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Jain Theism
(5) Core of Religion
A comparative study of religions, their interrelationship and scientific approach cnables us to feel that Religion is real only in religions. All the vital differences among the living faiths of mankind become just casual before the fundamental unity of vision and purpose which embraces all mankindian This is the core of all religions a common substratum of religions.
"All religions affirm that man is confronted by something greater than himself which, in contrast to human nature and all other phenomena, is . Absolute Reality. It is transcendent, the Divine, the other, the true being behind the world of events..... and the many ways to reach the real are found in all religions.'**The 'Absolute Reality of which all religions talk is also God the highest truth, righteousness, beauty and love which is man's highest good. This transcendent Reality according to all religions is immancnt in the human soul. Thus we find, the grounding of the human spirit in godhead, as one of the most impressive phenomenon in all religions. This is reflected in Upanisad when it says “That Thou art', or when we say "the essence of the Buddha is present in every being," or Jesus saying “The kingdom of God is within you". For St. Paul 'the human spirit is the temple of the Divine Spirit. For St. Augustine 'God is more inward than my innermost being'. The Quran says that God is nearer to us than our artery in the
neck.''85
All Religions are a way of life'. All talk about Moksa, emancipation or cternal life by the realisation of the self. “Religion is not only the way to God, but the way to man.”*$6 We find all religions prove to be a way of active service, a way to God through Man, to Divine Spirit through Human Spirit.
All religions talk about its doctrines, myths, rites, cult and worship. In fact these things and much more other things, form the outer side of the religion. Not merely religions amongst themselves differ in these objectives or outer features but even the different sects of the same religion also differ very greatly with one another. But then behind all these differences what is seen is the tendency for the inward piety to attain spiritual insight and thus to attain religious wisdom.
84. Dr S. Radhakrishnan, The Present Crisis of Faith (1987) p. 51. 85. Ibid., pp. 51-52
86. Ibid., p. 53.
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