Did you read this very shocking news? Many of you must have seen this headline in an Indian newspaper: Footwear store in Geneva uses Buddha statue to hang shoes. An Indian family was walking down a street in Geneva when they chanced to see shoes on display in a shop hanging on a Buddha statue .

Now I have a few points to make :

It is not ignorance that is the problem. It is indifference and more importantly preconceived notions that are a problem. Many [but not all] followers of the so called Monotheistic faiths either choose not to know even the rudiments of the so called ‘pagan’ faiths or have so much contempt that they consider it all right to heap abuses on these faiths –that include all Non Abrahamic religions .

I recall one tele- evangelists on U.S TV visiting the house of a Buddhist family , talking to them that familiar spiel about Christ being the ONLY giver of salvation and throwing the family statue of Buddha into the trashbin.

The Taliban outraged millions when they destroyed the over thousand year old statue of Buddha at Bamiyan . But while one does not expect any better from them one expects westerners to show more sensitivity .This is not always the case .

For example countries like Denmark that allow a person to insult Islamic sensibilities on the plea of freedom of speech do not allow any criticism of Christ.

Let I be accused of pontificating – a charge many Indians attract frequently. let me add that the so called secularists in India are equally guilty of double standards, Witness the way they supported painter M.F.Hussain’s right to paint Hindu deities in the nude ‘freedom of expression’ but kept silent when hoodlums attacked Taslima Nasreen .

The Vatican regularly asserts its distress at the anti conversion issue in India but itself condemns conversion from the catholic faith to even Protestanism.

I believe that if one tried to know even the most basic aspects of any religion some of the hatred one has may be reduced.
At a gathering in Maryland I was asked to give an impromptu talk on religion .Having been allotted barely three minutes I just stated these points :

Prophet Mohammed advised his followers that an hour of thinking is better than a year of meditation. He also said ‘Don’t tell me how many books you have read. Tell me how much you have traveled .

A delegation of Indians traveled to Arabia to meet the Prophet, carrying gifts including ginger. The Prophet thanked them –he loved ginger and said that he was happy to receive visitors from the spiritual capital of the world.

Perhaps the first religion to say that there is but one God is Hinduism . Refer the first verses of the ishavasyoupanishad.
Most religions have an undercurrent of violence .This is evident even in the New Testament and Manushastra.

What is the way out of this logjam ? I know my Abrahamic friends will take umbrage but one way out is to think seriously about this Vedic injunctions SAVA DHARMA SAMABHAVA and EKAM SAT VIPRAH BAHUDA VADANTI .What do these mean ? Please find it out yourself .There’s Google!

By the way the spirit of these injunctions has been displayed by the Indian tourists in Geneva referred to above.. They were Hindus who felt offended at the desecration of a Buddhist icon ! I can take a bet that had an image of Christ been so denigrated they would have felt equally offended .Try checking it out yourself. Write to Patna based Prabhat Chowdhury , his wife and 15 year old daughter.

By the way I can see many readers sharpening their knives. To avert this I may state my self interest in the debate about religions. .I am a practicing ‘no dogmatist’. That’s a new concept .
K.R.RAVI