India’s religious heritage

By: Misbah Khan 

India has immense cultural diversity ranging from religion to language, dance to music, architecture to painting, ethnicity to region and so on. The heart and soul of this country lie in its underlying unity amidst its apparent diversity. Take the example of Sufism of Islam and  bhakti  cult of Hinduism, nonviolence of Buddhism and selflessness of Jainism, supreme sacrifice of Christianity and service of humanity of Sikhism, all lead to common cause. They aspire for self realization by bringing one close to divine benevolence. In fact ‘one religion read is all religions understood’. One may agree or disagree with this statement and underscore the fact that in the past religious differences caused upheavals. However the truth is that it was not because religions taught us differently but because we misinterpreted whatever was written in different prose and language. All these religions teach us Peace and Non-Violence, oneness of humanity, good morals, compassion and respect for others, innate nature of God and his omnipresence and universal brotherhood. All these religions find their abode in different parts of this great nation. These religions provide unity to our thought and belief. The teachings of these religions inculcate a habit of human service and how self-resignation is actually a means of self-realization. The values of these religions work as means to achieve a hedonistic world with maximum happiness of maximum number. And more often than not happiness to others is at the cost of self-suffering, a measure most loved by the devotee.  Long live these virtues spread across the globe by our saints and preachers for the larger cause of humanity. The present times need to look at our glorious past which made India an epicenter of spiritual excellence. We need to follow and preach our tradition of innate compassion, benevolence and human service to achieve a society which is liberal, tolerant and cosmopolitan.