While growing up as a kid in northern India in the early 1980s, I fondly remember one of my best friends in high school, Sher Ali Khan. He was a devout Muslim.
While in 9th grade, Sher Ali called me over to his home for the Islamic festival of Eid. The food at the table was overflowing and beautifully decorated. But a dilemma faced me soon. All the meat on the table was halal -- a special religious technique of preparation of meat in the Islamic faith that I as a Sikh was forbidden to eat, due to the Sikh Rehat Maryada (Principles of Sikh Living). So I chose to stay a silent vegetarian that day partaking only of vegetables and sweets.
A couple of months later, he was over at our home for dinner and we had cooked meat without any religious preparation. Since the meat was not halal, Sher Ali became a vegetarian for that meal.
At that time I thought that our religions were getting in the way of our friendship. But as I reflect on it now, it seems that we were learning how to negotiate our religious differences.
In 1989, I came to the United States to pursue my Ph.D. degree at The Ohio State University. I was at least an ocean and a continent away from my parents and family.
The first question I asked myself was, "Do I even want to continue being religious?" After significant introspection, the answer became clear: yes, I wanted to be religious. But this was followed by another question: "What religious tradition should I be a part of?"
I remember approaching a local member of the Catholic clergy asking for his advice on what religious path to consider pursuing. His response surprised me. He asked me to look deeply into the faith I had grown up in and asked me to come back to him after giving my faith one more chance.
As you may have guessed by now, I never went back to that priest. But I am indebted to him for his advice. Here was someone from another religious tradition that helped me to grow in my own religious tradition. His advice on spirituality transcended the boundaries of religion.
Today, as I reflect on my friendship with my Muslim high school friend and the Catholic spiritual adviser, it is clear to me that the many diverse religions of the world are complimentary to each other and not in competition with each other. These are values upon which the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions is built upon.
Mutual respect and understanding across religious boundaries is a fundamental need of humanity today. The interfaith and inter-religious movements are at a critical juncture. How do we expand the circle of those engaged in this work, and how do we deepen the engagement of those already involved? These are the issues that the Parliament helps to address so we can make this world a safer and more just place for our children and grandchildren.
This article was first published by the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions.
Chris Stedman: Don't Ask, Don't Tennessee: Why Muslims and the LGBTQ Community Should Be Allies
Nausheen Husain: Using New Media to Know the 'Other'
Ravinder Singh Taneja: Honoring Guru Arjan: A Sikh Celebration of the Will of God
Thank you for sharing such a beautiful story and keeping a hope alive that one day it may be possible to look past a person's exterior and try to find something in common. I actually think a small show in Canada called "Little Mosque on the Prairie" does a beautiful job of illustrating interfaith understanding.
God is dwelling within the minds of all humans known as the Holy Spirit ( BIBLE ), Naam Kelaah ( SRI GURU GRANTH SAHIB ), Roh Allah / Zat Illahi ( KORAN ), Tao / Qi ( TAO TE CHING ), Ak Parashakti ( HINDUISM ).
We are capable of achieving ' One with God " through complete surrender & deep submission while in deep meditation / prayer. Of course, the Grace of God is necessary.
With that Awareness, one can experience the Awakened God ( within self ), Who Is, therefore, also Residing within the deep Recesses of every human mind.
"Of a woman we are conceived. Of women we are born. To a women we are betrothed and married. It is a woman who is a friend and partner in life. It is the woman who keeps the race going. Another companion is sought when the life-partner dies. Through women are established social ties. Why is then a woman to be considered a curse and condemned?"
"From women are born leaders and rulers; from a woman alone is born another woman. Without
women there can be no human birth. Without women, sayeth Nanak, only the True One exists.”
Nanak also emphasized that God was my father, my mother, my friend. God is gender free.
But why do you say that the religious parliaments work on your defined issues will make this world a safer place for our children? Are you acknowledging that the religions are also CAUSATIVE of the unsafe conditions for our children?
When are the religious going to get it. Sit down with each other to discuss your holy books: when they were written, who wrote them, what they say, what they insruct, etc. Don't stop until you're brain reasons that the solution isn't to pick the best of what each has to offer, but to accept that if they're all supposed to be the divine word of god he is either schizophrenic or not there. Imagine how much more peace there will be in the world without religious conflict. Imagine how much more money would be available to help the poor and suffering. Imagine how few psychopaths will take despotic control over countries because they can no longer use religion to support their pathological intentions.
Granth Sahib: “Know Guru and God to be one and the same.” While God is unknowable and unborn, the Guru is the Perfect Being people can communicate with and from whom they receive advice. The Guru is not in the cycle of birth and death but comes to the world for the salvation of humankind. The Guru's mission is to bless people with God’s Name and to unite them with God.