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Universality of Religions-Part III

Religion Essence
Evil and suffering

All religions accept that evil and suffering have been allowed by God for some inherent purpose. Apparently suffering seems to be an evil but it really isn't evil because it has some moral purpose behind it.

(Both Judaism and Islam holds that God has allowed evil and suffering to test the intensity and sincerity of faith that man possesses towards Him. The father God, of Christianity uses the stick of suffering to discipline his sons).

As to the cause of evil they all tend to hold a devil, with all his evil spirits responsible. (In Zoroastrianism this devil is called "Ahriman", in Judaism and Christianity "Satan" and in Islam "Iblis")

Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism point that suffering is due to man's own past karmas generated out of ignorance.

<strong>Life after death</strong>Life after death

This material world isn't the final world, and the end of man's physical life isn't his final end. All the religions of the world believe in a life beyond death although they differ in the nature of this life.

Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism believe that after the end of the present physical life, man has to take rebirth by assuming another body in accordance with the deeds of the present life. The soul within man doesn't die but transmigrates into a fresh body after the death of the present body. The alternative to rebirth is Moksha, which is the attainment of a spiritual status of immortality and perfection.

Ancient Vedic Hinduism speaks of heaven and hell where the souls have to go for permanent abode, depending on one's actions on earth. The Puranas also speak of heaven and hell. In the Puranas there is reference to someone, named Chitragupta, who maintains a register of man's good and bad actions. Yama, the God of death, brings the soul of the dead before God and in accordance to Chitragupga's register they are either sent to heaven or hell.

In Judaism, the sinful have no after life, they perish completely with death. Only the virtuous enjoy the privilege of resurrection and then of abode in heaven. According to Islam, the souls live in "Albarzahk" during the intermediary period and on the final day of judgement they all resurrect and are brought before Allah by his angels for final assessment.

Christianity is very straight forward, those whose good actions balance over their bad ones go directly to heaven and who's bad actions balance over their good ones go directly to hell; those who come under the latter category but have repented for their sins are sent into the purgatory for purification.

Human destiny

Again Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism believe Moksha or Liberation is the final destiny of man. Moksha essentially means release from the continuous cycle of birth and death on one hand.
and the attainment of a spiritual status of freedom, perfection, eternity and immortality on the other hand.

Other religions generally believe that the attainment of heaven and hell in accordance with one's deeds is the final fate of man.

Christianity like Hinduism takes the life of this world as a life of suffering. The very concept of Adam's fall and his being sent to earth as a mark of suffering suggests that the earth is a place of suffering. Therefore the Christian conception of the attainment of heaven may well be taken as the attainment of liberation or salvation.

Differences in religions are quite natural and they will have to be recognised and tolerated as such. Thus, the primary lesson of religion must be to tolerate and accommodate the ideas and sentiments of other religions. Like the same food item cooked by different persons would taste different, similarly the concept of all religions is similar, only the way they have been interpreted is different.

About the author

This article is written by Annapurna Narayan for the 'Vedanta Vani' magazine of Chinmaya Mission.

Story first published: Tuesday, April 20, 2010, 17:10 [IST]