When we walk by faith, God opens doors to salvation

I think that it is human nature to keep trying to open the door that is closed and praying for God to open it because that is what we want, but it isn't always what is best for us. In life in general, we will go through many doors and many will be slammed in our face. The thing is that there is always a reason for closures and as long as we keep going, we get to where we are supposed to be. Faith is really not important in Hinduism is getting salvation. Hinduism does not care about your religion, sex, caste, rich or poor, etc. The only thing that is important is what you did.

As we know that for every action will have an equal and opposite reaction. If you do good you end up getting good. If you do bad you end up getting bad. Every being comes to this world with a mix of good and bad things done by themselves in their past lives. What happens to you in this life is the result of your actions in past lives. This cycle of lives will continue until you achieve a neutral state where you are left without any good or bad. As per Hinduism, good deeds and bad deeds are both equal and for any person who want to achieve salvation should get rid of both.

The ultimate goal of Hinduism is to make one realize that God is above everything, above good and bad, above joy and sad, above love and hate, above any two extremes, he is in everything, in everyone and every place and within you as well. Temples, Puranas, Vedas, etc are only to help you to understand this ultimate goal. These help you to clean yourself from inside Once you start to clean yourself from inside, your inner eye starts opening and then you will start finding answer for all the questions that you may have in the past; questions like Who is God? Does God really exist? if so where is he? why does it happen to only me? I did nothing wrong or bad but all I get is bad karma? etc.,

Hinduism says it doesn't matter what you believe but understanding the true meaning of god and achieving the state of the ultimate goal said above is important and only then you will achieve salvation. It's important to see everything else in the same way as you see yourself. You need to start seeing yourself in a friend, enemy, plants, tree, animals, thief, killer, etc. Hate is the first thing that one should let go of.

Lord Rama is known as a perfect human being and Lord Shiva as supreme God; God of Gods. You need to become Lord Rama to understand Lord Shiva. As per Hinduism, a journey of any soul starts with the question “Who is God?” and ends with a realization that “I am god, I am in everything and everywhere. it's only me but nothing else exists". Hinduism is a path to make human into god. Easiest way to attain salvation is to offer all your karma to god. If you achieve something offer it god; if you are sad offer the cause of your sadness to god. Offer everything in every step of your life to god. Self submission to god is easiest way to achieve salvation.

Faith is not a helpful term - it means a firmly held belief in something without evidence or reason. The term we would use is ?hraddhā which is defined as "?āstrasya guruvākyasya satya-buddhyavadhāra?am | sā ?raddhā kathitā sadbhir-yayā vastūpalabhyate ||" “?hraddhā” is based on a rational conviction of the teaching of the Veda and the instruction of the guru, whereby the objective is obtained/experienced. So, to rephrase the question — how does Hinduism help us to grow spiritually? By insisting that we use our intelligence and apply logic, reason and critical thinking in analysing the teaching of the Veda and the elaboration thereof by the Guru.

The process insisted on in the Upa?i?hads is:– ?rotavyam — we should listen attentively to the teaching. mantavyam — reflect deeply upon it using all our powers of reason - and once convinced (?hraddhā)…….nididhyāsitavyam — we employ ourselves in the application of the teaching through meditation and practice. A process known as “introjection” - which is like installing software (applications) into the computer (brain.) If in stage #2 we have doubts or remain unconvinced, then we are commanded to return to the teacher to interrogate and argue further to discover the true meaning.

This proactive intellectual approach is affirmed by Krishna in Shrimad Bhagwad Gita" " tad viddhi pra?ipātena paripra?nena sevayā | upadek?ayanti te j?āna? j?āninas-tattva-dar?ina? || 4:34. Know that by full prostration, by extensive questioning and by service, the wise, who have realised the truth, will instruct you in [that] teaching. So again we are advised by Shri Krishna to:– approach a teacher (whom we have tested and found to be qualified) in good faith and humility (by full prostration) -we are then required to listen, to absorb and analyse, to extensively question, interrogate and argue with the teacher until convinced, and to apply the teaching and experienced the results for ourselves

then we are to repay the teacher by whatever means at our disposal. This dear readers is the ancient theory - but in practice what happens today is people take at face-value the prattling of anyone who wears saffron, swallows their nonsense hook, line and sinker, never argue, challenge, refute or apply critical thinking and then cruise along in the fantasy ship of self-delusion. Classical Hindu sages, scholars and students argued, debated, challenged, investigated, demanded evidence and followed the evidence to its conclusion.

The depressing thing is that this proactive and engaged intellectual grappling with the Shastra and Dharma has degenerated into immobilising “faith & superstition” - “Custom & Usage” - we need to return to the past and reinvigorate the great Indian traditions of philosophy, logic and debate. When I have had acute discussion with my fellow priests about the teaching of the Dharma which contradicts their actual practice - they brush it off dissuasively saying “O that is only theory, in practice we do ……….!”

So the biggest problem we have is how to put the theory into practice. This is the major hurdle in promoting and advancing Hinduism or any spiritual teaching for that matter. All the problems of Hindu society - caste-discrimination, prejudice and oppression, gender issues etc. can easily be overcome if the higher teachings of the Shastra were to be learned, absorbed and applied. e.g. - the entire evil of casteism can be eradicated in an instant if the following wholesome teachings of the Gītā were to be actually applied by Hindus:– After explaining the given social structure (of four Varnas) Krishna then he tells us how we should treat each other:– "vidyā vinaya sa?panne brāhma?e gavi hastini | ?uni caiva ?vapāke ca pa??itā? sama-dar?ina?" || 5:18 || The sages regard with equality a person well-endowed with learning and humility, a Brahmana (who is so merely by birth), a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater (chandala - outcaste).

"sarva-bhūtastham ātmāna? sarva-bhūtāni cātmani | īk?ate yoga-yuktātmā sarvatra sama-dar?ana?" || 6:29 || With the mind harmonised by Yoga one sees equality everywhere; one sees one’s Self as abiding in all beings and all beings in one’s own Self. "loka sa?graham-evāpi sa?pa?yan kartum arhasi" || 3: 20 || Indeed, you should act, bearing in mind the welfare of the world. "labhante Brahmā-nirvā?am ??aya? k?ī?a kalma?ā? | chinna-dvaidhā yatātmana? sarva bhūta hite ratā?" || 5:25 || The sages who are free from the pairs of opposites, whose minds are well directed and who are devoted to the welfare of all beings, become cleansed of all impurities and attain the bliss of the Brahman. Jay Shri Krishna