Excerpt or quotes on: Interfaith Harmony & related expressions – summary update 2014 Feb 23 01

Filed under interfaith excerpt or quote | Summaries of related posts

Here are conveniently posted direct

quotations or excerpts

from Events, Poetry, Music scores or   Publications

associated with Sri Chinmoy: the Peace Meditation at the United Nations.

The focus is :

Interfaith Harmony, Cooperation  and

appreciation for various faiths and inspiring beliefs.

Please use full reverence if presenting  in another context.

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  •   “Spirituality is not merely tolerance. It is not even acceptance. It is the feeling of universal oneness. … Our spiritual life firmly and securely establishes the basis of unity in diversity. Spirituality is not mere hospitality to others’ faith in God. It is the absolute recognition and acceptance of their faith in God as one’s own. ”

– Sri Chinmoy, Yoga And The Spiritual Life. The Journey of India’s Soul., Agni Press, 1971. “

 

More from Sample quote from 1968 talk to the UN community:

Love, harmony, peace and oneness. These are man’s divine ideals. On the strength of his inner mounting flame, aspiration, man can easily, unerringly and spontaneously manifest these ideals of his in his human life, in every sphere of his life.

It is quite natural and proper that we should discover our God in and through our own religion. When we go deep within we come to realise that there is only one religion, and that religion is man’s inmost cry for God-Realisation.

In the hoary past, Asoka, the great Emperor of India, sent missionaries to the corners of the globe with a profound message: “The basis of all religions is the same, wherever they are. Try to help them all you can, teach them all you can, but do not try to injure them.”

Let each religion play the role of a flower. Let us make a garland of these divine flowers and offer them at the Feet of God.

God will be pleased. We shall be fulfilled.

 – Sri Chinmoy,  1968 Nov 26

including on “faith”., “spirituality” etc

  •  Vivekananda spoke not of Man-made religion or religions,

But of a God-created Oneness-world-family-heart-home.

– Sri Chinmoy, Vivekananda: An Ancient Silence-Heart And

A Modern Dynamism-Life, Agni Press, 1993

  •  Namo Arihantaanam  – Namaskar Mantra

Music Composed by Sri Chinmoy on November 2, 1996

 Lyrics • Bengali

 Namo arihantaanam,   Namo siddhaanam,   Namo aayariyaanam

Namo uvajjhayaanam,     Namo loe savva saahunam

Translation

 I bow to the Arihantas — the ever-perfect spiritual victors.

I bow to the Siddhas — the liberated souls.

I bow to the Acharyas — the leaders of the Jaina order.

I bow to the Upadhyasa — the learned preceptors.

I bow to all the saints and sages everywhere in the world.

[This is the “Namaskar Mantra” of the Jain religion.  Both the words and the translation are traditional.]

– appears in Jainism: Give Life, Take Not [song #5] A book of 10 songs, and also in fuller collection of talks etc of same title published by Agni Press in 1998.

  •  When the religion-bird

Flies in the spirituality-sky,

It far transcends religion-limitations.

–  Sri Chinmoy, Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees,

Part 15, # 14980; Agni Press, 1999

  • Each religionIn the depths of its heartTreasures Truth.

     – Sri Chinmoy, Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, Part 25, # 24606, Agni Press, 2002

  •  The fulfilment of God’s Will Is the only religion I proudly claim.

– Sri Chinmoy, Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, Part 40, # 39899; Agni Press, 2004

  •  Each religion Is a special blessing That descends on earth-soil.

– Sri Chinmoy, Seventy-Seven Thousand Service-Trees, Part 45, 44420; Agni Press, 2006

  • Question : What has to prevail in religion — reason, or the sentiment of the heart? How can we identify a true religion?

In religion, the feeling of oneness-heart has to prevail, and nothing else. Religion is not a matter of reason. If we live in our oneness-heart, we will feel the essence of all religions, which is love of God. But if we live in the mind, we will only try to separate one religion from another and see how their ideologies differ. It is the heart that can have a true intuitive understanding of the height and breadth of all religions. It is the heart that sees and feels the inner harmony and oneness of all religions.

True religion has a universal quality. It does not find fault with other religions. False religions will find fault with other religions; they will say that theirs is the only valid religion and their prophet is the only saviour. But a true religion will feel that all the prophets are saviours of mankind. Forgiveness, compassion, tolerance, brotherhood and the feeling of oneness are the signs of a true religion.

  •  Sri Chinmoy, World-Destruction: Never, Impossible! Part 1, Agni Press, 1994
  • Religion Is in the Heart,  not in the knees.

– Music Composed by Sri Chinmoy (before 1980), words by William Jerrold.

– appears  in “Heart-Home of the Immortals”,  86 songs, published January 1, 1979

  • There Is But One Philosophy

– song Composed by Sri Chinmoy on July 18, 1988

There is but one philosophy: God can be seen With my aspiration-cry.
There is but one religion:  My life’s sunrise begins With God’s Compassion-Beauty.
There is but one code of life: I live to love God. God lives to purity me and perfect me,
So that He can hoist His Victory-Banner In the battlefield of my life.

– Appears in Flower-Flames, Part 5, A collection of 43 songs, published January 1, 1993  srichinmoysongs.com/song/view/there-is-but-one-philosophy/12627/?book=97

  • Question: What does God like best in a religion?

Sri Chinmoy: What God likes best in each religion is a big heart. Let each religion tolerate the others. If tolerance is there, then let each religion go one step further and also recognise other religions. Once recognition is given, each religion has to feel sincerely that other religions are as good and as true as itself. It has to feel that each religion is right in its own way and that all are equal.

Tolerance is the first step. But in tolerance there is always a sense of separativity. If I tolerate you, I feel that I am separate from you. So once a particular religion gives due value to other religions and sees their existence as an expression of truth, then that particular religion has to go high, higher, highest and deep, deeper, deepest in order to feel and establish its conscious oneness with the other religions. At that time it will realise that there are not several religions but only one religion.

When a religion comes to realise that all religions form a single, eternal religion-an eternal Eye of Truth or an eternal Heart of Truth-then that religion becomes perfect. This kind of discovery and achievement is what God likes best in a religion.

Sri Chinmoy, My Meditation-Service At The United Nations For 25 Years, Agni Press, 1995

  • Question: What does God like best about religions?

 (1978 version)

Sri Chinmoy: What God likes best in each religion is a big heart. Let each religion tolerate the others. If tolerance is there, then let each religion go one step further. Let it recognise other religions also. Once recognition is given, each religion has to feel sincerely that other religions are as good and as nice as itself. It has to feel that each religion is right in its own way, that all are equal in this way.

Tolerance of others exists as long as there is a sense of separativity. Once a particular religion gives due value to other religions and sees their existence as an expression of truth, then that particular religion can go high, higher, highest and deep, deeper, deepest. Seeing and establishing its conscious oneness with all other religions, it can claim that there is only one religion — not two or three, but only one religion. When a religion once comes to realise that all religions form one religion, one eternal religion, one eternal eye of Truth, an eternal heart of Truth, then that religion is perfect. This kind of discovery and achievement God likes best in the world religions, not only in one particular religion but in all religions.

 Sri Chinmoy, Flame Waves, Part 9, Agni Press, 1978

  • Question: How can the various world religions respond more cooperatively and effectively to humanity’s aspiration?

 Sri Chinmoy: It is the followers of religion who have to come forward and offer the qualities of their respective religions to other religions. It is the followers of religion who can and must work effectively to create humanity’s sincere aspiration.

Religion as such cannot do anything, but the people who give life to religion and who breathe in the breath of religion must come forward and create a new aspiration in humanity’s heart. If this is done, then all religions will be able to work together without losing anything of their own. On the contrary, by singing the song of oneness they will gain everything.

 -9 January 1976; appears in  Sri Chinmoy, Sri Chinmoy, My Meditation-Service At The United Nations For 25 Years, Agni Press, 1995; also appeared in Flame Waves, Part 7 by Sri Chinmoy.

  •  I must say that

there is only one religion. You call it Christianity, I call it Hinduism, somebody calls it Judaism and somebody else calls it Islam. But there is only one religion.

So when there is one religion, there cannot be nearness or distance. There are

many branches of the religion-tree, but there is only one religion, and that religion is God-realisation.

The ultimate Goal of all religion is God-realisation.

Religions may fight on the way to the goal, but at the end of the journey they become most intimate friends, and then they feel that they were all the time together on the same journey, only following different paths.

True, sincere followers of any religion, either Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism or Judaism, will never find fault in the truths of other religions.

They know that the ultimate Truth exists in each religion. But in the field of practice or manifestation, human thoughts, human ideas, human vibrations can alter the truth. This is at the root of conflict between religions. The moment we go deep within, however, we see that there is no religion, only Truth.

Sri Chinmoy, The Spiritual Journey: Oneness In Diversity, Agni Press, 1977

more text or links to programes to be added

If time permits some Quotes from others at Inter faith Programmes

  • –  such As Dep S-G at the re-dedication of rockwell mosaic  -take from video from “Do-unto others ” expressed in various religions

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