________________ Memoirs about Shrimad by Gandhiji 153 [5] Before we evaluate the religion of Raichandbhai, it is important for us to understand his ideas of religion. Religion does not mean dogmas. Religion does not also mean that one should have read all the scriptures and mastered them or that one should believe in everything that the texts prescribe. Religion is a quality of the soul. Through religion, we can understand what the responsibilities of a human being on this earth are. Through that, we can try to understand what should be our true and sacred relationship with other living beings on this earth. We cannot fathom this until we fully understand ourselves. Thus, the religion is the means through which we can recognise ourselves. We should accept these means to understand ourselves from whatever source it is available, whether from India, from Europe or Arabia or any other country in the world. The general characteristics of these means are common to all religious scriptures. One who has studied the scriptures of different religions can vouch safely what has been said therein. No scripture recommends any acts of indulging in falsehood; none recommend acts of violence. After churning all the religious texts, Shankaracharya talks of "Brahma Satyam Jagat Mithya" (Only the all-pervading pure consciousness is true, the materialistic world is a delusion). The Quran says the same thing, though in different words, that God is one and one alone. Nothing else is true. The Bible states that there is unison between my father and me. Hence, they all represent the same but through different forms. However, people who had not been able to achieve perfection in their own lives have presented this very truth in their different viewpoints, thereby creating a veil of delusion for