Hello and welcome to episode 50 of The Ask Sri Vishwanath Show. Today I want to talk about religion and why it’s gotten such a bad name in today’s world.
Today’s question is from Denis and Denis asks “If God is one then why are there so many different religions each preaching a different way to liberation”
Non-Essentials
Great question Denis. Vivekananda describes it well. He says the differences in religion are only in the non-essentials. Take all the major world religions the differences are only in the non-essentials and not the essentials. All religions exult renunciation, discrimination, purity, compassion and charity, gratitude, detachment and devotion. The essentials are the same. The words may be different but the context is the same.
Vivekananda says whenever there is quarrel in religion, spirituality is absent. People quarrel about the non-essentials which is ridiculous because they don’t matter. What is important is the essentials. The qualities mentioned above are what’s really needed. If you have these qualities you will become a man of God.
Ponder this: “The mother recognises the son in whatever dress he comes. If she does not recognise then she is not the mother of the child” This is another beautiful quote from Vivekananda. The mothers represents the devotee and the child represents the many different religions in existence today. It could be Krishna, Christ or Buddha but a real devotee looks at the essential qualities of transcendence because they are all the same.
Vivekananda also says “As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take, through different tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee!” So god can take many forms. He can come in different dresses. He can be like the stream that has sources in many different places but they all meet in the same ocean. The essentials are always the same.
Principals and Methods
In the Bhagavad Gita Krishna talks about principals and methods. These principals are spiritual laws that remain the same across all religions. It’s only the methods that are different. If you believe in only one method you’ll find it very difficult to succeed.
Krishna has broken up the various methods into easy to digest parts.
- We can seek God through knowledge. – Jnana Yoga
- Working for a better society. – Karma Yoga
- Devotion – Bhakti Yoga
- Concentration – Raja Yoga
Choose the method that works for you but just remember that the qualities are the same. Christianity is more inclined towards devotion, Buddha towards renunciation and Islam towards brotherhood but the non-essentials are still the same.
Hinduism has a high success rate because Krishna tell us that we are free to choose the methods that work for us. In many religions people are not allowed to choose which leads to them getting a bad name. Choose the method which best suits your personality. The principal will remain the same no matter which method you choose.
7 Billion Religions
Imagine for 7 billion people there were 7 billion different religions? This would be brilliant because every single person will achieve their goals because they would be using the method that works best for them.
If we want a religion with a high success rate then we need as many methods as are required to allow each individual person to achieve their goals.
So Krishna says we all start with the same principals. Then we choose the method that will suit us which will allow us to achieve the qualities that are needed. You’ll be left with renunciation, discrimination, purity, compassion and charity, gratitude, detachment and devotion. If we all followed these steps every religion would be successful.
Anubuthi
Krishna says that religion needs realisation. WE don’t need talking or preaching or any of that. We need realisation. To know God we must become God. The Sanskrit word for realisation is “Anubuthi” direct experience of God
Respect all religions but stick to your own religion. Allow yourself the freedom to choose the method most suited to you . Only then will you be successful.
I hope this answers your question. Remember you keep asking questions and I’ll keep answering them.
