Hindus around the world
are celebrating the appearance of Lord Krishna on this day in 3102 BCE. In the west Krishna became a known figure with
the Hare Krishna movement in the 60’s. Happy Janmashtami, ya’ll.
Every human goes thru three major phases of life; birth, life and death. It is also defined as creation, sustenance/preservation and
destruction, and is acknowledged and honored in the Hindu tradition. They see
God in each aspect of life as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma reflects the
creator form of God, and Vishnu represents the preserver aspect of creation
that inspires one to be righteous, and Shiva brings a finite ending to life. It
is a part of the life cycle: every human is born, lives on and finally
disintegrates. Much of Hindu philosophy revolves around the preservation aspect
of life; two of the most common and well known reflections are in the persona
of Lord Krishna and Lord Rama, both incarnations of Vishnu. It is not multiplicity of God, but
multiplicity of his (her or it) role in relation to our lives.
As a Muslim, I see Krishna as an exemplary human, a representation of finite
wisdom, a man who I admire, and am inspired by his teachings encapsulated in
Bhagvad Gita as a dialogue between him and Arjuna on the battle field of
Kurukshetra. It is one’s jihad, the internal struggle to be righteous against
the temptations to take revenge, do wrong, and or holding on to one’s angry reactions. At the end do the
right thing for the common and universal good, as we all are a part
of the large family. In Islamic terms, we were all from the
same couple created into different nations, communities and groups and
asked to know each other to create harmony and peace.
I am sharing the picture of a Muslim woman with her kids dressed up as Bala
(Youth) Krishna in the City of Varanasi
which just celebrated its pluralistic heritage, and I regret not attending the
event. (http://foundationforpluralism.blogspot.com/2014/08/varanasi-spreading-inclusive-and_12.html
). This picture has gone viral.
Click on pictures to get larger versions
A true Hindu, Muslim,
Christian, Jew or other don’t see each other’s religions as a barrier but a different experience to be in tune with the spirit of the creation. Most people get that
right, and a few in each group don’t get it, and sulk in the arrogance of being
superior without realizing that arrogance ends with one’s last breath, and no
one is superior from that point forward.
This appeals to me a lot
when people of different faiths admire each other’s traditions and become a
part of it, without being religious. Religion is a personal belief in how an
individual relates with his or her creator, the social structure brings people
together. Apparently I was dressed up as
Baby Krishna when I was a toddler, and have been blessed to visit his birth place
in Mathura.
If you are blessed to have an open heart and mind to stand up for every one
of his creation. You will enjoy the life to the maximum. It was my pleasure to take up an issue against Russians who wanted to ban Bhagvad Gita (http://nabsites.net/demo/bigotry-against-hinduism-in-russia/)
and wrote to the Mayor of Moscow to give back the Krishna Temple land they had
usurped and restoration of Krishna Temple in Lahore (http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2007/01/krishna-temple-lahore.html) and there is a whole lot
more we all can do collectively.
Open your heart and minds, and cherish the celebration s of fellow humans. Happy Janamashtami!
More about it in my article at Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sri-krishna-birthday-celebration-janmashtami_b_1762997.html
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on
Pluralism at work place, politics, religion, society, gender, race, culture,
ethnicity, food and foreign policy. All about him is listed in several links at
www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are
at www.TheGhousediary.com and 10
other blogs. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.