Christianity and Islam do not accept that. Some
people say all religions teach the same things and they only differ
in inessentials. Is the Law of Karma and the process of Rebirth
something inessential?
Now, certainly there should be
a respect for universal, ethical values such as truthfulness,
non-violence, peace and harmony. These should be accepted for all
human beings regardless of their religion. In fact, they should be
projected for all of nature. One of the problems that I see in
Christianity, as most Christians believe it, is that animals are
considered to be devoid of a soul and only human beings can gain
salvation.
One of the reasons that we are exploiting and destroying this planet
is because we do not see the presence of a soul and consciousness in nature, the
animals and the
rest of the Universe. We must move beyond all our narrow,
human-centric creeds. True religion is not a matter of name, form or
identity. It is a matter of that which is eternal, that which is
universal, that which no one owns and is a matter of consciousness,
awareness and Truth.
The
highest goal of the Hindu religion is self-realisation, not simply
knowing God, but understanding who we are and the Divine presence
within us. One of the main problems of humanity is that we do not
understand ourselves and our motivations. Instead, based upon some
dogma or belief, we are trying to get others to think and act like
we do before we understand ourselves and understand them.
|