As our soul may have travelled various regions over time, it makes sense to conclude that we have within us a confluence of God manifestations and their Prophets, all owing allegiance to one Supreme Power, says OSWALD PEREIRA
There’s a little bit of Krishna in my life ― also a little bit of Christ, Allah and Buddha. Within me, there are many bits of various avatars, prophets, sages and saints. These little bits have touched my life ― in this and my many previous births. And all these converge into one whole, springing from one Source or Supreme Being.
God is the most neutral name for this Supreme Being, though the Supreme goes by various other names like Brahmn, Bhagwan, Father, Allah, Akal Purakh, or Yahweh. God, didn’t claim to have any name. For when Moses asked God by what name should he refer to Him to Israelites, God simply said, “I am who I am.”
But in the Bhagavad Gita, Arjuna addresses the Supreme, Krishna, by 41 different names including Achyuta, Bhagwan, Govinda, Hari, Ishvara, Janardana, Kesava, Madhava, Purushottama and Yogeshvara as well as Vasudeva and Vishnu.
Well, from my birth name, I am identified as Christian or more specifically, Catholic. But I believe confining my identity to Christian, would be the most un-Catholic thing to do. Catholic means all-embracing, including a wide variety of things. So, being Catholic, why should I do an un-Catholic thing, like claiming that my faith is the ultimate truth? Wouldn’t it be more Catholic to believe that there are many truths and faiths abounding in this vast, diverse universe?
Each truth or faith may seem unique with an identity of its own. But if we look beneath the surface, it will become clear that the only uniqueness of faith is its oneness with all things good, beautiful and loving.
Human beings may be from different regions, yet deep down they are all so similar. But if we strip ourselves of our so-called unique identity and merge ourselves with the common identity, the Supreme Being, then we all would be one.
If there is one universal truth, because there is one God, then why did God appear on earth in various incarnations with different names, at different times and in different regions? God perhaps followed the simple axiom that there’s a time and place for everything.
Avatars descended on earth, depending on the need of the people and the region. The names assumed by avatars were also region-based; more like Supreme Intelligence seeing the sign of the times. Krishna says, “For protection of the good, for destruction of evil, and for the establishment of righteousness, I come into being from age to age.” (Gita 4:8) The Bible gives us many reasons why Jesus came to the world, among the important ones being to destroy evil, free people of the fear of death, and save the world.
Prophet Muhammad, the final Prophet of Allah, taught people to worship the One God and to live a morally upright life. Prophet Zoroaster talked about one universal, transcendent, Supreme God. He advised people to have good thoughts, speak good words and do good deeds, following the path of truth.
Don’t all avatars and prophets teach us to be good and shun evil? And if we believe in rebirth ― that our soul may have travelled various regions over time ― doesn’t it make sense to conclude that we have within us a confluence of God manifestations and their Prophets, all owing allegiance to one Supreme Power?
OSWALD PEREIRA 