Interesting that there is no guide to how to answer the obvious questions that would arise, e.g questioning the 5000 years or the premise of identical repetition, or conflicts with evidence from other areas, or even if it is meant to be metaphorical rather than literally true.
Below is a fine example of the many ways the BKs confidently assert things which are incorrect, pretending they have studied and know all about other religions and history, in a way a trusting newcomer would expect from a ”teacher" of a spiritual ”University”.
All they expect from the users of this manual, is ”parroting" without understanding, without questioning or researching, as any real university would expect. Good parrots are good teachers? I think not. Here’s the example :
Buddha arrives (in approximately 250 B.C.) with a basically humanistic approach. With great honesty [Buddha] makes no mention of the Supreme God but says that
suffering is due to desires and that liberation involves their suppression, by following what he calls the Noble Eightfold Path:
1. Right action
2. Right belief
3. Right aspiration
4. Right speech
5. Right livelihood
6. Right endeavor
7. Right thought
8. Right meditation
The key word of course is "right"
Note - the teachings in this manual all come from 'God Shiva' (the b.s. artist previously known as Prajapati God Brahma) - with relating the ‘Gyan’ being ‘god’s' sole purpose in drama, , as "god" himself says. So you’d expect him to get it right.
Why do they go into this detail for Buddhism in the manual and not the other religions? Because it's with an intention to show that BKs are not in disagreement with Buddhism (which is the source of the popular idea of "mindfulness meditation” in the West), but that Buddhism is inferior because one cannot achieve the goals "without God". BKs are Buddhism+!
"Buddha arrives (in approximately 250 B.C.) "Sorry, wrong. Best evidence suggests that Buddha was born either c. 563 BCE or c. 480 BCE ,(either 63 years before BKs' Dwapur Yuga or 20 years into it) not 250 BC.
Evidence from just one objective (non-Buddhist) tradition: Alexander the Great’s invasion of India was around 325BC. He & his generals kept comprehensive records of their campaigns and encounters which they sent back to Greece with various specimens to Alexander’s teacher, Aristotle. They had recorded meetings with various Jain and Buddhist philosophers in North West India (i.e. well after the Buddha lived and died in East India). The BKs teach that this all happened 75 years
before Buddha was born.
”... says that suffering is due to desires and that liberation involves their suppression" No, that's not the Buddhist teaching. What they have actually done here is apply the same Vedanta philosophy the Buddha was actually refuting (but which the BKs regurgitate for their own ends). From the Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra
"To inordinately (增上) conceited (慢) persons (人) the Buddha (佛) said (說) that to abandon (離) desire, anger and stupidity (婬怒癡) is (為) liberation (解脫). To those (若.....者) without (無) inordinate (增上) conceit (慢), the Buddha (佛) said (說) that the nature (性) of desire, anger and stupidity (婬怒癡)) is (即是) liberation (解脫)."
-- that is, the idea of - suppressing, conquering, abandoning - desire is an instruction suitable for those who have ”inordinate conceit” i.e. an overly developed sense of self to which they are attached. Remember, Buddha taught that any idea of ‘atma” is a false conceit.
Those "without inordinate conceit” are ready to understand the subtlety of the Buddhist teaching, that liberation is/has the same nature as desire, anger or stupidity. (it’s off-topic so won';t explore that subtlety here)
"the Noble Eightfold Path 1. Right action (etc) ....The key word of course is ”right"' The key word... is ‘right’, is WRONG again BKWSU.
Although even much of English Buddhist literature uses this term ”right" (and the BKs obviously just copied & pasted this from somewhere) there are many poor translations and versions.
This word is one such bad translation, as are many of the other terms in the list, and it’s not even listed in the ”right” order either!
This mistranslation gives rise to, or rises out, of moral prejudices - i.e. that there is a ‘wrong’ or ”bad” way to do these things.
The original word, here mistranslated as ”right”, is "
sama" which translates more accurately as ”equalised” or "complete” or ”total”
(it’s the same root word as the Latin and English word ”sum”). The antonym for "sama" is - "unbalanced/unequal” or ”incomplete”, ”unskilled", "inadequate" -
without moral judgement because moral behaviour in itself does not necessarily lead to liberation, alhough it doesn't hinder it by any means.
The BKs reinforce popular misconceptions. They teach ill-informed nonsense that perpetuates ignorance, asking students to identify their meditation experience as the ‘convincer' that they are one of the chosen ones, and to ’not understand’ the Gyan cancels out that special passport.
The BKs make no effort to break out of the brahmanic view of the world - hierarchical, exclusive, self-serving and self-justifying - they only reinterpret it so its BKs themselves who are at the top.