2024 and beyond – Can India initiate a leadership role for Asian and Indigenous faiths, in the backdrop of the latest instance of the Israel-Palestine conflict? As we welcome 2024 and say goodbye to a war torn 2023, I like many Hindus and people of Indic, Asian, Indigenous, non-Exclusivist, non-Proselytizing faiths, continue to think of a time when humans will truly, sincerely strive to “Live and Let Live”.

We look forward to a time when fanaticism-driven human beings, stop waging wars based on religious beliefs. Wars driven by economic and political compulsions are always a looming possibility but can the human race strive to eliminate wars waged in the name of religion? Such wars seek to perpetuate religious intolerance and fanaticism and in doing so, defeat the very purpose of a higher, noble, spiritual aim for mankind!

Can a newly resurgent India-Bharath, respected by the world for its ancient spiritual knowledge and its emerging Economic, Technological, Scientific, Social potential lead the way in forming and heading a movement to represent what I refer to as, the HIBAIN faiths? HIBAIN – Hindu, Indic, Buddhist, Asian, Indigenous and (all) Non-Exclusivist, Non-Proselytizing faiths. These faiths understand that there are multiple ways to achieve spiritual goals, they do not preach an exclusivist God nor do they engage in aggressive conversion missions to increase their numbers in the world. They respect the multiple paths available to all humans to explore spiritual enquiry and growth.

Yet another year draws to a close with a religious conflict.

The Israel-Palestine war is primarily a religion-based ideological one, arguably more about religion and less about economy/ territory although the Muslim side presents it as a territorial issue. If a dominant Arab nation or a country like Turkey had subjugated the Palestinians and taken over their territory, the Palestinians would have more readily accepted it, as an annexation by a fellow-Islamic nation.

At the risk of over-simplifying the principal issue at hand, I as well as millions of others that believe in a certain way of life (the ‘Live and Let Live’ philosophy), see the most stubborn, persistent, complex issues between people and nations, to be the ones that involve an illogical, irrational belief in a God, who according to the principal, proselytizing religions of the world (Islam and Christianity) is a God who is exclusive only to themselves (the “believers”), punishes “non-believers”, commands his exclusive “believers” to engage in conversions of the non-believers and supposedly promises ‘heavenly’ benefits to those who proselytize and convert the “others” by whatever means necessary.

Further more, their exclusivist God appears to ignore simple common sense and basic human values in encouraging alienation and discrimination against people who prefer to follow their own Gods, elements of Nature or prefer not to believe in a God. Their God does not appear to condone unequivocally, violence in the name of his exclusive religion. Instead, he appears to find convenient “conditions” for religious aggression and commands his believers to engage in aggressive conversions and wars.

Both religions, Islam and Christianity, that discourage bold questioning and cajole millions of their “followers” to believe in only one “exclusive” God, have been responsible for the most number of wars and destruction since medieval times into the modern era. Their wars are consistently fought on the basis of the belief that only their exclusive God is the real one; that only their religion is the true one; that only their respective followers/believers are special people with access to an imagined future home called Heaven. Their battles are fought on the illogical, irrational belief that the “other” is always false, that they are always right and that they are somehow special! Their wars continue to kill millions and starve even more because they have not learnt to “Live and Let Live”.

Contrast their “exclusivist” God and religion to the philosophies and spirituality of the Indic, Eastern, Indigenous faiths or way-of-life. Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, Zen, Taoism, Jainism and scores of Indigenous, Tribal faiths all of which believe in and practice a way of life that allows them to worship their Gods, Nature, the Universe, symbols and signs… while also generously allowing the others to worship their own Gods, in their own unique ways. Their liberal attitude allows them to appreciate all forms of the Divine and all forms of worship, without claiming that their own God or worship, are the only Truth and that all other beliefs/Gods/methods are false. Further more, the exclusivist-proselytizing religions prey on human weaknesses and fears – they preach a lie to the vulnerable, sick and the poor of the dire consequences of eternal fear and suffering in an imagined “hell”. According to them, their God is good, loving, kind and compassionate only to his believers ; he curses and punishes the non-believers!

The broad-minded nature of the Eastern faiths and the non-exclusivist faiths, in allowing, accepting and even embracing a plurality in which every faith /path/ method is understood to have something good and beneficial, is in sharp contrast to the narrow-minded, proselytizing Abrahamic faiths of Christianity and Islam, which have often gone to the extent of punishing and forcefully converting their fellow human beings by violent means.

For the sake of easy reference, philosophical similarities and like-minded spiritual aspirations, let’s refer to the Eastern, pluralistic, non-Exclusivist, non-Proselytizing faiths as the “HIBAIN” way of life. HIBAIN – Hindu, Indic (of Indian origin-Sikh, Jain etc), Buddhist, Asian, Indigenous and (all) Non-Exclusivist, Non-Proselytizing faiths. People and nations, practicing the HIBAIN way of life should come together to form an alliance and defend themselves from the often aggressive, violent methods employed by the exclusivist-proselytizing religions (both Islam and Christianity). The religious fervour and aggression of Islam and Christianity aims to dominate, often results in fanaticism and seeks to disrupt the native belief systems/ way of life, still practiced in the HIBAIN nations where the concept of religious secularism and plurality is fortunately alive.

While the broad-minded/ liberal faiths (HIBAIN) are able to “Live and Let Live”, the narrow-minded religions of Islam and Christianity would rather go to war, destroy life and nature, in a delusional bid to “win” a religious and ideological battle of insignificant philosophical and spiritual importance. In this regard alone (arguably, on other fronts too), the HIBAIN appear more mature and sensible than the latter. By their very nature, the HIBAIN faiths, are more inclusive and celebrate freedom of thought and diversity of belief or non-belief.

The HIBAIN faiths also address deeper, more intelligent philosophical enquiries by mature human minds, that are capable of thinking and expanding beyond the over-simplified, childish ideas of reward-punishment and hell-heaven concepts. In the 21st century, surely the human mind is capable of exploring the more complex phenomena of Consciousness, Energy and Space-Time co-relation ?

Can India-Bharat take the lead in proposing the formation of a group of people, cultures and nations under the “HIBAIN” umbrella? Such an organization can defend the rights of all like-minded people, societies and countries that truly value pluralism, diversity, secularism and actually practice these lofty principles, rather than paying mere lip service to them, as is most often the case, in Islamic and Christian societies. The HIBAIN coalition or alliance, can represent and come to the defense of all people practicing the HIBAIN religions, in any part of the world, much like the manner in which, worldwide Christian and Islamic organizations rush to the aid and defense of their respective communities, anywhere in the world.

The HIBAIN way of life and nations are the only hope for the future of mankind, where humans do not fight bloodthirsty wars over a seemingly silly issue like which people’s exclusivist God is more powerful or more true. Clearly, while the HIBAIN faiths allow for peaceful co-existence, the non-HIBAIN insist on wars, domination and destruction, displaying a childish, immature tendency to display might, power and superiority. The formation, grouping together and alliance of a HIBAIN Bloc is necessary for the survival of pluralism and diversity in higher philosophical thoughts as well as for the hope of a different future for humans, where peaceful coexistence is possible.

Indeed, in hind sight, the Pagans (those professing or practicing various indigenous philosophical, spiritual belief systems before the advent of Christianity and Islam) all over Europe, the Americas (both North and South), Africa, Australia and all of Asia….appear to be wiser with a richer, more intellectual tradition of philosophical query and study. All the Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Persian, African, Native-American indigenous philosophers (before the political dominance of Christianity and Islam), appear to have asked questions of a higher order, aiming for an ascension of the human spirit, not its descent into a mere tug-of-war between angels and devils and the idea of a heaven or hell.

The early history around the violent, conversion-based proliferation of both Islam and Christianity, is rooted in the greed for power and political ambitions of the most influential early “disciples” and followers of these faiths. The foundation for the spread of both faiths was based on principles of political dominance and acquisition of material wealth/worldly comforts. Both religions continue to confront each other in various ways, vying for larger numbers of believers, political and materialistic dominance. Do such acts appear to lead the human soul to a supposed “higher level” of existence?

Note: The Jewish people and state of Israel can be welcomed to the HIBAIN movement and union of states, because their religion, Judaism, does not proselytize or aggressively seek converts. It believes in the concept of Karma, encourages educated, rationalist thinking in areas of religion and spirituality and has a history of allowing peaceful co-existence of communities (Live and Let Live). They do not wage wars in the name of religion. They resort to defending themselves and their nation only when their existence is under the threat of religious fanaticism. Judaism, the faith of the Jewish people and the nation of Israel, is an ancient, religion reflecting originality of their spiritual ideas (Vedic Hinduism, for example, is an original, distinct form of native India’s spiritual thought). The founders, “prophets” and early leaders of both Christianity and Islam, borrowed heavily from the original Jewish books, to which they added some additional content of their own.

Shivani is a freelance writer.

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