Hi everyone,
I'm new to the board - Hari Bol!
I must admit I was pleasantly surprised with how active this board is, it looks like you have a very strong and participatory community here.
A little about myself (as it’s the customary thing to do) -
My story is probably very similar to many Westerners who become interested in Hinduism - although not completely. I was born into a multi-religious family, my mother is Roman Catholic and my father is a very liberal Muslim. I was raised in the Catholic tradition and attended things such as Sunday school although it was always in the light of extreme religious tolerance that my parents preached and practiced. We were never given dogmatic belief but more so taught that religion is a moral framework in which to live out your life.
I spent most of my late teens and early twenties misspending my youth (bye bye moral framework!) and it wasn't until I thoroughly burnt myself out on a combination of fast living, hallucinogenic synthetics and parties (I'm a child of the rave generation) that I really started to question who I was, why I was here etc - a very common experience for some westerners I believe.
It was at this time that I had a huge internal crisis and then ran into the Hare Krishna movement (by chance) and met a devotee who became a friend. The movement basically was responsible for me cleaning myself up, getting back to normal, re-enrolling and finishing university and just generally extracting myself from the dark excesses of hedonism that had become such a major aspect of my then life. The HK's got me back on track - and I am forever in debt to them for helping me with that. All glories to Srila Prabhupada, whilst I don't believe he was Krishna incarnate I am eternally thankful for his wisdom and guidance through his devotee's.
I was never initiated into the Hare Krishna movement, however my interest in Hinduism and to some extent my interest in my long lost cultural past (my father is north Pakistani) was well and truly sparked.
After a few qualms with ISCKON and some of the more extremist devotee's I came into contact with at my local temple, I decided to leave the shelter of Krishna (but I must say to some extent, stay within the shelter of Prabhupada) and go seeking again.
For the last ten years or so since I have been on a quest of sorts looking into this religion and that, messing around with things such as western esoteric magick and absorbing as much thought on belief and world religions as I possibly could...
I managed to get a "real job" at some point (I'm now a senior advisory in government on financial matters), got married, popped out a couple kids- I have a 2.5 year old and a 7 month old and just generally settle down.
I completely forgot about my spiritual convictions in the past five years, however having children has definitely bought them back to the fore. My wife and I have been discussing how we are going to give our children a sense of moral framework like my parents did. My wife is a scientist and a strong atheist. However, our opposing and diametric beliefs tend to compliment one another rather than clash.
In all my seeking - my thoughts have always returned to Hinduism and its many sects. I love the philosophy and cultural traditions.
So here I am - I remember once during my early twenties again a very "Big" ISCKON Guru told me one day I would have to settle on something - you can't keep seeking forever.
I guess that's where I find myself now - I'm ready to commit to some form of Hindu belief but what....
And that's where you guys and girls, and your knowledge are hopefully going to come in
I’m here to learn, share and hopefully make some friends.
Always on the path.
- Rahasya
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Originally Posted by Quark23
Nice to read about your experiences, hope you find the discussions here useful and knowledgeable about Sanatana Dharma. Best wishes! 
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