SPIRITUALITY
-- What it is
I
SPIRITUALITY
MAN is older than all philosophies
and religions, which in fact were originally intended, and later on fashioned
and developed, for his moral and spiritual well-being so that he may ultimately
attain salvation or freedom from the bondage of mind and matter. But in
spite of riches, moral codes, and the vast acquisition of learning, knowledge
and wisdom, he is not really satisfied with life, because he has not been
able to realise the Fundamental Truth of Love which lies at the core of
all religions.
God made man and man made religions.
Religions, then, are for man and not man for religions. The various religions,
Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Sikhism and others, came into
existence in course of time to serve the primary human need according to
the exigencies of the then prevailing conditions. If we travel back along
the stream of time, we find no trace of the Sikhs beyond five hundred years
ago, of the Muslims beyond fourteen hundred years, of the Christians beyond
two thousand years, of the Buddhists and the Jains beyond five or six thousand
years. Before the advent of the Aryan tribes many races appeared and disappeared
on the scene of life. But man has ever remained a man, the lord of created
things, in all times and in all climes, whether in the East or in the West,
always and everywhere the same, an ensouled body or embodied soul with
no distinctions of caste, creed or colour in his essential nature. The
inner self in him is of the same essence as of God.
"The spirit in man is of the same essence as the All-Pervading Spirit."Every country and every age has had its sages and seers. Corruption and deterioration are the natural features of time, and prophets appear time and again to set things in order. All religions owe their birth to the teachings of such Master-souls. The aim and purpose of the various religious orders has ever been the same -- to provide a Way-back to God, to find the missing link between God and man. They are thus a means to an end and not the end in themselves. But in actual practice we find that none of them affords any high degree of satisfaction. The fault lies not with the religions but with those who administer them to the people.
-Gond Kabir"All creatures are products from one and the same Jauhar (Essence)."
- Sheikh Saadi