The various religious systems in vogue in this world today are nothing but the many ways of approaching the one Supreme Cosmic Reality, the one who is transcendental and incomprehensible within the confines of the limited perceptive capacities of our finite senses or our finite inner cognitive instrument of mind, intellect, etc. He finds description as “Para” in Sanskrit meaning that which transcends, that which goes beyond, that which is beyond.
There is a multitude of religions but inherently intended for a common purpose in essence. This inferred non-difference across religions is that they all stand for the fulfilment of one objective with one great process or one great spiritual purpose. What is that great purpose? That great purpose is Religare – to re-bind yourself back onto that Supreme Cosmic Source of your being.
You were bonded to that Supreme in the beginning. However, down the line, there was a loosening of that bond, not bondage per se. That bond was loosened, so a connection has been broken, as it were.
In the process, humans have lost their spiritual awareness and started regarding self as some other being, non-spiritual, material, physical, gross or phenomenal.
Due to this lesser consciousness or obscured consciousness, we are unable to experience and feel that essential spiritual connection between that Supreme Source of our being and us. The sages and seers of yore realized that “That Supreme Being is one and non-dual. That Being alone exists. That Being alone is the one sole Eternal
Reality. They realized “ekameva advityam Brahma” (Brahman (Almighty) is one and only one and non-dual), “nehiananasati” (There is no diversity here).
Just as various kinds of cloth of different sizes and shapes and colors are constituted of but one material, namely cotton, just as different types of gold ornaments worn on various parts of the body are
made only of gold, and even as different kinds of pottery are but of one material, clay, so is the entire universe of innumerable variegated names and forms, in essence, one Being in a glorious cosmic manifestation. Therefore, the appearance of the many does not invalidate the non-duality of the one Supreme Principle. It alone prevails, non-dual, one without a second.
Even within the context of the Vedic religion, all these different approaches, the different paths – one through feeling, one through reasoning, one through concentration, one through active service – although being apparently different, are recognized as being
one. All attempt to lead to that oneness. Even so, though all the religious systems of the world today strive towards the adoration of that one Supreme Being who is non-dual and unitary, call Him by a
hundred different names in different languages and dialects.
All religious systems ultimately have to strive to ascend in the direction of that one supreme non-dual Cosmic Reality, that is the source and origin of countless billions of universes, known and unknown. All religions should, therefore, move in that direction
with the self-same objective of leading the individual, the human monad, onto establishing direct contact and permanent relationship with the cosmic Universal Being. The objective is the same, the goal is the same, but the means may be different, and yet the way is only one – directed towards one ultimate destination, that is, Brahmic-experience (blissful experience of Almighty). You may call it Allah-experience, Lord
Experience, Paramatman-experience, Nirvana-experience, Brahman-experience, Yahweh-experience.
Call it any name; it is the Supreme Transcendental Experience of the cosmic source and origin of your being, the cosmic source and origin of all existence. This is what requires to be recognized. This is what
needs to be preached with love. This is what, with firm faith and conviction, needs to be brought to the awareness of the masses. It is a great onus of responsibility and duty of all wise ones, who are the custodians of various religions, to bring to the awareness of the masses with firm faith and conviction and as a service to man and Almighty, not to preach difference but to proclaim the inner essential spiritual oneness. That alone shall act as a catalyst for all humanity to gradually gel into oneness. The so-called supreme heads of all major religions should come together and recognize that a whole new global chapter is opening up for mankind and that, the part religion has to play is not the part that it has played up till this moment. It has to undo the follies of the past religious history of the world. It has to make amends for all these follies as well as its sins of omissions and commissions. Religions have committed the greatest sins in the name of religion. It is time for them to make amends and mend their
ways. We must go down on our knees, lift our hearts and hands to the Almighty and weep and repent, and say that religion had erred. Religion has misguided humanity and has taught humanity to be irreligious in the name of religion.
Religion has to be love. Religion is recognizing the existence of Almighty and his power/artisanship being manifest in everywhere and in everything as the ultimate truth. Real religion is to live a life emphasizing and manifesting this truth through the love of all that exists. Until religion performs its appointed duty and becomes what it is meant to be, the fate of humanity will always be mired in clashes and conflicts, hatred and disunity and, discord and disharmony. Sorrow alone shall be the outcome of it, not joy, not peace, not prosperity. Religion must now assume a different role, its true authentic role. Until now it had remained lost in direction, it had in fact gone tangentially off, and had been at best a derailed wagon.
Whereas everything else seems to pronounce the differences in God’s creation, religion is the one establishment, which is supposed to proclaim the truth of our oneness, of our being non-different and,
of us being children of the One Supreme Being. Essentially, we are all one but alas! Regrettably, until now, religion was a failure in its global mission of unifying man. It had emphasized the wrong factors, the changing factors. It had emphasized the non-essentials of religious forms. It is the Spirit that needs to be emphasized, not the form. Form cannot affect the essential unity of the spirit within. Hence, religion now must retrospect and recognize that so far in human history, it has erred. It has not fulfilled its real mission on earth. It has, on the other hand, wrought a great deal of pain and suffering. It is time to recognize this error, correct it and restructure it for a whole new chapter that is opening up. It is time for it to recognize that its role is now different and that is to play the role of unifiers.
It is never too late to mend ways. There should be a resurgence of essential religion, real religion, which is just one. There are not many religions; there is only one religion: Man’s path back to the Almighty, the individual’s ascent to the Universal Reality. It is a path of the ascent of human beings to link up with the Divine source and abode. That is religion and the unified religious policy of global humanity must seriously engage itself in retracing its lost direction and assume the new role as proclaimers of oneness, proclaimers of harmony. All religions merged into one order should raise the human spirit towards its essential divine status, transcendental status, so that man’s nature becomes filled with divine qualities of Almighty of love, compassion, kindness, purity and with all that is sublime, beautiful, holy and sanctifying. The human heart is the right field for the play of these sublime, divinely qualities such as harmony, understanding, unity, selflessness and a spirit of service. This is the real religion and true practice of religion – to be a true child of Almighty, to be a true witness to His all-perfection.
If we are representatives of that Cosmic Being, then through our lives, the whole world must see and recognize the perfection that That Being is. Then alone a new global era can dawn for humanity in the
twenty-first century. Religion can and must become a great unifying force, a great force for unity and harmony. Then and then alone can we say that, indeed the effulgent Lord has spoken to man and that religion has now come to take its rightful place in human society and fulfil its ordained/intended destined sublime role of making everyone aware of his/her spiritual nature and oneness with humanity. For within all, that same Light of almighty dwells as consciousness, our true eternal identity. “Nijanand Order” in this context represents that universal pan-religious order that is brought to this world by none
else but the exalted power of Aksharātheeth Pār Brahm, Allah-Thala, Christ of Christ, Supreme Truth God or the Almighty, and as prophesied in all major religions; Hindu spiritual texts, Christ the messenger and Muhammad the Prophet.
(Please look elsewhere for I how tumbled on to this order and for a
detailed understanding through its Ultimate Revealed
Wisdom)
Sandeep Vasant
October 9, 2021 — 10:35 pm
Very nicely explained, Dr. Ramchandran. I completely agree with your thoughts. It is ultimately only one supreme cosmic reality. It is we humans have given different names under the roof of religions. We need to raise ourself from above all religions and except only one and that is humanity.