Abhijit Naskar's Blog - Posts Tagged "interfaith-dialogue"

I came to life at Dakshineswar,
At Kapadokya I got my sight.
I found my might at Shaolin,
At Liberty Island I came to light.
In Pernik I bathed in love,
By the Volga I tasted sapience.
Lika taught me the role of innovation,
Sudbury gave me the sail of science.
Streets of Calcutta showed me suffering,
Streets of Chicago reminded, I'm the answer.
It's not the place but people who hold magic,
Revolution rose when all of them came together.
You won't know me as the father of a nation.
You'll know me as the maker of amalgamation.

Republicans are the Taliban of the West.

“Thank You Republicans (The Sonnet)

Thank you republicans, for acting,
As the perfect example of primitivity.
Thank you republicans, for standing,
As the picture of unchristianity.
Thank you republicans, for behaving,
As the definition of new age terrorism.
Thank you for being the personification,
Of ignorance, prejudice and divisionism.
Thank you republicans, for serving,
As a sickening example of superstition.
Thank you for providing the lowest bar,
Against which we can measure human ascension.
Thanks for being everything a human must never be.
Thank you republicans, for demonstrating what is inhumanity.”

“Republicans are the Taliban of the West. But please don’t hate them. Now more than ever they need our help, for they are ill, terribly ill. They are suffering from a condition, I call, Clinical Caucasianitis, or White Supremacy Syndrome. So next time you see one, offer them a flower and say – get well soon!

In a way (sarcastically speaking), no other political party on earth has done more to eliminate Islamophobia than the republican party, by boldly revealing themselves to the world as the face of new age christian terrorism. Finally, thanks to the republicans, the people of planet earth get to relive the atrocious days and ominous nights of the roman catholic crusades – which by the way, is the very antithesis of Christ’s “love thy neighbor” – just like it is the antithesis of something Mohammed said – that Muslims should help their neighbors rebuild their churches, synagogues and monasteries if they burn down (22:40 Quran).

The point is, one who has integration in their heart, will find integration everywhere, but those who have nothing but hate in their heart, will remain hateful no matter how many messengers of love come and go.”

Fervor of faith is not the problem, bigotry of faith is the problem. Or to put it simply. Religion is not the problem, fundamentalism is the real problem. But we must be aware of what a fundamentalist is. A fundamentalist is not necessarily a person who takes the scripture literally, rather, a fundamentalist is a person who deems their own religion as the only true religion, and all others as heresy. Some fundamentalists do interpret the scripture metaphorically, and still manage to remain a bigot.

After all, you see outside, what is inside. So the point is, if you want to see integration in the world, first you gotta irrigate your heart, not your colon, of all division. Until you understand undivision, you won’t understand divinity. No sabes unidad, no sabes divinidad.

Even if you have never heard of Jesus, even if you have never heard of Buddha, even if you have never heard of Moses and Mohammed, even if you have never heard of Nanak and Naskar, you can still be divine. But if you never treat another person with kindness and dignity, you can never be divine.

It’s your behavior that makes you religious, not your belief. Besides, even in this day and age, if your belief still keeps raising walls, instead of bringing them down, it’s time you seek medical help. Because you see, bigotry is not a legal problem, it is a medical problem, just like alcoholism is a medical problem. Fundamentalism is not a neurodivergence, fundamentalism is a lethal neuropsychiatric condition, which requires immediate medical attention.

I am neither a believer, nor an atheist. Believers care about the existence of God, atheists care about the nonexistence of God. I care about neither. I only care about human existence. I only care about the uplift of human condition.

If you believe, God is the supreme creator of everything, then God is also the one who gave you a brain. Use it. Likewise, if you know that we have evolved from the apes through natural selection, then you should also know about the fascinating mental faculty we developed alongside reason, called empathy. Use it.

Some might say, it is cowardly of me to not pick any side with confidence. Well, I am a behaviorist after all. You don’t expect me to peddle the same old dualistic ideologies that philosophers and theologians have been peddling for centuries, do you – that too with a complete disregard for the necessities of the everyday mind! I want to induce integration in the world, not conversion.

So I say, if you believe in God, make it a reason for assimilation, not segregation. If you prefer reason, use it for warm ascension, not cold and fancy descension.

I am not east, I am not west, I am the whole world. I have absorbed the good from every single culture of planet earth, and now the entire world courses through my veins as lifeblood. That is why, I am a human being – that is why, I am a whole human being.

“Aum Amen Assalaam (The Interfaith Sonnet)

Jo bole so nihal – honest, brave ‘n nondual!
Ain’t no human run by divisionism.
You may say Merhaba, or Hallelujah,
Smiling I respond, Walaikum Assalam.
Every human greeting is an act of peace,
Language differs, not the emotion.
Yet we keep bickering over language,
Overlooking all loving unison.
Chag sameach say some of us,
Some say happy holidays!
Across the words, into the heart,
We’ll find the flame of happiness.
Underneath every version of felicidad,
there is a sense of illumination.
Aim of all Aum and Amen – is unification.”

There is no such thing as an objective truth, it’s all subjective. Unless the brain finds a way to observe the universe, independent of the brain, every truth is subjective truth.

To hell with truth, I say! Better lose truth, than lose your humanity. Better lose truth, than lose love. Love first, truth second. Humanity first, intelligence second!

My theology is not rooted in God, but in people. My philosophy is not rooted in knowledge, but in people. My science is not rooted in reason, but in people. Mi iglesia son humanos, mi cielo son humanos, mi fe son humanos.

Divinity and worship are two different things. Worship is an act of self-preservation, divinity is an act of self-annihilation – divinity is annihilation of the self for the uplift of others. Let the people find a shelter in you, and you shall attain an eternal shelter in them. Un corazón amable es un corazón religioso.

Where there is indoctrination, there is control. Where there is control, there is no love. And where there is no love, there is no religion. Scripture is literature, period – nothing more, nothing less. If you cannot speak of religion, without quoting your scripture, you don’t understand religion.

In the fight between love and god, love always wins. And whenever love wins, god wins. Why? Because god is love, god is oneness. And love is but oneness in practice. Love is not something that merely enhances existence – love is existence.

Spirit of Christmas doesn’t grow on a fir tree,
Christmas blooms wherever the heart is hatefree.
Ramadan isn’t fulfilled by feasting on some tasty beef,
The greatest of feast is haram if others go hungry.
Hanukkah’s miracle isn’t about the oil lasting 8 days,
Rather it’s about the resilience of light amidst darkness.
Fireworks may be diwali for those still in kindergarten,
Everyday is diwali for an existence rooted in kindness.
The will to love and the will to lift are the backbone,
Of all human celebration, tradition and communion.
Take that fundamental will out of the equation,
All you have left are rituals without meaning and mission.
Fasting, feasting and decorating are step two of any festival.
First and foremost, at our altar within, we gotta light a candle.

I feel at home with every faith and ideology,
Unless it’s peddled with bigotry and arrogance.
I bear a clinical revulsion to booze and smoke,
More than that, I am allergic to arrogance.
You cannot reason with a caveman who starts off,
By saying, “my thing is the best because”.
If you could reason with fanaticism,
There wouldn’t be any fanaticism in the world.
Holding on to a belief system is very much human,
But a belief that undermines other beliefs is animal.
Likewise, to sharpen intellect is a good habit unless,
You sharpen it so much that it makes you mechanical.
Maintain a healthy balance between facts and fiction.
Learn to make your head and heart work in unison.

Ik onkar, satnaam,
Porque, yo soy insan.
Aham bismillahsmi,
Çünkü, benim adım vicdan.
Sarva dharman parityajya,
Giving up all national grave,
Nos haremos vessels of verdad,
Rise we shall as sapiens brave.
Divinidad está en cada cultura,
But no culture is pure divinity.
Human divided is human undivine,
Hatelessness is civilized divinity.
Thus speaks God in tongue beyond tongues.
One vessel isn’t enough to contain my neurons.

“Be the proof of integration,
When prejudice is the tradition.
Devise your own inclusive destiny,
When heritage is rooted in division.”

“Islamophobia doesn’t disappear simply because you choose to close your eyes. Can you stand by a dehumanized muslim, against the bigoted barbarians of your own culture, and speak out at the top of your voice and conviction – I am a muslim, just as much as I am a christian – I am a muslim, just as much as I am a jew – I am a muslim, just as much as I am a buddhist – hindu – or atheist? Can you? Because, until every threat to the welfare of the dehumanized humans actually, genuinely, internally feels like a threat to your own family, no phobia will ever come to an end – no hatred will ever face demise. Till every culture, every country, every corner of the planet, becomes our own culture, our own country, our own home, there is no peace, there will never be peace. And this, my friend, is called practical divinity, practical sufism, practical nondualism, and practical humanism. Or better yet, this is the ism beyond all isms – this is the ism that concerns the life, laughter and loveliness of the entire humankind – this – is humanity.”