| Awaken Bharata |
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| Books By David Frawley |
| SARVA DHARMA SAMABHAVA : UNITY OR CONFUSION OF RELIGIONS | |
| While
we should respect Dharma wherever we find it, we need not accept
dogma in order to do so. In fact where there is dogma there can be
no Dharma. Dogma is an unquestioned belief held to be true by
faith alone, even if it is irrational. Dharma is a universal law
that we can discover through objective inquiry, questioning all
dogmas and preconceptions. To uphold the unity of Dharma we cannot
sanction and protect all dogmas. To
raise the banner of Dharma we must question dogma and the darkness
of religious belief, not just in our own religion but in all
religions, in ourselves and in all humanity.
Hinduism has sought to define itself through Sanatana Dharma or the universal and eternal Dharma. It does not require belief or dogma, though it does have its culturally conditioned forms and vehicles to promote Dharma. Hindu Dharma has tried to accept all Dharmic principles and to include all of these within itself. Buddhism and Jainism also are called Dharmas and aim at Dharma, sharing the basic principles of karma, enlightenment, and yogic practices as Hinduism, though defined somewhat differently. However Western and specifically missionary religions (Christianity and Islam), with few individual exceptions, have not accepted the Dharmic traditions of India as valid. They continue a campaign to discredit and displace Dharmic traditions under the guise of saving souls. It is not souls that they are really saving but Dharma that they are ignoring, if not degrading. Such religions generally insist that even a good person cannot gain salvation unless he or she has the proper religious belief, which naturally is their belief. A good Hindu, by this account, cannot gain Divine favor unless he converts and becomes a Christian or a Muslim. That is, the Dharma or nature of a person is not the deciding factor for missionary religions but the belief or the dogma that people accept. |
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