10 Sep 2003
Root Causes of Terrorism: There are two root causes for the entire chaos and terrorism in this world. One is the thirst for earning money and the other is religious fanaticism. For the sake of money, people are quarreling with each other, whereas for the sake of religion, countries are quarreling with each other. Unless these two root causes are eradicated, we cannot achieve world peace. The tree will not die if you merely cut its leaves or branches. It dies only when you cut its roots. There is no use of earning extra money. Due to excess money, quarrels, mental worries and several other problems arise. Finally, it ends in loss alone; there is no profit. You have to leave all this extra money here itself and quit this world alone. Even your children might lose that money given by you. Such sinful extra money brings problems not only to you but also to your children. Neither you nor your children will be happy and peaceful.
This entire world is the property of God. You are allowed to take whatever is required from it. This is told in the Gita (Yavanartha…). These days, the buffet system is commonly followed for feasts. In this system, large vessels containing various food items are kept and people can take food from these vessels according to their requirement. Similarly, God created this entire world and you can take wealth from it according to your requirement. People are not following the same system when they take wealth from this world. The peculiarity is that most rich people follow this buffet system in feasts but they do not follow the same when it comes to earning money. The Ishaavaasya Upanishad (Veda) says that one should return this extra money to the Lord. Otherwise, the Lord will give you troubles. In the buffet system, if one takes extra food in his plate due to greed and ignorance for a moment, he can return it back immediately before he starts eating. The Veda says that if you have taken extra money [earned more money than your requiremetns] due to ignorance, you must return the extra money back to God by donating it for God’s work. In the buffet system if you eat the extra food, you will suffer from diseases. Similarly, if you enjoy the extra money, God will punish you in several ways.
In this world, people belonging to every religion think that their religion is the only true religion. They think that the God of their religion can alone give salvation and that the worship of that God should be done only as told by their religion. They also condemn other religions and invite people to get converted to their religion. They do a lot of work to ensure that their religion alone is established in the entire world. This shows their ambition. It is just like Alexander’s ambition to make the entire world his kingdom. Alexander wanted to extend his kingdom. But even he turned back after fighting with Porus (Purushottama) on seeing the loss of life in the battle. However, the ambition of religious fanatics does not subside even upon seeing any amount of loss of life. Religion is considered to be based upon spiritual knowledge and religious people are expected to be free from ambition. We can excuse the ambition of an ignorant person like Alexander.
The heart of a religious fanatic will not change by any amount of kindness or love expressed in the form of appeals. Such appeals can only change the heart. But the change in heart is always temporary. The change in the intelligence that is brought by knowledge, which is based on logic, is always real and permanent. Intelligence (buddhi) is considered to be the driver of this body. The body is like a chariot that is pulled by the senses, which are like horses. If the driver of the chariot is convinced, then the entire chariot along with the horses, will travel along the correct path. The terrorist will not change by love or kindness shown to him. He becomes a terrorist due to the wrong knowledge that has entered his brain. He was convinced by that wrong knowledge. That knowledge can be changed only by the right knowledge. A diamond can only be cut by another diamond. Similarly, one type of knowledge can only be replaced by another type of knowledge. Then only, will he be convinced and changed forever. So far, the attempts made to change the terrorist were beating around the bush and therefore, they did not have much effect. The knowledge, which is given below, directly hits the bird in the bush and so this should be spread all over the world.
Removal of Religious Conservatism
Today, SHRI GURU DATTA is giving the right knowledge to remove religious conservatism. I am giving the right knowledge taking the Hindu terrorist as an example. But the question put by Me below applies to all religious fanatics who have become terrorists. If I take the terrorists of other religions, they might misunderstand Me, thinking that I am criticizing their religion. Since I am born in this Hindu religion, other Hindus consider Me as a fellow-Hindu. So Hindus consider Me as their man and hence they too will not misunderstand Me. In reality, I do not belong to any religion. I belong to all religions equally. The real knowledge is explained below in the form of a conversation. I am taking the role of a foreigner and am talking to a Hindu terrorist.
Hindu terrorist: You will get salvation only if you worship God Narayana. No other God can give salvation. O foreigner, leave your religion and accept my religion! You will get salvation. Otherwise, you will go to hell.
Foreigner (Myself): I will certainly convert my religion and become Hindu. I will definitely worship God Narayana and get salvation. But I have one question. About 1000 years ago, our country came to know about India. Before that, our forefathers did not even know about the existence of India; what to speak of God Narayana! Therefore, my forefathers could not worship God Narayana. It was not their fault in not knowing God Narayana. Had they known God Narayana, at least some of them would have worshipped Him and got salvation. But for no fault of them, they have gone to hell. At that time, God Narayana was known all over India. So it means that God Narayana was partial to India; He is prejudiced. Therefore, you are blaming your own God Narayana of partiality! You are poking your eye with your own finger!
Hindu Terrorist: This defect applies to your religion also. Your religious fanatics also say that those who did not worship your religion’s God will go to hell. This blame commonly applies to all religions.
Foreigner (Myself): Just because this defect is present in all religions, the defect cannot be considered as a merit. A defect is always a defect, whether it is present in one person or in several persons. If this defect is not cleared, the Gods of all religions are blamed and so God in general is blamed. Showing the same defect in all is not the solution. We have to prove that God in general is always impartial. It means that the God of any religion should be impartial.
Hindu terrorist: When there is no solution to this defect, you have to neglect this defect.
Foreigner (Myself): But there is a solution! In all religions, it is the same God who is worshipped in different forms. So, God in general i.e., the God in every religion is impartial. Since the same God expressed Himself in different parts of the world at the very beginning of this creation itself, and gave the same message in different languages, all the people got an equal opportunity from the beginning of this creation. No part of the world was favored particularly at any time. Hence, the Gods of all our religions i.e. God in general, becomes impartial. There is no other solution to solve this problem except for this solution. Hence, this solution must be accepted. In that case, there is no need of conversion from one religion to another religion. Since the same syllabus of a particular class (standard) is available in all the languages, there is no use of changing the language. Even if the student changes the language-medium, he will remain in the same class. [He will not get promoted to a higher class]. All classes [lower to higher] are present in each language-medium. So, you need not change the language at any stage. You have to go from a lower class to the higher class in the same language-medium. Similarly, every religion contains the lower, higher and the highest levels of spirituality. You can achieve the goal by rising vertically to the higher level in your own religion. What is the use of moving horizontally by leaving your own religion and accepting another religion? By doing so, you remain at the same distance from the goal.
I have given the Hindu terrorist as an example here. Please do not forget that the same analysis also applies to the terrorists (and religious fanatics) of all other religions.
Why Did God Appear in Different Forms in Hinduism?
Why did God express Himself in different forms in a single religion, the Hindu religion in India? In the universe, God has expressed Himself in a single form in every religion. In Christianity, there is only one expressed form i.e. Jesus. In Islam, there is only one expressed form i.e. Allah or Mohammad. But in the Hindu religion, there are different expressed forms of God like Vishnu, Shiva etc. The diversity in the forms of God is only the first point in the Hindu religion. The next point is the unity in all these forms that also exists in Hindu religion. People are criticizing the Hindu religion by pointing at the first point alone. Why don’t they see the second point? The entire concept is not complete by the first point alone. Then the question comes, “Why should there be diversity in the first place and then make the unnecessary effort to bring in unity? Why can Hinduism not have a single form of God as in Christianity or Islam?”
Alright, let us assume that there is a single form in Hindu religion and let us assume that Vishnu is that single form. Then does this solve the problem when you consider the entire world? Even then there are three forms of God i.e. Jesus, Allah or Mohammad and Vishnu. If you take the world as your system for analyis, is there a single form of God for the entire world? Even if we solve the problem at micro level i.e. in Hinduism, the same problem remains at the macro level i.e. in the world. The solution at the macro level is more important than at the micro level because in India, wars never took place between the followers of Vishnu and the followers of Shiva. But in the world, wars have taken place and are still taking place between the followers of Islam, Christianity, Hinduism etc. The problem at the micro level never disturbed India’s peace. But the problem at macro level has always disturbed the peace of the world.
Before using a medicine on human beings (macro system), it is first tested in the laboratory on a small animal like a like a rabbit (micro system). If the benefit of the medicine is proved in the case of the rabbit, it is administered to all the human beings. Similarly, the concept developed in the unity of various forms of God in Hinduism should be taken totally by all the religions in the world. The medicine that cures the disease of the rabbit, also cures the same disease in all the human beings. Similarly, the knowledge of the unity among the various sub-religions in the Hindu religion should be applied as it is to the case of all the religions in the world. This knowledge is the medicine. Fanaticism is the disease. This knowledge not only cures the various fanatics in the Hindu religion, but also cures the various fanatics of religions in the world.
In fact, there is only one God in Hinduism i.e. Lord Datta, who appears in various forms like Vishnu, Shiva etc. Actually, God Datta purposely created the diversity in the forms of God in Hinduism to teach this unity in the diversity found in all the religions in the world. It is just like a mini-model prepared to represent the entire world. The same design in the mini-model appears as a huge building when constructed. Similarly, the concept in Hinduism is a message for the entire universe. Lord Datta is the teacher for the whole world. A teacher praises one student in one subject and praises another student in another subject. He will ask the two students to help each other. Similarly, India should learn about sacrifice from abroad and the rest of the world should learn about unity in diversity from India.
One has to take the good aspect from every religion. I do not belong to any religion. I belong equally to all the religions. I do not support or condemn any religion blindly. I collect the pearls from all the oceans. I criticize Hinduism for several points like not doing the sacrifice of money, not working for the sake of God or for the caste system etc. As far the point of unity in diversity is concerned, I praise Indians. I criticize the rest of the world. So irrespective of the name of the religion, one has to pick up the good points from every religion. Do you reject the diamond from a foreign country? A diamond is a diamond anywhere in the world. You cannot differentiate an Indian diamond from a foreign diamond.
The logic in the unity of Hinduism is based on the same God appearing in various forms and qualities to satisfy the tastes of different people when He comes in human form. The nature of Vishnu is ‘sattvam’ i.e. a soft nature. So, soft-natured people are attracted to Vishnu. The nature of Shiva is ‘tamas’ i.e. an emotional nature. People of such nature like Shiva. When there is synchrony in the nature of the devotee and the human form of God, the attraction and adaptability is greater. Then through that human form of God, the message of God reaches the devotee easily. The message is same but the forms of God are different. The same milk is given in different types of cups. Somebody likes a ceramic cup and somebody likes a glass cup. The form of God is as per your liking, but the divine message preached by all forms of God is the same. It is just like the same syllabus present in different language mediums. The unity in diversity in Hinduism is actually practiced by almost all the people. In every house, people celebrate the festival of Vishnu and the festival of Shiva. In every house in India, images and pictures of almost all the forms of Hindu Gods are worshipped.
Unification of the Commentaries of the Three Acharyas
[Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva are three Acharyas or preachers of Hinduism (Vedanta[1]). Their philosophies are propounded through their commentaries on the Vedantic texts.]A mother feeds her child singing that the moon will come down from the sky if the child eats the food. She is worried about the welfare of her child and does not bother about the truth. The mother nurtures this body, which perishes at the end of this life. But the Guru nurtures the soul by knowledge. This knowledge is permanent in all your births (lives); it accompanies the soul forever. The love and compassion of a Guru for his student is a million times more than that of the mother. The Sadguru is the God of even your mother. He has come down as your teacher. The love of the Sadguru is beyond description.
Shankara, Ramanuja, Madhva are the three Incarnations of the three divine forms (viz. Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma) of the same Sadguru, who is Lord Dattatreya (Datta). The commentaries of these three Gurus may look different, because they are meant for people with different mental maturities in different times. But the essence of these three commentaries is one and the same.
First came, Shankaracharya, who was the Incarnation of Lord Shiva in human form. During His time, India was full of atheists, who were either Buddhists or Purva Mimamsakas[2]. An atheist can never tolerate the greatness of God and so he denies God’s existence. Shankara said, “I am Shiva” (Shivo’ham…). Can an atheist tolerate this and accept that another man is God? But the Sadguru should also uplift even the atheist. So, Shankara played a trick. He said that every man is God. An atheist likes his own greatness and so he became a follower of Shankara. At least some atheists changed. Shankara equally distributed the treasure of God-hood to all. There is a secret in this trick. When an atheist says “I am God”, he has accepted God!
Shankara: Do you exist?
Atheist: Yes I exist.
Shankara: You are God. Therefore, God exists.
So at that time, the goal of Shankara, was only the first step i.e., atheists should become theists. When a bull is running full speed, [and you want to control it,] you first have to run along with it for sometime. Only then can you stop it. Similarly, you have to follow an egotistic person for sometime and only then can you gradually get a grip on him. The psychology of a student is well-understood by a good teacher. This is the concept of Incarnation (Avatara). Ava = down, tara = coming i.e., coming down to the psychological level of the student. As the teacher goes down to the level of the student, the truth is to be hidden and the upliftment of the student becomes more important.
Final Revelation to the Deserving Few
In the course of time, some disciples of Shankara became fully pure and got rid of their jealousy and ego through constantly serving Shankara. They became eligible to grasp the truth. Shankara revealed the truth to such deserving disciples. One day He swallowed molten lead and asked them to swallow the same if they thought that they were God. The disciples were unable to do the same and fell at the feet of Shankara. They had grasped the truth. But Shankara limited this revelation of the truth only to some of His close deserving disciples, since the others were not capable of grasping the truth due to their ego. Shankara left the earth at this stage.
As time passed further, people got rid of their ego and jealousy to some extent but not completely. Ramanuja came and preached that every man is a spark of God. This is like socialism in which some wealth of a rich man is donated to the poor. After some more time, when people almost completely got rid of their ego and jealousy, Madhva came down and preached that man is not at all connected to God and that man is only a servant of God. This is like capitalism in which a wealthy man remains rich and the poor people always remain poor. These three philosophies apply to different people in any given time, depending on their mentalities. In any given time, all types of people are present in this world.
An egotistic person likes Shankara’s philosophy to be applied in his own case. He likes to be God. He does not like Madhva’s philosophy since he does not want to be a servant of God. But He likes Madhva’s philosophy to be applied in the case of Lord Krishna, who looks like a man. There, he does not like Shankara’s philosophy. In other words, he wants Krishna to be called as a servant of God and not to be called as God. The situation is completely reversed in the case of a person who has got rid of his ego. He likes Madhva in his own case and likes Shankara in the case of Lord Krishna. He thinks that he is the servant of God and that Krishna is God. Hanuman is the best example of this type. He believed Madhva’s philosophy in His own case and Shankara’s philosophy in the case of Lord Rama. He always thought that He was the servant of Lord Rama and that Rama was God and not a man. Hanuman is the practical Guru for every human being. Shankara gave the identification mark of God in human form stating, “Jnanadevatu kaivalyam”, which means that one has to unite with God (that is to join with God) by His knowledge. The Veda says that knowledge is Brahman. It means, you have to recognize the Lord in human form by His knowledge and not by His miracles etc.
These three preachers in India are the three divine forms of Lord Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma respectively. Shri Guru Datta, the one and only divine form present in all these three divine forms, came down as these three preachers. In India, the followers of these three preachers are quarrelling assuming that these three preachers wrote different commentaries. Such quarrels are also bringing poverty to India. The Veda says, “Brahma is Vishnu, Shiva is Vishnu” (Brahmacha Narayanah…). The followers of Vishnu do not enter the temple of Shiva and the followers of Shiva do not enter the temple of Vishnu. These followers abuse Shiva and Vishnu respectively. Two disciples massage the left and the right feet of their teacher respectively. A fly flew from one foot to the other foot. The second disciple started beating the first foot. The first disciple also started beating the second foot. The teacher started crying because both students were beating the same teacher. Similarly, if any one of these three divine forms or preachers is abused, only Guru Datta is abused. All the Gods in the world are divine forms of the same Lord Datta. One should not abuse Buddha, Jesus, Allah etc. also. If you cannot cross over the differences between the various forms of God present in the Hindu religion, how can you cross over the differences between the various forms of God present in all the religions in the world? If you cannot break the walls between rooms within the same house to make a big hall, how can you break the walls between houses to make a single big house? So first you must bring unity in the Hindu religion and then only bring unity among the religions in the world.
First Shankaracharya came down. The Upanishads discussed that a man is God. If every man is God, then who is to be liberated? Who has ignorance? For whom is all this spiritual effort put? So the man discussed in the Upanishads is not an ordinary man. It is the Lord in human form. The Gita says, “Manushiim…” which means that Lord comes down in a human body like Lord Krishna. It is in the case of that particular human body, that the discussions of Advaita, Vishishthadvaita and Dvaita are valid. Advaita says that the soul in Lord Krishna’s human body is Brahman[3]. Vishishthadvaita says that this soul is a spark of Brahman. Dvaita says that this soul is different from Brahman and has come down as a servant to do the work of God. In the Upanishads, the discussion was about the Human Incarnation in general. So the names like Krishna, Rama etc. were not mentioned. In every generation, Brahman comes down as a Human Incarnation. So a particular name cannot be assigned. Since the name is absent, this concept was extrapolated to every man. Therefore, Advaita philosophers say that every man is God. Vishishthadvaita philosophers say that man is a spark of God. Dvaita philosophers say that every man is a servant of God. These three sects quarrel among themselves. The actual point that the whole discussion is about Lord Krishna is lost. The fruits have fallen in the gutter and people are quarreling over the empty basket.
Some people who are full of jealousy can never agree that a human being like Krishna is God. For them, God is separately present above [in heaven]. Krishna is only a servant of God, who does the work of God on this earth. The Dvaita philosophy satisfies them. Some other people with less jealousy treat Krishna as a spark of God. The Vishishthadvaita philosophy satisfies them. Some people with no jealousy agree that Krishna is the Brahman. The Advaita philosophy is meant for them. All the three preachers are Guru Datta Himself, who taught the same concept in different ways to different levels of students. Advaita, Vishisthadvaita and Dvaita are the three steps to climb up. First in Dvaita, you join the service of God. Then in Vishishthadvaita, you become a part and parcel of God. A father says to his sons, “You both are my two eyes”. You become a limb of God here. As your service reaches its climax, you become God. God pervades all over your body. This is Advaita. There is also the fourth stage over an above your body, which is the Datta philosophy. In this God becomes your servant. Hanuman climbed all these steps through His service to God. He reached the fourth stage also, in which Lord Rama accepted defeat at the hands of Hanuman in a battle. The Gita says that service means sacrificing work (karma samnyasa) and sacrificing the fruit of your work (money) i.e., karma phala tyaga. You may do either or both as per your convenience and circumstances. Karma phala tyaga is better than karma samnyasa and both put together is the best, which is called as karma yoga as per the Gita.
[1] The Vedas are the revealed word of God. Vedanta means the ‘end of the Vedas’. It is the final and the philosophical portion of the Vedas, consisting of several Upanishads (philosophical texts). There are several schools of interpreting Vedanta. The three main schools are the Advaita (non-duality, monism) philosophy of Adi Shankara, the Vishishtha Advaita (qualified monism) philosophy of Ramanuja and the Dvaita (duality) philosophy of Madhva.
[2] Purva Mimamsakas are the followers of the ritual portion (Purva Mimasa) of the Vedas, who give supreme importance to performing the ritual actions prescribed in the Veda. They do not believe in a Supreme God who creates and controls creation and gives humans the results of their actions.
[3] Supreme God.
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