Tolerance in Religion

U

UltiTruth

In pursuit...
Registered Senior Member
The hallmark of a great religion is that it is open, evolves continuously, enriches itself with new ideas and allows its followers to explore and understand other religions too.
It is easy to throw stones at everything else in something as abstract as religion, but requires a great maturity to appreciate the good points of other faiths, and maybe even atheism itself.
Which parts of various religions allow such exploration and to what extent?
 
A few thoughts

The hallmark of a great religion is that it is open, evolves continuously, enriches itself with new ideas and allows its followers to explore and understand other religions too.
Click to expand...
This is a great standard, and one that is often asserted, but by definition I can't think of any "great religions". Some of Sciforums' anti-Catholics have in the past ridiculed the RCC church as selling out to idolaters and pagans for "enriching itself with new ideas and allowing its followers to explore and understand other ideas."

To the other, Sufism, while it demands an early association by the student to the principles of Islam, sheds all religious observance later in training; furthermore, Sufis assert to exist in many religions despite their Islamic centerpiece.

I recall that A.L. Basham, in Classical Hinduism, noted that in the history of Hindu, back even to the Aryans, there has existed a condition which was coined by famed sociologist Max Muller called "henotheism", in which major paradigm shifts are easily assimilated. In other words, whatever is the prevailing God's name is the prevailing God; it's all the same thing so it doesn't matter. This is partially because the major paradigm shifts were not particularly major; rather, the stylizing of the deities that came with the passage of time.

And there are a number of witchcrafts that have a single rule: An thou harm none, do what thou wilt. While these religions allow their followers to absorb whatever material the conscience finds suitable, one can hardly call any of them "great religions" because they aspire to loosely-based memberships numbering in the thousands, not in the millions or billions.

Two cents to go on, hopefully.

thanx,
Tiassa :cool:
 
Tiassa:
There are arguments of almost all religions being tolerant, and these are spelled out whenever religious clashes occur. I have read that there are parts in Islam, a religion considered most imposing as to allow even killing of non-believers (kafirs), that preach tolerance for people of other religions.

I have some inclination for the eastern religions and feel that some of these have the feature of tolerance packed into their philosophy itself. For example, since Hinduism is based on the premise that God incarnates continuously in various forms, Hindus have no stigma in accepting Jesus, the Buddha and even Allah as probable incarnations of God himself. Even atheism is ok as long as the person follows Dharma, the right way to life.
A majority of Hindus visit Churches, Mosques and Dargahs and this, without any feeling of guilt, since no text prohibits this. This is probably the reason that Hinduism never preaches conversions.

Christianity, I believe, atleast in its modern form, hasn't much against other religions, though historical excesses do remain for reconciling.
 
Ultitruth, sorry for the long delay, school, work, family, friends are sometimes an obstacle, but I will post the answer to your question because God is the center of my life. I will try not to put any caps on it, but the reason why it takes long id because I cant find any webpages to support it because there isnt any I can find, I might end up just typing it straightout right here, maybe today, just hold on....
 
I don't think Buddhism is a religion. I think it's more of a path.

And really, it is much too individualistic to really be called a path...right....babbling now....
 
I agree that Buddhism is more a philosphy/path of life as it doesn't talk much about God in so far as I know. Rather it talks of desire being the cause of all sorrow and exhorts one to become unattached. I wonder if one can remain so and yet continue normal materialistic life. Any ideas, EvilPoet?

Hardly have there been any instances of aggression by buddhism though the philosophy spread into the nooks and corners of several countries. Vis-a-vis Hinduism, I think there was no major conflict since Hindus believe the Buddha as an incarnation of Vishnu, and buddhism a part of Hinduism (which I guess, buddhists prefer not to accept!).

For that matter, you will find the buddhist caves at places like Ajanta, Ellora in India (what remain after the Islamic intolerance), having idols and paintings of not just the Buddha but also those of Siva, Vishnu and other Hindu gods.
 
Well, I think that depends on your definition of wealth. If you
believe that having money and possessions is the most important
thing in life above all else then it might be hard to achieve. The
cause of suffering in this case being an attachment to things.

To quote from my copy of "The Pocket Buddha Reader" by Anne
Bancroft:

"All delightful things of the world --- sweet sounds, lovely forms,
all the pleasant tastes and touches and thoughts --- these are all
agreed to bring happiness if they are not grasped and possessed.
But if you regard them merely as pleasures for your own use and
satisfaction and do not see them as passing wonders, they will
bring suffering.
Be aware of this paradox, for if you are blind to the way things
are you will not be able to make out anything, even though you
might be right on top of it.
The teaching about the way things are is not a way to
enlightenment for someone who is still filled with desires or who
still longs to be a this or a that. But those who do understand it
will become beings of distinction, dispersing all forces of
confusion." Sutta Nipata

"You should inquire deeply and directly into distress of the mind
and find out what has been created and who is the self that is
suffering. Without this understanding, you can't develop clarity
and the ability to help others. A person may be expert at undoing
knots, but if he never sees that there is a knot in front of him,
how will he undo it? Without clear and direct looking, you will be
locked into time and space and unable to free yourself from the
material world." Surangama Sutra

"There is freedom from desire and sorrow at the end of the way.
The awakened one is free from all fetters and goes beyond life
and death.
Like a swan that rises from the lake, with his thoughts at peace
he moves onward, never looking back.
The one who understands the unreality of all things, and who
has laid up no store --- that one's track is unseen, as of birds in
the air.
Like a bird in the air, he takes an invisible course, wanting
nothing, knowing the emptiness of all things."
Dhammapada
 
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