Taqwa, Piety, Spirituality and manifestation

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2012/06/taqwa-piety-spirituality-and.html

Taqwa; God consciousness
A tribute to Marylou Ghyst and Petra Weldes

St Francis  - Buddha - Hindu Monk -  Muslim  - Rabbi - Rev. Petra Weldes of Dallas

Taqwa, piety, or spirituality can be expressed both externally and internally. In the picture to the far right is Rev. Petra Weldes, possibly representing you and I, the common people who achieve piety within us, and without having to abandon the day to day life. The expressive form of piety is chosen by a few religious men and women through the costumes and the beards.  Pluralism is about the essence of what you do; finding peace within and with others regardless of the format you chose.  To claim that one is better than the other takes away any degree of piety you may have. Spirituality and arrogance are inversely proportional to each other.

I am dedicating this column to two of my favorite spiritualists, who lead a common life like you and I. Rev. Petra Weldes, who and I had extensive discussions about asking the religious leaders to the  parliament of world’s religions, had that happened, to wear clothes and look like everyone else, and hence dedicated to her.

The person who caused me to write this is Rev. Marylou Ghyst,  I am pleased to acknowledge  Marylou, our Christian Member of the World Muslim Congress, please note our membership is inclusive. We are a part of the large family of faiths and we are all in this together to create and shape a world that God willed; to attain the balance and Harmony between all elements of his creation.

Marylou’s major contribution to this forum is religious inquiry, which we appreciate, encourage and admire; it is an expression of freewill that God endowed to each one of the human beings. And because of her inquiries, we have been able to independently think and find the resources to support it. It is easy for Muslims to answer Muslims, or Christians to answer Christians, but difficult for anyone to share or understand the nuances and the cultural references. Marylou has succeeded in that endeavor. 

The first act of humanity began with free will, Adam was offered that choice, which he blundered, but God was not unhappy about it, nor did he scream at him or told him to go to hell for disobedience; instead God offered him more choices and we are here today, living with it. Thanks to Adam.

Marylou wrote, “Hi Mike, Just curious about something. The word "Taqwa" meaning God consciousness -- I was under the impression that Muslims believed God is outside the universe and therefore God consciousness is unattainable. Do I have the wrong information? Blessings, Marylou.” in reference to my note, “A good Hindu is a good Muslim, is a good Christian, is a good Jew, is a good Sikh.....when you reach Taqwa, the God consciousness, humans don't appear with religious labels..”

Taqwa means many things to many people. Islam is not a monolithic religion; we do have diversity of opinion, that we have come to accept, but don’t admit.  Indeed, Islam is about freedom but the followers are not completely free, if they were, the differences would have transformed into multiple denominations as in Christianity.

Every Prophet, Messenger and a peace maker had the special knowledge about spirituality, but more importantly they understood human nature, they were great psychologists.  Prophet Muhammad was indeed a master psychologist, he understood human nature, and initiated religious practices in the form of rituals that will help an individual achieve piety and humility, thus peace within and peace with others.

He further wanted the people to understand that the diversity is God given, and to keep the religious arrogance out, (its human to be arrogant), he prophesized that his followers will group themselves into 72/73 tribes (a metaphoric number to denote many) and advised each one to race in doing good deeds; the actions that benefit others without any return.

The concept of Taqwa exists in every religion - the Hindus call it Krishna consciousness, or Brahma, the idea of becoming a part of God, or lost in Godliness or God like, when you do not have conflicts with any one, all is yours and you belong to all. There is no barrier between you and the creation. Indeed, that is the un-expressed goal of every religion.

Jesus said, follow me, and Allah in Quraan said to submit to his will and Krishna says surrender to me - all are asking to become a part of the system to keep it functioning cohesively and out of free will.

Since my focus of this article is Taqwa, it is important to note, rather critical, that Islam is about behavior and not your costume or external manifestation. 

Further on piety:

One of the Islamic dictionaries writes;

“Taqwa is a concept in Islam that is interpreted by some Islamic Scholars as God consciousness. It has many understandings and interpretations. Taqwa may mean piousness, fear of Allah, love for Allah, and self restraint.

Taqwa allows a person to be constantly aware of both God's presence and attributes and a reminder of their relationship and responsibility to God as His creation and servant. The scholars explain that the way to taqwa is through obedience of God, avoiding disobedience, and striving to stay away from doubtful matters. “

Wikipedia:

According to Tafsir ibn Kathir, the root meaning of taqwa is to avoid what one dislikes. It was reported that Umar bin Khattab asked Ubay ibn Kaab about Taqwa. Ubay said, "Have you ever walked on a path that has thorns on it?" Umar said, "Yes." Ubay asked, "What did you do then?" to which Umar replied, "I rolled up my sleeves and struggled." Ubay said, "That is taqwa, to protect oneself from sin through life’s dangerous journey so that one can successfully complete the journey unscathed by sin."

Ibn Abbas said about verse 2:5 in the Quran, "guidance for the Muttaqin", that it means, "They are the believers who avoid shirk with Allah (swt) and who work in His obedience." He also said that Al-Muttaqin means, "Those who fear Allah's (swt) Punishment, which would result if they abandoned the true guidance that they recognize and know. They also hope in Allah's (swt) Mercy by believing in what He revealed

Islamic Knowledge websites adds:

“And We have sent down to you the Book as an explanation of everything, a guidance, a mercy and glad-tidings for those who submitted themselves to Islam.” [TMQ 16:89]

So let us understand the true meaning of Taqwa. In contrast to the distorted picture that people have today, the Qur’an and Sunnah defines the idea of taqwa as protecting oneself from the Hellfire by following the orders of Allah (swt) by doing what He (swt) has commanded and avoiding what He (swt) has forbidden. Many ayat in the Qur’an point to this:

“And unto Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. And, verily, We have recommended to the people of the Scripture before you, and to you (O Muslims) that you (all) fear Allah, and keep your duty to Him, But if you disbelieve, then unto Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth, and Allah is Ever Rich, Worthy of all praise.” [TMQ An-Nisa’ 4: 131]

Taqwa comes from the word 'waqiya', which means to protect. It is protection from the Anger of Allah (swt) and His (swt) punishment. This is why Taqwa is used to describe the performing of actions, which pleases Allah (swt) and abstaining from all actions that displeases Him (swt).

Taqwa in essence means god consciousness, being conscious of Allah (swt) in all our actions and affairs.

Dr. Ibrahim Syed of Islamic Research Foundation international, Inc., in Louisville writes, “It is hard to translate Taqwa into the English language. To me Taqwa is achieving Nobility, humility, generosity, forgiveness, service to mankind, animals and plants, compassion, mercy, etc.etc.”

I wrote a note about Taqwa during Ramadan. “True fasting is self-purification; and from this comes a rich inner life that brings about values such as justice, generosity, patience, kindness, forgiveness, mercy and empathy -- values that are indispensable for the success of the community.” And the values that brings closer to the godliness or God consciousness: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/spirit-of-ramadan_b_939961.html

Mike Ghouse is committed to nurturing the pluralistic values embedded in Islam and invites discussions with an open mind. Together, we can learn to be a productive citizen to our family, community, nation and the world - thus serving God’s purpose of peace; Islam the verb. Please visit www.MikeGhouse.net and if you have the time, connect with 5 other websites and 30 blogs on a variety of topics from Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel, Peace, Justice, conflicts etc.

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Standing up for Hindus

The purpose of writing this piece is to inspire each one of you to do things for others –  If you are not willing to stand up for others, why should anyone stand up for you?

In the following compilation, I will highlight some of the work I have done with and for Hindus and Hinduism. This excludes the work for my motherland India. However, there is a lot of work prior t0 2003 that I need to collect and put it together.  

I am blessed to connect with Atheists to Zoroastrians and every one in between including Native Americans. 

As an Indian it was embarrassing for me that most of the Indians have no clue about each other – a few Hindus know about Muslims, some of them don’t even know about Jainism or Buddhism let alone Sikhism.  Same goes with Muslim and others. We live and work together, and yet we don’t know about the other.

What do we know?  The cooked versions and bad things about others, shame on us.

So, I ventured out into public in 1993 to teach and to facilitate knowledge about each other.  The Asian News Magazine offered glimpses of each religion and every week, we wrote about the essence of every festival. Then we continued the same on Asian News Radio from 1996-2001.

Since this chapter about Hindus, I will focus on Hinduism, as brief as I can.

Shri DD Maini wrote articles on Hinduism and his visits to every place of worship in India, and our Dallas Hindu Scholar Dr. Hasmukh Shah wrote about Hinduism besides others and our first Radio show on Religion started with Dr. Hasmukh Shaw’s interview about Hinduism.  Then I did 100 hours of talk show Radio on Hinduism over a period of two years (and of course others) with Swami Nityananda Prabhu of Hare Krishna Temple, we learned the whole Bhagvad Gita and amazing principles of life.

We did two workshops on Hinduism as a part of learning about each other.

When I was called in by different Radio stations on Christmas day or other days to talk about Religion, I always talked about Hinduism (and others). I visited the Maya Temples in Mexico, there I prayed the Hindu (and other) prayers in the underground wells, and on the temple grounds.  All of this is available on my different sites and blogs.

Check out Dallas Morning News’s Texas Faith column – of the 80+ articles I have written, 70 of them carry a note about Hinduism. You can visit www.TheGhousediary.com and plug Texas Faith in the search box, and you can see most of the articles. For 2010 and before it is on blogs of Islam and Pluralism. 

For the first time in Dallas, I was able to bring all the Hindu Temple management teams together at the Program Shanti Shanti at Richardson Civic Center.  Mihir Meghani, President of HAF was introduced to Dallas for the first time.

The second time (and a few times after that) was the first Unity Day event in 2005 pictures at  www.UnitydayUSA.com  

As an individual it is my duty to share whatever little good I can and counter the bad with good.

We have various religious leaders visiting from overseas, particularly Hindu and Muslims, most of them preach goodness of their religion and a handful of them preach hate from the temples and the Mosques.  They come here to tell Hindus or Muslim to hate each other, their talk is loaded with hate in the place of worship and I always wonder how my Hindu and Muslim friends can listen to that. At least in Dallas,  the Muslim Imams give sermons about co-existence , however once in a blue moon some one comes along and speaks ill of others, both in Hindu and Muslim communities.   

If you are not comfortable in telling them that they are wrong, let me know, I will do that.  I will not even spare the big mega church Pastor Jeffress who called Hinduism a cult.  

I value free speech and the only way to combat evil is with goodness and love.

As I make the time, I will update this, there is a lot of work done prior to 2003, from when I kept records of my work inDallasIndians@yahoogroups.com and the blogshttp://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com and two sites world Muslim Congress and Foundation for pluralism.  There is a whole big story prior to 2003 that I need to put together…

Again, the purpose of compiling this piece is to inspire each one of you to do things for others. If you are not willing to stand up for others, why should anyone stand up for you?

 .........................................

Senator Williams' Remarks Offended Hindus
Governor of Kentucky attended a factory opening ceremony that created 275 jobs for Americans. Senator Williams  criticized the Governor for sitting cross-legged with a "dot on his forehead," and described the ceremony as "polytheistic." It is not only a Hindu issue, it is indeed an American issue and so I spoke up and wrote a piece and hope to meet him and share the wisdom of Hinduism.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/senator-williams-offend-hindus_b_1075392.html

Bigtory against Hinduism in RussiaBigotry exists not because of bigots, but because we have not spoken out against it. The Arcbishop of Siberia attacks the Bhagavad Gita, the holy book of Hinduism. I just could not sit and let the ignorance become the currency. So I wrote and asked Muslim, Christians, Jews, Sikhs and others to call the Russian Embassy in Washington DC and thanks to all those who made the call. This is how we build cohesive societies. 
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/12/bigotry-against-hinduism-in-russia.html
 

Surya Namaskar and Muslim responseThe Surya Namaskar is a Hindu religious tradition, a beautiful act of bowing to the Sun and welcoming the first rays of dawn as an expression of gratitude to the energy it breathes in to life and everything about life. I was urging the Muslims to participate in the event in their own way.
http://www.indianmuslimobserver.com/2012/01/latest-editorial-surya-namaskar-and.html

Doniger’s book on Hindu history - Factual errorsThe book: Hindus, an alternate history is out now. Wendy Donigers writes on Indian History laden with errors. It is our responsibility to hightlight the errors, and as civil socieites we cannot perpetuate the errors and pass on to the next generation as facts. Let the reader "beware clause" be added to the book that the facts are not verified.
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2010/04/donigers-book-on-hindu-history-factual.html
 

Swami VivekanandaWhen Swamiji talks about, “The Christian is not to become a Hindu or a Buddhist,” He was talking about religion is a pathway to spirituality.
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/03/swami-vivekananda-gave-new-meaning-to.html
 

Happy Ganesh ChaturthiAmong Hindus there is beautiful tradition of invoking that aspect of God which removes barriers and paves the way for a smoother life. The icon that represents this aspect of God is known as Ganesh, Ganesha, or Vinayak depending on the region, most Hindus around the world invoke Ganesh before they start any thing in life from starting their day, to opening a new business or wearing new clothes or starting a social ceremony. 
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/08/happy-ganesh-chaturthi.html

Should Christians practice YogaIn my weekly Dallas Morning News, I wrote about anti-yoga talks. Mohler seems to be threatened by the popularity of yoga, a beautiful practice to bring composure to oneself. He is obsessed with the idea that yoga is a bait to lure his congregation away into "a spiritual practice that threatens to transform their own spiritual lives into a `post-Christian, spiritually polyglot' reality", and then he asks, "Should any Christian willingly risk that?" How mistaken can one be?  

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2010/11/texas-faith-should-christians-and-other.html
 

Essence of DiwaliDiwali is the Indian festival of lights and light symbolizes hope and positive energy, it indicates the victory of good over evil; a new beginning; seeing the light at the end of tunnel and light is also a symbol of knowledge as it is an internationally used.

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/10/happy-diwali-essence-of-diwali.html

Dallas Religious Leaders, Swami Nityananda PrabhuThe open mindedness of Swami Nityananda Prabhu of Hare Krishna Hindu Temple; a panelist on this forum is admirable. Where ever I run, people love to talk about his teachings from Bhagvad Gita on my Radio Show, called Wisdom of Religion.  He has indeed opened up minds of non-Hindus to see the wisdom of Hinduism.

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/01/texas-faith-beyond-king-which-religious.html
 

Essences of Janmashtami Celebration of Sri Krishna's birthday, the man who gave us so much wisdom in Bhagvad Gita. The book is an encapsulation of his advise to Arjuna when he goes through different phases of thoughts and actions. ...It is one of the best self analysis books to read.

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2009/08/happy-janamashtami.html

Roberts Jeffress and his bigotryI am surprised that the Israel Lobby has spared this man. He has not spared Mormons, Muslims, Catholics, Jews, Buddhists and Hindus in his rants.
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/10/pastor-robert-jeffress-and-his-bigotry.html

Hinduism 101 Workshop – Dallas Morning News

The Foundation for Pluralism, a Dallas-based interfaith organization, will host the workshop at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 14315 Midway Road in Addison. Organizer Mike Ghouse, who founded the group and is the event's moderator, said this workshop will cover the origins of Hinduism, the concept of rebirth, India's caste system and more.

http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2007/02/hinduism-101.html

Happy Ramnvami – Birth Celebrations of Lord RamaIt is a Hindu festival, celebrating the birth of Lord Rama to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya of Ayodhya. Ram is the 7th incarnation of the Dashavatara of Vishnu.SreeRama Navami festival falls on the ninth day of the month of Chaitra in the Hindu calendar. and marks the end of the nine-day Chaitra-Navratri celebrations. I will be happy to do a presentation on the event. I enjoy listening to the stories about Rama, an exemplary person to model life after.

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/03/happy-ramnvami-lord-ramas-birthday.html

Diwali Vandana

Diwali is the Indian festival of lights, and the light symbolizes hope and positive energy; It is a poem I wroten
http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2009/10/diwali-vandana-diwali-prayers.html

Hanuman Jayanthi

Hanuman plays a critical role in the Indian epic Ramayana. It is the story of King Rama who was banished to the forest for fourteen years. While in exile, he remains defacto king, as his younger brother Bharata who was the king, submits to the will of Rama, his elder step brother.
Contd: http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/04/happy-hanuman-jayanthi-hindu-festival.html
 

Standing up for a Hindu Family in NorwayNorway is one of the nations looked up for best the civil conduct; however, they have failed to even study the culture of their inhabitants. Here Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharaya fed their child with hands as is the custom in their home land, India, and had the kids sleep on their bed. The Norway government found that to be offensive and abusive and took the child away from the family. 
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/01/stand-up-for-hindu-family-in-norway.html

Happy Holi, India’s festival of colors and joyHoli is an Indian festival of radiance. It is a celebration of spring with colors that nourish one’s joyous moods and complements the function of respective elements in the atmosphere.
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2012/03/happy-holi-india-festival-of-colors-and.html

Let’s leave Ram Sethu Alone

On the faith side, Ram Sethu is a bridge built by Hanuman and his friends; this was the bridge that Rama crossed over to go to Sri Lanka. It is not only an Indian heritage; it is a world heritage site. We may need to explore this and learn about the science and art of bridge making during the times of Rama. How did they fill the dirt in the ocean, what materials did they use? Will it bring an understanding of Ramayana?http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2007/09/lets-leave-ram-sethu-alone.html

Rama – A Muslim Perspective

As beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, faith is in the heart of the believer.
There is a consistent theme in Qur'aan of looking the world from a pluralistic point of view. Qur'aan, Al-Hujurat, Sura 49:13 " O mankind, we have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that ye may know one another. The noblest of you, in sight of Allah, is the best in conduct. Allah know and is aware of everything."http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2007/09/rama-muslim-perspective.html

Harassment of Hindus in Kazkhastan

The Muslim community condemns this insane act of the Government of Kazakhstan, I will seek support from Muslim groups to take the necessary action. Please recommend the course of action we can take. Who should we write to? Who should we call? Is this a religious harassment? Please send us the details.
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2007/02/hindus-harassed-in-kazhakstan-dear-mr.html

Hinduism and American PluralismWhat role does Hinduism play in the emerging pluralistic society? The author Jakob De Roover explores it well in the following article (after my comments)

http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2007/01/hinduism-and-american-pluralism.html

Hindu Muslim DialogueAn innovative approach to Hindu-Muslim dialogue. This reminds me of my College Professor Ramachandran and my weaver friend Fakhru Bhai; a Hindu and a Muslim respectively and I used to discuss and understand the wisdom of each aspect of religion.http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2008/05/hindu-muslim-dialogue.html

Supreme Court Brief Filed on Behalf of Hindu Americans 

In behalf of the Foundation for Pluralism and World Muslim Congress, I support the case filed by the Hindu American Foundation and hope the Supreme Court decides in favor of opening the hearts and minds of all people to include every faith and tradition in public square.

http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2008/06/discrimination-public-prayers.html

Ayodyha – proud of my India
The court has finally made the decision and so far peace has prevailed.  I was not able to sleep last night late until 3:00 AM and thank God, goodness has yet prevailed. If people don't agree, let it go to Supreme court, we have to prove to the world that we are a nation that respects rule of Law. Let other nations in the world look up to our model and never, every dream of becoming like the very ones we denigrate.
http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2010/09/ayodhya-proud-of-my-india.html

Ayodhya on 18^th Anniversary and democracy
The Babri Masjid controversy has been around since Mid Nineteenth century and after disputes, the right wing political parties demolished the 15th Centutry structure in Ayodhya on December 6th, 1992.http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2010/12/ayodhya-on-6th-anniversary-and.html

Am I a Hindu?
This is one of the most read articles among my Muslim and Christian friends. I came across this excellent piece "Am I a Hindu" explaining religion in its simplest terms. I recommend every one to take a few minutes to read through this. It is the simplicity of talking with a young girl that makes this article beautiful. I have added a few comments and additional information below the article.

 http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2008/01/am-i-hindu.html

Bangladeshi Hindus Harassed
The World Muslim Congress expresses outrage at the Municipal Council of Chakuli, in Mirpur, Bangladesh for evicting families from their ancestral Homes.http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2007/06/bangladeshi-hindus-harassed.html

Muslims condemn temple desecration

Dallas, Texas. Sunday, August 5, 2007- "It is a shame that people stoop so low to desecrate a place of worship. We condemn this crime" reflects Mike Ghouse, head of the Foundation for Pluralism and the World Muslim Congress.
http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2007/08/condemn-temple-desecration.html

Muslims condemn demolition of Hindu Temple
Dallas, Texas - The World Muslim Congress condemns the demolition of Hindu Temple in Lahore and urges the Government of Pakistan to restore the temple. Muslims follow Islam, a monotheistic religion but not a monolithic religion. Muslims who have deeply imbibed the teaching of Islam condemn the act of demolition of the temple in Pakistan.
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2007/01/krishna-temple-lahore.html

Muslims condemn intolerance in Malaysia

The act of carrying a head of a bull is un-acceptable and we urge the Malaysian Government to punish these loonies as criminals bent on disturbing peace of the state. They should not be cited as Muslims and their religion does not permit them to do that, they are criminals and must be cited as such.
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2009/08/festivities-soured-by-race.html

Protecting Pakistani Hindus
Let every Pakistani speak up and be a defender of other Pakistani, be it a Hindu, Ahmadiyya, Christian, Jew, Zoroastrian, Shia, Bohra, Ismaili or a Sunni. We need more voices to make this work. May God give us the passion to speak out and do the right thing. Amen!
http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2008/04/protecting-pakistans-hindus.html

Condemning Ghazni

This issue has been a sore subject with the Indians. Ghazni did destroy the Somnath temple, and it has been believed as destruction of Hindu Places of Worship.

http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2007/03/india-ghazni-temple-destruction.html

Malaysia – Bangaramma Verdict
The verdict amounts to forcing Ms. Bangarma to believe what she does not believe, that is not Islamic in any sense. The original intention of such ruling was to prevent treason against the state for switching loyalties to harm the state, sort of double agent. Bangarma is no harm to the state, her belief in Hinduism must be honored.http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2010/08/malaysia-banggarma-verdict-religiously.html

Muslims Speak out against Harassment of Minorities
The Talibans have begun harassing Ismaili Muslims in Pakistan. They would not spare any one and will not be satisfied until the last person left obeys them. If this trend is not checked and criticized, they may think that they have the approval from the Muslims. They don't.http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2009/06/muslims-speak-out-against-harassment-of.html

Add:

Catholic Church firing the priest for allowing a Hindu wedding in the church and my protest and the threat calls from California diocese.


My father's advice on communal riots

Interfaith dialogue with my English Teacher RamaChandra and Fakhru Bhai

Add the six page story on me from Dallas Observer.


Mike Ghouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India,Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity showon Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he writes weekly at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post,and several other periodicals. www.TheGhousediary.com is Mike's daily blog.

Bigotry against Hinduism in Russia

Incredible attack on the Holy Bhagvad Gita
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/12/bigotry-against-hinduism-in-russia.html

You and I have allowed blatant bigotry to be preached on our land unquestioned and unchecked. The damned thing is contagious and spreading to Russia and other nations. Bigotry exists not because of bigots, but because we have not spoken out against it.

Six years ago in December of 2006, the Archbishop of Russia called Krishna a Satan, and five years ago, the city of Moscow made serious attempts to usurp the land belonging to Krishna Temple. Of course, a few of us wrote about it and now per the news reports, the "Bhagvad Gita, one of the holiest Hindu scriptures, is facing a legal ban and the prospect of being branded as "an extremist" literature across Russia. A court in Siberia's Tomsk city is set to deliver its final verdict Monday in a case filed by state prosecutors." I would have never thought this day would come, when Bhagvad Gita would be attacked, the sacred text of Hinduism, it is rather a dialogue on reflections of one's conscience. It is one of the best self help books to find answers to the eternal questions about righteousness and one's duty to the self and the world. Hinduism is not a proselyting religion and Bhagvad Gita should not threaten any one of those weak men of religion.

The Holy Qur'aan has been deliberately mistranslated by medieval European Kings to paint Islam in bad light so they can frighten their subjects and buy their loyalty, and of course a Muslim Hilali Khan matched those kings and injected words into the translations that were not in Quraan, he wanted to build up ill-will against Jews and Christians for his presumed gain to restore the Caliphate. He has mistranslated nearly 60 Verses of Quraan. Fortunately there are still 20+ translations that are good, and thank God for that, the Arabic text has remained intact, although a group of proselytizing Christians have made attempts to mis-write Arabic version of Quraan in late eighties and distribute it in Kuwait. The best available translation is by Muhammad Asad, even this needs updating, but a good guide.

The attacks on Quraan and Bhagvad Gita are not based on knowledge but based on selling hate and collecting cash from the gullible congregants who trust the fox that guards the hen, all in the name of the man who taught to tell the truth and love thy enemy.

The good news is this bigotry is controllable, it has afflicted less than a percent of the population, and all of us together have to work on keeping those cancer cells from multiplying and harming our civilization and our civility.

I urge Non-Hindus to pick up the phone and call the Russian Embassy, if you cannot stand up for others, why should anyone stand up for you? The least you can do is fax a few words to their embassy "This is not a good thing" or write your comments at www.facebook.com/speakermikeghouse or in the comment section of www.Theghousediary.com

Russian Embassy
2650 Wisconsin Ave, NW
Washington, CD 2007
Tel: 202-298-5700
Fax: 202-298-5735

Please remain polite and ask their government to take responsible action and not let a few among them dictate a national policy. We are a small world, interdependent, interconnected and one fragile unit. Let's preserve it.

When Robert Jeffress, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, John Hagee, Herman Cain, Tom Tancredo, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and a bunch of talk show hosts spewed hate against fellow Americans, very few of us have spoken out against them in public medium, and they take that as an encouragement and spill out more. You and I are further responsible for remaining silent, when they make shameless comments against Jews, Muslims, Mormons, Wicca, GLBT, Hindus and other. This is not the America we want, nor is this world we like to see. We have to enter into a positive dialogue with a singular goal of building cohesive societies where none of us have to live in apprehension of the other.

We hope to resume the workshops on Religion, every religion to remove the myths about each religion.http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2007/04/understanding-hinduism-workshops-by.html

Mike Ghouse is committed to do his share of building a cohesive world and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His work is indexed at www.MikeGhouse.net and his current articles can be found at www.Theghousediary.com

Thanksgiving, why should we celebrate?

I am pleased to share the following articles about thanksgiving and it’s significance in our lives. I am committed to mitigate conflicts and nurture goodwill amongst people of different affiliations, that is my passion and I speak about it.

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1. Dallas Morning News: Why should we be thankful?
It is a day to pull ourselves together and tie up the loose ends of life. Through the year we receive a lot of good from others in the form of words and actions, and many a times it is a one way transaction and remains incomplete. Those who achieve balance in life are the happiest people. Indeed, our happiness is directly dependent on fulfillment of our desires; lesser fulfillment yields greater discontentment. So, the enlightened Buddha says, fewer the desires, lesser the sorrows! A full narrative is at:
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/11/texas-faith-why-should-we-be-thankful.html

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2. Huffington Post – A Pluralist’s Thanksgiving. The article weaves through several religions touching the heart and soul of each one. It's just not you, ask Bill Gates, whom God has blessed, he would say not enough! Ask the Homeless; the answer is still the same, not enough. Who has enough then? Then read the incredible story of gratitude. Appaiah turned around and asked me instead “Isn’t there so much to thank the lord?” I was rendered speechless. Here is a man with nothing to hope for, yet he is not complaining, that is gratitude!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse . If not published on Thursday, go to: http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/11/essence-of-thanksgiving.html

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Americans Together building a cohesive America

Our Mission is to build a cohesive America, where no American has to live in anxieties, discomfort or fear of the other. As a society, it is our responsibility to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen. Hate, prejudice and stereotyping are some of the many sources of disrupting the peace in a society and it is our duty to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it and nurturing goodwill. We need your input.

http://americatogetherfoundation.blogspot.com/2011/11/americans-together-documentary_11.html

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Happy thanksgiving

Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day to the media and the public. He is a speaker thinker and a writer on the topics of pluralism, cohesive societies, Politics, Islam, interfaith, India and Peace. Over a thousand articles have been published on the topics and two of his books are poised to be released on Pluralism and Islam. Mike's work is fully indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/ and you can find all of his current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com

ADDITIONAL READING, IF YOU HAVE THE TIME

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KENTUCKY STATE SENATOR WILLIAMS REMARKS OFFENDS HINDUS

It is not only a Hindu issue; it is indeed an American issue. The speaking out shouldn't be just from Hindus, but Christians, Jews, Muslims, Atheists, Pagans, Wiccans, Zoroastrians and others as well. Why should anyone stand up for you, if you are not willing to do the same for others? No one has a right to belittle other's faiths.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/senator-williams-offend-hindus_b_1075392.html

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SIKHS AND MUSLIMS CAN COME TOGETHER FOR GURPURAB
The ill-will between Sikhs and Muslims has run deep for over 350 years based on mistranslation of a verse from Quraan by Emperors sycophants, and carried further by the leaders of the Sikh community without any one making an effort to correct the translation and remove the misunderstanding. I was blessed to have that opportunity to interact with Dr. Aulakh Singh in Melbourne, Australia and hope, the ill-will mitigates. The good news is that, most of the Sikh youth are not familiar with it and I am glad they are not. Finding the truth is one’s own responsibility. Full story at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sikhs-and-muslims-on-542n_b_1087327.html

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ESSENCE OF EID-AL-ADHA: A MUSLIM FESTIVAL OF SACRIFICE

The following article, "Essence of Eid-al-Adha" was written for non-Muslims as well as Muslims, so they can relate with the essence of our celebrations. Unless we connect and relate, myths continue to flourish about us. There is a slight humor in the dialogue between Prophet Abraham and God with the intent of understanding what love and sacrifice mean in a relationship. A few Muslims may not see it, but Insha Allah it will go a long way in building bridges. I do hope the last item about appreciating men and women in the uniform goes a long way in building relationship.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/essence-of-eidaladha-a-mu_b_1075393.html