Sathya Sai Vahini - Post 45

 Chapter XVI

 

Mankind and God

 

For the consummation of human evolution and the realization by people of their highest goal, religion and spiritual discipline are very essential. Religion is the link between the individual and the universe, between the individual soul and God (jiva and Deva). 

 

If the link does not exist, life becomes chaos. A cow caught on a hill, wanting to go to the opposite hill but confronted with a flooded river in between, needs a bridge between thetwo. That is what religion is. Between the hill of individual life and the region of the Universal runs the flooded river of nature, with all its confusions and complexities. It is difficult to discover where it comes from, how it accumulates all that uproar, and where it ultimately ends. But, fortunately, in every human community we have bridge builders who help people to cross.

 

Vedic religion sourced in God, non-Vedic religions in God-man

 

We may have more than one bridge, but the purpose of each is the same. The bridge built by the sages and seers of India is known as the bridge of Eternal Religion (Sanathana Dharma). It is called so because it is an eternal, everlasting bridge based on the ageless foundation of the Vedas, and it can be used reliably by all, in all countries and at all times. That is why it is sometimes called the Vedic bridge and the Vedic path, also as the Aryan Path. 

 

All attempts to trace those who have laid this path have failed. This is why people have given up the search in despair, characterizing the path as undesigned. They assured themselves that the Lord himself was the designer.

 

All religions and spiritual paths laid through the ages are indeed sacred, for they have all been designed by messengers of the Lord, chosen because they are the foremost of people. Buddha, Jesus Christ, Zoroaster, Mo- hammed — such names are known worldwide. Their doctrines, ideals, and thoughts have all become so valid for their followers that their names have been identified with their religions.

 

Doctrine of rebirth unique to Vedic religion

 

In the Christian religion, it is stated that individual beings were created as they are. It is said that Allah did the same. Even Zoroastrian and Buddhist religions describe creation more or less on the same lines. But Vedic religion has a different version. The individual is as eternal as God. He is a spark of God. If there are no beings (jivis) there is no God (Deva). 

 

This is especially emphasized in the Vedas. Followers of other religions are, in recent times, recognizing this truth. The present life of each is only an interval between previous and future lives. It is but a step toward the next. This is indicated in the Vedas. The Vedas instruct about the relationship between the previous and future births. No other religion has revealed so much about previous and future births.

 

Another point: Among the four objectives of life — right action, wealth, desire, and liberation (dharma, artha, kama, and moksha) — various religions describe the stage of liberation in various ways. Each one lays down some doctrine and insists upon faith in it. Therefore, there is no agreement or identity between the experiences they describe. 

 

The Hindu description of the experience, however, can be gained by followers of all religions. There may be agreement in the details of the descriptions in various religions, but the total experience is not described in the same manner. The reason is this: the Hindu religion, which has come down from the timeless past, is really supreme. 

 

Vedic rituals: stepping stones to God

 

In the Hindu religion, rituals and ceremonies were laid down, to be observed from sunrise to nightfall, without intermission.

But these rituals and dedicatory ceremonies were not enough, and elaborate disciplines of living were also laid down. No other religion has so many and so elaborate rules of living. Therefore, it wouldn’t be correct to declare that all religions are the same. They might have adopted a few or many of these rules of living from Hinduism, since Hinduism has laid emphasis on them from the beginning.

 

In order to carry out this heavy schedule of ritual or action (karma), one must have devotion, spiritual wisdom, and self-control (bhakthi, jnana, and yoga). Dharma is the taproot of the great tree of religion. It is the eternal source of its strength. It is fed by waters of devotion; the leaves and flowers are renunciation and other virtues, and the fruit is understanding.

 

Past actions influence future births

 

It is a great source of peace to be content with one’s present conditions because one knows oneself to be the cause and knows that doing good and meritorious deeds now can build a happy future. 

 

Vedic religion is holistic, not partial

 

Religion cannot be, at any time, a mere personal affair. It may be possible to assert so, since each one’s faith is rooted in himself and since each one expresses that faith in their own behaviour and actions. But how far is that statement valid? 

 

The works of Vyasa and Valmiki are very ancient. Such writings of past ages are aptly called Puranas. But, though centuries have flown by since they were born, age is powerless to affect them. 

 

Manu’s code of law is unequaled

 

The Manu Dharma Sastra is unique; no text compares with it in any country throughout history. The doctrines of the Hindu faith and the scriptures (sastras) that enshrine them do not offer homage to material sciences. 

 

The scientists of today call this attitude blind faith; they want it to be discarded. They want every subjective and objective fact to be examined and put to rigorous tests. 

 

There is no need to dig up and lay bare new doctrines. Every principle and path is readily available. Understanding is the only thing we need aspire to. 

 

Love.