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HINDUISM RELIGIONS FROM THE INSIDE-POSSIBILITY AND REALITY
OF AN INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE
1. Which are the main principles of your religion?
a) Sanātana Dharma. An Eternal and Universal Religion: a religion without a beginning and without an end. It is rather difficult to find a one and only word in South Asia to indicate what is defined as “religion” in the West, a term that is in truth rather vague and with a wide semantic range. The most appropriate term could probably be the Sanskrit dharma. Dharma , like all Sanskrit words, is a polysemic word, therefore impossible to translate with a single meaning; the different definitions, however, are all pertinent to Indian ideas and religious practices. Dharma is used in most of Indian religions (Hinduism - Hindu-dharma , Sanātana dharma , Buddhism- Buddha dharma and Jainism- Jain dharma ) and has vaster and more complex connotations compared to the Abrahamic term “religion”; on the other hand, it has less juridical connotations compared to the current Abrahamic concepts of “duty” or “norm”, since it privileges consciousness and freedom rather than the concept of religio or duty. Even if there is no specific name of origin of Hindu dharma , many definitions can be found ( Vaidika-dharma = the eternal Veda; Matṛkā-dharma = the Mother of all laws ; Anāma-dharma = the religion with no name) and the most commonly used term is: Sanātana-dharma, the eternal law.
“Our religion didn't start at a specific time. It is said to be without beginning. It has always existed. It is sanātana****. The Sanskrit word closest to the meaning of religion is dharma , although dharma has a much broader meaning than religion. Our religion was not named by a founder because it had no founders. So, if it is really necessary to name our religion, it can only be called sanātana dharma or eternal religion." (Śaṅkarācārya of Kanchi Mahasvāmī) Sanātana. Sanātana means “endless, eternal, primordial, never- ending, permanent”; therefore, Sanātana Dharma is that which supports and nourishes “eternally” all that exists and that takes origin from the Absolute. A fundamental characteristic is cyclic time. It has always existed; therefore, it is a religion with no founder, that has not been revealed by any man, nor has it undergone changes ( apauruṣeya ). Dharma****. The concept of dharma is probably the most essential throughout Hinduism. Hinduism simply is dharma. The etymology of the term is probably the most enlightening of all considerations. Dharma comes from the Sanskrit root √ dhṛ “to support, to nourish”; this notion of dharma , that has been translated in the most different ways such as religion, order, duty, rule, law, morality, custom, norm, harmony, virtue, merit, justice, behaviour, doctrine, etc., means, according to the definition frequently quoted in the Mahābhārata , “what preserves, what supports people”. “A general translation could be order ( ordo ) in the ontological sense according to the medieval Scholastics and equivalent to harmony, even if it has today different peculiarities.” (R. Panikkar)
purpose, dharma provides social values for moral, material and intellectual evolution. The awareness that the supreme Spirit dwells in the heart of every living creature is the permanent principle and basis of dharma. “He who with his actions, thoughts and words is constantly absorbed in the well-being of others and who is always friendly towards others, or dearest, this is the meaning of dharma ”. ( Mahābhārata , Śānti-parvan, CCLXII) Sanātana dharma is the eternal law, its values are unchanging in time, it reflects harmony with universal laws and with man’s inborn need to dialogue with God. It is universal and includes all ethic, moral, philosophical and esoteric concepts belonging to spiritual languages. It is addressed to all human beings, in any time or place. This concept excludes the idea that Hinduism is an ethnic religion. Sanātana Dharma has been perceived by the seers or prophets, ṛṣi , who were able to extract, from the vast ocean of endless Divine Knowledge, an essence, a small part that was enough to promote the welfare, the happiness and the salvation of the human being: the Veda. Veda is not the revelation of God, but the very sound of God. Veda means Divine knowledge in its transcendent form, light, God. “At the beginning the non-existing one wasn’t, neither was the existing one; the earth was not neither was the firmament or what is beyond, there was no death nor immortality; there was no sign either of the night or of the day. That One was breathing with no outside breath, with his own nature, there was nothing more than Him. At the beginning the Divine rose, this was the
first seed of the mind of the Creator. Those who can see beyond by joining their minds together with their hearts, will find the bond connecting the existing to the non-existing, the non- existing one existing in the existing one”. ( Nāsadīya Sūkta in Ṛg Veda 10. 129 ) b) Common principles in all Hindu traditions
- Dharma
- Veda – the authority and sacred religious texts
- God is One
- Cyclical time - saṃsāra and karman , the law of cause-and- effect
- Mokṣa - salvation VEDA – the authority and sacred religious texts “ That stated in the Vedas is the supreme Dharma ; secondly comes that of the sacred tradition; then follows that practiced by good men. Here are the three eternal dharmas****. " ( Mahābhārata , XIII. 141 .65) The Veda , from the Sanskrit root √ vid , literally means “sacred Knowledge”. It is the heart of Hinduism, it is the Supreme Authority from which every aspect of culture, philosophy, religion and life science derives. The Veda is the Divine Truth perceived or “heard” ( śruti ) by the ancient seers ( ṛṣi ). Initially transmitted by them orally, it was then transcribed and enclosed in a body of texts called Vedic corpus.
- Smṛti (from the root √ smṛ , “to remember”) is memory. It deals with the “reworking” of the truths present in the Śruti that have been “remembered” and transcribed by the sages. The texts of the Smṛti are “simpler” than the Vedas , they are easy to understand. Sometimes they are translated into various Indian vernacles. Unlike Śruti , Smṛti is not considered a supreme authority (except in Orthodox areas), but together they make up the variegated corpus of sacred Scriptures of Hinduism. Classic examples of Smṛti are the Purāṇa and the Itihāsa , the latter consisting of the two great sacred texts: the Rāmāyaṇa and the Mahābhārata. The latter contains the Bhagavadgītā (a universally recognized spiritual text).
- God is One Hinduism recognizes the Uniqueness of God: the One without a second. It is monotheistic, although the Divine can apparently assume multiple functions, names and forms. God is One but manifests Himself in many ways. For this reason, Hinduism has a history of great acceptance of other religions and different paths of faith. Hinduism has an inclusivist and pluralistic character and is in opposition to forced indoctrination or proselytism. In a strictly monotheistic field there are always different theological-doctrinal visions such as:
- absolute monism ( Kevalādvaita )
- differentiated dualism ( Acintya-bhedābheda )
- pure dualism ( Dvaita )
All philosophical schools ( ṣat darśana ) also have a soteriological character. There are many paths ( mārga ) of salvation to realize the Divine. We will deal more extensively with the concept of Uniqueness of God in question n°4, point n° 1.
- Cyclical time: saṃsāra and karman , the law of cause-and-effect. The entire universe is cyclically born, it lives and dies in an eternal succession that goes from the concept of cosmic eras, yuga cycle etc. to saṃsāra. Saṃsāra is rooted in the term saṃsṛ, which means “to go around, revolve, pass through a succession of states, to go towards or obtain, moving in a circuit”. It is also the concept of rebirth and “cyclicality of all life, matter, existence”, a fundamental belief of most Indian religions: it is the cycle of death and rebirth. Ignorance is the first cause of suffering as it binds beings to the cycle of birth and death, the pivot of karman , the law of cause and effect. Karman The term derives from the Sanskrit root √ kṛ , “to do, to act” and translates the general idea of an action, a job, a duty. In the Vedas , it refers more specifically to ritual action. In the Upaniṣad we find clearer references to the “law of karman ”, defined as the “law of cause and effect”. The action (in its cause- effect cycle) binds individuals to the cycle of saṃsāra. We can find an echo also in the famous passage: “ Each one will reap what he
The realization of the immortal Reality, the Truth, Sat , of which each and every being and every atom is constituted. Mokṣa derives from the root √ muc , which means “to dissolve, to untie”. The liberation from ignorance which prevents one from experiencing infinite bliss. According to the philosophical schools, liberation is achieved through different paths. He who exhausts the motivation that leads him to be born ( karman ) is freed and will no longer be tied to the cycle of saṃsāra , of birth and death. He will be able to return to his own source, that One God source of infinite joy. This can happen when one abandons the body ( videha-mukti ) or life ( jīvan-mukti ); the latter is above all the case of Gurus and mystics of very high spiritual value who, although freed from all bonds, choose to take a body again to help their disciples on their evolutionary path. An idea echoed by the Buddhist Bodhisattva concept. The human being is called to complete this path of growth by maintaining a spirit of service and love ( seva ) towards humanity, animals and nature with a pure conduct and with a deep ethics of care. Hinduism, besides being a religion, is above all a way of life, an orthopraxis. Although claiming a history of great philosophical and theological speculations, it prefers, in fact, an experiential approach in a direct search for Reality.
2. Why do you think that the representatives/believers of
your religion/faith would be able to promote dialogue with
the representatives/believers of other religions or faiths?
I think the Hindu devotee has religious pluralism in his DNA. This can be seen in three basic factors:
The first is the belief in dharma. The principle of dharma exists, as the spirit of religions, in the hearts of all beings. Dharma includes human ethics, such as non- violence, justice, truth and love. Dharma is protection of nature and of every living being. The devotee must understand the necessity of interrelation and interdependence. The common good is fundamental to develop harmony among people and in the surrounding environment. Dharma is protection of nature and of every living being; “Join your purposes together, join your hearts together. May your spirits be one in dharma****. May you live together for long in unity and harmony” ( Ṛg Veda X.191);
The second point refers to the heart of true dialogue that is when one does not consider oneself to be the only holder of truth. Ekaṃ sad viprā bahudhā vadanti , “ God who is one, the sages call by different names”- ( Ṛg Veda 1.164.46). It would be enough to fully understand this Vedic verse to wipe out stereotypes and prejudices.
Finally the third factor is the Hindu’s attitude, as from the Vedas , to “see unity in diversity”.
etc.; all those principles that the Mahātma Gandhi defined as “old as the mountains”. Ahiṃsā , that is “not to harm” any living being, is the fundamental ethic to achieve peace. Peace often means a temporary state in which there are no conflicts or forms of violence, but in true peace violence must be totally suppressed or rather subverted in all its smallest forms or expressions. In Sanskrit, the word that defines peace is śānti, which has a wider meaning compared to peace, in fact it does not mean “absence of conflict”, but a state of “inner harmony” that is the true nature of being. Peace is invoked not only among men, but among all living beings. There is a beautiful and extremely significant hymn in the Vedas , reported in many Upaniṣad too ( Atharva Veda XIX. 9 ) that I would like to mention: “May there be peace on earth, peace in the ether, peace in the skies, peace in all directions, peace in the fire, peace in the air, peace in the sun, peace in the moon, peace in the constellations, peace in the waters, peace in the plants and herbs, peace in the trees, peace with the cattle, peace with all the animals, peace among human beings, peace with the absolute Brahman, peace in those who realize the Brahman. Peace, peace, peace.” All Hindu prayers end with a triple invocation to peace: śānti, śānti, śānti; indicating the triple relationship between man, cosmos and God. Each action has a cosmotheandric relationship between beings, the world, God and peace and is the harmony of these three levels. This is recalls the Gospel of Luke - "Glory to God in
the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests." (Luke 2 .14). I would like to underline the importance of developing a peaceful relationship with Nature of which human beings are an integral part, as the genius of the poet Rabindranath Tagore points out. The seers, in the forest-living condition, perceived that Truth is universal, that absolute isolation is impossible in life and that the only way to reach Truth is to be in balance and in harmony with nature interpenetrated by existence. The sages tended to the realization of harmony between man’s spirit and the spirit of the world. This natural conditions drove man towards understanding rather than possession, harmony rather than overpowering, interrelation rather than domination. The same is ahiṃsā is the highest duty. Even if we cannot practice it in full, we must try to understand its spirit and refrain as far as is humanly possible from violence. Peace comes from overcoming the conflicts that arise from selfishness, from ignorance, that create separation; with separation there is conflict, wars arise from conflict. Man hopes for unity and overcoming ignorance, as in these Upanishadic verses: “May peace, friendship and love be in every place and in every being, in our hearts. Do not fear! Leave fear, I am your refuge. Your heart is content in peace alone in the absence of fear
coincidentia oppositorum , but also a space in which there is a place for everyone, without humanitarian reductionism. The central idea expresses sequence and order and sequence underlines an objective aspect: there must be an interrelation between the parts of a whole for there to be harmony.
4. Which are the elements in your religion that can impede
a peaceful coexistence among humans?
The limitation of men in understanding the divine laws, in overcoming selfishness and the conflicts that lodge in their nature is the cause, in all religions of subjective interpretations, at times ego-referential. The elements in religion that can restrain a peaceful co-existence among people are: Thirst for power, intolerance, rigidity in defending the canons of tradition, fanaticism, superstition: these are only some examples of how religion can be exploited. The heart of every religion, the common good, the loving relationship with God and with beings becomes the cause and means of conflict. The reasons are complex and numerous, and this happens both within the religion itself - therefore an intra- religious dialogue is needed - and from the outside - hence the importance of an inter-religious dialogue. Stereotypes and misunderstandings derive from superficiality and the bad awareness of the “other” known only through his own cultural model and his own categories of thought. All this is the cause of controversy and conflict. Each religion should be well known, and known from within to understand its sensitivity, its vision and needs.
monist doctrines (non-dualist or advaita ), but also in dualist theologies, where the manifest world has an ontological, real reality, the manifest ( sat ) arises from transcendence ( asat ) and therefore God is the unique and undifferentiated source. By its intrinsic power, it manifests the Self in the self, determining that multiplicity which, arising from a single matrix, gives rise to the concept of unity in diversity, and never loses its intrinsic nature. Each religion should be known from within, otherwise there can be misunderstandings and hasty formulations. As in the case of Hinduism, observed in a coarser aspect, it is perceived with a total lack of awareness of its intrinsic unity. Hence the incorrect definition of polytheism or other definitions. Apart from a privileged niche of Indologists, at every cultural level this definition is common in Italy and in a large part of the world, even edited in many school textbooks. 2 ) Lack of orthodoxy If the traditional world (the Hindu world, as well as of many religious traditions) is giving way to an increasingly materialistic and consumerist (western-style) secularization, two factors in Hinduism may seem elements of fragility: the LACK OF HIERARCHY and therefore of organization, a negative and penalizing factor in countries outside of India, and the LACK OF ORTHODOXY. In western countries, the latter leads to a perception of Hinduism as a religion with no rules, a “do-it-yourself” religion, sometimes confused with New Age. Those involved in the New Age rarely consider it to be a “religion” — associating that term negatively and solely with an “organized religion” — and instead describe
their practices as “spirituality”. We must be careful with modern non-orthodox and self-referential movements that use religion to gain power. Not perceiving a real orthodoxy is a typical western blindness, perhaps due to the difficulty in understanding pluralism or perhaps due to a fluid concept of norm, when compared to the Abrahamic religions regulated by a more rigid normative apparatus. The topic is debated in the academic world where we find different opinions, among which the privilege given to the definition of orthopraxis. Regarding orthodoxy, both theology and the practice of each tradition, sampradāya , is rigorously codified by sacred texts which maintain undisputed compliance with the Vedas , the authority ( pramāṇa ) of Hinduism. There are scriptures that regulate every discipline very precisely: mystical, philosophical, artistic, scientific, such as medicine, yoga and others. Without neglecting the possibility of qualified personal interpretations, through an oral exegetical heritage, the different traditions ( sampradāya ) may they be dualistic ( bheda ), or qualified monistic ( bhedābheda ) or monistic ( abheda ), etc. include orthopraxis and orthodoxy at the same time and are the expression of the freedom of thought that is the heart of Hinduism or sanātana dharma. Hinduism is like an ocean made of inseparable drops and this great mass of energy is pure Divine Consciousness that is sanātana dharma.
- Hinduism is not dogmatic and does not proselytize On this awareness as well as on the absence of dogmas, dwells the deep Hindu respect for other religions and different theological views considered indeed as different ways of achieving Truth of
