Hinduism does not have an “Other” to quarrel with. It is the deductive approach that has made many a European lose interest in Christianity
There is a greater affinity between Hinduism and Christianity than with Islam or Judaism. Jesus Christ walked the earth and performed innumerable miracles to cure and otherwise help common folk in the region around Jerusalem. His betrayal by Judas, trial by the Roman rulers and crucifixion on Calvary Hill are all on record. Christians insist Jesus was the son of God whereas the Muslims look upon him as a prophet; the Jews reject him as nobody. Hindus, who take an interest in knowing about other religions, would say he was rather like an avatar.
I am a committed Hindu with clear views on my faith. When I visited Jerusalem a few years ago, I was feeling somewhat ill and weak. On our visit to Calvary Hill, I somehow forgot about rest and simply kept going upward, with my family, till we reached the top of the hill and returned to the base and then our hotel. Evidently, some unknown and unseen power was driving me to walk on and further upwards.
To come back to similarity, Christianity is not as much against idol worship as its priests might claim. Every church has a cross, while every Roman Catholic place of worship has a portrait or statue of the Virgin Mary as a symbol of Immaculate Conception. Hinduism also permits the practice of yoga, which means surrogacy, wherein the fathers could even be celestial figures, as were the fathers of the Pandavas of the Mahabharata. Significantly, Islam and Judaism demand transnational loyalty from their followers. The Muslims call this “qaum above vatan”, i.e., religion above state. On the other hand, nationalism above all, as a concept was conceived by Christian Europe. Hindus have their faith in Bharat Mata as the political goddess to be followed. In this context, the only point of difference in India between Christianity and Hinduism is the conversion of poor Hindus. Tempting and luring needy Hindus by offering help, including money, in exchange for quitting the worship of say, Ambaji and Hanuman, and worshipping Jesus Christ in a Church from day one after conversion, has been unwelcome, and also a source of tension.
A day’s visit to the Dangs district of Gujarat would demonstrate the anguish local Hindus feel. The Christian community across the world comes through as well-educated. And knowledge can lead to thinking, and quite a few thinking people can become hungry for their spiritual advancement. They would prefer not to be told as to what is pious and what is sinful; what is heaven and how they would be dispatched to one or the other on Doomsday, on the command of God. If religion touches base with logic, Christianity would fall on the side of Deductive Logic, which begins with an imaginary premise. For example, my god is the only god and there is no other. If one wants to go to heaven, one has to go through him. For a simple person, it would be convenient to accept such a given thesis because the corollaries that follow such a thesis are easy to digest. But a thinking person may find the proposition imposing. He/she would welcome the freedom for his psyche to play about with. In this case, Hinduism with its inductive logic would be more satisfying. The reason is that the faith would expect the follower to choose his dharma or duty in life. Thereafter, it would be a matter of how well he works towards fulfilling that dharma. That is karma. For the thinking psyche, it is freedom and freedom all the way. There is almost a limitless treasure of scripture and mythology to guide the follower, from the Vedas, Puranas, Bhagavad Gita and the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Fortunately, in the interreligious context, Hinduism does not have an “Other” to quarrel with. It is the deductive approach that has made many European lose interest in Christianity. There is no animosity against it, but a loss of interest as it leads to an unfulfilled spirituality. Hinduism as a whole has not proselytized, made no real attempt to convert and yet, there are some one hundred ISKCON temple complexes, mainly in the USA and Europe. The chant of “Hare Krishna, Hare Rama” has been popularized by ISKCON.
Take, for example, Kerala. Christianity simultaneously faces two rivals. There is communism along with its insistent atheism, and the sword of Islam then Hindus who ideally would prefer peace and harmony. Christianity on its own cannot wield power. The choice of the Christian community to solely depend on itself in the last elections handed the communists a thumping victory. Why should Kerala enjoy the unique honour of keeping the flag of Marx fluttering? Hardly anywhere else in the world is it even remembered. Even libraries have reduced space on their shelves for Das Kapital. Kerala is a cultural jewel of India. Its speciality is worship; the state’s temples and churches are a unique sight to behold. The Maharaja of Travancore, when he ruled as the trustee of Lord Padmanabha, allowed up to 20 per cent of his people to become worshippers of Jesus Christ. Today, there is hardly any Christian denomination that is not present in Kerala.
(The writer is a well-known columnist, an author and a former member of the Rajya Sabha. The views expressed are personal)