A Description of an Alien Visit in the Buddhist Lotus Sutra

July 2, 2014, 8:08 am

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A Description of an Alien Visit in the Buddhist Lotus Sutra

by Capers Jones 

The Buddhist scripture called Saddharma Pundarika or the Lotus of the True Lawwas first written circa 300 A.D. (Note that the word “Sutra” means “scripture.”)   The exact date of the original Sanscrit version from India is not known with certainty, but the first Chinese translation was made sometime between 265 and 315 A.D.  Buddha himself was born in 563 BC, so the Lotus Sutra was obviously written by Buddhist monks around eight centuries after his death.

The English language version cited here was translated by H. Kern and originally published in 1884 by the Clarendon Press.  This same translation was republished by Dover Books in 1963 in unabridged form and is the source of this paper.

As background before proceeding, Buddhist cosmology is surprisingly modern.  Buddhism recognizes the existence of millions of other worlds and casually asserts that they are inhabited.  Indeed, each inhabited world is stated to have a Buddha of its own.  (The word “Buddha” means an enlightened being.  In Buddhist teachings, anyone is theoretically capable of becoming a Buddha, although actually accomplishing this goal is rare.)  One Buddhist scripture mentions in passing that on earth sermons are given with words, but on other worlds sermons may be given with light or with scents or by other non-verbal means.

Another modern aspect of Buddhist cosmology is the recognition that the universe has existed for many millions of years.  Time in Buddhist cosmology is measured interms of “kalpas.”  A kalpa is figuratively defined as the amount of time it would take to wear away a mile-high mountain if a bird landed on it and sharpened its beak once every thousand years.

Kalpa is a Sanskrit word  meaning an aeon, or a relatively long period of time (by human calculation) in Hindu and Buddhist cosmology. The concept is first mentioned in the Mahabharata. The definition of a kalpa equaling 4.32 billion years is found in the Puranas (specifically Vishnu Purana and Bhagavata Purana).

Buddhist cosmology also overlaps modern quantum theory, in that the Buddhists think that the void or emptiness is the source of both material objects and energy.  As in quantum theory, particles can flash into existence from the void.  The fact thatmaterial objects are constructed from millions of small particles is also part of Buddhist teaching.  A central teaching of Buddhist philosophy is that all objects composed of such particles are fated to decay.  This entropy or decay applies to living creatures, material objects, and the universe itself.  Since Buddhist cosmology dates back prior to 525 BC, it is interesting that there are so many similarities between Buddhist cosmology and modern cosmology.

Incidentally at about the time the Lotus Sutra was being written, the famous University of Nalanda was being created in Northern India.  Nalanda was the first university to teach astronomy and cosmology, as well as teaching mathematics.

 Although Nalanda was a Buddhist university, it was surprisingly eclectic and attracted students of other religions and students from many Asian countries.  For example, translations from Sanscrit into Chinese carried out at the University of Nalandapreserved many valuable scientific documents whose originals were later destroyed during the Muslim invasions of the 11^th century.

In the Lotus Sutra the beginning of each chapter provides some context of where the specific sermon was supposedly given when Buddha spoke.  The names of the major disciples who attended are supplied as well.

Chapter 23 of the Lotus Sutra is entitled “Gadgadasvara” and begins on page 393 of the Dover edition.  Because the original 1884 translation uses many Indian names and very long titles (such as a distant world called “Vairokanarasmipratimandita.”) I will paraphrase the section that deals with a visit by an alien from another world.

In Chapter 23, when the terrestrial Buddha was about to give a sermon, he darted a flash of light from a circle between his brows.  This flash of light was seen on other worlds, including the one with the very long name cited in the previous paragraph.

On this other world the resident Buddha (who also has a very long name) perceived the ray of light from earth.   One of his students, named Gadgadasvara, also sees the ray of light and realized what it meant, i.e. that the Buddha on this world was about to give an important sermon.

The student asks his master for permission to visit earth and listen to the sermon of Sakyamuni, the terrestrial Buddha.  Permission is granted, but the master gives Gadgadasvara some interesting cautions about what to expect on earth:

“On coming to earth you must not conceive a low opinion of it.  The earthly Buddha Lord Sakyamuni will seem small compared to you, as are his disciples.   He looks different from us and he and his followers will seem to be ugly, so do not behave rudely.  The earth itself has parts that are ugly like sewers, so do not form a low opinion of it.”

(It is rather surprising that a Buddhist religious text would describe the historical Buddha as being “small and ugly.”   In fact as a young man the historical Buddha was described by many eye witnesses as being athletic and comely.  Even at an advanced age Buddha was described as having good posture and a face that reflected wisdom, a benevolent nature, and peacefulness.  Of course from the point of view of an alien, it is hard to say what the surface appearance of a human would look like.)

At this point in chapter 23, Gadgadasvara enters a deep meditation and then appears psychically on earth before Sakyamuni and his students.  One of the earthly students, Manjusri, asks about this mental appearance.  Sakyamuni replies that the visitor is a student from another world.

Manjusri asks if he can learn the same kind of meditation used to travel between worlds.  Manjusri also asks if Gadgadasvara can come in person, because he wants to see what he looks like.

Gadgadasvara agrees, and comes to earth in physical form “accompanied by the noise of hundreds of thousands of musical instruments.”  He arrived by moving through the sky on a “large tower.”  Once he arrived, his appearance on earth was described as follows: 

“His face showed eyes resembling blue lotuses, his body was gold colored…and sparkled with a luster.”

Upon arrival Gadgadasvara has a curious but polite conversation with Sakyamuni.  He inquires about this world and about terrestrial students.  Gadgadasvara expresses hope that earthly students are not too troublesome or too difficult to instruct.  This is an interesting conversation because it deals casually with the topic that every inhabited world will have students and teachers and that the students on some worlds may be easier to teach than students on other worlds.

Sakyamuni asks Gadgadasvara to show the earthly students his true shape and body which he does.  But Sakyamuni also points out that Gadgadasvara has the ability to assume many different forms and to take on many other appearances if he wishes to do so.

Gadgadasvara listens to Sakyamuni’s sermon, and then gives a polite “goodbye” to the terrestrial Buddha and returns to his own world:

“he again mounted the tower and with the noise of hundreds of thousands of musical instruments he returned to his own world.”

This brief discussion of an alien visitor in chapter 23 is the only spot in the sutra that deals with interplanetary travel.   The purpose of the discussion appears to be to indicate that Buddhist principles and teachings are valid on all inhabited worlds.  No doubt the discussion in chapter 23 is allegorical rather than describing an actual event.  It is easy to dismiss the account as fiction, but it does contain seven interesting aspects:

1. The existence of many other inhabited worlds is casually accepted.
2. Both psychic and physical travel between worlds is casually accepted.
3. Forms of communication other than words are casually accepted.
4. Visiting aliens can apparently assume human shapes if desired.
5. A surprising alien motive for visiting earth is to learn and share knowledge.
6. Human beings and the earth are described as being ugly to aliens.
7. At least some aliens visiting earth are cautioned not to be rude to humans.

Considering that the Lotus Sutra was written around the 3^rd century AD and the English translation was made in 1884, the concept of interstellar travel is surprisingly matter of fact.  It is stated explicitly in the chapter that extra-terrestrials can travel between worlds and that visits to earth are not uncommon.  Somewhat more surprising is the concept that instantaneous mental communication between enlightened beings on many worlds is possible and indeed a common activity.  This issurprisingly similar to the idea of “entanglement” from physics, or instantaneous communication between widely separated particles.

It is also interesting that chapter 23 of the Lotus Sutra states explicitly that contacts between humans and non-human aliens can be in the form of polite discussions and scholarly exchanges of information.

It is intriguing that the historical Buddha was not at all surprised by an alien visit, and rather casually explained to his followers what was taking place.  The inference is thatBuddha’s on various planets are aware of one another.

Since most of the literature dealing with alien contacts tacitly assumes superior wisdom on the part of the aliens, it is also interesting that chapter 23 describes a visit by an alien specifically to listen to a sermon by a human teacher.

In conclusion, chapter 23 of the Lotus Sutra does not contain ambiguous discussions that have to be twisted and distorted to reflect some form of alien contact.  Chapter 23 asserts specifically that interplanetary travel and contacts between humans and aliens actually occur.  Further, the same chapter asserts that such contacts can be benign and cause no harm to either terrestrial or extraterrestrial participants.

September 3, 2013

Copyright 2013 Capers Jones

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4 Hard Truths That Will Wake You Up

July 2, 2014, 8:08 am

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“The truth will set you free. But first, it will piss you off.” – Gloria Steinem

Are you tired of floating around in that pink goop of the Matrix? Are you ready to slough off the illusion like it was an old hat? Has the White Rabbit been too fast for you so far?

If you are reading this article, you are here to wake up. Here are five ways to slow that white rabbit down so you can catch up.

1) Money is a hoax

“The Western worldview says, in essence, that technological progress is the highest value and that we were born to consume, to endlessly use and discard natural recourses, other species, gadgets, toys, and often, each other. The most highly prized freedom is the right to shop. It’s a world of commodities, not entities, and economic expansion is the primary measure of progress. Competition, taking, and hoarding are higher values than cooperation, sharing, and gifting. Profits are valued over people, money over meaning, entitlement over justice, “us” over “them.” This is the most dangerous addiction in the world, not only because of its impact on humanity but because it is rapidly undermining the natural systems that sustain the biosphere.” –Bill Plotkin

It is not the more evolved aspect of ourselves that tricks us into thinking that we need money to survive; it’s the less evolved aspect of ourselves that does the tricking. With our advanced technologies we imagine that we know the way the world works, when, for the most part, we have forgotten how everything is connected.

Until we can relearn “a language older than words,” and once again engage in a healthy dialogue with nature and the cosmos, we will continue to be tricked by the less evolved aspects of ourselves. The more awareness we bring to this extremely complicated cognitive dissonance, the more possible it will be to achieve an ecologically, economically, and socially sustainable world.

As it stands, however, the Federal Reserve is a house of cards guarded by a red herring. Money is the opiate of the masses, and the masses are too busy spending it on worthless crap to get to know each other as healthy individuals, let alone as a healthy community. We have become Pavlov Dogs, and money is our dinner bell. But money was never meant to be horded, or even amassed, it was meant to circulate as a way of uplifting the community. And yet here we are, hoarding and amassing, while our communities are in unhealthy disarray. It’s high time we abandoned the force-fed shibboleth that having more money makes us better people. It doesn’t. Being healthy, compassionate and moral is what makes us better people.

2) Debt is fiction

“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword. The other is by debt.” –John Adams

Unfortunately our nation has been enslaved by debt. Our current system is not an economic system at all, but an ecocidal system; an intrinsic obsolescence of conspicuous consumption. It’s a grave misfortune that efficiency, sustainability, and preservation are the enemies of our socioeconomic system. This has got to be the most bizarre delusion in the history of human thought, a retarded Ponzi scheme en masse.

But it’s difficult to get people to understand something when money, and especially debt, prevents them from understanding it. Instead of ownership, give us strategic access. Instead of equity, give us equality. Instead of one-track-minded profit, give us open-minded people. Instead of unsustainable monetary-based economics, give us a sustainable resource-based economy, which is basically the scientific method applied to ecological and social concerns.

As tough as it is to hear, nature is a dictatorship. We can either listen to it and fall into harmony or deny it and suffer. Ask yourself this question by Fleet & Lasn: “When the economic system fails, will we know how to behave, how to act, how to appreciate, how to value, how to survive, how to be and how to love in a world that no longer defines relations by money?”

3) Media is manipulation

“Any dictator would admire the uniformity and obedience of the U.S. media.” –Noam Chomsky

Media has always been an effective method for manipulating people. We are social creatures who are also psychological creatures. This combination makes us unwittingly vulnerable to the power of suggestion. As it stands, media has been our Achilles Heel. These days the “news” we receive from corporate media is more likely to be disinformation. Skepticism is a must when reading or viewing the information provided by these outlets.

The key: Don’t believe anything you hear and only half of what you see. Analyze the Kool Aide before you swallow it. Even then, be prepared to vomit it back up at the first sign of deception. Remain circumspect and question all authority. They don’t have our best interest at heart. They only want our money, and to remain powerful. Like Wendell Berry wrote in the Unsettling of America

“People whose governing habit is the relinquishment of power, competence, and responsibility, make excellent spenders. They are the ideal consumers. By inducing in them little panics of boredom, powerlessness, sexual failure, mortality, paranoia, they can be made to buy virtually anything that is “attractively packaged.””

We are slowly becoming more aware of corporate media lying to us. But they know we know they’re lying to us. And we know they know we know they’re lying to us. With enough inertia, this debacle of a process just continues until we are eventually lying to ourselves. And here we are. Like the great Baruch Spinoza once surmised,

 “The supreme mystery of despotism, its prop and stay, is to keep men in a state of deception, and cloak the fear by which they must be held in check, so that they will fight for their servitude as if for salvation.” 

And here we are, unless we decide to wake up.

4) Government is a corporation

“The end of democracy and the defeat of the American Revolution will occur when government falls into the hands of lending institutions and moneyed incorporations.” –Thomas Jefferson

Here’s the thing: we do not live in a democracy, and we probably never really have. A prestigious Princeton study recently concluded that we live in an oligarchy: rule by a few individuals. And these individuals just so happen to be plutocrats, making this particular flavor of oligarchy a plutocracy: rule by the rich.

The problem is that money itself has become an immoral agent within an otherwise amoral system that praises itself as moral. Ask yourself: do you wish to live out harried lives of nine-to-five slavery, giving up your days to heartless corporations that don’t give a damn about anything except making money, or do you wish to live a happy life of loving compassion, doing what you enjoy, in spite of plutocracy, oligarchy, and tyranny?

The Occupy Movement succeeded in shifting the tenor and shape of debate in the world, but we must not rest on our laurels. Trickle-down economics DOES NOT WORK! Austerity economics DOES NOT WORK! Corporations are NOT people. Money does NOT equal speech. It’s a trap. If we don’t get big money out of politics then everything we want to do will be hopeless. We need to be smarter with our mobilization tactics for the change and allocation of power within our society. So far the security and surveillance state has boxed us in, like the great MLK Jr. said, “Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.”

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Reptilian Aliens Unmasked [VIDEO]

July 2, 2014, 8:13 am

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They are among us. Blood-drinking, flesh-eating, shape-shifting extraterrestrial reptilian humanoids with only one objective in their cold-blooded little heads: to enslave the human race. They are our leaders, our corporate executives, our beloved Oscar-winning actors and Grammy-winning singers, and they’re responsible for the Holocaust, the Oklahoma City bombings and the 9/11 attacks. Well Maybe…

Who are the Reptilians and where are these Reptilian Aliens from? Reptilians some believe are from the Draco system and are also known as Reptoids or Lizard people. Reptilians have existed for millions of years and they are responsible for the creation of the Grey Aliens and their war mongering nature continues to challenge the supremacy of the Arcturian Aliens. Despite their inability to fight their greatest foe, Reptilians have managed to infiltrate Earth through deceit and lies and begin their attempt to take over this galaxy.

In our quest to answer the age-old question, ‘Are We Alone?,’ we’ve been conditioned to search space for Aliens and E.T.’s. This is a classical magician’s distraction! Instead of looking for other-than-human intelligent life off our planet,we should instead be searching Earth’s many thousands of miles of underground tunnels, caverns and caves systems.

Scientists have recently updated their identified animal species list total to 1.2 million, and the predicted total species list to 8.7 million. That means that we have yet to encounter the other 86%; or majority, of life forms with which we share our tiny, blue dot floating through space.

Our underworld is where we will one day discover various species of Earth-evolved, intelligent beings that we have been mistakenly calling ‘Aliens,’ and actual visiting E.T. bases of operations.”

Author and lecturer David Icke is not the first to have mentioned Reptilian Aliens, he has been the one to pioneer the road to a better understanding of who Reptilians really are and why they continue to interact and influence earthly humans. From government control, to religious roots, Reptilians have been known for their secret agenda, and although, we do not have a clear picture of what their true intentions are we are able to gather from history the signs and traces of their past actions and influence with ancient human civilizations. Accounts from the Aztecs, Greeks and Chinese mythology and history leaves us clues as to an ancient race of aliens that perhaps helped and aided the building of our civilizations past and present.

Today, Reptilians are believed to have shape shifting abilities that enable them to secretly work their agenda. Some have found evidence that our political structure and economic system has already been influenced by these evil Reptilians. Cunning and crafty, they seduce the hearts and desires of mankind while plotting their agenda and slowly reeking havoc on our earthly world. David Icke has long stood against many political and social systems that may be compromised by the Reptilian Alien Agenda, and although, Reptilians continue to make their push against humanity, many believe that we have protectors from another constellation watching their every move and awaiting their chance to move against the Reptilian agenda.

Out of all the different types of aliens visiting Earth the Reptilians are by far the most dangerous to our very existence as humans. They have very little respect for us and want the Earth for themselves. Some say that the greys have been working against the Reptilians in order to help the human race but it is unclear why. They may have a similar agenda and just don’t want the reptilians to acquire the Earth before them.

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Bizarre Zombie-Like Activity Reported Across America [VIDEO]

July 2, 2014, 8:14 am

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Absolutely bizarre, zombie-like activity is now being reported across the entire country as documented in this recently released video.

Is this some sort of biological, chemical attack upon Americans, could the NWO be planning a zombie apocalypse to justify a mass culling of the population?

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The Antichrist The Son of Perdition [VIDEO]

July 2, 2014, 8:15 am

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If you have not read my previous article titled ” Did Jesus Reveal The Name Of The Anti Christ” and another article title “Health Director Who Appoved Obama Birth Certificate Dies in Plane Crash” you can click on both links and read the articles.

After watching this video. It all came together so perfectly; like a puzzle whose pieces snapped together in place without flaw or blemish. I knew this man had a spirit of Antichrist within him, but I was never convinced enough to say I knew one hundred percent until I sat and watched this entire message.

I was stunned, to say the least. There have been many “Obama is the Antichrist” videos that I have seen, and they are all the same. But this one was different. I don’t really want to give you too much information regarding what is said because I want you to pay attention and form your own opinion. I can say that I believe many of you who watch this, if you are still not sure, will be convinced by the end. Also, the information contained within keeps getting better and better as it goes.

This video is a must for all to watch.

Revelation 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;”

Revelation 3:11 “Behold I AM (JESUS CHRIST) Coming Soon!” Hold Fast to what you have that no man take your crown.”

Acts 2:11 “Whomsoever shall call upon the name of the LORD (JESUS CHRIST), shall be saved.”

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Children Tried To Starve 90-Year-Old Mother To Death As They Were ‘Sick Of Caring For Her’

July 2, 2014, 8:15 am

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A 90-year-old woman in China was found almost starved to death, after having been locked away by her two children as they didn’t want the expense or hassle of caring for her.

The woman, Xiaoming Tsui, was found by police; she had survived captivity in her bedroom by drinking water, and eating some oatmeal thrown to her by concerned neighbors while her children were out.

When police found her she was emaciated and her first words to officers were: “Please, feed me, feed me.”

Tsui’s daughter and son are now looking at some serious charges following their arrest at the family home. The police accused the brother and sister of: “a cold and calculating plan to get rid of someone they found expensive and tiresome to deal with.”

A spokesman from the local police department told reporters:

The woman fell ill and to get rid of the problem of having to care for her, her children attempted to make her die from starvation in the locked room. They didn’t send their mother any food, telling her it was so she didn’t need the bathroom, and would allow no-one in to see her
The police also confirmed that there had been significant friction between Tsui and her children for some time: “She was becoming an increasing burden to them and so they decided to kill her by starving her to death. Then they planned to tell the authorities that she simply stopped eating,” he said.

The same spokesman added that in the police’s opinion this was not about a simple family dispute but something a lot more sinister: “This is not just a family dispute, but calculated murder. Obviously, the selfish children wanted their mother to die to save them trouble of taking care of her,” he said.

The children of the old woman are now being charged with attempted murder, and the police are preparing their case for court.

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30 Terrifying Ghost Images [VIDEO]

July 4, 2014, 11:51 am

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Here is the best evidence proving the existence of ghosts…

Take a close look and you be the judge…

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Woman Who 'Gave Birth' To LIZARD Accused Of Witchcraft

July 4, 2014, 11:52 am

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A woman who 'gave birth' to a lizard has been threatened by an angry lynch mob who accused her of witchcraft.

Debi Nubatonis, 31, gave birth to the gecko after an eight-month pregnancy and now Indonesian officials are sending in an exert team to clear up the mystery.

The scientists in the team said that although it was clearly nonsense that the woman had given birth to a lizard, they needed to investigate to come up with a logical explanation.

The alleged lizard birth happened in May in the remote Oenunto Village where a midwife who claimed she went to deliver a baby for a woman who did not have time to get to the hospital alleged that instead of a child, a lizard had been born.

The allegations led to threats against the woman and her family who were accused of witchcraft and that quickly led to hysterical debate on the internet.

But now the Chief Medical Officer of nearby Kupang City, Dr Messe Ataupa, said that a team has been sent in to investigate and clear it up. Although they have yet to present their final report, the team have begun to explore some possibilities.

Ataupa said: "It is clearly a nonsense to suggest that the woman gave birth to a lizard. There has never been a proven case of a living organism from one species giving birth to a different species, it just doesn't happen.

"We have spoken to locals who confirmed that the woman showed all the symptoms of pregnancy, and it does seem according to the midwife that she appeared to be going into labour. However we believe it was just a phantom pregnancy or pseudocyesis where there was never a child although the woman would have had many of the symptoms."

He said that a small percentage of women who had phantom pregnancies also experienced labour and it was possible that there might have been some discharge which if it had landed on the lizard might have led to the confusion and the belief from the midwife that the woman had given birth to a gecko.

He said: "If there was no baby, it might be possible that she just jumped to the wrong conclusion."

The midwife Josephine Lydia Hellen Wadu was the one who started the latest alert when she insisted on taking the lizard to the Oenuntono Health Centre and filed a report to claim it had been born from the young woman.

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Alcatraz Ghost Caught On Camera [VIDEO]

July 4, 2014, 11:52 am

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A British couple claims that a digital photograph they took during a recent tour of the infamous Alcatraz prison captured evidence of a ghost.

Teaching assistant Sheila Sillery-Walsh from Birmingham was touring the San Francisco, California jail facility in April with her partner, Paul Rice, when she snapped a shot through the window of a prison block with her iPhone 5C mobile phone.

“When I glanced at the photo on my mobile, I saw this dark female figure in the picture. I looked at the window again and there was no one in the room,” she told the Daily Mail

“I knew straight away that the woman in the photo was a ghost and showed the snap to Paul,” she said to the paper. “From that point onwards, I wasn't interested in the Alcatraz tour anymore. I just kept looking at the picture over and over again!”

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A copy of the image provided to News Dog Media shows what appears to be a young, dark-haired woman staring back at the camera from the other side of a solemn cell at what’s been called one of America’s most haunted sites.

Although the island penitentiary has not been operational in decades, visitors claim to have spotted apparitions numerous times in the past, and New York Magazine went as far as to say years later it “remains ultra sinister, perversely fascinating, iconic.”

Fascinating, indeed — Sillery-Walsh said she’s curious to know who the mystery woman was, and suggested to the Mail that“perhaps she was a female visitor of a prisoner and kept returning.”
 
“‘I would love to know why she’s shown herself in my photo,” she said.

"When I first saw the photo, I tried to rationalize the female figure away by saying it was just Sheila's reflection,” added Mr. Rice."But with closer inspection, it's obvious that this is not the case at all. The woman's hair and clothing is from a different era - it looks like she's from the 1930s or 40s.”
 
“I have no logical explanation for the girl in the picture – I’m baffled,” he said.“She’s staring right at the camera, with a knowing look.”

The Day the Alcatraz Prison Closed [Footage] 


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The Secret Order of the Ancient Assassins

July 5, 2014, 9:48 am

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During the late 11th century, an order of Nizari Ismailies was formed in Persia and Syria by a man called Hassan-i Sabbah. These were the notorious Hashshashins who captured many mountain fortresses and posed a threat to Sunni Seljuk authority in Persia. Perhaps the Hashshashin were most famous for the way they got rid of their opponents – through highly-skilled assassinations.

In fact, the word ‘assassin’ is said to have originated from this order. 

Although there are many stories about the Hashshashin, it is rather difficult to separate fact from fiction. For a start, much of our accounts about the Hashshashin are derived either from European sources or people who were hostile towards this order.

For example, according to a story heard in the orient by the Italian traveller, Marco Polo, Hassan would drug his followers with hashish, and lead them to ‘paradise’. When his followers regained their senses, Hassan would claim that he was the only one who had the means to allow them to return to ‘paradise’.

Thus, his followers were completely devoted to Hassan and carry out his every will. Nevertheless, there are some problems with this story. For instance, the use of hashish might have been a false tale. It seems that the term hashshishi was first used by the Fatimid caliph al-Amir in 1122 as a derogatory reference to the Syrian Nizaris.

Instead of literally meaning that these people took the hashish drug, it was supposed to be taken figuratively, and meant ‘outcasts’ or ‘rabble’. This term was applied by anti-Ismaili historians to the Syrian and Persian Ismailies, and eventually spread through Europe via the crusaders.

The assassination of Nizamal-Mulk by a hashshashin .

Even the Hashshashin’s reputation as cold-blooded killers may be questioned. There were indeed figures who were murdered by the Hashashins in broad daylight. Perhaps one of their most famous victims is Conrad of Montferrat, the de facto King of Jerusalem at the end of the 12th century.

According to history, Conrad was murdered while strolling in the courtyard of the city of Tyre with an entourage of mailed knights. Two hashshashins, disguised as Christian monks, walked towards the centre of the courtyard, stabbed Conrad twice, and killed him.

Whilst it is unknown who hired these hashshashins, it has been commonly claimed that Richard the Lionheart and Henry of Champagne were responsible.

Nineteenth-century lithograph by Gustave Dore envisions

 the attempted assassination of England’s King Edward I

What is more impressive than the boldness of the hashshashins is perhaps their efficient use of ‘psychological warfare’. By instilling fear into their enemy, they managed to gain their enemy’s submission without risking their own lives.

The great Muslim leader, Saladin, for instance, survived two hashshashin attempts on his life. Nevertheless, this placed him in a state of fear and paranoia, for fear of more assassination attempts.

According to one story, one night during his conquest of Masyaf, in Syria, Saladin woke up to find a figure leaving his tent. Beside his bed were hot scones in the shape characteristic to the hashshashin, along with a note pinned by a poisoned dagger.

According to the note, he would be killed if he did not withdraw. Needless to say, Saladin decided to settle a truce with the hashshashins. Despite the hashshashins’ notoriety and skills, they were wiped out by the Mongols who were invading Khwarizm.

In 1256, the hashashshin’s stronghold, once thought to be impregnable, fell to the Mongols. Although the hashshashins succeeded in recapturing and holding Alamit for several months in 1275, they were ultimately crushed.

From a historian’s perspective, the Mongol conquest of Alamut is a highly significant event, due to the fact that sources which would have been able to tell the story from the hashshashin’s point of view were completely destroyed.

As a result, we are left with a somewhat romanticised view of this order, perhaps best seen in video games, most famously in the Assassin’s Creed series.

By Ḏḥwty, Ancient Origins;

This article is published with the permission of Ancient-Origins.net. Ancient-Origins releases the most up to date news and articles relating to ancient human origins, archaeology, anthropology, lost civilizations, scientific mysteries, sacred writings, ancient places and more. If you appreciated this article, please consider a digital subscription. 

UFOs ‘Roam our skies’ Says Former US Air Force Intelligence Officer

July 5, 2014, 9:49 am

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A former U.S. Air Force major with 5,000 flying hours described in detail his encounter with an UFO, telling former members of Congress at a hearing on extraterrestrial sightings that he has been interested in UFOs ever since.

“These space craft occasionally roam our skies and my theory is they have been coming here for thousands of years,” Major George Filer III said May 3, the last day of the week long Citizen Hearing on Disclosure at the National Press Club.

Filer was one of 39 witnesses who gave testimonies during the hearing, including former members of the U.S. military and federal agencies, researchers, academics and ordinary citizens.

A former Air Force intelligence officer, Filer was a pilot stationed at the U.S. Air Force base at Sculthorpe RAF Base in England in January 1962. He was out refueling fighter aircraft at around 30,000 feet over the North Sea, when he was notified from London Control that radar had picked up a UFO.

It was around sunset and a clear night when he headed toward the object’s location, around 1,000 feet above an area near Oxford and Stonehenge, he said.

Filer said he could feel the adrenalin as his KB-50 J tanker aircraft exceeded what he called redline maximum speed to get there. He said that the control tower in London had cleared the area and was calling out the distance to the craft.

In a written submission to the hearing he described the experience as follows:

“They called out your miles apart, 60, and 40. At about 30 miles my APS-23 Radar picked up the hovering UFO directly ahead.

“It was an exceptionally large radar return reminding me of a large bridge or ship. This craft was bigger than anything I had seen in the air before. It reminded me of the radar return from the Brooklyn Bridge 6,000 feet or the Firth of Forth Bridge in Scotland (8,300) feet, over a mile long.

“The return was sharp and solid as compared to the fuzziness of a rain cloud. I felt this craft must be made of steel or strong metal. We were doing around 425 mph as we approached to about 10 miles, when the UFO apparently realized we were intercepting,” he said.

“It was a dark night; we could only see a series of dim lights directly ahead similar to a cruise ship at sea. Now only five miles separated us. Suddenly the UFO seemed to come alive, the lights brightened immensely and the UFO accelerated in a launch similar to the Space Shuttle taking off at night.

“We saw much brighter lights and fantastic acceleration as it climbed almost straight up and suddenly it was gone. These huge craft I learned are called mother ships, because like an aircraft carrier they carry smaller disc craft.

“We asked London Control, if they had any rocket launches in the area. London Control seemed as disappointed as we were. The controller said, “There are no rocket launches in that area, thank you for the intercept, you are now cleared to return to your mission.”

Royal Attention

Filer said the incident did not gain vast attention although he did record it in his navigator’s log and it was mentioned the next day in operations. A few weeks later, however, he and his crew received an invitation to dine with Prince Phillip, Duke of Edinburgh, who had expressed an interest in their experience.

“About seven of us sat around a table discussing UFOs. Prince Phillip was very personable and friendly. He was very interested in our intercept and we assume he had also been briefed by London Control because the U.S. Air Force had no apparent interest,” he said in his written testimonial.

When he asked the royal consort of Queen Elizabeth II why he was interested he said Prince Phillip replied: “My uncle who raised me, Earl Mountbatten had seen UFOs close up while in the Navy.”

Filer said Prince Phillip told him he had debriefed aircrews who intercepted UFOs “on many occasions.”

Filer said he has researched the topic of UFOs over many years and now believes that extraterrestrials have been visiting planet earth for thousands of years.

He referred to archaeological structures carved in the soil called cursors, which are found throughout England. He believes they resemble the reported shape of mother ship UFOs.

“This complex at Stonehenge and Silbury Hill in England, may in fact represent visitation by an alien race in the distant past,” he said.

Filer had another experience with an extraterrestrial craft while in the U.S. Air Force according to organizers of the Citizen Disclosure hearing but he did not discuss it at the event. He is now a regional director of the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), a nonprofit volunteer organization which was established in 1969 to record and study UFOs. He also produces a weekly UFO newsletter called Filer’s File.

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UFO Pursued Family Along Road Then Attacked Car

July 5, 2014, 9:49 am

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The Knowles family set out from Perth for Melbourne, in the hope of finding new jobs, instead, a terrifying and violent 90-minute encounter with a UFO on the Nullarbor Plain left them so shaken they turned around and headed home.

The news media described the incident as a ‘UFO attack’ and reported that the car was covered by strange dust.

At some point the family felt that the UFO had returned and had landed on their vehicle. They heard a clunking sound and felt that the car was being pushed down by a weight that rested on top of it.

By now the family was understandably frightened, and the following events are difficult to unravel in retrospect. The family believed that the car was lifted above the road, though none of them were able to estimate for how long or how high.

Mrs Knowles wound down a rear window and reached for the roof. She felt something soft and rubbery that was hot but did not burn her hand, and when she brought her hand back into the car she found it covered in a blackish dust. This event caused a panic in the rest of the family.

Patrick wound down his window, only to be covered in the fine dust, which was accompanied by a foul smell that was likened to dead bodies. A high-pitched sound was then heard, which sent the dogs into a frenzy.

The family became disoriented and felt that their voices had become slower, and lower in pitch.

They believed at this point that they were going to die. Patrick said that he felt that his ‘brain was being sucked out’, and Mrs Knowles likened it to having something ‘going into our heads’.

A while later, the family felt the car forced back down onto the road, bursting the rear right tyre.

Sean brought the car to a sudden stop and then blacked out. The family left the car hurriedly and hid in some bushes by the side of the road.

They remained there for 15 minutes before changing the tyre and continuing on to the nearest town.

Unknown to the Knowles’, a truck driver, Mr Graham Henley also saw, at the same time and in the same area, a strange light in his rear view mirror. He described as being like a strong spotlight and like a ‘big fried egg hung upside down”.

He kept the object in view for 5 minutes and did not see any car headlights beneath it. Shortly after Henley pulled into Mundrabilla, he saw the Knowles’ car arrive, and was confronted by the frightened family all trying to describe their experience.

He looked over their car and confirmed the presence of black ash in various areas, both inside and on the exterior of the vehicle, and likened it to fine silicon sand with a burnt odour to it.

He also noted four indents in the roof of the car and the damaged tyre. Henley and two of his friends also surveyed the scene of the incident, finding skid marks, footprints and tread tracks that they felt confirmed the Knowles account of their incident.

The family had by this time arrived at Ceduna and been interviewed by the police there, who confirmed that the family were visibly shaken. They also reconfirmed the presence of the four dents and the fine dust.

UFO Research South Australia was contacted and arrangements were made for the Knowles’ to continue to Adelaide for further investigation.

Keith Basterfield was at this stage brought into the investigation, and he stated that it “appeared to be an extraordinary example of a close encounter that had left physical traces.”

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Proof That Roman Catholicism Is Witchcraft

July 6, 2014, 11:19 am

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Doc Marquis wrote a book entitled 'Secrets of the Illuminati'. While this topic has been explored before, no author has been able to bring a truly occultic angle to the discussion. In other words, Marquis looks at the plan to bring in the New World Order from the viewpoint of a former witch. In his book, Marquis includes a chapter entitled, "Is It Catholicism Or Witchcraft?" At the beginning of this chapter, Marquis makes a quite startling statement, "I must emphatically state that Catholicism and witchcraft are one and the same...there is no difference between witchcraft and Catholicism." Then, Marquis examines Catholicism and witchcraft from the vantage point of a former witch.

Marquis identifies several critically important areas in which the practice of Roman Catholicism and witchcraft are identical. We will first list these areas of commonalty and then comment specifically upon them.

These common areas are:

 

Now, let us examine each of these areas of commonalty:

1. The altar in every Catholic church is prominently positioned at the front of the church. The "Mysteries of the Mass" are celebrated on and around the altar. In witchcraft, also, the altar is similarly used for three purposes:

• To practice certain metaphysical rites, such as the casting of certain spells or to honor occult deities.
• To hold the tools of magic.
• To perform human sacrifice.

The Roman Catholic altar also holds their tools of their magic, and they daily perform human sacrifice. Remember, we are looking at this subject through the eyes of a former high-level witch who is now a born-again Christian. This daily human sacrifice is performed according to the false belief in "transubstantiation", the belief that the priest magically transforms the wafer into Jesus' body and the wine into His blood. Marquis states, "In other words, every day Christ is being reincarnated and then sacrificed.. they perform daily their human sacrifice in which Christ is ...sacrificed for their sins." It is shocking to realize that the Roman Catholics are daily performing human sacrifice in a manner similar to that of witches throughout the centuries.

2. The Catholic Golden Goblet, or Chalice. "It is this cup that the wine poured into it becomes the...literal blood of Christ. When a witch does ahuman sacrifice, after the victim's throat is sliced open, the spilled blood will be collected in a chalice, just as the Catholics do, except the witch's chalice holds the real thing." In Satan's eyes, the Catholics are performing the same rite as the witches.

3. "Candles were introduced to the Catholic mass about 320 A.D. There is no Scriptural reasons for them, unless... you are a practicing witch. Below is a list of different colored candles a witch would use throughout the year. See if you can recall any of these colors used during a Catholic mass:

• White -- Purity, Truth, Sincerity
• Red -- Strength, Health, Vigor, Sexual Love
• Light Blue -- Tranquillity, Understanding, Patience
• Dark Blue -- Impulsiveness, Depression, Change
• Green -- Finance, Fertility, Luck
• Gold/Yellow -- Persuasion, Charm, Confidence
• Brown -- Hesitation, Uncertainty
• Pink -- Honor, Love, Morality
• Black -- Evil, Loss, Discord, Confusion
• Purple -- Tension, Ambition, Power
• Silver-Gray -- Cancellation, Stalemate
• Orange -- Encouragement, Stimulation
• Greenish-Yellow -- Sickness, Anger, Jealousy

"Using these colored candles and the right spells, a witch can cause anything to happen...our Catholic friends are not only using these occult tools, they also pay for them when they go to various statues and light...candles."

4. "Incense is a constant tool that is used by priests. They will take a philter (incense burner), walk around the altar, and then wave it out toward the crowd with an invocation...Not only do witches use incense, but they will consecrate their altar and their fellow witches in the exact way the Catholics do..."

5. Bells are also utilized by both Roman Catholics and witches. The bells are actually baptized, and in both witchcraft and Catholicism, altar boys attend the priest in sounding the bells.

6. Witches were praying to images or statues for many centuries before Catholics began the practice.

7. "Until recently, most of the rites of witchcraft were said in Latin...why is it, when the witches stopped using Latin as much as they did, about twenty years ago, that the Catholic mass was stopped being told in Latin? Today, it is spoken mostly in American English, the same way in which a witch's mass is held."

8. "...when the Pope, Cardinals, or priests want to give a huge blessing, they will take out a golden scepter, or wand, dip it in holy water, and then wave it on the people...wands are nothing new in the occult. When a witch wants to direct his power he can do it by means of wands." He can also control the demonic forces at his disposal by using a wand to consecrate a circle with a pentacle inside. Holy water is also used by a witch to purify himself and his instruments, and the water is made holy in both witchcraft and Catholicism by mixing water with salt.

9. The teaching of Purgatory is not found in the Bible. According to Catholic catechism, Purgatory is described as "a logically deduced place. Since a Catholic could not go straight to heaven if he had sinned, and since he could not go to hell if he had not died in mortal sin, there had to be a place in between where he could be purified" -- Purgatory. However, the belief in Purgatory is "totally occultic in origin". Witchcraft teaches that after a person goes through Purgatory, he is reincarnated and is more powerful in his next life than he was before. After several reincarnations, he will become purified enough to live with the gods and goddesses, precisely the same end as the Catholics teach.

10. Both Catholics and Witches teach that the host becomes the actual body of their respective gods.To the Roman Catholic, the host becomes the actual body of Jesus Christ; the witch believes the host actually becomes the body of their pagan deity, "I.H.S. -- or Iris, Horus, and Semiramis". This concept is known in both circles as transsubstantiation.

11. Both witchcraft and Roman Catholicism teach that the universe is comprised of five elements: Spirit, Water, Air, Fire, and Earth. These occultic five elements are also found in the Catholic mass.

• Spirit -- of the wafer god they sacrifice daily.
• Water -- Holy water they use to purify and baptize
• Air -- symbolically used through the incense
• Fire -- used in tangent with the incense burning
• Earth -- The elements of the wafer come from the earth in agriculture, and the flesh of their sacrificed deity, Jesus Christ, also came from the earth.

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Baltic Sea Anomaly

July 6, 2014, 11:19 am

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A company that locates and finds sunken ships recently turned up an unusual circular or oval formation in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Sweden on June 19, 2011. The discovery was made by the Ocean X diving team. An artist’s reconstruction is shown below:

The actual sonar image of the site is more ambiguous than the artistic reconstruction:

A sonar image of the seabed showing the object at a depth of 100 metres in the Sea of Bothnia in the northern Baltic Sea

There seems to be a sort of cleared track way that runs for about 1000 feet leading to the structure. The object itself is about 200 feet across and seems to be resting on a short column as shown in another artistic rendering. The dome illuminated by a light is a creation of the artist and not part of the undersea structure:

The material from which the object is constructed is not yet known, although there are claims on the web that titanium has been found in unspecified quantities. A sonar image from directly over the object shows its actual appearance:

This object is still being investigated and will probably turn out to be a natural rockformation of some kind. The ambiguity of the structure and its resemblance to Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon from Star Wars has made the object a hot topic on UFO and paranormal web sites.

A google search using the phrase “Baltic Sea anomaly” will turn up quite a few reports on this structure, but no solid evidence as to what it is made from. However a spectroscopic analysis by Dr. Steve Weiner of the Weizmann Institute indicates the minerals limonite and goethite are the main components of the anomaly.

Another artistic reconstruction is shown below. For some reason a number of artists have been commissioned to create images of this structure, perhaps for commercial reasons:


The fact that the structure seems to be composed of natural minerals raises the odds of it being some kind of a natural rock formation, although an unusual one. At the present moment in 2014 there are apparently no funds for additional exploration of this object.

In order for this object to be of archaeological importance, several additional pieces of information are needed:

• The mineral composition of both the artifact and the column are needed. If they are of different materials the object might be a dolmen, and in fact the largest dolmen yet discovered.
• If the 1000 foot cleared area behind the artifact is due to some movement of theartifact itself, that would be quite significant. If it is coincidental then it adds nothing to the significance of the artifacts.
• If the artifact has any inner cavities or hidden structures that would be significant. An opening has been reported, but no details were provided.

As situation now stands the Baltic Sea object appears to be a large and unusual rockformation but otherwise nothing special.

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Man Gets Stuck In A Vagina: Student Brings New Meaning To The Phrase Born Again'

July 6, 2014, 11:20 am

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This student has brought a new meaning to the term born again.

He got stuck inside a giant stone vagina outside the microbiology and virology department of a university in Germany.

The unnamed man got into the statue as a prank but ended up having to be freed by a team of 22 firefighters.

Their log of the incident says simply: "A person trapped in a stone vulva".

A friend posted the image of him online saying: "I was there!!! He just wanted to take a funny picture.



"The fire department was not really amused, and he was really embarrassed."

It is believed that he climbed into the sculpture but then slipped down the opening and got his legs stuck in a narrower part.

Thankfully there was no damage to the €120,000 (£95,000) vagina outside Tübingen University and the red-faced student was not injured.

The sculpture was created by Fernando de la Jara and is named "Chacan" which means making love in the Peruvian Indian language.

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Tomb of 'Dracula' Discovered in Naples

July 8, 2014, 7:53 am

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Count Vlad Tepes, infamous as "Vlad the Impaler," was a ruthless tyrant who ruled 16th Century Romania with an iron fist. He impaled untold thousands of Turks who had invaded his homeland. He served as the inspiration for the iconic vampire Dracula. Now, some believe his final resting place may be in Italy . A headstone discovered there has historians very intrigued.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The question is - how did a Romanian dictator wind up in Italy? It's generally believed that Tepes died on the battlefield. There are researchers now who suspect that Tepes was taken prisoner, ransomed to his daughter, by then safe in Italy, and buried in a church in Naples.

Born in 1431, Tepes was part of a noble family that was itself part of the Order of the Dragon, which was engaged in fighting the expansion of the Ottoman Empire into Europe. Vlad's father was nicknamed Dracul, meaning 'Dragon' so the young Vlad became Dracula, or 'son of Dragon'.

The remains of the real-life Dracula are today to be found not in the Romanian Alps but in tomb in Italy (pictured), according to new research.

Dracula disappeared in 1476 battle. While some sources have claimed that he died, the researchers claim he was in fact imprisoned and hauled away in chains by the Turks.

His daughter Maria was meanwhile brought to the Neapolitan court, whose ruling family was allied with her own family. She was adopted and eventually married to a Neapolitan nobleman.

 The tomb is covered in carvings including a dragon (pictured) which the expert says means Dracula, while two opposing sphinxes represent the city of Thebes also called Tepes. In these symbols, Dracula Tepes, the very name of the count is written. 

 Documents have proved that Maria in fact paid a ransom to the Turks for her father, who was then brought to Naples, the historians say.

A newly uncovered headstone in Naples' Piazza Santa Maria La Nova, the same graveyard as Tepes' daughter and son-in-law, could be Dracula's final resting place.

Student Erika Stella, investigating the cloister of Santa Maria Nova in Naples for her thesis, discovered the grave - quite unlike the others surrounding it, and returned with historians who undertook months of research. 

Medieval history scholar Raffaello Glinni said that the 16th century tomb (pictured) is covered in images and symbols of the House of the Transylvanian "Carpathians," not in keeping with the tomb of an Italian nobleman. 

Medieval history scholar Raffaello Glinni said that the 16th century tomb is covered in images and symbols of the House of the Transylvanian "Carpathians," not in keeping with the tomb of an Italian nobleman.

"When you look at the bas-relief sculptures the symbolism is obvious," he told newspaper reporters.

"The dragon means Dracula and the two opposing sphinxes represent the city of Thebes also called Tepes. In these symbols, Dracula Tepes, the very name of the count is written," he said.

Researchers have now applied for official permission to investigate the grave.

One thinks - will there be a researcher with garlic and a wooden stake at the ready? 

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Children As Young As 7 Forced To Marry In Mass Wedding

July 8, 2014, 7:53 am

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More than 20 children, aged between 7-16 years old, were apparently married in front of their village community, in Kishangarh, Rajasthan, India.

Local photojournalist Shankar Puri photographed the children as they made their way to a temple for a mass wedding ceremony.

Local photojournalist, Shankar Puri, found out about the ceremony and attended but he couldn't do anything to help, as he feared for his safety if the huge number of families found out.

Shankar said: "I was tipped off about the weddings that very morning. I informed the police immediately and then I rushed to the venue. When I arrived it looked like a village fair. Hordes of men and women in their best clothes had gathered to witness the marriages of innocent children. They were singing songs and celebrating and laughing and giggling. It was really disheartening. They had no idea that what they were doing was so wrong."

Shankar said local police arrived but were unable to do anything to stop the weddings.

He added: "The police couldn't do anything as they were outnumbered by the relatives. If they had done anything the villagers would've beaten them. Even the law of the land didn't have enough power to stop these child marriages taking place."

Child marriage is an age-old custom in India and is still practiced by a majority of people both in rural and urban Rajasthan even though it is illegal and despite efforts by women's rights organisation and NGOs to stop it.

Kriti Bharti, a child right activist who has stopped 124 child marriages and annulled seven, said fighting the custom involves a lot of risk.

She said: "Stopping child marriage is a challenge as parents change the venue the night before or postpone the wedding. By the time we reach the spot, children are already married off. We are trying every bit to educate people about the harms of an early marriage, but it will take a lot of time before this custom is stopped altogether in India."

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Indian Police 'Gang-rape Woman After She Fails To Pay Bribe'

July 8, 2014, 7:53 am

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A protest in Kolkata against rape after a string of violent attacks in India. Photograph: Piyal Adhikary/EPA

An Indian woman has said she was gang-raped by four officers at a police station, the latest in a string of sex attacks in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

The woman said she was attacked when she went to the station overnight on Monday in the Hamirpur district to seek her husband's release.

"At 11.30pm when there was no one in the room the sub-inspector took me to his room and raped me inside the police station," the woman told CNN-IBN.

She filed a complaint with a senior officer on Wednesday over the attack, which allegedly occurred when she refused to pay a bribe to secure the release of her husband. Virendra Kumar Shekhar, a police official from Hamirpur, said: "The procedure will be followed. The victim has filed a complaint and the guilty will be arrested soon."

Sub-inspector Balbir Singh said a criminal case had been lodged against four officers from the station.

The case is the latest in a string of rapes and murders in Uttar Pradesh,India's most populous state, where the chief minister, Akhilesh Yadav, is under growing political pressure over his handling of law and order.

Last month, two girls, aged 12 and 14, were gang-raped and lynched in their village. They were attacked after going into a field to relieve themselves at night because they did not have a lavatory at home.

Their families refused to cut the bodies down from the tree for hours in protest, saying police had failed to take action against the attackers because the girls were from a low caste.

The prime minister, Narendra Modi, , in his first comments on the issue since the hanging of the girls sparked public outrage, on Wednesday urged all politicians to work together to protect women. Modi warned politicians against "politicising rape", saying they were "playing with the dignity of women" in his first speech to parliament since sweeping to power at last month's election.

India brought in tougher laws last year against sexual offenders after the fatal gang-rape of a student in New Delhi in December 2012, but they have failed to stem the tide of violence against women.

Also on Wednesday, a 45-year-old woman was found hanging from a tree in Uttar Pradesh. Her family said she had been raped and murdered. A police officer said five men were being questioned over the incident, which occurred several kilometres from her home in Bahraich district. "They [her husband and son] have alleged that the woman, before being strung up from the tree, was raped and murdered by these men," the district superintendent Happy Guptan told AFP.

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St Louis Archbishop 'I Didn't Know it Was Illegal for Priests to Have Sex With Children'

July 8, 2014, 11:54 am

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A St Louis archbishop embroiled in a sexual abuse scandal has claimed he didn’t know it was illegal for priests to have sex with children in the 1980s, according to a court deposition released on Monday.

Archbishop Robert Carlson, who was chancellor of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul at the time, was deposed as part of a sexual abuse lawsuit in Minnesota involving the archdiocese and the Diocese of Winona.

In a testimony filmed last month and released by the St. Paul law firm Jeff Anderson & Associates, the Catholic archbishop was asked whether he had known it was a crime for an adult to engage in sex with a child. 


Archbishop Robert Carlson, who was chancellor of the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul in the 1980s, has been deposed as part of a sexual abuse lawsuit in Minnesota involving the archdiocese and the Diocese of Winona


‘I’m not sure whether I knew it was a crime or not,’ Carlson responded. ‘I understand today it’s a crime.’

When asked when he first realized it was a crime for an adult - including priests - to have sex with a child, Carlson, 69, shook his head.

‘I don’t remember,’ he testified.


Yet according to other documents released by attorney Jeff Anderson, who is representing an alleged clergy abuse victim, Carlson showed clear knowledge that sexual abuse was a crime when discussing incidents with church officials during his time in Minnesota.

In a 1984 document, for example, Carlson wrote to the then-archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis - John R. Roach - about one victim of sexual abuse and mentioned that the statute of limitations for filing a claim would not expire for more than two years.

'I don't remember': When asked when he first realized it was a crime for an adult - including priests - to have sex with a child, Carlson, 69, shook his head


He also wrote that the parents of the victim were considering reporting the incident to the police.

Carlson’s role at the time was to investigate abuse claims. He admitted in his deposition that he never personally went to police, even when a clergy member admitted to inappropriate behavior.

In the testimony, Carlson responded 193 times that he did not recall abuse-related conversations from the 1980s to mid-1990s.

Carlson also said that even in 1996 he did not know that pedophilia was a disorder that couldn’t be cured.
“I did not know that, but as a pastor, I was becoming increasingly concerned,” Carlson said.

Carlson left the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul in 1994, and eventually became St. Louis archbishop in 2009

Carlson left the Archdiocese of Minneapolis and St. Paul in 1994, and eventually became St. Louis archbishop in 2009.

The Archdiocese of St. Louis said in a statement on Monday that Carlson had given testimony ‘several times many years ago’ about the same allegations.

‘In this most recent deposition, while not being able to recall his knowledge of the law exactly as it was many decades ago, the Archbishop did make clear that he knows child sex abuse is a crime today,’ the statement said.

‘The question does not address the Archbishop’s moral stance on the sin of pedophilia, which has been that it is a most egregious offense.’

The trial against the Twin Cities archdiocese is set to begin in September.

Video: Archbishop Carlson is interviewed about sexual abuse allegations


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Flower Said to Bloom Once in 3,000 Years Spotted Across Globe

July 8, 2014, 11:54 am

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The universe is full of mysteries that challenge our current knowledge. In "Beyond Science" Epoch Times collects stories about these strange phenomena to stimulate the imagination and open up previously undreamed of possibilities. Are they true? You decide.

The udumbara flower is said in Buddhist legend to bloom only once every 3,000 years, the last time being before the birth of Buddha. Spotted again across the world in the past 20 years or so, some say the udumbara could herald the coming of a great sage or enlightened being.

This very tiny, fragrant flower rests atop a thin stem and is surprisingly resilient. People who’ve found the udumbara in recent years have reported keeping it for long periods of time without it decaying or withering, and even watching it spring back after being crushed.


Udumbara flowers on a pine needle photographed under a microscope by Mr. Li of Malacca, Malaysia.


Green lacewing eggs under a microscope. (Mr. Li)

It was first sighted on a Buddha statue in a South Korean temple in 1997. In 2010, Chinese state-run media surprisingly reported on sightings of the flower, calling it celestial. This is surprising, because the regime is officially atheist and would not usually suggest a great spiritual ruler could arrive on Earth. All articles on state-run media were removed shortly after they were published, but not before they spread across Chinese Internet networks. 

The alleged udumbara flowers have been seen blossoming on Buddha statues. 

The regime has since stated that the udumbara is an insect egg, the egg of a green lacewing. Though the lacewing eggs and the udumbara are similar in appearance, the eggs have been seen to wither and die shortly after hatching whereas the flowers are fragrant and long-lasting.

Udumbara is a word from the ancient Indian language, Sanskrit, meaning “an auspicious flower from heaven.”

According to Buddhist legend, its appearance heralds the arrival of the Holy King Who Turns the Wheel, rectifying the Dharma in the world. This King is said to accept anyone of any religious affiliation, offering salvation to all through compassion.

Volume 8 of the Buddhist scripture “Huilin Phonetics and Interpretation” states: “The udumbara flower is the product of propitious and supernatural phenomena; it is a celestial flower and does not exist in the mundane world. If a Tathagata or the King of the Golden Wheel appears in the human world, this flower will appear due to his great virtue and blessings.”

With reporting by Epoch Times staff member Yang Xiaohui.

VIDEO: Rare Udumbara Flowers Blossom in Korea

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