Understanding Islam

Part - IV

There are many others apart from the six great Islamic saints that I have presented in Part-II of
this article. As mentioned in the beginning of the 2nd part of this article, the whole idea of all this
deliberation is to awaken a clear picture of Islam in the minds of Hindus, especially those who are
devoted to the ideals of Sri Ramakrishna. Once a clear picture of Islam dawns in the minds of Hindus then
will arise a genuine respect for the Muslim individual in the mind of the Hindu. It must be acknowledged,
that right now, a good number of Hindus are engaged in positive hatred towards Muslims for real and
perceived suffering meted out by Muslims towards Hindus over the last 1000 years. This constant friction
between the common Hindu and the common Muslim has gradually awakened the garrulous spirit, the
aggressive spirit, and the self-preservation instinct in the common Hindu, which had all but vanished from
Hindu India in the wake of the Buddhist reformation of Hinduism. Today, the social dynamic between
these two communities is one of aggression on the part of the Hindu and reluctant submission on the part
of the Muslim. When the Muslim raises his voice against this kind of ill-treatment, immediately comes
the reply from the newly awakened Hindu community that these are nothing compared to the atrocities
sustained by them over centuries. It is clear that the social and political situation, arising due to the Hindu-
Muslim dynamic has reached, or will shortly reach, a point of no return in our country.

Over a period of 1400 years in its history, Islam has today all but become a socio-political force
in the world, completely neglecting, ignoring, persecuting, and driving underground its own supremely
rich spiritual aspect. So, any interaction with Islam today has become political. Swamiji defines politics as
follows in his Math Rules: What is called politics in society is nothing but the struggle between the privileged and
non-privileged classes, brought about by this difference in enjoyments. He further adds: The Ramakrishna Math will
not pay much attention to social reform. For, social ills or evil customs are a sort of disease in the social body. If that
body is nourished by education and food, those evil customs will disappear by themselves. Hence, instead of wasting its
energy in vociferously ventilating the social evils, it should be the aim of this Math to nourish the social body. How
does one nourish the social body? All healthy social changes are the manifestations of the spiritual forces working
within, and if these are strong and well adjusted, society will arrange itself accordingly. Each individual has to work out
his own salvation; there is no other way, and so also with nations. Again, the great institutions of every nation are the
conditions of its very existence and cannot be transformed by the mould of any other race. Until higher institutions have
been evolved, any attempt to break the old ones will be disastrous. Growth is always gradual. 1 Sects, therefore, as a
matter of course, must exist here, but what need not exist is sectarian quarrel. Sects must be but sectarianism need not.
The world would not be the better for sectarianism, but the world cannot move on without having sects. One set of men
cannot do everything. The almost infinite mass of energy in the world cannot be managed by a small number of people.
Here, at once we see the necessity that forced this division of labor upon us – the division into sects. For the use of
spiritual forces let there be sects; but is there any need that we should quarrel when our most ancient books declare that
this differentiation is only apparent, that in spite of all these differences there is a thread of harmony, that beautified
Unity, running through them all? Our most ancient books have declared: ‘Ekam Sat vipraha bahudha vadanti’; ‘That
which exists is One; sages call Him by various names.’ Therefore, if there are these sectarian struggles, if there are these
fights among the different sects, if there is jealousy and hatred between the different sects in India, the land where all

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Complete Works: Vol-5: Sayings & Utterances

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sects have always been honored, it is a shame on us who dare to call ourselves the descendants of those fathers. 2
National union in India must be a gathering up of its scattered spiritual forces. A nation in India must be a union of
those whose hearts beat to the same spiritual tune. 3 The Hindu society needs to gather up its spiritual forces in
order to become strong again; so also does the Muslim society need to do the same. Once both these
groups gather up the spiritual forces inherent in them, it won’t take long to recognize that there is
tremendous similarity in the spiritual forces acting on and through them. That is what is meant by ‘hearts
beat to the same spiritual tune’. If the spiritual Hindu meets the spiritual Muslim, where is there any fight,
quarrel or fanaticism? For instance, see the wonderful dissertation entitled ‘The Encounter between
Hinduism & Islam through the eyes of Mystics’,4 written by Mark N Orzech, Dept of Anthropology,
University of North Texas, USA. Didn’t we see how such an interaction plays itself out? A devotee of Sri
Ramakrishna, named Manmatha Nath Ghosh, recorded the following amazing incident: After I was married
I could not visit the Master, as I had to go here and there looking for a job. At last I secured a position with Rally
Brothers, but my monthly salary was so small that I could not afford to hire a carriage to go to the office. I had to walk
back and forth from our house on Beadon Street to the office in Dharmatala via Geratala. One evening as I was passing
by the Geratala mosque, I heard the loud prayer of a Muslim fakir [holy man]: "O my Beloved, please come! Please come,
O my Beloved!" He was repeating this prayer with love and longing as tears rolled down his cheeks. Suddenly I saw Sri
Ramakrishna climb down from a hired carriage and rush up to the fakir. The two embraced each other. This incident
happened when the Master was returning from Kalighat after visiting the Divine Mother there. What a wonderful sight
it was! Two other people were in the carriage. One of them was Ramlal, a nephew of Sri Ramakrishna, who used to give
me Prasad at the Master's command at Dakshineswar. That picture of the Master still lives vividly in my memory. 5

It is very interesting to note that Swamiji included some Rules in his Math Rules, which can only
be a vital learning from his deep knowledge of Islamic history:

Sri Ramakrishna’s utterances, well complied and accepted by His constant attendants will be honored as
commentaries of the Vedas. The Vedas are to be interpreted in the light of Sri Ramakrishna’s ideas and ideals. Above all,
this should be always borne in mind that all His teachings are for the good of the world. If ever anyone heard from Him
anything that was harmful, it should be understood that it was meant for a particular individual, and that, though it
might be harmful when followed by others, it was beneficial to that particular individual. From among all His
utterances, those that were meant for particular individuals and those that were for universal good, are to be separated
in this way. Of these, only the teachings meant for universal good will be compiled in book form and circulated among the
public. Teachings meant for particular individuals will also be collected and privately preserved in the Math. By means of
these teachings the preachers of the Math will be trained to give special instructions to particular individuals. One of the
Master’s own utterances is that those who have seen the chameleon but once, know only one of its colors; but those who
have lived under the tree are aware of all the colors it assumes. Therefore, no saying of His will be accepted as authentic,
unless verified by those who constantly lived with Him and whom He brought up to fulfil His life’s mission.

Moreover, a vital point of deviation of Islam away from Divine Intention lies in its claim that
Allah alone is God, and Mohammad alone is the channel through which God’s Power descended to
humanity. To avoid this dangerous development in Hinduism, Swamiji added the following Rules: If the
Master commanded us to renounce anything besides lust and gold, it is the limiting of the infinite aspect of God by

2
Complete Works: Vol-3: Lectures from Colombo to Almora: The Common Bases of Hinduism
3
Ibid
4
Available on www.academia.edu
5
Sri Ramakrishna as we saw him: Ed: Swami Chetanananda; Pg-372

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saying, ‘He is this much only.’ Whoever will try to limit the infinite aspect of God, in this manner, is a despicable fellow
and hater of God.

Over the last 50 years, a militant form of Hinduism has evolved, revolving around the rise and
consolidation of Hindutva-based political parties in India. Their core theme is hatred towards the Muslims
and Christians in India. Their reply to every objection to their hate-mongering is ‘what-about-ery’; every
time, they reply by recalling in great detail the past incidents of Muslim and Christian aggression on
Hindus, over the last 1000 years, saying, ‘What about…..? Where were you guys when that event
happened?’ Can’t the same question be asked of them, ‘where were they when these horrendous events
happened in the past?’ This virulent form of Hinduism is a direct reaction of Islam’s interaction with the
‘mild Hindu’, sustained over a 1000 years. Hindus have to learn to come to terms with their past. Hindus
were unable to digest Buddha’s influence on their society. Somehow, Buddha’s message was
misinterpreted by Hindus to mean that all violence must be eschewed. In course of time, this message
came to mean that even self-preservation was not necessary!

The thing with Islam is this – every time any other religion tries to engage with Islam, it will
invariably dictate the terms of engagement, and that is always political. Islam has perfected its political
form, with a water-tight Sharia. Any possibility of including non-Muslims in decent, democratic
discourse has been entirely eliminated in the popular versions of Sharia today. In the absence of any
inclusion of the ‘other’, the only way in which Islam interacts with the ‘other’ is confrontation. The
confrontation generally leads to violence with the ‘other’. Islam has now perfected the typical cycle of
confrontation-victimhood-isolation as a community. The accumulated work of the Islamic scholars in
developing the dynamics of this behavior, from the times of Umayyad Caliphate till date, has effectively
closed all doors of reformation in Islam. If Islam is seen through the prism of Sharia, no meaningful
interaction between Hindus and Muslims is possible. The only way of meaningful interaction between the
Hindu and the Muslim lies through the spirituality present in equal measure in both the grand religions.

1. The spiritual Hindu alone can interact with the spiritual Muslim.
2. The spiritual Hindu can only ignore and stay far away from the political, non-spiritual
Muslim.
3. The spiritual Muslim can only interact with the other, Muslim or non-Muslim, in stealth, for
his own political Muslims brothers will hound him down for transgression of Sharia.
4. The political, non-spiritual Hindu can only fight violently with the political, non-spiritual
Muslim, and unfortunately, even with the spiritual Muslim.

The 1st possibility has been demonstrated by Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda. The 4th
possibility is being worked out every day in India today. All the newspapers are filled with the details of
this 4th possibility of Hindu-Muslim interaction. The 2nd & 3rd possibilities are present today in minor
pockets here and there in India, since genuinely spiritual persons, whether they be Hindus or Muslims, are
always very small in number.

The future lies in the 1st possibility. For that, Hindus will have to recognize and legitimize the
extremely spiritual aspect of Islam. Spiritual Christianity, spiritual Islam and spiritual Hinduism can
accommodate one another easily. It is the political aspects of these religions that will exclude the ‘other’.
Spirituality exists in Hinduism, Christianity and Islam, even today. But they are not the mainstream
versions of their religions. However, unlike the other two religions, in Hinduism, almost all Hindus know

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that genuinely spiritual people do not dabble with politics. Hence the distinction between the purely
spiritual Hindu and the political Hindu of the common run is quite stark in Hinduism and very much in
the knowledge of the common Hindu. Hinduism, therefore, has the duty of bringing the spiritual aspects
of these religions into the mainstream and legitimizing them.

Swamiji makes a very pertinent observation regarding Islam: Some people find it really difficult to
understand the frenzy of religious fervor which moved the heart of Mohammed. He would grovel in the dust and writhe
in agony. Holy men who have experienced these extreme emotions have often been called epileptic. The absence of the
thought of self is the essential characteristic of the love for God. Religion nowadays has become a mere hobby and
fashion. People go to church like a flock of sheep. They do not embrace God because they need Him. Most persons are
unconscious atheists who self-complacently think that they are devout believers. 6 We should not miss the urgent
note of caution here. It is possible to adhere to physical and social observances and consider ourselves as
religious. Recall Rabe’a saying: I saw the Prophet in a dream. He said, ‘Rabe‘a, lovest thou me?’ I said, ‘O
Messenger of God, is there anyone who doesn’t love you? But love of the Real has so enveloped me that there is no place
in my heart for love or hatred of another.” Rabe’a also said, “It is an evil servant, who worships his Lord out of fear
or reveres him desiring a reward.” So, they asked, “Why do you worship the Lord? Have you no desire?” She
replied, “‘The neighbor, then the house,’ as they say .7 Isn’t it everything to us that we have been commanded to
worship him? If there were no heaven or hell, then it wouldn’t be necessary to worship him!? Wouldn’t he deserve to be
worshiped without intermediary?” 8

Swamiji says: The product of the slums of any nation cannot be the criterion of our judgment of that nation.
One may collect the rotten, worm-eaten apples under every apple tree in the world, and write a book about each of them,
and still know nothing of the beauty and possibilities of the apple tree. Only in the highest and best can we judge a
nation — the fallen are a race by themselves. Thus it is not only proper, but just and right, to judge a custom by its best,
by its ideal. 9 Do you judge of an apple tree and the taste of its fruits by the unripe, undeveloped, worm-eaten ones that
strew the ground, large even though their number be sometimes? If there is one ripe developed fruit, that one would
indicate the powers, the possibility and the purpose of the apple tree and not hundreds that could not grow.10

Privilege kills religion. Priestly privilege almost killed Hinduism. The same priestly privilege is
also killing Islam. It is one of the greatest ironies of our existence that the Hindu Avataras discovered
Advaita, Unity of all existence, in the face of which, all privileges melt down. Yet, no society has suffered
as much as the Hindu society has due to privilege. Swamiji points out that Mohammad was hell-bent at
rooting out all priestly privilege. He says: The Prophet Mohammed himself was dead against the priestly class in
any shape and tried his best for the total destruction of this power by formulating rules and injunctions to that effect. 11
But the priestly class seems to be a demon that simply refuses to die. Hit it down, and it resurfaces in
another form, more virulent that previous. Modern Islam finds itself helpless in the death-grip of its
Imams, Mules, and Scholars. Swamiji explains the dynamics of privilege very beautifully: The Hindu mind

6
Complete Works: Vol-8: Notes of Class Talks & Lectures: The Love of God-II
7
Sri Ramakrishna used to say something very similar. He would say: Get to know the master of the estate; then you
will in due course get to know how much land he has, how many mango trees he has, etc. This Iraqi proverb that
Rabe’a quotes is the same thing; if you know the neighbor, you will get knowledge of his house as well.
8
Fariduddin Attar’s Memorial of God’s Friends: Pp: 97-112
9
Complete Works: Vol-2: Reports in American Newspapers: Ideals of Womanhood
10
Complete Works: Vol-6: Epistles – 2nd Series: written to Maharaja of Khetri in 1894
11
Complete Works: Vol-4: Translations: Prose: Modern India

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was preeminently deductive and very rarely synthetic or inductive. In all our philosophies, we always find hair-splitting
arguments, taking for granted some general proposition, but the proposition itself may be as childish as possible. Nobody
ever asked or searched the truth of these general propositions. Therefore independent thought we have almost none to
speak of, and hence the dearth of those sciences which are the results of observation and generalization. And why was it
thus? — From two causes: The tremendous heat of the climate forcing us to love rest and contemplation better than
activity, and the Brahmins as priests never undertaking journeys or voyages to distant lands. There were voyagers and
people who travelled far; but they were almost always traders, i.e. people from whom priestcraft and their own sole love
for gain had taken away all capacity for intellectual development. So their observations, instead of adding to the store of
human knowledge, rather degenerated it; for their observations were bad and their accounts exaggerated and tortured
into fantastical shapes, until they passed all recognition.

So you see, we must travel, we must go to foreign parts. We must see how the engine of society works in other
countries, and keep free and open communication with what is going on in the minds of other nations, if we really want
to be a nation again. And over and above all, we must cease to tyrannize. To what a ludicrous state are we brought!

There is so much idea of equality, says the priest, that my little privilege will not be detected. So say our rich
men, so say the tyrants of every country. There is more hope for the tyrannized over, than for the tyrants. It will take a
very long time for tyrants to arrive at freedom, but less time for the others. The cruelty of the fox is much more terrible
than the cruelty of the lion. The lion strikes a blow and is quiet for some time afterwards, but the fox trying persistently
to follow his prey never misses an opportunity. Priestcraft is in its nature cruel and heartless. That is why religion goes
down where priestcraft arises. Says the Vedanta, we must give up the idea of privilege, then will religion come. Before
that there is no religion at all.

The fact that all these old religions are living today proves that they must have kept that mission intact; in spite
of all their mistakes, in spite of all difficulties, in spite of all quarrels, in spite of all the incrustation of forms and figures,
the heart of every one of them is sound — it is a throbbing, beating, living heart. They have not lost, any one of them, the
great mission they came for. And it is splendid to study that mission. Take Mohammedanism, for instance. Christian
people hate no religion in the world so much as Mohammedanism. They think it is the very worst form of religion that
ever existed. As soon as a man becomes a Mohammedan, the whole of Islam receives him as a brother with open arms,
without making any distinction, which no other religion does. If one of your American Indians becomes a Mohammedan,
the Sultan of Turkey would have no objection to dine with him. If he has brains, no position is barred to him. In this
country, I have never yet seen a church where the white man and the negro can kneel side by side to pray. Just think of
that: Islam makes its followers all equal — so, that, you see, is the peculiar excellence of Mohammedanism. In many
places in the Koran you find very sensual ideas of life. Never mind. What Mohammedanism comes to preach to the world
is this practical brotherhood of all belonging to their faith. That is the essential part of the Mohammedan religion; and all
the other ideas about heaven and of life etc.. are not Mohammedanism. They are accretions. 12

Religion seems to attract fanatics. Swamiji has some very interesting things to say about fanatics:
In ninety cases out of a hundred, fanatics must have bad livers, or they are dyspeptics, or are in some way diseased. By
degrees even physicians will find out that fanaticism is a kind of disease. I have seen plenty of it. The Lord save me from
it! My experience comes to this, that it is rather wise to avoid all sorts of fanatical reforms. This world is slowly going
on; let it go slowly. Why are you in a hurry? Sleep well and keep your nerves in good order; eat right food, and have
sympathy with the world. Fanatics only make hatred. Do you mean to say that the temperance fanatic loves these poor
people who become drunkards? A fanatic is a fanatic simply because he expects to get something for himself in return. As
soon as the battle is over, he goes for the spoil. When you come out of the company of fanatics, you may learn how really

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Complete Works: Vol-2: Practical Vedanta & other lectures: The Way to the Realization of a Universal Religion

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to love and sympathize. And the more you attain of love and sympathy, the less will be your power to condemn these poor
creatures; rather you will sympathize with their faults. It will become possible for you to sympathize with the drunkard
and to know that he is also a man like yourself. You will then try to understand the many circumstances that are
dragging him down, and feel that if you had been in his place you would perhaps have committed suicide. In this way
things should not go on. Life is not so easy as they believe it to be; it is a more serious business! A man must not only
have faith but intellectual faith too. To make a man take up everything and believe it, would be to make him a lunatic. I
once had a book sent me, which said I must believe everything told in it. It said there was no soul, but that there were
gods and goddesses in heaven, and a thread of light going from each of our heads to heaven! How did the writer know all
these things? She had been inspired, and wanted me to believe it too; and because I refused, she said, ‘You must be a very
bad man; there is no hope for you!’ This is fanaticism.13

Imagine the situation when the privileged class also turns out to be fanatics! Even God himself
would cry out in helplessness in such a situation. Reason and rationality is the remedy for curing the
addiction to privileges. But, if the privileged class happens also to be fanatic, reason and rationality won’t
work on them! Imagine the mess! The way out would be to ignore this privileged, fanatics and
concentrate on developing genuinely spiritual people. True spirituality is a powerful answer to selfishness
and fanaticism.

Every religion retains embers of true spirituality, no matter how degenerated it appears to the
superficial observer. This is true with Hinduism. It is true also with Christianity and Islam. Real, genuine
hunger for seeing God lies just under the surface. If we but scratch a little, it will gush forth.

When we study the history of religion we find that while all of them start with emphasizing
spirituality over everything else, somehow, with the passage of time, all sorts of secondary, derivative
things take precedence over spirituality. Hinduism lasted long enough to discover this dynamic of the
divine power of the Avataras. So, Hinduism learnt to nurture genuine spirituality over everything else.
Never was there a period in India when genuinely spiritual persons were not honored and revered, even
when they came from foreign cultures. However, Hinduism does suffer in a peculiar way for this
development. In this land, privilege attaches itself to the man of realization. Therefore, one will find the
maximum of charlatans in Hinduism, much more so than can be found in other religions. As a race, as a
society, we have trained ourselves to revere anyone who claims to be holy, irrespective of his
background. All one needs to do is tout some spiritual jargon and he would have ‘arrived’ in the Hindu
world! He can claim all sorts of special privileges until the day he exposes himself by violating one of the
rules concerning money or sex or both. We therefore have in our traditions popular sayings such ‘Jat na
pucho sadhu ka’ (don’t delve into the past of a holy man); ‘Yadyapi amar Guru surapan kore, tathapi ama Guru
Nityananda Rai’ (even if my Guru goes to the bar to drink liquor, he is nevertheless my Guru, the all-
blissful one). We also have concepts such as ‘Hataath Siddha’; this refers to a person who gets his spiritual
realization all of a sudden, out of the blue, without having to undergo any sort of spiritual practice at all.
On the other hand, we see in Islam the opposite of this phenomenon. The only way a spiritual soul will
get recognition for his spiritual achievements is if he were to die for his belief in God! While living, no
one can ever claim recognition, let alone special privileges, due to one’s spiritual realizations, genuine or
spurious. Now, if physical death be the test of spiritual realization, there is hardly any incentive for
‘seeing God’.

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Complete Works: Vol-5: Notes from Lectures & Discourses: On Fanaticism

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 Let us consider a scenario to understand both Hinduism and Islam. Let us say that there are two
educational institutions. We can imagine three cases in this scenario.

Case-1: The authorities run the 1st educational institution as a highly efficient school. All the
students are given a very strong grounding in the foundations. The curriculum is highly structured, but is
standardized, with no room for improvising by teachers. Everything in the school is regimented to a T.
The course lasts a whole life-time for a student. In some instances, we get a student who masters the
course material before his lifetime ends. The school has nothing to offer him in their program, neither will
they allow him to leave the school and go to another educational institution elsewhere. Many times,
experts have advised the authorities to upgrade their school into a college, but to no avail. Every time the
school comes across such a gifted student, he is severely punished. The school believes strongly in
corporal punishment, something that has been abolished in most other educational institutions. As a
result, students have all but stopped exerting themselves to excel in their courses. They have understood
that it is enough to merely go through the motions of attending classes, mouthing words of respect to
teachers, learning by-heart the course material and that’s it. Nothing more is required of them. Who
would want to run the risk of getting punished for doing well? Many attempts were indeed made to
upgrade the school to a college, but all of them failed. There were no professors. Everyone wanted to be a
school teacher. No one wanted to be a professor, guiding the gifted students in meaningful research. Over
the 1300 years of its existence, quite a good amount of research has indeed happened, but all of them
were outside the system, purely on personal initiative, with the authorities having nothing to do with it.
And things go on like this even today!

Case-2: The authorities run the 2nd educational institution as a premier research facility. All
programs are self-designed and self-paced. There is lot of scope for cross-disciplinary work. Affiliations
are loose across departments. Since the institution has been running for a really long time, it has earned a
great name for itself. But, lately, no serious output is seen from their scholars. Nobody is sure what
research is going on, and who that research is helping. But lot of funds pour in and the students and
professors all seem to be very comfortable. To a superficial observer, the institution seems to be
functioning like a self-serving agency, with no tangible results trickling down to the common man in the
society who funds their work. Some committees were formed from time to time, who have tried to
understand what is really going wrong with the institution. All of them found out that the problem lay in
under-qualified students getting admitted to do research. From time to time, the authorities have been
advised to start a school where students can get grounded in their fundamentals, but to no avail. Some
attempts were indeed made to start a school in the institution, but there were no teachers available.
Everyone wanted to guide the research, no one wanted to train the school students. They said there was no
prestige associated with being a school teacher, but if you had a couple of research scholars, and you
hammered out a couple of papers every year, hashing up from the endless publications of the past, you
were highly respected! Very rarely, a really gifted boy does get admitted, who does some really solid
research, but this doesn’t happen even once in the lifetime of many professors. And things go on like this
even today.

Case-3: The authorities of both these institutions meet up, share notes, decide to collaborate and
arrange for capacity sharing.

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 Swamiji wrote an amazing letter to a Muslim boy who was very close to him. His name was
Mohammad Sarfaraz Hussain.14 We quote the letter in its entirety here, for it is very apropos:

I appreciate your letter very much and am extremely happy to learn that the Lord is silently preparing
wonderful things for our motherland.

Whether we call it Vedantism or any ism, the truth is that Advaitism is the last word of religion and thought
and the only position from which one can look upon all religions and sects with love. I believe it is the religion of the
future enlightened humanity. The Hindus may get the credit of arriving at it earlier than other races, they being an older
race than either the Hebrew or the Arab; yet practical Advaitism, which looks upon and behaves to all mankind as one's
own soul, was never developed among the Hindus universally.

On the other hand, my experience is that if ever any religion approached to this equality in an appreciable
manner, it is Islam and Islam alone. Therefore I am firmly persuaded that without the help of practical Islam, theories of
Vedantism, however fine and wonderful they may be, are entirely valueless to the vast mass of mankind. We want to
lead mankind to the place where there is neither the Vedas, nor the Bible, nor the Koran; yet this has to be done by
harmonizing the Vedas, the Bible and the Koran. Mankind ought to be taught that religions are but the varied
expressions of THE RELIGION, which is Oneness, so that each may choose that path that suits him best.

For our own motherland a junction of the two great systems, Hinduism and Islam – Vedanta brain and Islam
body – is the only hope.

I see in my mind's eye the future perfect India rising out of this chaos and strife, glorious and invincible, with
Vedanta brain and Islam body.

Ever praying that the Lord may make of you a great instrument for the help of mankind, and especially of our
poor, poor motherland,

Yours with love,

Vivekananda.

This letter seems to showing us the way forward for the Case-3 scenario that we mentioned
above. In fact, this letter appears to be the blue-print for the Hindu-Muslim interaction in the future. Every
statement of this letter is filled with prophetic vision. Hinduism and Islam have to join hands. Along that
path alone lies the future of India. When a person of Swamiji’s stature says ‘I see in my mind’s eye..’ it is
not rhetoric, nor platitude, nor a manner of speaking. It is literal. This is prophetic vision. Ordinary
persons like us may not make much sense of such things, but these things are going to happen. So, in the
future, will India become entirely Islamic, or entirely Hindu? We want to lead mankind to the place where there
is neither Hinduism, nor Christianity, nor Islam; yet this has to be done by harmonizing Hinduism, Christianity and
Islam. Then Swamiji makes a very cryptic statement. He says: Mankind ought to be taught that Hinduism,
Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, etc. are but the varied expressions of THE RELIGION, which is Oneness, so
that each may choose that path that suits him best. Can we even imagine in today’s circumstances that religions
will allow for inter-religious mobility of followers? And yet, such a thing may come to pass in the future.
Education can do such miracles. Today, we make much of the differences between one religion and
another. How really different are the various religions? When it comes to the essentials, aren’t they the

14
Complete Works: Vol-6: Epistles – 2nd Series: written on 10th June, 1898

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same? It is the non-essentials that differentiate them. Just as today we can go into a shopping mall and
choose from about a hundred different brands of body soap, knowing that all of them are made of the
same ingredients, so also will the future boys and girls have the freedom and the right to choose from a
smorgasbord of religions. Personal preferences of fragrance, shape and color will be the deciding criteria.
Allergic reactions to one of the ingredients will be a deciding factor. No soap manufacturer can say that
since I have bought their soap once, I will need to buy it again per force.

Swamiji explains this futuristic scenario most beautifully as follows: Now an ideal presents itself to
my mind. It may be only a dream. I do not know whether it will ever be realized in this world, but sometimes it is better
to dream a dream, than die on hard facts. Great truths, even in a dream are good, better than bad facts. So, let us dream a
dream.

You know that there are various grades of mind. You may be a matter-of-fact, common-sense rationalist: you do
not care for forms and ceremonies; you want intellectual, hard, ringing facts, and they alone will satisfy you. Then there
are the Puritans, the Mohammedans, who will not allow a picture or a statue in their place of worship. Very well! But
there is another man who is more artistic. He wants a great deal of art — beauty of lines and curves, the colors, flowers,
forms; he wants candles, lights, and all the insignia and paraphernalia of ritual, that he may see God. His mind takes
God in those forms, as yours takes Him through the intellect.

Then, there is the devotional man, whose soul is crying for God: he has no other idea but to worship God, and to
praise Him. Then again, there is the philosopher, standing outside all these, mocking at them. He thinks, ‘What nonsense
they are! What ideas about God!’

They may laugh at one another, but each one has a place in this world. All these various minds, all these various
types are necessary. If there ever is going to be an ideal religion, it must be broad and large enough to supply food for all
these minds. It must supply the strength of philosophy to the philosopher, the devotee's heart to the worshipper; to the
ritualist, it will give all that the most marvelous symbolism can convey; to the poet, it will give as much of heart as he
can take in, and other things besides. To make such a broad religion, we shall have to go back to the time when religions
began and take them all in. Our watchword, then, will be acceptance, and not exclusion. Not only toleration, for so-
called toleration is often blasphemy, and I do not believe in it. I believe in acceptance. Why should I tolerate? Toleration
means that I think that you are wrong and I am just allowing you to live. Is it not a blasphemy to think that you and I
are allowing others to live? I accept all religions that were in the past, and worship with them all; I worship God with
every one of them, in whatever form they worship Him. I shall go to the mosque of the Mohammedan; I shall enter the
Christian's church and kneel before the crucifix; I shall enter the Buddhistic temple, where I shall take refuge in Buddha
and in his Law. I shall go into the forest and sit down in meditation with the Hindu, who is trying to see the Light
which enlightens the heart of every one.

Not only shall I do all these, but I shall keep my heart open for all that may come in the future. Is God's book
finished? Or is it still a continuous revelation going on? It is a marvelous book – these spiritual revelations of the world.
The Bible, the Vedas, the Koran, and all other sacred books are but so many pages, and an infinite number of pages
remain yet to be unfolded. I would leave it open for all of them. We stand in the present, but open ourselves to the
infinite future. We take in all that has been in the past, enjoy the light of the present, and open every window of the
heart for all that will come in the future. Salutation to all the prophets of the past, to all the great ones of the present,
and to all that are to come in the future!15

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Complete Works: Vol-2: Practical Vedanta & other lectures: The Way to the Realization of a Universal Religion

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 The 1st step towards such a grand unification will be a genuine appreciation of one another, of one
another’s achievements, of one another’s contributions to the world’s progress. So, as good Hindus, we
ought to genuinely learn to appreciate the good that is in Islam. Let us allow Swamiji to lead us along this
path: Now compare the first three centuries of the quick spread of the civilization of Islam with the corresponding
period of Christianity. Christianity, during its first three centuries, was not even successful in making itself known to the
world; and since the day when the sword of Constantine made a place for it in his kingdom, what support has
Christianity ever lent to the spread of civilization, either spiritual or secular? What reward did the Christian religion
offer to that European Pandit who sought to prove for the first time that the Earth is a revolving planet? What scientist
has ever been hailed with approval and enthusiasm by the Christian Church? Can the literature of the Christian flock
consistently meet the requirements of legal jurisprudence, civil or criminal, or of arts and trade policies? Even now the
‘Church’ does not sanction the diffusion of profane literature. Is it possible, still, for a man who has penetrated deep into
modern learning and science to be an absolutely sincere Christian? In the New Testament there is no covert or overt
praise of any arts and sciences. But there is scarcely any science or branch of art that is not sanctioned and held up for
encouragement, directly or indirectly, in the Koran, or in the many passages of the Hadis, the traditional sayings of
Mohammed. The greatest thinkers of Europe – Voltaire, Darwin, Buchner, Flammarion, Victor Hugo, and a host of
others like them – are in the present times denounced by Christianity and are victims of the vituperative tongues of its
orthodox community. On the other hand, Islam regards such people to be believers in the existence of God, but only
wanting in faith in the Prophet. Let there be a searching investigation into the respective merits of the two religions as
regards their helpfulness, or the throwing of obstacles in the path of progress, and it will be seen that wherever Islam has
gone, there it has preserved the aboriginal inhabitants – there those races still exist, their language and their nationality
abide even to the present day.

Where can Christianity show such an achievement? Where are, today, the Arabs of Spain, and the aboriginal
races of America? What treatment are the Christians according to the European Jews? With the single exception of
charitable organizations no other line of work in Europe is in harmony with the teachings of the Gospel. Whatever
heights of progress Europe has attained, every one of them has been gained by its revolt against Christianity — by its
rising against the gospel. If Christianity had its old paramount sway in Europe today, it would have lighted the fire of
the Inquisition against such modern scientists as Pasteur and Koch, and burnt Darwin and others of his school at the
stake. In modern Europe Christianity and civilization are two different things. Civilization has now girded up her loins
to destroy her old enemy, Christianity, to overthrow the clergy, and to wring educational and charitable institutions from
their hands. But for the ignorance-ridden rustic masses, Christianity would never have been able for a moment to support
its present despised existence, and would have been pulled out by its roots; for the urban poor are, even now, enemies of
the Christian Church! Now compare this with Islam. In the Mohammedan countries, all the ordinances are firmly
established upon the Islamic religion, and its own preachers are greatly venerated by all the officials of the State, and
teachers of other religions also are respected.16

Till India grows to this level, Hindus will keep interacting with Muslims in this land. It will
certainly be a bitter-sweet relationship for a long time to come, until mutual respect grows between them.
In the meantime, Swamiji gives us some practical advice on how we Hindus will need to work among the
Muslims. He was writing to his brother disciple Swami Akhandananda, who had started working among
the poor people of Murshidabad in West Bengal. Akhandananda had started a hostel for poor kids in the
region. Some Muslim boys had applied for being admitted into the hostel. So Akhandananda had written
to Swamiji asking for advice. Swami Vivekananda wrote: You must admit Mohammedan boys, too, but never
tamper with their religion. The only thing you will have to do is to make separate arrangements for their food etc., and

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Complete Works: Vol-5: Writings: Prose & Poems: The East & The West: Part-VI: France – Paris

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teach them so that they may be moral, manly, and devoted to doing good to others. This indeed is religion. Shelve your
intricate philosophical speculations for the present. In our country we at present need manhood and kindness. ‘Sa
tvasmin parama prema rupaha’ – The Lord is the Essence of unutterable love. But instead of saying ‘Prakashayate kvapi
patre’ – He is manifest in special objects, we should say, ‘Sa pratyaksha eva sarvesham prema rupaha’ – He is ever
manifest as Love in all beings. What other God – the creation of your mind – are you then going to worship! Let the
Vedas, the Koran, the Puranas, and all scriptural lumber rest now for some time – let there be worship of the visible God
of Love and Compassion in the country. All idea of separation is bondage, that of non-differentiation is Mukti. Let not
the words of people dead-drunk with worldliness terrify you. ‘Abhirabhih’ – Be fearless; Ignore the ordinary critics as
worms! Admit boys of all religions – Hindu, Mohammedan, Christian, or anything; but begin rather gently – I mean, see
that they get their food and drink a little separately, and teach them only the universal side of religion. Be mad over this,
and strike others with this madness! This life has no other end. Preach His name, let His teachings penetrate the world to
the very bone. Never forget. Repeat this Mantra in your heart of hearts unceasingly, as you go the round of your daily
duties. 17

We will end this rather long article by quoting Sister Nivedita. She wrote: India, to Vivekananda’s
thinking, was a Unity, and a Unity still more deeply to be apprehended of the heart than of the mind. His work in the
world, as he saw it, was the sowing broadcast of the message of his own Master. But his personal struggles, his personal
desires, were bound up in an inextinguishable passion for his country’s good. He never proclaimed nationality, but he was
himself the living embodiment of that idea which the word conveys. He, our Master, incarnates for us in his own person,
that great mutual love which is the Indian national ideal. 18 Note that this great mutual love can never make
distinctions between religion, race, color, ethnicity, caste, language, gender, or socio-economic status.

**************************

17
Complete Works: Vol-6: Epistles – 2nd Series: written on 10th October, 1897
18
Complete Works of Sr Nivedita: Vol-1: The Master as I saw Him: Pg: 167

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