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Spirituality
Religion
is One and Eternal
Of late, we are witnessing a
new stream of thinkers advocating the evolution to a universal religion
on which the entire human kind may repose its faith. The simple reason
for this advocacy is their realization that existence of different
religions has become a cause for concern rather than instrumental in
forging unity, brotherhood and mutual trust.
This realization is growing with each passing day. This has led to a
clamor for a religious system which is universally acceptable. However,
the truth is diametrically different. The fault lies not with any
religion but in our own understanding of it and the way it is
interpreted and taught. Lack of knowledge of its quintessence has
reduced religion to a hackneyed concept and it has become responsible
for all factionalism, sectarianism and parochialism. It is a formalistic
approach to religion which is causing problematic situations. Too much
attention is paid to forms, dogmas and rituals while ignoring its
metaphysical content. |
Lack of knowledge of its quintessence
has reduced religion to a hackneyed concept and it has become
responsible for all factionalism, sectarianism and parochialism. It
is a formalistic approach to religion which is causing problematic
situations. Too much attention is paid to forms, dogmas and rituals
while ignoring its metaphysical content. |
As God is one, religion is also one. What is many are different sects
and faiths shut in the narrow confines of color, countenance and
physical boundaries. Alas! Such frivolous distinctions do not constitute
the essence of religion. Its essence is a sovereign secret, requiring
unraveling by a realized soul.
Religion is synonymous with knowing and realizing God within the human
body. The origin of word ‘dharma’ (a Hindi word for religion) is
root ‘dhri’ of Sanskrit which implies “to imbibe”. It is not the
imbibing of outward manners but imbuing God within so as to become truly
religious. Likewise, the English word ‘religion’ is derived from the
Latin word "religare". ‘Re’ means again and ‘ligare’
means to link or to bind. Together, they mean that which binds again. We
have been separated from the one Lord, who is the origin of all beings,
and the practice of religion involves reuniting ourselves to Him.
It is on merger with the Universal Consciousness that the vicious cycle
of births and deaths will cease. Thus, to attain the origin is the
ultimate aim of human life. This makes realization of God within this
human body an essential duty enjoined upon human beings by God Himself.
It is in this primary divine duty that religion comes into play. This
makes it a plain fact that religion can neither be a dogma nor a
doctrine. It necessarily has to be realization of God. As realization of
God is a supra-mental experience of divinity already in man, the word
religion can have no connotation other than a metaphysical one.
One can imbue something only on seeing and knowing. We all can imbue God
only upon seeing Him in His elemental and metaphysical form. This is no
loud statement. It is authentic, provided one obtains the shelter of a
perfect sage who can make one see and realize God in a practical way.
Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita said, “O Arjuna, leave aside all
the religions. Take refuge in Me alone; I shall absolve you of all sins;
worry not." Arjuna, the disciple, was asked by God in human
embodiment to shed all the presumptions, outer ceremonials and
sacrificial rites which he considered as religion. Taking His refuge
implies taking the shelter of religion. If read in conjunction with
other verses of Bhagavad Gita, we would know that Lord pointed Arjuna to
the divine light of pure consciousness that permeates the entire
universe. Religion is thus, knowing that power which fills the being of
all and is present in all as divine light.
Albert Einstein once said, "It is religion that gives me strength to
remain true to purpose despite repeated and countless failures".
Religion is truly the life force which unites all beings with their
origin - the Almighty Lord. It is the quagmire of rites and rituals
which keep us ignorant of its true content. A whole lot of problems
arise from this approach to religion. All incarnations attacked dead
formalism, and in return we gave them severest punishments. However,
today, we worship them. God descends on earth in human garb to put
metaphysical content of religion back on center-stage.
Sri Ashutosh Ji Maharaj, a perfect spiritual master of our times and
widely known to impart transcendental knowledge of the Divine without
distinction of the religion to which one belongs, says that "Religion is
a metaphysical experience and is not to be found in the concrete
physical world of books and places of worship like temples, churches,
mosques, etc. It is a question of fact, not of talk or doctrines. The
quintessence of religion lies in actual perception and realization of
Self under tutelage of a perfect master of the time. This realization
consists in attaining divine knowledge. One would definitely come across
the eulogies of this knowledge in Holy Scriptures, but it can be
unfolded and bestowed upon the seeker of truth only by a wise seer". In
the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells His disciple, Arjuna, that the
knowledge of the Absolute is a sovereign science and a supreme secret
which can only be unraveled and bestowed upon the seeker by an illumined
soul.
Since, we are ignorant of the true essence of our own religion, we find
fault with others. Once we know the quintessence of our own religion, we
will shun fault finding and looking upon others with disdain. All our
misconceived notions will wither away. We sum up by quoting Sri Ashutosh
Ji who has undertaken a grand mission of arousing peace consciousness
through the dissemination of divine knowledge. He says, "It is on
manifestation of our inherent divinity that all doubts, artificial
barriers are cut asunder".
It is in our own interest and interest of the world that we willingly
make ourselves available to a sage capable of making us experience the
same soul running through all of existence. Upon supra-mental experience
of the divinity, we develop a global vision which impels us to witness
the same divine chord running through all. Thereupon, divine endowments
flow out spontaneously.
–
Sushil Kumar Vasudeva
May 11, 2003
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