Dr LM Murry
“Belief” is the very nature of human being. One may believe on a Supernatural “Being” who had created everything that is in the World. On the other hand, another person may claim to say he believes that there is no God. Such atheist still believes that there is no such a being who is in full control of the World. An atheist, therefore, believe on nothing but merely on cause and effect. “Maya and Lila.”
Recently, I came across an article in the local papers about the similarity of the Eternal Spirit of Sanatana dharma of Hinduism and Christian belief. I waited a long time for Church leaders to respond but there was none. So I was compelled to come out with this short article. I do not know much about Hindu religion. I remembered the lecture given to us by Dr. D Devanandan, the Director of Christian Institute for study of Religion and Society, Bangalore. This was one of the subjects of the Study project of the Student Christian Movement, “Life and Mission of the Church.” It took me sometime to fish out my old study notes to reverberate on the Hindu Renaissance. In any religion, there is the (1) “Creed” the doctrine of belief.; (2) the peoples World view “Culture” and (3) their religious practices (cultus). Every religion has religious practices accepted by the common, like various kind of magical to sacramental rites of worship. It is in fact the popular religious practices that make the differences among religion.
Changes of religious practices come in four areas. (1)Reformation, (2)Revival, (3) Renaissance and (4) Revolt. Reform comes under the pressure of external forces. It may be an acceptance or in corporation of new ideas and practices by discarding the old ideas. It is mostly the new against the old. Revival is on the other hand a change from within making the old livelier. Revolt is a violent reputation of the ancient ancestral faith.
Hinduism is a religion without codified “creed” of doctrine..(Dr. P.D.Devanandan; Resurgent Hinduism, It is a family of many “belief system”. The Sanatana dharma believes in beginning less and endless faith. It includes all religion, animism, polytheism, pietism, Philosophic monism and agnostic mysticism. Hinduism is a generic name. The practice of Sanatana dharma is not limited to unlettered peasants but even to respected intellectuals. They claimed that the ultimate reality is unknowable. The experience is the ultimate manifestation, though partially. God is known only partially and never what he is. Nobody can claim to know the Ultimate reality. Every religion is a mixture of truth and error. No religion can claim absolute or exclusive knowledge. It is like the story of the seven blind men and the elephant. Therefore, there cannot be any creed. Even if they all agree to affirm what is an elephant, it can never be an elephant unless their eyes are opened and see it.
Since the Colonial rule in India, most of the Indians were educated in Western system. They started to think about the answer to the question of defining their ancient religious practices. Their cultural heritage which they were deeply devoted to their lives could not answer to the life of a modern World. In the beginning many of them had uncritical admiration of the Western way of life. In their daily lives they slavishly practiced Western culture. They adopted Western standard of living and the patterns of their social conduct. It was merely superimposition of the new ideas without abandoning the practices of the old inherited pattern of life. This brought about conflict between the inherited culture and modern way of life. Radical change was required for the social institution of the Hindus.
From the day of Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833), reform movements have been directed to the removal of Caste System, restriction of social intercourse, inter marriage, inter dinning, emancipation of Hindu women, enforced widowhood, un-touchable and the acceptance of the individualistic concept of family as against the customary joint family system. However, the practices were embraced by the urban society but remained deeply rooted to the rural culture. Mahatma Gandhi attempted to the rural culture with these new ideas. The Brahma Samaj and the Arya Samaj attempted to influence the religion by asserting that essential Hinduism is theistic. Their attempt was to counter the common perception of polytheism, idolatrous pantheistic and legalism. Both Ram Mohan Roy and Rabindranath Tagore took syncretistic approach which was made dogmatic by Keshap Chandra Sen. One thing that we can observe is that they were all against Caste, child marriage, enforced widowhood, and un-touchable. Reformation was therefore not theistic.
In the later years Neo-Vedanta movement was initiated by Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902)., the mystic claim of self-realization of the ultimate through the integration of yoga. The aim of Vedanta movement thus introduced the universal applicability and made relevant to the modern world. Dr. Radhakrishna, the President of India, advocated that the mystic self culture can be made acceptable to the intellectual and make it tenable in a modern world. The Vedanta should therefore recover Hindu spirituality and protect Indian culture. Aurobindo Ghose therefore abandoned politics and retired to an ashram to practice yoga. Dr. Radhakhrishnan’s approach was that all religion has some contribution to make as to create a world Community.
While Christianity can agree to the compromise formula, but we must state the fact that unless God revealed Himself to mankind, no human wisdom can know wholly the Ultimate (God). That is why God had revealed Himself in the very person of Jesus Christ, His Son. (Jn.8:19)And we are compelled to proclaim this truth to the world. This can be known and understood only from the Biblical records. “He who has seen me has seen the Father”.(Jn.14:9) Is the Church in Nagaland willing to inform the Christians?
.JPG)
