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Sunil Sethi wrote:
>
> Hi Daly,
>
> Why I said what I have said. The reason being having lived and grown up
> with westerners I have noticed that they do use the word "myth" to mean
> exactly what it means. I have seen both Christians and Muslims trying to
> undermine our faith and to say it is false. I see no reason why they should
> not be corrected.
You are certainly correct about people trying to undermine our faith,
and they often use the word myth in the process of doing so. My point
is that they do not use the word myth correctly. In western society
there is a fundamental (pun not intended) misunderstanding as to what is
myth. Myth is equated with something which is not true or is false
because myth does not always reflect actual historical events. That is
to say, then, that for many westerners, truth can only be present or can
only be expressed through actual historical events. This severely
limits an individual's ability to accept and to understand some of the
more profound spiritual truths which Hinduism seeks to convey.
I agree with you 100 percent, Sunil, that people should be corrected if
they make statements about our tradition which are not true. I recently
went on one of the Indian news groups to respond to long post about an
Indian who had found his spiritual home in Christianity. I did not
argue with his choice (who am I to do that?), but I took serious issue
with some of the false assertions about Hinduism and Christianity,
including a quote attributed to a Christian pastor that it is only in
Christianity God can come to us, and that in all other faiths we must go
to God.
Back to the question of myth, I think both Hindus and non-Hindus alike
need to have a good understanding of what is myth; unfortunately, many
Hindus have adopted a western perspective toward myth and with no
intention to do so lose much of their tradition's ability to speak to
them. The power of myth, the power of story, is not dependent on
historic truth, or on a rational, linear kind of logic. Part of what
has been lost in the west is the ability to appreciate story. After
all, stories are for kids, and we adults have t.v. and movies.
A few years ago, one of the most moving experiences for me was sitting
at the feet of a Punjabi lady when we were out at a puja in someone's
home. She had started to tell a couple of stories to keep her three
young daughters occupied. Her manner, the devotional attitude, her
expression all drew me over to where the kids sat, and so I joined them,
and found myself listening like a child. Her stories about our deities
were spell-binding, and I experienced our faith in a new, different and
deeper way.
> >Spoken like a true fundamentalist.
>
> Is a person who talks of the Laws of Physics a "Fundamentalist" ? etc. Is
> it wrong to believe that the Word of God is truely a word of God ? Or is it
> better to let those people who get awared Phd's for speculating and writing
> falsely about other peoples faith ?
No, people should not be rewarded for writing falsely about someone's
faith. But my point was not that -- it was that you appeared to be
saying there is only one right set of books, only one right way to
believe and to understand Hinduism. If I misunderstood you there, I
apologize.
In Christianity and Islam there are many people who say there is only
one right way to be a Christian, to be a Muslim. In all of our
traditions, I believe there is much room for variation of belief and
interpretation. I believe there is an inate aspect of human psychology
which provides us comfort/security if we can believe there is one right
way only, and that we have found it. My own experience of God's
creation, and of the spiritual journey of myself and others is that much
as we might want the assurance of having found one right way, there are
many ways, each of which is a carrier for the Truth. Your way and my
way may be different, but that does not mean one is wrong and one is
right. Both may be right, yet if I were to adopt your way, or you mine,
it could be wrong for each of us.
> >From childhood these people are taught that we are believers in a "false
> God" and the things these ignorant people write makes you wonder at times.
> They spent 200 years in India and learnt nothing but only how to plunder,
> rape and mistreat others. About time they stopped to think about what they
> are saying.
Sunil, again I agree up to a point. You and I know well that Hinduism
offers some of the most effective ways to experience Divinity, and that
many Hindu saints and sages have had the highest experiences and then
shared them with the world. I think some westerners studying India have
learned well, but certainly many have not, and often it is because of
the dictates of economic and political expediency. Tied in with that
was an insufferable aggrogance and ignorance on the part of the
colonialists.
I grew up in the west, and through the years learned all the stuff about
Hinduism being a fatalistic religion, that it kept Hindus in darkness
and with no hope, that there was no provision of Divine grace, that it
was primitive and backward. You and I both know that all of this is not
true. For me, it was a great revelation coming to Hinduism and
realizing how wrong my teachers had been when I was a kid, and how wrong
was the general public sense of what is Hinduism.
I remember a couple of years ago giving a talk on a Hindu approach to
death and dying at a cancer conference sponsored by the general hospital
where I now offer chaplaincy to people of all faiths. After the talk,
which had been one of four from different traditions, a couple of older
nurses came up to me. "We had no idea Hinduism was so hopeful, so
positive," one said, as the other nodded enthusiastically in agreement.
As I increasingly share Hindu perspectives with health care providers,
most of whom are Christian, I note their sense of beginning to
appreciate Hinduism in a new light.
Daly
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