Being Hindu is not a religious but a geographical and cultural identity of a region where numerous philosophies, each different from the other, evolved throughout the history. Trust me when I say that Hindus are anyone residing to the East of Sindh.
Be he a Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Advaitist, Vishishta-Advaitist, Shuddha-Advaitist, Dvaitist, Yogi, Shaivite, Vaishnava, Shakt, Navya-Nyayi, Charvaki, Jew, Zoroastrian, Christian, or even a Muslim, if he resides to the East of the Sindh, he is a Hindu! It is a geographical identity maintained by followers of different philosophies and ways of seeking, who are but united by one culture. I am stating this with great affirmity as historically Al-Hind was the name given to this region by Arabs when they failed to pronounce Sindh.
What has been clustered together as Hindu-ism, are but a multitude of distinct philosophies that are “believed” to have originated in the soil of al-Hind and use similar tongues and terms to elaborate their concepts. ‘The Divine’ is referred to by most of them as ‘Shi-va’. However, the Vedantists, Yogis, Nyayis, Charvakis, Shaivites, Vaishnavas, Shaktas, Sanatanists etc., are but people of different school-of-thoughts and have ways of their own.
Just because these philosophies developed in one soil and use a similar dictionary, does not mean that they are all the same and can be clustered together into a single religion. It is, thus, a mistake to recognize Hinduism as a religion itself, and is synonymous to saying nationalism is a religion. Verily the ways of these numerous schools and communities are different from one another.
But fibster are those who accuse the ascent of new communities on the ideological horizon for the decline of their own beliefs. The belief is yours, how can it quiver? And if it quivers, it lacks the foundation of the fundamental truth and so it must fall!
“Ekam satyam vipra bahudha vadanti”
There may be numerous thoroughfares to the same truth. The ways may be different from one another and to presume that the other’s way is incorrect just because they are not on the same path as us cannot be correct.
The ways to truth for the descendants of the same culture may be different but that does not conclude that their culture is different. The way of life is one’s culture, one’s Samskriti and it cannot be different for the different communities. The way of life for Indians cannot be different! We believe in life and that is our culture. Our culture is not to believe in what is not true too. This is our system and constitution and then this is what provides us with various different ways to seek the truth.
How can there be a friction between a way of life and a way of seeking until they stand true to the truth? Why must you worry if someone’s way of seeking is different from yours? Why don’t you rather preserve your own ideologies and test your beliefs past the edge of truth. Why don’t you seek your traditions in the light of truth? Why don’t you seek the truth? This culture will protect you only If you will protect the truth for this culture is not defined by traditions, edibles, clothing’s, or languages but by the Sva-Adhyaya, the sole concept of ‘self-questioning.’
If you, as a community or as a self, are feeling insecure and vulnerable, the fault is only within you. You have yourself turned away from the path of seeking the truth so what path do you think is left now? This is the reason for the decline of your community, accept and amend it before it’s too late. Rather than accepting it as a challenge for yourself, you challenge everybody else into a dual.
Why don’t you self-examine and become ideal to your beliefs? If you have the potential, then rise, rise and show the world that you can live! Become an example to this soil. Who has stopped you?
