India under siege-V

There is a perception among the English-educated Hindus of India that all religions have the same goal.It has become such a fashionable to say that the Geetha,quran and the bible preach the same thing.The contention  is that though there might be some difference in the rituals being performed,the concept of these religions is one and the same.

If this were to be the case,the difference between people of different religions would be purely cultural.But is that the case?I really dont think so.Religious fanaticism has taken away so many lives in this world of ours than any thing else.There is definitely some amount of truth in the argument of atheists that the world would be much more peaceful if there was no religion at all.

Religion itself is needed only to raise the level of human beings from being just animals.So,if a man embraces a religion,it must help one become a better person.The purpose of religion itself is defeated if a man becomes a savage after he embraces a religion.This is especially the case because,man having his 6th sense, is capable of causing the maximum destruction to the world than any other animal.

If ethical values constitute the goal of a religion,then certainly there's some agreement among all religions,the ethical values being universal.But should a man be religious to be ethical??

Ethical principles are ingrained in men.How does religion come into this?I wont beat you up,because I know it pains a lot if you were to beat me up.I will try to be truthful because I know its unethical to lie.The world itself is based on the premise that people speak the truth normally.There are thousands of atheists who are ethical to the highest degree.

Religion itself is relevant only to people who believe in the concept of God,or those who want to believe,that is.Each religion has its own theology which guides people how to reach its goal.The problem starts when a particular religion starts claiming exclusivity.

One man comes and says,"This is the only way to reach God.Follow me"

Then another man comes and tell me "Do not go after him,he cannot take you to heaven,you better follow me,I will take you to heaven;I am the latest."

Suddenly a nun appears and says,"I am going to save you."

The nun is rather good looking,so I eagerly ask her,"Thank you mam.May i know from what  you are going to save me?Will you clear my debts?That will be nice.Will you save me from a disease?I would be grateful if you were to do so.What do you want to save me from?"

She smiles a soft,sympathetic smile and says"From your sin dear."

The word dear encourages me to ask "What sin mam?"

She again smiles and says,"You original sin".

I am a bit puzzled and ask her"Original sin???"

She explains calmly,"You have got parents.That is what is meant by the original sin.You need to be saved from that sin".

I get to know from her that some one died for me.She feels that he died for my sake about 2000 years ago.
By now I've over come  the aura of her beauty and am fully back to my senses.

So I find myself asking,"Mam,did he ask my permission before dying for me? I was not even there when he died.So how can you say,he died for me?I am not responsible for it".

She mutters some thing which seems like "eternal damnation" and goes away looking for another school boy. Hmmm...If only she had spoken about some thing else....Nalla dhaan irundichu.....What to do?

I would like to know where there is "unity" in all this.Still,so many Hindus keep repeating,"All religions have the same goal.Aaaaal are one and the same".

After I finished  my schooling , I went on a vacation to Darjeeling with my family.Darjeeling is a beautiful hill station located in West Bengal,near the Nepal border.It is full of Buddhist monastries.There is a belief among the Buddhists that if one were to ratate a particular cylindrical disc,all our prayers will be granted.I was surprised to see my mother suddenly rotating one of those huge discs.

I asked her,"Amma,why are you rotating these discs?"

She replied,"You should get good marks in your exams.Come,you also rotate..."
It was really touching to see as to what extent mothers will go for the sake of their children's welfare.
But common sense made me ask,"Have you forgotten that we are the disciples of Adi Shankara?"
She distractedly replied,"Adi Shankara and Buddha preached  the same thing ".
I had to storm out of the monastry.

Adi Shankara had to introduce the concept of institutionalism into Hinduism only to counter the surge of Buddhism in India.Before the advent of Adi Shankara,there was no such thing as a mutt.Religion was between the Almighty and the Hindu. Adi Shankara had to take this step only to clear the dilemma in the minds of the masses.If it were not for him,there would be no Hinduism today.

Of course,I do acknowledge my mother's right to freedom of religion.I took exception only to her reasoning that both Hinduism and Buddhism were the same.She has a masters degree in computer science and works as a teacher in one of the reputed schools in the country.She is also a pundit in Sanskrit.If such an eminent person can be fooled into believing such nonsense,I can well imagine the mind of the common masses.

The philosophy of Adi Shankara is that the material universe of forms and things is grounded in Brahman(God),but its formation therefrom cannot be described or formulated.It functions on the basis of the law of karma,that is of cause and effect;but its ultimate cause is Brahman which has created the material world and started the process of change that we see occurring in the world.All creation,however is Maya,or the power of illusion.Within the realm of maya,the universe exists and can be concieved as a creation of brahman,who is some times concieved as a personal God.However,from the standpoint of ultimate reality,even a personal deity is a product of maya.The world,as created by Brahman is an illusory superimposition of phenomenon on the basic reality-like a rope which is mistaken for a snake.

Buddhism,on the other hand doesn't even approve of the concept of God.Buddhism talks of nirvana as a state of "nothingness" or "Shunyatha". Buddhism believes in "putting off the light" i.e freedom from bondage.But that doesn't mean entering into a state of bliss.It means entering into a state of complete darkness.Also Buddhism teaches the soul is subject to destruction every second.A new soul appears the next second,replacing the earlier one,thus giving us the illusion of continuity of life.

This view is diametrically opposite to the philosophy of Adi Shankara,who talks again and again about the immortality of the soul.

I leave it to the wisdom of the reader to judge for himself whether there is anything common between the two philosophies.

The reason for such a belief is that Hindus have no identity for themselves.Such has been the impact of foreign invasions and foreign concepts.

I once heard a Hindu business man commenting,
"Love=profit.
Hatred=loss.
This is what the geetha,quran and the bible say.

While I cannot comment on what the foreign religions say,I can say with a fair degree of certainty that no such thing is found in the Bhaghavadh Geetha.
This is what lord krishna says in the Bhaghavadh Geetha:

"Sukha dukhe samae krithva
laba labao jaya jayao".

"View happiness and sadness,profit and loss,victory and defeat as one and the same!!!!"

Everyone is entitled to have their opinion.What i don't understand is why they drag religion into all this.These days so many people with no religious background have started penning books on spirituality.Let them do so.But let us stop mouthing big words like"All religions are one and the same".

I know so many of the so called saints do it for money,but we have only ourselves to blame if we fall a prey to their devilish designs.

Oh God,save me from these saviours.....

(To be continued)