By TwoCircles.net Staff Correspondent,
Kochi: A new forum has been formed under the leadership of Justice VR Krishna Iyer, former chief justice of the Supreme Court of India. The ‘International Interfaith Dialogue India’ will have Kochi as its base. Padmavibhushan awardee and famous singer Dr KJ Jesudas is the brand ambassador of the forum and MD Nalappat, cultural leader and Vice-Chair of the Manipal Advanced Research Group, UNESCO Peace Chair, is the president.
We have to build up a culture of intellectual pluralism by spreading an ethics of political participation, human rights, non-violence and religious harmony, said Js VR Krishna Iyer, the Chief Patron, while inaugurating the first executive meeting of the International Interfaith Dialogue India at the Gokulam Park in Kochi on Wednesday (June 9, 2010). The Indian Constitution guarantees religious freedom but there is a real threat from communal elements to misuse it. A truly religious person cannot hate another just because of difference in religion. Such hate-mongers are really anti-religious, despite their claims contrary. Pluralism is India’s great contribution to the world civilization, he added.
Dr KJ Jesudas, Js VR Krishna Iyer and Prof MD Nalapat at the programme
Hinduism, Budhism, Christianity and Islam are all built upon diversity and hold within themselves an amazing, even bewildering, variety of teachers and teachings, opined Prof MD Nalappat, who presided over the meeting. He continued that the most primitive forms to the most abstract spiritual philosophies appeared from the variety of teachers and teachings of the religions. In the dawning global age we can no longer claim that any one religion is the only truth for all humanity any more than we can claim that one language, culture or way of life is the best for all. We are all children of a Single God and this theme should unite us all, he added.
Every Indian religion should co-exist as our country is a secular country and I strongly believe that music is a spiritual bridge between religions, said Dr KJ Jesudas while delivering felicitation address. My father taught me not to be an exclusive part of a particular stream. I didn’t understand its fuller meaning at my tender age. Now I realize its wider insights. He added that he believed in spreading the essence of religious harmony by singing psalms and songs using Indian classical Ragas. The great singer also cited Qur’anic verse 2: 62 to prove Islam’s fundamental theme of pluralism.
We should appreciate variety rather than singleness, opined Fr Albert Nambiaparambil, secretary of the World Fellowship of Inter-religious Councils. A garden is attractive because of pluralism in their colours. Making all religions the same is a denial of pluralism and can breed another form of intolerance. Pluralism in any field does not mean that all alternatives are the same but that we do have different choices, which not all may be good or equal. It is the acceptance of varieties of choices, he added. Pluralism means freedom and there should be freedom in the pursuit of the spiritual life, even if it allows others to arrive at a different understanding of truth than what we ourselves honour, said Prof KM Bahauddin, former PVC of the Aligarh Muslim University.
Dr. K.S.Radhakrishnan said that equating of all religions as equal and good makes it appear wrong for religions to disagree with one another, even if their views are contrary. It, actually, destroys discrimination in religion and makes people blur over different views of God, immortality, the goal of life, and the ways to achieve these. Rather than honouring diversity in religion, such an attitude attempts to reduce this diversity to a vague identity that no one can challenge. Vested interests are always active to destroy the core-values and concepts by way of misinterpretation and even by mistranslation. Justice K.A.Abdul Gafoor, vice president of the movement said that different paths will appeal to different individuals relative to their varying temperaments or levels of development, which are bound to be diverse and ever changing. Some of these paths may be good or noble, others may be naive or perhaps even despicable. A pluralistic view does not attempt to police the paths, but rather to sustain the freedom that prevents any one path from imposing itself upon all as the final truth.
Justice PK Shamsuddin called for a pro-active pluralistic interpretation of different religions by its leaders while welcoming the gathering. Adv PK Ibrahim, vice-president, delivered the vote of thanks. Swamy Shankaracharya Omkar, Justice PK Shamsuddin and Dr Raphael Thattil are patrons of the forum. Js KA Abdul Gafoor, KP Ramanunni and Adv PK Ibrahim are vice-presidents. NM Sharafudheen is the general secretary and KM Abdul Salam is the treasurer of the forum.