HINDUISM AND SANATANA DHARMA

But many Hindus have so diluted their tradition with statements like "all religions are the same," that they have failed to give Hinduism any character of its own. Instead of telling others what Hinduism is in its own right, they use Hinduism to give credit to other religions, whose beliefs and practices may not be regarded as the highest by the great Hindu sages of history.

On the other hand, they may tolerate or even accept negative judgements against Hinduism by other religious groups, and not offer any Hindu critique of other religions so as not to appear offensive to anyone. They think that making Hinduism accepting of everything done in the name of religion is the best way to communicate its universality. This, however, does not lead to a better understanding of Hinduism but gives the impression that Hindus have no clear teaching like the other religions of the world.

Hindus in India - under the domination of Western culture in education and communication - may have encounters with missionaries or with Christian and Muslim minorities in India, similar to those that Indo-Americans have with Christian religious groups in America. They tend to feel that their culture is inferior to that of the West which is more modern and affluent, and therefore their religion must be inferior to those of the West (as if spirituality were a function of material abundance). Young Hindus trying to answer questions put to them about their tradition face these problems more keenly as they are as yet unsure as how to communicate what they think and are more under the influence of Western culture than their parents.

[ Back ] [ David Frawley ] [ Up ] [ Next ]