirit and gain control over it, by following the techniques written by Hubbard. They say that they have discovered how to isolate and handle the human spirit (thetan), and that is a significant contribution to mankind ie the isolation, description and handling of the human spirit.
According to scientologists it is a high standard religion. It helps bring man to total freedom and truth. Human experience extends well beyond a single lifetime. Human capabilities are unlimited, even not presently realised. Man is basically good. He is seeking to survive. His survival depends upon himself and his fellows and his attainment of brotherhood with the universe.
Tom Cruise, who was introduced to Scientology by his first wife Mini Rogers, saved Scientology by signing up when it was in disarray. The biggest FBI raid in American history had put several senior Scientologists, including Hubbard’s wife, in jail after they have been convicted of wire tapping, theft and breaking into government offices. Hubbard, who had been hiding, died in January 1986.
Cruise claimed that Hubbard’s dictum “if it isn’t true for you, it isn’t true” enabled him to rewrite the script of his life. With Hubbard at his side he could become the superman of his dreams, but it cost him three wives and millions of dollars.
Members of the public, who want to join a Scientology centre or mission, are offered “free personality tests” called Oxford Capacity Analysis (no connection with Oxford) by Scientology literature. A trained Scientologist uses an electronic meter called E Meter that will tell what the person’s mind is doing when the person is made to think of something.
Though it is difficult to obtain reliable membership statistics, The International Association of Scientology (IAS) membership is around 15 million worldwide. Scientologists can attend classes, exercises or counselling sessions for a set range of “fixed donations”. The meter registers before the person becomes conscious of the thought. It is therefore a ‘preconscious’ meter.
While a number of governments now, give the Church of Scientology, protections and tax relief as an officially recognised religion, other governments describe the Church as a pseudoreligion or a cult.
The writer is based in the UK
Email: imsingh@onetel.com
Website: www.drimsingh.co.uk
Thoihenba Angom
Dr. Debendro Singh, thanks for your contribution in various fields. May I now request you to do some research work on the titles “Singh” & “Devi” which are being widely used by Meiteis particularly among the old generation including you? If you thing these titles are right then why you did not encourage your daughter Anita and son Neil to use the titles. If you are from Punjab, ignore my comment but if you are a Meitei, hope you will surely ponder upon it.
Racial minded
Sir, pls dnt mind wit d comment. Tats d present day youth of Manipur. Sad to say that he/she had offened your Highness publicly. Our present day youth r spoilt, bt they r d pillars of today n tomoro.
Racial minded
Sir, pls dnt mind wit d comment. Tats d present day youth of Manipur. Sad to say that he/she had offened your Highness publicly. Our present day youth r spoilt, bt they r d pillars of today n tomoro.
Thoihenba Angom
@Racial minded—I have not offended Dr. I.D. Singh but encouraged him to do research work on the titles that R used widely by Meiteis. If U R weak in ur English comprehension, read the comment few times. If you r serious about Meitei identity which is almost banishing from this earth, you would certainly feel the pain. But if U R a Meitei with Mayang blood, you will never realize the identity crisis that Meitei community is going through.
Thoihenba Angom
Cont. It is fortunate for Kom tribe to have a single Mery Kom with proper Kom identity. Now the tiny Kom tribe is known by the world. How unfortunate it is for Meiteis to have so many famous Meiteis with Mayang identity & blood. I hope Mr. Racial minded will comprehend my simple English. If you r a true Meitei, start using it! Why do you have to feel shy? I am sure, you name is not Racial minded. If your blood is 100% Meitei, you should have surely identified yourself as a Meitei.
V. Meitei
There is a strong point to be pondered upon what Th. Angom has reflected. All the right thinking Meiteis should now join hands together and save our society. Our forefathers have made a mistake which does not mean that we continue to commit the same mistake. Dr. I.D. Singh who has writing talent & ability has a great role to contribute towards this awakening call.
V. Meitei
(Cont.)—People like Dr. I.D. Singh should contribute a lot more on Meitei and related problems which are facing today rather than writing those articles which are not related to our society. Of course, a person has to put a real effort to do it as it cannot be simply copied & pasted.
Dr Irengbam Mohendra Singh
Thanks Thoihenba. You've called me Dorendra.Meiteis were surnamed as singh/devi by Shanti Das to give a flavour of pseodo-Rajputs as was the design of the Palace. I did change mine to Mohendra Irengbam, Caused lots of problems as they are not in the passport and birth certificates.Same with my children; were a bit late in life.Also we live in the West.Here law is law. Hoping you will be telling old Meiteis to alter theirs henceforth.Appreciated very much.Dr Mohendra.
Mr J
Thank u Sir I Mohendro for accepting the call of progressive young generations for a new thought in the nomenclature of Meitei community in present days.From Loitongba to the present day,three character as Surname first name in the middle and Singh or Yek/Meitei r put.For unique identification of individuals all over the world,Meitei community name is the best.At present, brother Thoihenba Angom also raise the issue to draw the attention of sir I M Singh. Thank u brothers, we move forwards.
Thoihenba Angom
Dear Dr. Irengbam Mohendra (omitted “Singh” deliberately), wrong spelling is regretted. Glad to know that you have tried to chance your name into Mohendra Irengbam. I also understand that law is strictly implemented in the west. So you don’t have to change your passport or birth certificates yet you could still be instrumental in bringing changes in our Meitei society. I know for sure you have a big heart for Meiteis. That is how you are in touch with Meiteis.
Thoihenba Angom
Cont. May I have a suggestion i.e., in your email ID & website—instead of exposing alien title “Singh” and hiding beautiful Meitei surname “Irengbam,” if you could kindly use “Irengbam,” as it identifies Meitei—it will be a great challenge to the youngsters. Looking forward to read more about Meitei & its identity crisis from your side!
Thoihenba Angom
Mr. J your comments are highly esteemed but the only problem that I see is that you are unable to reveal yourself as a Meitei. If you are not free to reveal your official name, you could still have an unofficial Meitei name. There is nothing wrong in it. So let your esteemed comment be made known to the world not as a Mr. J. but a Meitei. Thanks for the support!
Maipong
@Thoihenba Angom, you are right in sarcastically but rightly putting it to the writer. :)
Dr Irengbam Mohendra Singh
Dear brothers, i am very sorry that my Name belongs to Mayang. Infact, my great grand fathers and mothers belong to West Bengal and i was born there. But now, i want to be a pure Meetei. So help me. I just wanted to see your reactions when i tarnish the image of Meeteis through my simple Essays. Please forgive me for my simple Essays on various topics of Meeteis. Thank you all.
Pibarel Meitei (Mr J)
I will change my pen name as Pibarel Meitei. My official name also Meitei traditional name. As you suggest for better tomorrow,I just do it.We should be set an example if we want to have a progressive change of the society.
Thoihenba Angom
Pibarel Meitei is a lovely & significant name-thanks for being so positive towards reformation. Unless we join our hands together & reform the broken Meitei society, we cannot have a bright future. Indeed, you have set a great example. Hope other Meiteis will also follow your example. Unless I change, it is not right to ask you to change, unless you & I change, we cannot expect change in our society. So let the change take place from you & me first. It is “better late than neve
wangdamba401 @ Pibarel Meitei
Welcome Brother.!
