I was not much into debating at school. The whole concept of verbal to-ing and fro-ing did not appeal to me. Recently, though, I have been taking an interest in the ways we are influenced, often in non-rational ways, by verbal or written arguments.

One of the most common non-rational appeals is an argumentum ad hominem - or, as the Latin phrase suggests, an "argument against the person" (and not against the ideas he or she is presenting).

Our decisions should be based on a rational evaluation of the arguments with which we are presented, not on an emotional reaction to the person or persons making that argument. But because we often react more strongly to personalities than to the sometimes abstract and complex arguments they are making, ad hominem appeals are often very effective with someone who is not thinking critically.

Consider a few examples:

1. A political candidate is gaining support by proposing a tax change. So her opponent argues that the candidate herself would be one of the chief beneficiaries of that tax change.

2. Your doctor tells you to lose some weight. But why should you listen to a doctor who is himself overweight?

3. A friend has recommended a new investment opportunity, but your significant other rejects the recommendation with the remark, "How could you possibly value the advice of that idiot?"

In each of these cases, there is an argument (concerning taxes, health, or investments); and in each, the argument is given less importance than something about the person making that argument. And that's what is wrong with ad hominem appeals. After all, if the tax proposal is an improvement, if the medical diagnosis is sound, if the investment opportunity is worthwhile - then what difference does it make who is presenting the argument - or even why?

Ad hominem fallacies take a number of different forms, though all share the fact that they attempt to re-focus attention, away from the argument made and onto the person making it. And remember - it doesn't really matter whether the terms of the attack are true or false. What matters is whether the argument is acceptable, not the person arguing it. After all, even if Adolf Hitler says so, 2 + 2 still equals 4.

Among the most frequent ad hominem appeals are attacks on:

personality, traits, or identity:

"Are you going to agree with what that racist pig is saying?"

"Of course she's in favor of affirmative action. What do you expect from a black woman?"

affiliation, profession, or situation:

"What's the point of asking students whether they support raising tuition? They're always against any increase."

"Oh yeah, prison reform sounds great - until you realize that the man proposing it is himself an ex-con."

inconsistent actions, statements, or beliefs:

"How can you follow a doctor's advice if she doesn't follow it herself?"

"Sure, he says that today, but yesterday he said just the opposite."

source or association for ideas or support:

"Don't vote for that new initiative - it was written by the insurance lobby!"

"You can't possibly accept the findings of that study on smoking - it was paid for by the tobacco industry."

The point is that each argument must be evaluated in its own right. Information or suspicions about vested interests, hidden agendas, predilections, or prejudices should, at most, make you more vigilant in your scrutiny of that argument - but they should not be allowed to influence its evaluation.

Only in the case of opinions, expert and otherwise, where you must rely not on the argument or evidence being presented but on the judgment of someone else, may personal or background information be used to evaluate the ideas expressed. If, for example, a used car vendor tries to prove to you that the car in question is being offered at lower than the average price, you must ignore the fact that the vendor will profit from the sale, and evaluate the proof.

If, on the other hand, that used car vendor says, "Trust me, this is a good deal," without further proofs or arguments, you are entitled to take into account the profit motive, the shady reputation of the profession, and anything else you deem to be relevant as a condition of "trust."

Srimad Bhagavatam 10.36.2-4 - So called modern civilization.

1955 September 19 : "My dear Sripada Gosvami Maharaja, in my opinion we should print more than 1000 copies every month and distribute them in large scale. I think you will reconsider the matter and let me know your further opinion. The printing will begin from day after tomorrow and you will kindly reply this just on receipt of it."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1947-64

1965 September 19 : "Today is the 38th day of our journey and we reached New York Port at 12/30 p.m. about three hours later than the scheduled time."
Prabhupada Journal :: 1965

1968 September 19 : "I am glad he has come back. I think he cannot go from our society because he has already rendered some service to Krishna. So Krishna is not going to leave him at any cost. Please offer my blessings to him, and treat him very well."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1968

1969 September 19 : "We should be very careful not to overburden our Spiritual Master by further repetition of sinful activities. When the Spiritual Master accepts a disciple and the disciple surrenders unto Him, He has got the responsibility of absorbing the sinful reaction of His disciples life. This is a great responsibility of the Spiritual Master."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1969

1969 September 19 : "By Krishna's grace a dumb can speak like Demosthenes, and a lame can cross over the mountain. Krishna's Grace is so glorious. So if we remain faithful in Krishna's service, there will be no difficulty in speaking when ever it is necessary."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1969

1969 September 19 : "You say you do not know what is my desire, but my desire is an open secret. I simply want all over the Western countries people may take this simple formula of chanting, dancing and eating Krishna prasadam, and being happy."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1969

By Mayapur Sasi dasa

For the pleasure of Srila Prabhupada this file contains the following North American results for the month of August :North American Totals, Monthly Temples, Monthly Weekend Warriors etc., Monthly Top 100 Individuals, Monthly Top 5, Cumulative Countries, Cumulative Temples, Cumulative Top 100 Individuals, Cumulative Top 5

By Parsada devi dasi

Krsna Balarama Mandir has initiated five Braj Darshan tours for the pleasure of the devotees. Braj Darshan is a regular guided bus tour for devotees who would like a quick tour of Braj.

By Mithuna Das

Simultaneously, the assembled devotees making rows, circles, hoops, sways, mobiuses, and other intricate geometries danced with the seeming innocence of little children. It was both a sight and experience to behold. With bright smiles on their faces, the devotee photographers seemed to be having a field day, as they monitored their tripod mounted cameras.

By Payonidhi das

This Krishna consciousness movement, before starting, I wrote one letter to Mahatma Gandhi: "Mahatma Gandhi, you have got position. People accept you as a very pious man. Now you have got your sva-rajya, and you are very fond of Bhagavad-gita. Let us preach Bhagavad-gita."

click here - 8.3 mb download, 17:22 mins playtime

By Kavicandra Swami

The festival in Ireland was very successful. Manu prabhu had arranged things very nicely. The main tent had dancers from Bhaktivedanta Manor and dramas by Parividha Prabhu. His version of the "Boatman" was superb. There was a very big inflated playground that kept the many children very happy. There were several prasadam tables that were busy all day and all the guests were very happy to be in such a pleasing atmosphere .

By Indradyumna Swami

If the opulence or knowledge of many millions of universes were clustered together, they would hardly equal a small fragment of the glory of Krsna's holy name. Krsna's holy name is my life. It is the goal of my life. It is the means I will employ to attain the goal of my life

Submitted by Bhurijana das

Let hundreds of arrows of harsh words pierce my heart. Let hundreds and hundreds of kicks fall on my head. Let hundreds of days pass where I am unable to get even the smallest meal. Remembering at every moment the fair and dark glories that are my life's treasure, and whose forms are two oceans of sweet nectar, I shall happily live in Vrndavana.

 

A review
of Dhanurdhara Swami’s Waves of Devotion
by Jayadvaita Swami

Waves of Devotion comes close to my ideal of what a commentary should be. It is illuminating yet unpretentious, systematic but not dry—and you can read it.

As Srila Prabhupada’s subtitle indicates, The Nectar of Devotion is a summary study. It gives us the essentials of Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, with considerable detail, and in one sense it is complete; one need not go beyond it. Yet one can go deeper into it, and Waves of Devotion helps us do just that.

1970 September 19 : "I am confident that this mission of Lord Caitanya's will be successful if only we continue to push on this great movement, without any personal motivation."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1970

1970 September 19 : "Krishna is no poor man. He can give us any amount at any time. Simply He is waiting to see that we will use it according to His desire. So the more we spend in His service, the more He will provide, rest assured."
Prabhupada Letters :: 1970

"The clouds, impelled by the winds, released their nectarean water for the benefit of all living beings, just as kings, instructed by their brahmana priests, dispense charity to the citizens". Srimad Bhagavatam 10.20.24

Spring was late in coming. It was cold and the last frost was a week late, happening in late May. Summer came with very little rain; possibly an official drought would be declared, but we just missed that designation. Now September is like October. It became cool immediately after the hot summer and the rains came. If only some rain had come during the summer! So many green tomatoes have not ripened! All in all the weather has been very poor for growing our garden.

Gardens need the warmth of the sun and water to grow. When the rains are insufficient so are the crops. While suburbanites do not care to see the sky darken with impending rain clouds, even after many long sunny days, gardeners are thankful for the sight. One’s whole perspective on life changes according to one’s lifestyle.

Chayadevi

I read an interesting article today by Hare Krishna devi dasi about Gandhi, Prabhupada, and Swadesh which compares the views of Gandhi and Srila Prabhupada.

Here at Red Hat, where I work, in the entrance to our office we have a quote from Gandhi:

First they ignore you
Then they laugh at you
Then they fight you
Then you win.

We have another quote by Gandhi up in Atma Yoga at the bottom of our mission statement:

Be the change you wish to see in the world

Hare Krishna devi dasi's article is interesting and salient not only because it helps those who appreciate Gandhi to also appreciate something about Srila Prabhupada, but also because the urgency of Srila Prabhupada and Mahatma Gandhi's call for localized, sustainable living increases with every passing day...

			ISKCON Prison Ministries Freedom Newsletter His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krsna Consciousness Under the guidance of His Holiness Candramauli Swami Sept. - Oct. 2006
	bhakti te mukti - Devotion is real freedom!

 

read more

Vraja Dhama das, aka DJ Vraj, has released an album on Jamendo, a music sharing site that allows artists to publish music under Creative Commons licenses.

We spent some time discussing the best strategy for releasing this music, and what kind of license and distribution model to use, and you'll be glad to know that the ideals of pure open source and sharing guided the decision to release the music freely in terms of both cost and use - so download, distribute, and remix it to your heart's content, and throw a few coins in the hat if you think it's worth it.

Vraj also has a new blog, which is currently hosted on Blogspot.

Blogspot is pretty old school about images in the blogs hosted there, and won't allow them to be displayed on other sites, which plays havoc with feed aggregators such as ISKCON News.net.

Madhava Ghosh's blog used to be there, and no images from his site would display on ISKCON News.net until he switched over to Wordpress.com - now they show up fine. So if your images don't show up on ISKCON News.net and you'd like them to, there's a solution for you.

Another solution is to host your images on flickr and link to them from your blogspot posts.