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From: Raghu Seshadri (seshadri_at_hpindyo.cup.hp.com)
Date: Mon May 20 1996 - 18:08:50 PDT
I beg the indulgence of the learned for coming up with so basic a question. I was explaining to a Dutchman basics of Hinduism such as atman, reincarnation and so forth. So this guy stumps me with this basic question - " Ok so some person in the past asserted these propositions. How did he convince his listeners that these are truths and not some fantasies of his mind" ? Note that he is not asking for the usual proofs that any non-religious person demands nowadays. His question is a little more subtle. He is really asking how you recognize that person X is spiritually enlightened and person Y isn't. Once you are convinced that someone is enlightened, there is no problem accepting his assertions - but how do we tell who is and who isn't ? Thanks. RS