I don't know about you, but I'm definitely tired of encountering this attitude. Most people who make such statements don't have deep knowledge or set of experiences within their own tradition, what to speak of other people's traditions. I am confident that if we made even a little bit of an endeavor to understand another's faith, it could make all the difference in the world.
The first time I watched "Jesus of Nazareth" with a group of fellow Hindu monks, we all marveled at the life of Jesus and the seriousness of his teachings, and immediately we could find similar teachings from within the Hindu tradition. The video inspired me to read the Gospels, which surprised me even more. The mood of a practitioner described by Jesus is identical to descriptions in the Gita and the Bhagavat Purana.
"You have heard the law that says, 'Love your neighbor' and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike" (Matthew 5:43-45)
A great Hindu teacher, Shri Chaitanya, states as well: "One should not desire to accumulate wealth, fame, prestige, or followers. One's only aspiration should be to serve God without any motivations."
The Bhagavat Purana is full of stories of individuals who were ready to forgive the perpetrator for even the most grievous of offenses. This was done with the understanding that if we learn to forgive others, then God will also forgive us and that the law of karma balances things out in due course of time.
Finding such similarities between these traditions was quite exciting, as I realized that the message of God is similar for many of these seemingly very different traditions. In order to understand this, we first of all need to acknowledge that God must have given messages of liberation and salvation to people throughout the world. God wasn't partial when He distributed spiritual knowledge to the people of the world. We need to give up our sectarian views and abandon the thought that only the people of my tradition have been blessed and that all others have been condemned.
I don't think there is anything that turns people away from religion and spirituality more than this kind of an attitude. Even if someone may be curious about spiritual truths and practices, the fanatic and sectarian mood of some practitioners can be a real deterrent. I can't remember how many times I've been confronted on the streets and in the subways of New York where someone tells me "Jesus is the only way!" or that "Jesus loves you."
I suppose they think such an exclamation is going to bring about some epiphany and make me part ways with the Hindu tradition that I have been practicing since the age of seven. Since I'm a monk and wear orange robes and have a shaved head, I guess I'm a bit of a target for such comments. To those who tell me "Jesus loves you," I simply thank them and keep on moving.
It's safe to say as well that all traditions share some similar tenets, but I don't think we can say that all religions are the same. Just because my theology, philosophy, and practice is prescribing a certain lifestyle for me doesn't mean that other systems of faith can't prescribe something different for those who choose to adhere to other teachings. I don't necessarily have to agree with the teachings in these other traditions, but I can at least be respectful to them.
Too often, because we're not grounded in our own tradition, we feel insecure and the only way to overcome that insecurity is to fanatically push our religious teachings on to others. Obviously, this only leads to conflict and a bad taste in people's mouths.
I'm reminded of a lecture I heard in which a monk of the Hindu tradition explained that just as a dog can always recognize its owner, whether the owner is dressed in shorts, a suit, or nothing at all, so a mature spiritualist is able to recognize his or her God in the dress of another tradition. I know from personal experience that this is easier said than done, but if we don't at least attempt to move in this direction, then we'll continue to fight over who's right and who's wrong.
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But you are saved, There is Tat Sat, SatCitAnanda. TatSat loves you infinitely. TatSat is with you unconditionally. TatSat will teach you dharma if you only open yourself to IT. While you are worshiping hatred, TatSat will redeem you every moment.
hariaum
hariaum
If you believe in a finite god, then you can exist outside of god and you are not made of god stuff. You can believe in superstition. Ok by me.
If you believe in a God that is the totality of Being, then you are a part of that god stuff and you can say "I am the way and the truth," and then add anything your ego wants to add. The first clause is correct, the second is egoism - for a person, a finite entity to speak for god and say no one else can speak for god is to pretend the ego (of the carpenter in this case) commands god's will. God's will is greater than that jobless drifter.
God opens infinite paths to God. If you don't want to believe in such a loving god, ok. But my intellect leads me to love the God that is Love, let alone loving only the part of humanity that bows to name worship.
Call your god jesus, father, mother, creator, destroyer, uga buga. I don't care. Love.
hariaum
This is actually an important aspect because you don’t want to be following the wrong one. As one commentator said if you are aiming for the roof, you don’t want to hit the basement.
This is why we have all the conflicts from time immemorial to today, because one religious group thinks all the others are stupid.
Atheists go one step further and think all of them are stupid for believing in any religion at all.
That is why I am an atheist. If you want to be truly moral you have to denounce all religions. How can you be part of a club that is so smug in thinking everyone else is going to hell?
Now, go ahead and refute monism... for that is what "Brahman" points to. Give it a go, Mr. Atheist. Atheism is a statement of negation. But what is it that you assert, if not monism?
Krishna is of the gods in Hindu mythology.
Jesus is the turning point of history.
And I think that your comment illustrates the very problem that Mr. Dasa was addressing.
I apologize if I seem rude.
That's the bottom line.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
“Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.”
Sri Ramakrishna (1836-1886) said on this issue:
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true. The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope. You can also climb up by a bamboo pole.
You may say that there are many errors and superstitions in another religion. I should reply: Suppose there are. Every religion has errors. Every one thinks that his watch alone gives the correct time. It is enough to have yearning for God. It is enough to love Him and feel attracted to Him. Don't you know that God is the Inner Guide? He sees the longing of our heart and the yearning of our soul. Suppose a man has several sons. The older boys address him distinctly as 'Baba' or 'Papa', but the babies can at best call him 'Ba' or 'Pa'. Now will the father be angry with those who address him in this indistinct way? The father knows that they too are calling him, only they cannot pronounce his name well. All children are same to the father."
That makes it just like every other theistic religion.
You seem to think that Hindu Deities are Persons. While some Hindu traditions do think of Hindu Deities as Persons there are others who don't think of them as Persons.
Sri Ramakrishna says the following about the Hindu Deities:
"Do you know what I mean? Think of Brahman, Existence-Knowledge-Bliss
Absolute, as a shoreless ocean. Through the cooling influence as it were, of the bhakta's love, the water has frozen at places into blocks of ice. In other words, God now and then assumes various forms for His lovers and reveals Himself to them as a Person. But with the rising of the sun of knowledge, the blocks of ice melt. Then one doesn't feel any more that God is a Person, nor does one see God's forms. What He is can not be described. Who will describe Him? He who would do so disappears. He cannot find his 'I' anymore."
The "gods" of Hinduism are simply facets of Brahman. They are the attempt of ego-controlled humans to personalize Brahman, in order to love Him and adore Him. The "gods" are not individuals distinct from Brahman.
(Shri Ramakrishna's quote posted by Mr. Gangopadhyay should give a good illustration how Brahman is the "gods.")
There is only 3 ways to live your life, three groups of people:
The first one could care less about the big questions.
The second one cares and looks for answers. They stop looking when they find answers that they feel comfortable with. Somebody believes something different? Fine, as long as it works for them.
The third group is looking for answers but they ask: is there any evidence that this is true? Is it supported by sound reasoning? Is there some reason to believe that it is not true? Because they love the truth, they love to debate what the truth is.
Gadadhara Pandit Dasa does not want to fight over who's right and who's wrong. Why? Because if he is wrong, he does not want to know about it. My guess is that before he watched Jesus of Nazareth, he believed that bengali vaisnavism was better than Christianity. After, he got an intuition that Christianity was better than the other. In order not to disturb his life, he told himself: better that I just don’t think that a religion is better than another.
While doing so undoubtably with the best intentions in mind, some people can be so pushy in their evangelism that they completely irritate and turn people off. And then they annoy them more by saying that the targets are just being defensive because they know that something's missing in their lives. Not so. They are just annoyed by the hardline approach. Even worse is if the target is a family member.
All religions essentially aim to teach good and bad, right and wrong. That should actually be its unifying thing among people. And its fine to share your religious beliefs with others. They can be absolutely fascinating and even encouraging to others. Religious debates can even be fun sometimes. But there's a point when all this becomes offensive and insulting. I like to believe that freedom of religion means that anyone religion has the right to believe that I am going to hell - as long as they don't attempt to send me there before my time.
this is a statement by a person that states they are an investigative journalist. this gives a reader the depth of those that call themselves investigative journalists.
I am amazed at the human mind how it can convince itself that it knows the truth in a universe that is still a mystery as to how it started and a mystery as to the origin of life on earth.
again and again I quote thoreau. there is more religion in men's science than science in their religion. in one sentence he sums up science that is more about a system of beliefs than inquiry.
"Choose wisely"!
History has proven, and yet proves, that multiplied millions have been killed and enslaved in the name of the god[s] of this, or that, religion!
So it is that the fruit of death is bore of religion's way,
Because life is but a pawn in the wicked game they play!
And that is but one of a multitude of reasons why "The Way of Truth is evil spoken of",and especially so because of those systems of religion that declare that they are biblically based!
Pagan catholicism, her multitude of harlot christian('jesus') daughters, all muslim sects, and the many judaic systems of this day,all propagate lies,delusion,deception,confusion and every evil work!
Was not biblical religion established for a "disobedient and gainsaying(greedy, covetous) people" who were "stiff-necked and uncircumcised of heart and ears"? Those who would rather "a man speak to them than YHVH",and who wanted "a man to rule over them rather than The One and Only True GOD, Father(Creator) of ALL"?
GOD's children realize evermore that "Our Father", HE KNOWS BEST!
Father Help! and HE does.......
So why would HIS children, The Faithful, create a system of religion?
For The Faithful brothers and sisters have their portion in The Family of "Our Father and GOD","of WHOM the whole Family in Heaven and ON EARTH is named"! (Eph3:15)
continued @ http://asimpleandspirituallife.blogspot.com/2011/07/family-of-faith-or-system-of-religion.html