Ram and Allah in Ramallah

In the Arabic language, the name of the Palestinian city Ramallah is spelt ‘Ram Allah’—as two words, not one. Raamsar is a town in Iran. Near Bukhara there’s a place called Raamsaroob (the Uzbeks don’t have a p in their language).

Krishna and Christ: are they the same deity?

‘Krishna and Christ, even the Names are the same.’ The British Hare Krishna magazine that carried this headline seemed to be stretching things. In English only the first syllable of the two Names is identical. However, the word Christ is pronounced differently in each European language. In several Mediterranean languages such as Ibicenco (the language of Ibiza, Spain) Lord Jesus is called (Santa) Krista. Comes eerily close.
The name Jesus, too, has different spellings and pronunciations around the world. In the East he is called Eesa, Eeshu and Yeshu. God is called Eesh in Sanskrit and Eesa in the Ram Charit Maanas (e.g. Jaakey bal birachi Hari Eesaa).
HT 12 Aug 06

The doorway to God: Sikhism and Shiite Islam

Every Sikh temple is called a gurudwara, the door to the Supreme Guru (God). Many Shia Ghulat groups believe that Ali and the Imams are doors to God, K. Gajendra Singh points out. He believes that the name Bukhara is the Uzbek version of Vihara. Ruins of Buddhist vihars have been found in Bukhara.

Virgin births: in almost all the religions of the world

‘Parthenos’ is Greek for ‘virgin’ while ‘genesis’ means ‘birth.’ The word parthenogenesis normally refers to Lord Jesus’ birth to a virgin mother. Countless Hindu and Greek heroes and deities, too, have a divine, spiritual father, in addition to a putative, physical, human father.
The Holy Ghost came upon Mother Mary, and the power of the Highest overshadowed her. Mary arose and went into the hill country, into a city of Juda. St. Luke writes, ‘That holy thing which was born of her was called the Son of God.’
Similarly, Pawan, the wind deity, entered the ear of Lady Anjana and she went to a hill called Sumeru. Sri Hanuman was born and was called the Son of the Wind God.
HT Mumbai 9 Sept 06

Joseph was Mother Mary’s husband, but God was the Christ’s father. Kesari ji was Hanuman ji’s putative father the way Joseph was Lord Jesus’.
Ravan had a similar birth. His father Visrav had merely implanted a thought in Kaikashi’s mind.

The festival of lights in Hinduism and Judaism

Hanukah is the Jewish festival of lights, very similar to Diwali.

Hanuman ji guards the doors of Sri Ram and Lord Buddha

The Hindus believe that Lord Buddha is a manifestation of Sri Vishnu. In turn, the Shoonya Puraan of the Buddhists says that Hanuman ji is not only a minister in Lord Buddha’s cabinet but also his gatekeeper. Hanuman ji is indeed the doorman and ambassador of Sri Ram, who, too, is Lord Vishnu incarnate. Therefore, both traditions agree.
HT Mumbai, 2 Sept 06

Consideration towards animals: Hanumân jî and Prophet Muhammad

According to the 7th century A.D. work Bhattikâvya, Hanumân jî tiptoed gently into the Ashok grove as he did not want a single sleeping bird to be woken up because of him.
Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, once awoke to find a cat sleeping on his cloak. On the one hand the Prophet had to get up and go. On the other, he did not want to wake the cat. So he noiselessly cut the portion that the cat was on away from the rest of the cloak.
HT 26 Aug 06

The 40 day flood: Noah and the Buddhist Lepchas

The Buddhist Lepchas of Sikkim and Darjeeling believe that their ancestors went to the top of the Tendong mountain and thus survived a flood caused by 40 days and 40 nights of rain.
According to the Bible, God was angry because of the corrupt ways of the world. So he destroyed almost all creatures with a flood that lasted 40 days and 40 nights. Noah was spared since he was a good man.
HT 26 Aug 06

Meraj and Lha Bab Duechen: Muhammad and Buddha visit heaven

Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, was sleeping at the house of his cousin Umm-e-Hani. Archangel Gabriel brought him an animal called Buraaq. The Prophet mounted Buraaq and visited Kaaba (Mecca), Medina, Mount Sinai, Bethlehem and Masjid al-Aqsa. At Aqsa he met Abraham, Moses, Lord Jesus and all the other Prophets. Buraaq then flew the Prophet through the universe, past hell and heaven. Gabriel was not allowed past Sidrah ul Muntaha. However, the Prophet ‘certainly saw the greatest signs of the existence of God.’ (Holy Quran, 53:12-18) This event is called the Meraj.
The Shakyamuni Buddha, too, had bodily visited heaven. Lord Buddha used to miss his mother, Queen Mahâ Mâyâ, who had died in his childhood. Six years after he attained enlightenment, Buddha used his spiritual powers to go to Trayastrimsa, the heaven where his mother was. The deities there so loved him that they refused to let him return. His disciple Maudgalyâyan successfully argued that the deities could visit Buddha on earth but earthlings could not go to heaven to listen to the Lord’s sermons. Buddha returned to earth. The Himâlayan Buddhists celebrate the event as Lha Bab Duechen.
HT 19 August 06

The male-female balance in God

Ardhnaareeshwar means ‘God who is half woman and half man.’ This is a form of the Hindu deity Shiv ji. The concept exists in every religion known to man—with the possible exception of Islam.
Amon was the Egyptan deity of male fertility. Isis, better known as L’isa, was the lady-deity of fertility. Together they were called Amon Lisa, a name that later morphed into Mona Lisa.
The Greek deities Hermes and Aphrodite combined to form ‘hermaphrodite.’
The Confucian and Taoist principles of yin (feminine) and yang (masculine) balance the male with the female elements. Himalayan Buddhists use the words yab-yum instead of yin-yang. Hopi Native Americans believe that modern life has been thrown out of balance because the sacred feminine has been eliminated.
The Jews call God Yahweh, JHVH or YHWH. The Christians use the Name Jehovah. All four Names unite the masculine, Jah (e.g. Psalms 68:4) with Havah, which is the pre-Hebraic name for Eve.
The name Jesus is the Greek version of the Hebrew name Joshua, which is a contraction of Yehoshuah (‘Yahweh is deliverance’). Thus Jesus, too, combines the masculine, Jah with the feminine Havah.
HT 5 Aug 06

Hindu deities in Buddhism

Saraswati Devi ji, Lakshmi Devi ji and Kaali Mata are three of the most important goddesses of Hinduism. Sri Mata Vaishno Devi ji combines all three goddesses in Her self. These three deities form a trinity in Himalayan Buddhism, too, scholar-civil servant C. Phonsog points out.
The Ladakhi goddess Jamyaang corresponds to Saraswati Devi ji. The male deity Chandraa-zig is the God of Compassion and an incarnation of Lord Buddha. He is the equivalent of Lakshmi Devi ji. Chhak-dor, too, is a male deity, is ferocious and corresponds to Kaali Mata.
Images of these three deities will be found at the main entrance of every Ladakhi Buddhist home. They will either be clay images or three paintings or prints on the wall above the door, or at least block-prints. This trinity is believed to ward off evil.
More than half the deities of Himalayan (Mahayan) Buddhism are Hindu.

Sufism is universal

Sufism is a path that encourages people to know God directly. It is called tasawwuf in Arabic, Persian and Urdu. Scholar Cyril Glasse writes, ‘The Sufi doctrine has been likened to Neo-Platonism, to Vedaant, to the mystical theology of Eastern Christianity, and even to Taoism, all of which it clearly resembles.’
Jehangir (1569-1627) had a Hindu spiritual guide named Jadrup. The Mughal Emperor would say, "Jadrup’s Vedaant is the same as our tasawwuf.’
Ibrahim Ibn Adham (died 778), a renowned Arab mystic, wrote, "My Master in Spiritual Knowledge was a [Christian] monk called Father Simeon."