Some colleagues and I were enjoying listening to 'Kirtan' (holy hymns) as we drove to a meeting.
My colleague asked, "Who composed these beautiful hymns, and who were the minstrels?
I stated with a cocky pride that the hymns were those originally sung by my Guru, Nanak Dev ji, in praise of that one unifying energy and force we call God.
The first Sikh Guru, and humanity's youngest and probably most modern spiritual faith.
In fact the day was special because it marked Guru Nanak ji's 543rd birth anniversary.
The moment I uttered these words I felt rather foolish.
'My Guru, my God, my faith', how could I for even a fraction of a moment presume that all these belonged only to me ? Me, an insignificant bit of living dust was now claiming ownership over God and Guru.
Was not God one? How dare I believe for a fraction of a moment that the Guru was not for the universe and only for a select few like me? How stupid and arrogant of me? How weak and petty was my belief?
Luckily my companions did not comment, either because they were as ignorant as I or graciously indulgent of my shortcomings. I am not alone, for I share this same myopic vision with countless other followers of various faiths.
Some time ago, the Supreme court in Malaysia passed a judgement that a non Muslim may not use the name 'Allah', as only Muslims are permitted to do so. The simple meaning of 'Allah' is God, now belongs only to Muslims as per the learned judges of the court.
The creator is one and we call Him by a million names, our perceptions may change but He remains unchanged. He belongs to no one rather we belong to him and maybe to each other.
Religion is supposed to be a unifying force and make people and the world a better place. Somewhere along the way, religions and faiths have mostly lost their unifying purpose, unless to attack others. Religions have turned violent, ugly and mostly irrelevant for spiritual growth of humanity.
If one looks below the surface it is quite evident that the problem is not with religion, it is with leaders of religion.
Spiritual phenomenon are now political movements, and politics is nothing but a game of power. Politics is war by other means. Wars have no winners only losers, and the greatest loss is our reverting back from human to beast.
We visit places of worship, where we meet so called 'religious persons'. We are asked to surrender to God. What they really mean is hand over your existence to these men, these self appointed, self serving so called representatives of God.
We are told to behave in a particular manner and to indulge in a certain way as it makes the individual subservient to other men.
This is why man's greatest cruelties, inhuman acts, miseries have been inflicted on mankind in the name of religion.
God did not create the world, He is the world for He has never been separate. He is in the air, water, soil, trees, animals, the mountains and the valleys, in the rainbow.
God is everywhere and belongs to all beings and all things. A truly religious person is easy to identify, they are compassionate, tolerant, follows no dogma, Through the true religion of love, friendship, contentment, tolerance, with one another and with our world we can
My colleague asked, "Who composed these beautiful hymns, and who were the minstrels?
I stated with a cocky pride that the hymns were those originally sung by my Guru, Nanak Dev ji, in praise of that one unifying energy and force we call God.
The first Sikh Guru, and humanity's youngest and probably most modern spiritual faith.
In fact the day was special because it marked Guru Nanak ji's 543rd birth anniversary.
The moment I uttered these words I felt rather foolish.
'My Guru, my God, my faith', how could I for even a fraction of a moment presume that all these belonged only to me ? Me, an insignificant bit of living dust was now claiming ownership over God and Guru.
Was not God one? How dare I believe for a fraction of a moment that the Guru was not for the universe and only for a select few like me? How stupid and arrogant of me? How weak and petty was my belief?
Luckily my companions did not comment, either because they were as ignorant as I or graciously indulgent of my shortcomings. I am not alone, for I share this same myopic vision with countless other followers of various faiths.
Some time ago, the Supreme court in Malaysia passed a judgement that a non Muslim may not use the name 'Allah', as only Muslims are permitted to do so. The simple meaning of 'Allah' is God, now belongs only to Muslims as per the learned judges of the court.
The creator is one and we call Him by a million names, our perceptions may change but He remains unchanged. He belongs to no one rather we belong to him and maybe to each other.
_____________________
Religion is supposed to be a unifying force and make people and the world a better place. Somewhere along the way, religions and faiths have mostly lost their unifying purpose, unless to attack others. Religions have turned violent, ugly and mostly irrelevant for spiritual growth of humanity.
If one looks below the surface it is quite evident that the problem is not with religion, it is with leaders of religion.
Spiritual phenomenon are now political movements, and politics is nothing but a game of power. Politics is war by other means. Wars have no winners only losers, and the greatest loss is our reverting back from human to beast.
We visit places of worship, where we meet so called 'religious persons'. We are asked to surrender to God. What they really mean is hand over your existence to these men, these self appointed, self serving so called representatives of God.
We are told to behave in a particular manner and to indulge in a certain way as it makes the individual subservient to other men.
This is why man's greatest cruelties, inhuman acts, miseries have been inflicted on mankind in the name of religion.
God did not create the world, He is the world for He has never been separate. He is in the air, water, soil, trees, animals, the mountains and the valleys, in the rainbow.
God is everywhere and belongs to all beings and all things. A truly religious person is easy to identify, they are compassionate, tolerant, follows no dogma, Through the true religion of love, friendship, contentment, tolerance, with one another and with our world we can
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