Religious scholars can get together to end misunderstandings and prepare a strong base for harmony among all religions at the world level.
HARMONIOUS relationships among followers of different religions have always been beneficial to humanity. In present times, its protective role has further increased significantly. This is a time when peace is important not just for the welfare of the people but for the very survival of society. This situation has arisen due to the emergence and accumulation of weapons of mass destruction. In such times, harmony and friendship among various religions have an increased importance as this can contribute to establishing durable, life-protecting peace. On the reverse side, it is also true that if disharmony and conflict among people of different religions are at a high and increasing level, then this can be a very destructive force for disrupting the path of peace.
Religions have often evolved out of the quest of people for finding a way out of their problems, doubts, and dilemmas, and their yearning for finding more meaning and deeper purpose in life. Religions often seek to align a certain understanding of the common good with perceptions of improved individual conduct, including greater discipline, which may be codified in dos and don’ts and certain rituals. In their own way,s various religions seek to unite many co-travellers in this common quest. At the same time, religions also satisfy a different need of people to celebrate together and again this may be codified or ritualised but still leave space for a lot of spontaneous expression of joy and togetherness.
It is inevitable that various religions meet these needs of the people in different ways with different rituals and prayers, but there is also an underlying unity in terms of meeting real needs of many people and uniting them around certain perceptions of common good and improved personal conduct to match this. This underlying unity of religions is much stronger and more significant than the apparent differences. Broadly capturing the essence of unity, we can say that humanity, instead of only chasing sensual pleasures and material wealth, should be guided by the deeper purpose and the wider meaning of certain perceptions of social good and to walk towards this, individual conduct should be improved in certain important ways on a durable basis.
Based on this underlying unity of religions, there is considerable scope for them to co-exist in a spirit of mutual harmony, having respect for each other combined with a healthy curiosity of learning more about each other and from each other.
Sharply diverging from this positive side, there is also a very negative side relating to the highly selfish persons who, from time to time, gain excessive control of various religions and use it to increase discrimination and injustice, sometimes even hatred and violence. This can also lead to aggression against other religions (or other sects within the same religion) and these trends often get aligned with forces of political and socio-economic domination. When this happens, followers of various religions can be involved in aggression even though the path of peaceful coexistence and harmony is the best option for all of them.
While the need for harmony has always been there, this need is the most acute now, as already emphasised. If harmony can be promoted in a big way, this can contribute significantly to strengthening the forces of peace. With the overall strengthening of sincere spirituality, peace can be strengthened at the grassroots level, providing a strong base to the forces of peace.
A most important aspect of the underlying unity of various religions is spirituality. Since earliest times, some exceptionally well-meaning and curious persons have sought to find deeper meaning in the universe and the relationships of people to universe and to each other and to other forms of life, and to find and advance ways of combining peace and devotion in ways that make it possible for large numbers of people to find common cause on a path that is helpful and protective for all. Various traditions and trends of sincere spirituality may be linked to different religions, and yet they show a clear inclination as well as ability to rise above all narrow concerns to work for the harmony of followers of all religions.
In the present-day world, many aspects of this protective path are being violated in many places. However, at the global level, there is at least recognition that protection of religious minorities should be ensured in all countries and there should be no hostile propaganda against minority religions.
This should, of course, be accepted by all countries. However, we need to go much beyond this to try to achieve a situation in which there is sincere harmony, trust and unity among the followers of all religions. To make this a reality, an important step that can be very helpful is for the scholars of all religions to get together more often and to issue joint statements rejecting the path of any hostility and strongly supporting harmony.
Several misunderstandings should be removed by respected scholars and leaders of various religions. One of them relates to certain past incidents and their various representations or misrepresentations. Another misunderstanding relates to certain statements in religious texts. All these should not be taken out of context. Anything that took place several hundred years back in certain conditions cannot be used to spread misunderstanding, distrust and hostility now. This should be made clear by respected religious leaders and scholars from all sides.
The fact is that we do not even know the exact words or events of several hundred years back; what exactly happened and what was put in some texts a long time later may be different from what actually happened. It is not at all wise and desirable to raise a fight over all this today. This makes no sense. Respected religious scholars can get together to end misunderstandings and prepare a strong base for the harmony of all religions at the global level.
This is needed even more in South Asia and many problems, conflicts, and insecurities of this region can end if a firm base for harmony of followers of all religions can be established. Speaking in the context of India, such harmony can be a big blessing for strong national unity as well as increasing the worldwide stature of the country and the pursuit of a very successful foreign policy and domestic policies. This will also enrich our culture and daily social life in many ways.
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Bharat Dogra writes extensively on environment, development and welfare issues. The views expressed here are the writer’s own, and Clarion India does not necessarily subscribe to them. He can be reached at: bharatdogra1956@gmail.com
