Pluralism Contd.

[Guest guest]

Dear Jay and Swami Yogeshanandaji

 

Thank you for your detailed rebuttals of my points. I wanted to respond to

your points individually, but think this discussion can better be taken

forward by summarizing my views differently. Also, my views are rooted in

the ground realities in India today, not in a London inter-faith discussion.

 

I completely agree that many saints in every tradition around the world

affirm the oneness of the soul with God. Besides the saints that Swamiji

mentioned, I also consider St. Francis of Assissi to be another such saint.

Swamiji also says that " when both traditions fully understand the goal, as

described by them, both can see that it is the same for all. "

 

But Swamiji, the mystics have been completely sidelined by both christianity

and Islam. The way I see religion is as follows: There are spiritual laws

just as there are physical laws of the universe. The truth of these laws

have been directly experienced by mystics around the world over the ages.

The compilation of their experiences and utterances in India came to be

called the vedas and the body of spiritual techniques given the name Yoga.

In a sense, the pursuit of spiritual knowledge is just as open as science

and no one can " own " these laws or truths.

 

However, Islam and christianity have now emerged, drawing a line, or

building a tower circumscribing truth based on certain events which they

owned as an exclusive franchise. In a sense, they are both just " History

Clubs " , since they officially require literal belief in certain historical

events that can never be actually proven. Ofcourse, in these societies,

there have been born, and will be born, people who are attracted to the true

spiritual ideal. Some of the these are commoners and some grow to be saints.

But the institutional religions continue to be all-powerful and the views of

the few mystics is not the official position of the Vatican, let alone the

baptists or the pentecostals.

 

My fear is that christianity wants to have it both ways. In India, they will

be their aggressive, exclusive self, projecting Jesus as the only way,

demonising Hinduism and " harvesting souls " . In Europe, where people are fed

up with their antics and are turning to spirituality in various ways such as

the new age movement, they want to turn nice and start talking spirituality.

Ultimately, this will also be absorbed into their exclusive system, enabling

them to continue to claim exclusivity and yet show that they also have all

the adhyatmika techniques of Hinduism. Note that both these faces are part

of a deliberate strategy of world domination on the part of the church.

 

In this scenario, I think that the discussion of pluralism has to first

emphasize that the ideas of Eckhart's, while inspired by Jesus, is

nevertheless completely alien to institutional christianity.

How does the pluralism movement ensure that ti does not become merely a

vehicle for institutional christianity to appropriate adhyatmika techniques

while continuing to claim monopoly over truth. The missionary inspired

demonization of Hinduism in academia and on the ground in India and rise of

" christian yoga " movements only give further cause for fear for me.

 

My ideas have been significantly influenced by the following articles:

 

Myth of Hindu Sameness

http://www.sulekha.com/expressions/column.asp?cid=305972

 

Problematizing God's Interventions in History

http://www.sulekha.com/expressions/column.asp?cid=303135

 

Thank you for your consideration

 

Swaminathan

 

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