WHY I AM A HINDU- Post taken from the site bangladeshihindu.com

I found this post while randomly browsing the net , a very very well written article, i was surprised to see that not many people have read the article, hope this article is transmitted to a wider audience after i post it on my Blog.
WHY I AM A HINDU – Best Explanation..
Four years ago, I was flying from JFK NY Airport to SFO to attend a meeting at Monterey , CA. An American girl was sitting on the right side, near window seat. It indeed was a long journey – it would take nearly seven hours. I was surprised to see the young girl reading a Bible unusual of young Americans.
After some time she smiled and we had few acquaintances talk. I told her that I am from India Then suddenly the girl asked: ‘What’s your faith?’ ‘What?’ I didn’t understand the question.
‘I mean, what’s your religion? Are you a Christian? Or a Muslim?’*
‘No!’ I replied, ‘I am neither Christian nor Muslim’. Apparently she appeared shocked to listen to that. ‘Then who are you?’
‘I am Hindu’, I said.
She looked at me as if she was seeing a caged animal. She could not understand what I was talking about.* A common man in Europe or US knows about Christianity and Islam, as they are the leading religions of the world today. But a Hindu, what?.*
I explained to her – I am born to a Hindu father and Hindu mother. Therefore, I am a Hindu by birth.*
Who is your prophet?’ she asked. ‘We don’t have a prophet,’ I replied.*
‘What’s your Holy Book?’* ‘We don’t have a single Holy Book, but we have hundreds and thousands of philosophical and sacred scriptures,’ I replied.*
‘Oh, come on at least tell me who is your God?’* ‘What do you mean by that?’* ‘Like we have Jesus and Muslims have Allah – don’t you have a God?’*
I thought for a moment. Muslims and Christians believe one God (Male God) who created the world and takes an interest in the humans who inhabit it. Her mind is conditioned with that kind of belief.* According to her (or anybody who doesn’t know about Hinduism), a religion needs to have one Prophet, one Holy book and one God. The mind is so conditioned and rigidly narrowed down to such a notion that anything else is not acceptable. I understood her perception and concept about faith.
You can’t compare Hinduism with any of the present leading religions where you have to believe in one concept of god.* I tried to explain to her: ‘You can believe in one god and can be a Hindu. You may believe in multiple deities and still you can be a Hindu. What’s more – you may not believe in god at all, still you can be a Hindu. An atheist can also be a Hindu.’*
This sounded very crazy to her. She couldn’t imagine a religion so unorganized, still surviving for thousands of years, even after onslaught from foreign forces.*
‘I don’t understand but it seems very interesting. Are you religious? ‘ What can I tell to this American girl?*
I said: ‘I do not go to temple regularly. I do not make any regular rituals. I have learned some of the rituals in my younger days. I still enjoy doing it sometimes..’*
‘Enjoy? Are you not afraid of God?’*
‘God is a friend. No- I am not afraid of God. Nobody has made any compulsions on me to perform these rituals regularly. ‘*
She thought for a while and then asked: ‘Have you ever thought of converting to any other religion?’*
‘Why should I?. Even if I challenge some of the rituals and faith in Hinduism, nobody can convert me from Hinduism. Because, being a Hindu allows me to think independently and objectively, without conditioning. I remain as a Hindu never by force, but choice.’
I told her that Hinduism is not a religion, but a set of beliefs and practices. It is not a religion like Christianity or Islam because it is not founded by any one person or does not have an organized controlling body like the Church or the Order, I added. There is no institution or authority.*
‘So, you don’t believe in God?’ she wanted everything in black and white. ‘I didn’t say that. I do not discard the divine reality. Our scripture, or Sruthis or Smrithis – Vedas and Upanishads or the Gita – say God might be there or he might not be there. But we pray to that supreme abstract authority (Para Brahma) that is the creator of this universe.’*
‘Why can’t you believe in one personal God?’* ‘We have a concept – abstract – not a personal god. The concept or notion of a personal God, hiding behind the clouds of secrecy, telling us irrational stories through few men whom he sends as messengers, demanding us to worship him or punish us, does not make sense. I don’t think that God is an autocratic emperor who wants others to respect him or fear him. ‘I told her that such notions are just fancies of less educated human imagination and fallacies, adding that generally ethnic religious practitioners in Hinduism believe in personal gods.
The entry level Hinduism has over-whelming superstitions too. The philosophical side of Hinduism negates all superstitions.* ‘Good that you agree God might exist. You told that you pray. What is your prayer then? she asked’ ‘Loka Samastha Suk ino Bhavantu. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shanti, ‘* ‘Funny,’ she laughed, ‘What does it mean?’* ‘May all the beings in all the worlds be happy. Om Peace, Peace, Peace. ‘*
‘Hmm ..very interesting.. I want to learn more about this religion. It is so democratic, broad-minded and free’ she exclaimed.* ‘The fact is Hinduism is a religion of the individual, for the individual and by the individual with its roots in the Vedas and the Bhagavad-Gita. It is all about an individual approaching a personal God in an individual way according to his temperament and inner evolution – it is as simple as that.’
‘How does anybody convert to Hinduism?’ ‘Nobody can convert you to Hinduism, because it is not a religion, but a set of beliefs, practices and a way of life and culture. Everything is acceptable in Hinduism because there is no single authority or organization either to accept it or to reject it or to oppose it on behalf of Hinduism.
‘* For a real seeker, I told her, the Bible itself gives guidelines when it says ‘ Kingdom of God is within you.’ I reminded her of Christ’s teaching about the love that we have for each other. That is where you can find the meaning of life. Loving each and every creation of the God is absolute and real. ‘Isavasyam idam sarvam Isam – (the God) is present (inhabits) here everywhere – nothing exists separate from the God, because God is present everywhere. Respect every living being and non-living things as God. That’s what Hinduism teaches you. Hinduism is referred to as Sanathana Dharma, the eternal faith. It is based on the practice of Dharma, the code of life. The most important aspect of Hinduism is being truthful to oneself. Hinduism has no monopoly on ideas – It is open to all. Hindus believe in one God (not a personal one) expressed in different forms. For them, God is timeless and formless entity. Ancestors of today’s Hindus believe in eternal truths and cosmic laws and these truths are opened to anyone who seeks them. But there is a section of Hindus who are either superstitious or turned fanatic to make this an organized religion like others.
The British coin the word ‘Hindu’ and considered it as a religion. I said: ‘Religions have become an MLM (multi-level- marketing) industry that has been trying to expand the market share by conversion. The biggest business in today’s world is Spirituality. Hinduism is no exception’* I am a Hindu primarily because it professes Non-violence – ‘Ahimsa Paramo Dharma’ – Non violence is the highest duty. I am a Hindu because it doesn’t conditions my mind with any faith system. A man/ woman who change ‘s his/her birth religion to another religion is a fake and does not value his/her morals, culture and values in life. Hinduism was the first way of life originated. Be proud to be a hindu and be proud of who you are. Om Namo shivaya, Om Namo Narayanaya Namaha

Growing Up As a WWE Fan in The 90's in India

The 1990's in India was a fabulous period for all of us who grew up in it, no SMS, no Facebook, No Twitter, No multiple SIM mobile phones e.t.c , it was a Renaissance period for India. It was the time where for the first time the Indian Economy became liberalized thanks to economic reforms. Notwithstanding all the mumbo-jumbo it was the time where blood-relations, filial obligations were stronger than business obligations. The Human Factor in daily life was at its zenith then , the whole para/moholla/locality Knew each other, Addas were common there as life was still lived at a leisurly pace unlike today. The onslaught of Cable Tv had not yet begun then and Doordarshan was still a popular channel, the shows were classy and generated huge TRP'S before the TRP'S became such a craze, serials like Mahabharata, Sri Krishna, Jungle Book, Chitrahaar e.t.c made people finish their work quickly so that they could come home and watch the shows in peace.
WWF(wwe) was the show that had grabbed my fancy during that time, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Triple H, Goldberg, Hulk Hogan ,The Undertaker, Kane, Rikishi e.t.c were my role models then :p, Vince Mcmohan was a villain to me who tried to destroy the lives of these guys, it gave me great joy to see that these guys could overcome the devious schemes of Vince Mcmohan and emerge victorious. Of course i was naive at that time and believed Wrestling to be real, every stunner , every people's elbow, every pedigree brought me immense happiness, i cried when they were busted open or were struck with steel chairs. The Whole show made me believe that being macho is the way to go. My friends and I used to practise the moves in School much to the horror of the onlookers, our whole life apart from studies seemed to revolve around WWE. Possessing a pack of WWE cards was equivalent to possessing an I-pHONE in our circle. We tried to connect every incident occuring in our life with the incidents happening in WWE. For the first time in my life i was not sure about my decision of whom to support during the Triple H -Austin rivalry. Triple H was a certified badass but his evil personality exuded irresistible charisma which made me become his fan while Austin was the toughest dog ever to set foot on earch causing Hell wherever he went. My life during that period was pathetic by my standards, two of my role models were kicking the life out of each other while i could not do anything, the rivalry continued for about 1 year and by that time i had reached Class 6 that is High School. Due to my hectic routine i could not squeeze in enough time to watch my favorite show and slowly i lost interset in it. Now in 2011 while surfing the channels i came across Ten Sports which beams WWE and saw a familiar figure from the past dressed formally , yes it was Triple H , he had now become the Head of the WWE replacing his father-in law Vince Mcmohan, now as a somewhat mature individual i could realize that the dialogues,rivalries, fights were all scripted. But instead of being disappointed or heartbroken i was happy as it reminded me of my glorious past, the past innocence which made me believe whatever was shown to me. India may have progressed rapidly in the 21st Century but for me India in the 90's was the best period as Values of Humanity, Love, Trust still held prominence over matters of Money .

Past is always glorious
by that only you have become known or famous
that must remain on or continuous
the reason may be many or various

you can't go by the past
though it might have ended fast
the present may still be eluded
if past is not at all included

you love the present and think of future
the thing which is not there for sure
Think of the past with little from present
you won't feel future too absent

don't read much about anything
you will have to prove for everything
you can't trust the present trend
you may plan accordingly with some mends- hasmukh amathalal
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