Comparative religion: Spirituality, the art of knowing

We should strive to better understand our own religion in some depth, while trying to learn about other religious traditions. In this way, we would be better positioned to understand ourselves better, while being empathetic to the way of life of others, as well as their belief systems

By Dr. Mohamed Safiullah Munsoor

Spiritual is defined as search for the ‘truth’ or the ‘reality’, ‘the search for the sacred’; ‘concepts of God, and transcendent reality, as well as other aspects of life that take on divine character and significance by virtue of their association with, or representation of, divinity’ (Pargement and Mahoney 2002).

I use the term religiousness and spirituality synonymously since they are two sides of the same coin, where there cannot be one without the other, even though in recent times, this term has become bifurcated due to religious divisiveness, past legacies of religious wars, corruption within related institutions and scientific materialism. When I refer to the ‘divine’ it encompasses the highest state or level of the mind that could be reached through constant correct awareness; such as taught by the teachers of all faiths including the Buddha. This follows the dictum, connect with yourself to be connected to the Divine or God or the ‘highest Truth or Reality.’

The question is; are we enriched or restrained by the presence of so many religions, with similarities as well as differences? Why are we fighting each other believing that our religion is the right one? The fundamental question that has been debated over millennia is the existence and non-existence of God, which ultimately comes down to belief, which is beyond material existence. Only by going into the realm which is beyond physical existence can we discover at least some notion or experience of God since science has not developed the instruments to discern the subtleties. 

Intellectually God could be looked at as a concept as connected with a ‘universal power’ and ‘universal truth.’ In many aspects of the religious and secular, the concept of God is often interlinked with the ‘universe’ depending on the nature of the introspection. The human mind is also seen as an extension of that link, which then connects with the heart (soul) to charter the spiritual path. 

Quantum physics is beginning to unravel some secrets of the nature of the universe, which is not congruent with the current thinking of the classical science, while it seen to validate some fundamental aspects of religious worldviews of an integrated universe fashioned by a unifying force, at least by most faith traditions. 

It is interesting to examine the works of David Bohm (2021), a renowned theoretical physicist, who underlined two interesting facets of life linked to spirituality, that is, language and the process of thinking, as well as the nature of humans and their relationship with the universe. On the first point, he states, “We could say that practically all the problems of the human race are due to the fact that thought is not proprioceptive,” meaning the ability of the mind including awareness and the body to be aligned with each other or in a state of equilibrium at all times. He further elucidates, “If our troubles originate in a kind of ‘ocean’ of thought and language, in which we are submerged, but of which we are only dimly aware, it would seem reasonable to begin immediately to inquire into the actual function of our thought and language. To do this requires, of course, that we give this function our serious attention…Why should thought and language be the one field left to function automatically and mechanically, without serious attention, so that the resulting confusion vitiates most of what we try to do in all other fields?”As a solution Bohm (2021) says, “It is proposed that a form of free dialogue may well be one of the most effective ways of investigating the crisis which faces society, and indeed the whole of human nature and consciousness today. Moreover, it may turn out that such a form of free exchange of ideas and information is of fundamental relevance for transforming culture and freeing it of destructive misinformation, so that creativity can be liberated.” The central thrust then is getting to know each other’s religions and its linked spirituality, so that misunderstanding is dispelled and we get to know the essence of the related scriptures. This, if done in a comprehensive manner, will bring about a greater level of understanding and a state of mutual respect, tolerance and appreciation.  

Putting the above narrative of Bohm into action, my experiences with an interreligious organisation (www.kaiciid.org) demonstrates that bringing together interreligious Fellows of different faiths can be a truly transformative experience for them. It was interesting to find out that even though the Fellows had a comparatively high level of education and spanned the globe, originating from 59 countries, on a general note their understanding of other religions was limited. 

An integrated system

On the other point of Bohm (2021), whose worldview is of an integrated universe, where everything is connected to each other, he presented some mathematical models to prove his point, which challenged mainstream science. This view of an integrated system aligns with metaphysics of all religions, theists, non-theists and aboriginal worldviews. Either one can believe the Universe sprung into existence independently, from nothingness or else that there is a Divine Principle who propelled everything into existence. 

If the latter is the case, then there could be only One Divine Principle, who unified the universe, while there could be different attributes of manifestations of it, therein, the variations of the different religions come into play, depending on their readings and interpretations of relevant scriptures. 

A fact that we need to confront ourselves is, how many of us know our own religion or faith tradition well enough to understand it holistically, let alone getting to know other traditions? Based on my recent field level experience, hostilities within one religion (intra) seems to be more acute than between different religions (inter), with none being wiser than the other. In this sense, there is a significant amount of work to be done in terms of facilitating engagements with various faith traditions. 

I often wonder how people would interpret the verse in the Qur’an: “O mankind! Lo! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that ye may know one another. Lo! the noblest of you, in the sight of Allah (God), is the best in conduct. Lo! Allah (God) is Knower, Aware.” Is this not God celebrating the diversity of His creation? Is this not a call for unification and appreciation of the ‘other’, with God reminding us that He is the final judge? Thus, there needs to be compassionate inquiry and compassionate listening to be really connected with others to generate the required understanding and empathy. While there is much debate about what or who God is, we can never truly know the nature of God, the acceptance of this fact must instil in us humility and a respectfulness of other faiths. We can only know God through God, which seems to be a thread that weaves into the various original scriptures.

It is intriguing to note that while there are metaphysical differences amongst religions, scientific experiments reveal that experiences generated in prayers and different types of meditation resonate similarities that seem to correlate neurologically with specific brain centre activation. In this light, Samdong Rinpoche states that “all major traditions share the same phenomenological-defined experience despite the traditions often strenuous metaphysical difference” (Sears 2014, p 61). 

Maslow’s (1970; 2011) who studied peak and plateau experiences of people from different walks of life and faiths indicates that there seems to be much similarity in what they experience. One area that needs further investigation is spiritual experiences within neuroscientific experimentations, to find out if there can be relevant neurobiological correlates for different types of experiences within the varying faith traditions.

One of the most unifying threads between all religions is its value systems, which have much congruence be it from a theistic (Hinduism, Jainism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam) or non-theistic point of view (Buddhism, Confucianism and other religious philosophies). This can be outlined as follows:

Fifteen Great Principles Shared by All Religions (Oppelt, 2012), where there is more emphasis of one or the other principles amongst the various religions: 

1. The Golden Rule/Law of Reciprocity – The cornerstone of religious understanding. “Do unto others what you would have them do unto you.” 

2. Honour Thy Father and Mother – Knowing them is the key to knowing ourselves. The day will come when we shall wish we had known them better  

3. Speak the Truth – “Sincerity is the way of heaven, and to think how to be sincere is the way of a man/women.” 

4. It’s More Blessed to Give than to Receive – Generosity, charity and kindness will open an individual to an unbounded reservoir of riches. 

5. Heaven is Within – “Even as the scent dwells within the flower, so God within thine own heart forever abides.”

6. Love Thy Neighbour/Conquer With Love/All You Need is Love – Acts of faith, prayer and deep meditation provide us with the strength that allows love for our fellow men/women to become an abiding part of our lives. Love is a unifying force. 

7. Blessed Are the Peacemakers – When people live in the awareness that there is a close kinship between all individuals and nations, peace is the natural result. 

8. You Reap What You Sow – This is the great mystery of human life. Aware or unaware, all are ruled by this inevitable law of nature. 

9. Man Does Not Live by Bread Alone – The blessings of life are deeper than what can be appreciated by the senses. 

10. Do No Harm – If someone tries to hurt another, it means that s/he is perceiving that person as something separate and foreign from himself/herself. 

11. Forgiveness – The most beautiful thing a man can do is to forgive wrong. 

12. Judge Not, Lest Ye Be Judged – This principle is an expression of the underlying truth that mankind is one great family, and that we all spring from a common source. 

13. Be Slow to Anger – Anger clouds the mind in the very moments that clarity and objectivity are needed most. “He who holds back rising anger like a rolling chariot, him I call a real driver; others only hold the reins.”

14. There is But One God/God is Love – Nature, Being, The Absolute. Whatever name man chooses, there is but one God. All people and all things are of One essence (does not apply to Buddhism).

15. Follow the Spirit of the Scriptures, Not the Words – “Study the words, no doubt, but look behind them to the thought they indicate; And having found it, throw the words away, as chaff when you have sifted out the grain.” 

Religion-spirituality has inherent benefits

Emerging evidence suggests that values such as gratitude, charity and service to others prompt psychological and neurophysiological responses in our bodies, where certain hormones are secreted and specific areas of the brain activated, which help us to overcome toxic emotions as well as giving us a feeling of joy. This combined with the neurophysiology of prayers and meditations seems to point to the fact that these values are hardwired into our DNA and that religion-spirituality if practiced in a holistic and tolerant way has inherent benefits. 

These, then, are methods and tools provided to us, to derive benefit from reducing stress and anxiety, and upholding better social relations with others whether they are believers or not. This is paramount within the contemporary context, where shocks, stresses of life and well as trauma are being inflicted on us due the current lifestyle, which tends to redispose the onset of multiple diseases, that can be relieved though using these spiritual practices on a regular basis combined with a healthy diet and exercises. 

In this light, advocating a bio-psycho spiritual approach (biology being shaped by our psychology including childhood experiences and social relations) to dealing with human beings and their conditions is becoming a central theme in the emerging counselling and psychotherapy practices as articulated by Dr. Gobor Meta. He offers an alternative model to the purely medical model, which deals with the whole human being and the process of healing rather than dealing only with a body and this ties in with spirituality, which quintessentially focuses on body-mind-spirit. 

In conclusion, we should strive to better understand our own religion in some depth, while trying to learn about other religious traditions. In this way, we would be better positioned to understand ourselves better, while being empathetic to the way of life of others, as well as their belief systems. After all, we are all on our journey to discover the truth or the closest that we can get to understanding ourselves, others and the universe that we co-habit and thereby understand ‘God.’

References

Bohm, David (2021), Dr. David Bohm Society: Preserving, Promoting and Realising the Works of David Bohm, 2021, https://dbohm.com

Bohm, David (2021), The Quantum Theory, David Bohm on Quantum Theory, (Bohm’s ontological interpretation of quantum theory), 2021, https://dbohm.com/quantum-theory/

Brown, Joshua and Wong, Joel (2017), How Gratitude changes you and your Brain, Greater Good Magazine: Science Based Insights into a Meaningful Life, 6th June 2017; https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_gratitude_changes_you_and_your_brain.

Maslow, A.H. (2011). Towards A Psychology of Being. USA: Martino Publishing.

Maslow, A.H. (1970), Religions, Values and Peak Experiences, New York, Penguin Compass

Meta, Gabor (2019), When the Body Says No, Day Break Therapy and Training, 16th March 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V5qn9dkzIU

Meta, Gabor (2019), The Connection Between Stress and Disease, How to Academy Mindset, 15th August 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajo3xkhTbfo&t=65s

Munsoor, M.S (2021), Well-Being and the Worshipper: Insights into an Islamic Spiritual Order, Switzerland, Springer Publications.

Oppelt, Joran Slane (20120, 15 Great Principles Shared by All Religions, Integral Church, July 10th, https://integralchurch.wordpress.com/2012/07/10/15-great-principles-shared-by-all-religions/. I have added all religions in most place since the principles are not the purview of any one religion.

Pargament, K. I., & Mahoney, A. (2002). Spirituality: Discovering and conserving the sacred. In C.R. Snyder & S.J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 646–659). Oxford University Press.

Park, S., Kahnt, T., Dogan, A. et al (2017) A neural link between generosity and happiness. Nat Commun 8, 15964, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms15964

Shear, Jonathan (2014), Meditation as First-Person Methodology: Real Promise and Problems; Meditation – Neuroscientific Approaches and Philosophical Implications, Ed. Stefan Schmidt and Harald Walach, Studies in Neuroscience, Consciousness and Spirituality, Volume 2, pages 57-93, Switzerland, Springer.

(The author is an international development consultant, with special interest in strategy, community empowerment and sustainable development within a spiritual framework. He has doctorates in international rural development (local organisations), as well as in spirituality, leadership and wellbeing. He has worked in Asia, the Pacific, Africa, Middle-East and Europe with diverse organisations across many fields.)