Islam, is often considered to be synonymous with terrorism. Or at least it is the general perception of most of the people around the world. It is also true that Islam never was the direct reason behind the spread of terrorism. But no one can ignore that all the terrorists around the world follow islam. It is not this fact that surprises me. But its the tenacity of these terrorists to accomplish their mission of jehad in the name of their religion, that I find quite appalling.
Not only these terrorists but also the general muslims are such ardent followers of their religion. Any harm that is inflicted upon any part of the society is dealt with great uproar of resistance from across all the sections of the religion. The afzal guru case and the case of caricatures of Prophet Mohammed only effectively epitomize this fact.
Christians are no different. The millions of dollars being spent by some organizations in the US to spread Christianity by converting people from other castes is a proof of their mission to make Christianity an all pervasive dominant religion around the world.
The point I’m trying to drive upon is that the followers of these religions as opposed to the followers Hinduism are so much focused on their religion that they have missed the very purpose of a religion, which is nothing but spreading humanity.
Hinduism I feel has been successful in sending its message across to its followers. Its emphasis on Karma, its ever forgiving gods and the assurance that it gives to its followers that any follower in any trouble is free to come to “ bhagwan ke sharan” ( god’s footsteps) reflects that hinduism is a tolerant religion. Moreover, unlike Christianity and Islam which are dogmatic and lay down strict rules for their followers, the various hindu scripts have been written in the form of stories. This shows that Hinduism doesn’t threaten its followers in case they make mistakes. The dogmatic nature of the other religions can be one reason why their followers perceive other religions not following what is written in their scripts to be doing wrong. This is also a reason why the followers of these religions see any harm inflicted to their community as a catastrophe brought upon by others against their religion.
Hinduism with so many gods leaves the choice on its followers to pray anyone. Perhaps the rishis that wrote the Ramayana, Mahabharata and other Hindu scripts realized the basic fact that all human beings are born different. They have different inclinations and bend of mind. Expecting all of them to follow certain strict rules and codes of conduct in everything that they do is foolish. Perhaps this is why the Hinduism is told by the medium of stories which gives enough space for its followers to interpret it in their way. Hinduism doesn’t concentrate on making its followers adopt strict rules which would guide their lives. But it concentrates on making people realize the importance of humanity and respect for other people. This indeed is the essence of a religion.
I don’t want to compare all the religions and come to any conclusions but considering all these facts, only makes the strengths of Hinduism more evident and brings reverence in my heart for it.
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