Sanatana Dharma in the 21st Century

Hinduism is the third largest and the oldest surviving religion in the world with over one billion (100 crores) people belonging to the faith. Hinduism is not a religion but it is a unique faith. It is a way of life. The teachings of this religion have always attracted people from all around the world as they find in it something relevant to their lives. 

Environmentalists and economists, physicists and philosophers, linguists and storytellers, astrologers and astronomers, musicians to mathematicians, all have benefitted from Hinduism.

 

 

 

PUTIN’S RESPECT FOR HINDUISM 

An incident took place in between Interviews of Indian PM Shri Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin and hosted by famous American journalist Megyn Kelly. In between interviews, Journalists asked PM Modi “President Putin said that Russia doesn’t engage in state-sponsored interference with other countries’ elections.

Do you believe that ?” PM Modi replied,” You are talking about America, Germany, Russia, President Trump,

Mrs. Hillary, Chancellor Angela Markel, and President Putin. You have been talking about such big people. I don’t think, you need a lawyer like me in between all of you”. With such an unexpected and brilliant reply, the Audience who were sitting there couldn’t control themselves to applause. President Putin laughingly replied “It’s very hard to deal with Hindus. You cannot trick them because their philosophy is very old. We are very simple people, we say what we think.

 

 

 

Rishi Sunak the present Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Smt Kamla Persad Bissessar, Prime Minister of Trinidad in 2010, Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and Alok Sharma England’s Member of Parliament in 2019 took the oath of office on Bhagwad Gita. Chandrika Persad

Santoshi, the present President of Suriname since 2020, took his oath holding Vedas and reciting Hindu Sanskrit shlokas and mantras. Dr. Gaurav Sharma, New Zealand’s Member of Parliament took oath in 2020 in Sanskrit - thereby becoming the first lawmaker in the country to do so. Basdeo Panday, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago charmed a massive 50,000-person crowd at January’s ‘Puja 2000,’ when he burst into Hanuman Chalisa,

a popular Hindu song to Lord Hanuman.

 

 

 

Julia Roberts, one of Hollywood’s most successful actresses is a practicing Hindu. She said that it makes her a more compassionate and loving person. She has named her children Ganesh, Krishna Balram, and Mahalaxmi. Miley Cyrus, the pop singer, and actress is a Hindu worshiper. Sometimes back, she was in the news for sharing a picture of Lakshmi Pooja in her house. Angelina Jolie, the famous Hollywood star adopted a Buddhist child in 2002. Since then, Jolie accepted Buddhist learning as an integral part of her life. She has four Buddhist Sanskrit prayers of protection among her tattoos. Russell Brand, the famous comedian, and actor, follows transcendental meditation and actively follows Hinduism. He had a Hindu wedding with American celebrity Katy Perry in 2010 in a traditional Hindu ceremony near the Ranthambhore tiger sanctuary in Rajasthan. Robert Downey Jr, the Iron-Man star is a firm believer in the Hare Krishna ideology. Hugh Jackman the Wolverine star, follows the Upanishads and Bhagwad Gita. He has a Sanskrit inscription engraved wedding ring. Jackie Hung, a famous actor from Hong Kong and a martial arts expert is also deeply influenced by the Sanatan Dharma after a visit to Chennai. Ricky Williams,

a famous American soccer player has a deep interest in yoga, meditation, and Hindu rituals. He has an Aum tattoo on his right hand.

 

 

 

Hindu Sadhu Neem Karoli Baba died in 1973 but continues to enchant several high-profile Americans including Hollywood actress Julia Roberts, Apple founder Steve Jobs and Daniel Goleman author of the best-selling book Emotional Intelligence. In 1974 Steve Jobs stayed in the ashram of Neem Karoli Baba. Baba’s favorite fruit the apple became the logo of one of the world's most renowned companies. Influenced by Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, visited Neem Karoli Baba's ashram. Larry Brilliant took Google's Larry Page and Jeffrey Skoll, co-founder of eBay, on a pilgrimage to his ashram. George Harrison, who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles was attacked in 1999. Harrison was hospitalized with more than 40 stab wounds, and

part of his punctured lung was removed. He released a statement soon afterward saying, “Adi Shankara, an Indian historical, spiritual person, once said, 'Life is fragile like a raindrop on a lotus leaf.' And you'd better believe it." A quotation from the Bhagavad Gita is included in his final album's liner notes: "There never was a time when you or I did not exist. Nor will there be any future when we shall cease to be." Over half a million Russians and Ukrainians and thousands of Africans in Ghana have adopted Hinduism. Jagannath Rath Yatras, vegetarian restaurants, yoga centers, Sanskrit classes, and Bhagwad Gita study centers are a common scene in most cities of the world. St James Internationals are running more than 40 schools across the globe, where Sanskrit, Bhagwad Gita, Vedic Chantings, and Vedic Mathematics are compulsory.

 

 

 

Cremation is a Hindu method of the final disposition of a dead body through burning. Though burial is the norm in Christian-majority western nations more people are opting for cremations. The cremation rate varies considerably across countries with Japan reporting a 99% cremation rate. The cremation rate in the United Kingdom is 75.44%

in 2015 and the cremation rate in the United States in 2016 was 50.2 percent. As of 2019, countries like Bhutan, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Tibet, Sri Lanka, South Korea, and Thailand have cremation rates ranging from 80% to 99%. During the corona pandemic authorities in many countries encouraged rapid cremations. Albert Einstein, Sir Alfred Hitchcock, Sigmund Freud, Walt Disney, and English poet PB Shelly are some of the celebrities who were cremated. Wangari Maathai, an environment activist from Kenya and the first African woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize was cremated in a Hindu crematorium amidst chantings of the Bhagwad Gita.

George Harrison, the famous guitarist of the Beatles died in 2001 in the company of Hare Krishna devotees Shyama Sundar Das and Mukunda Goswami chanted verses from the Bhagavad Gita. He died peacefully with Hare Krishna prayers on his lips. He was cremated in California. His close family scattered his ashes according to Hindu tradition in a private ceremony in the Ganges and Yamuna rivers near Varanasi, India. Action star Sylvester Stallone sent his family to Haridwar to perform a shradh of his son. Church attendance has dwindled in most western countries. Hundreds of Churches are being auctioned and purchased by BAPS, ISKCON, India, Fiji, Sri Lankan and

Afghan Hindu organizations and converted into Hindu Mandirs. Hindu celebrations in these temples attract Indian and western Hindu devotees in large numbers.

 

 

 

When Ramayan and Mahabharat TV Serials were telecast in Bharat, millions of Bangladeshi and Pakistani viewers were glued to the TV screens. Even Kashmiri militants were in an undeclared truce mood. Children started addressing elders such as Pitashri, Mata-Shri, and Acharya-Shri.

 

 

 

Hindu kings in 1300 BCE ruled the ancient Mitanni and Hittites kingdoms in Syria, the Levant, Anatolia, and parts of Turkey. They taught the Arabs, the use of horse chariots. Hittites and Mitanni's worshipped Hindu Gods Mitra, Varuna, Indra, and Nasatya (Ashvins). Jewish prophet Moses and his followers were able to escape from Egypt

only after the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II was challenged by the Hittite king. Yazidi tribes in the Sinjar mountain regions of Iraq still practice Hindu rituals like worship of snakes, peacocks, fire, aarti, etc. Umar Mohammed, the uncle of Prophet Mohammed wrote a Shiv Stuti in the Arabic language. The same is engraved in one of the pillars in the yagna mandap in Birla Mandir, New Delhi. Navroz is the New year celebrated by lakhs of Muslims in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,

Uzbekistan and Uyghuristan (Xinjiang). Navroz is based on the Islamic calendar. In the Islamic world, calendric calculations devised by Aryabhata formed the basis of the Jalali calendar was introduced in 1073 CE. Fatwa after fatwas by Islamic clerics has not deterred the masses from celebrating this pre-Islamic Hindu festival. As one Afghan minister clarified, ‘when I say I am a Muslim, I am 1400 years old; but when I celebrate

Navroz I become 6,000 years old.’

 

 

 

After the 1971 military crackdown on the left, the Upanishads, Gita, and Tagore’s Geetanjali were banned in Turkey. These books had been found, along with the writings of Karl Marx, F. Engels, and V.I. Lenin, in the custody of the university leftist students. But the ban on Indian writings was lifted soon. The Turks have a lot of regard for India, its leaders, civilization, culture, and democracy, despite their support to Pakistan on Kashmir in exchange for the latter’s support of Cyprus. Bulent Ecevit, a Sanskrit and Bengali scholar opposed the 1971 ultimatum issued by the military. He translated some poems from Bhagwad Gita and Gitanjali. He served as the Prime Minister of Turkey four times between 1974 and 2002. While one Prime Minister banned Gita and Gitanjali in 1971, Ecevit, the other PM not only lifted the ban but also translated portions of the two books.

 

 

 

Indonesia has the world’s largest Muslim population. But they also have 60 Lac Hindus, mostly in Bali and Java. Majority of the Muslims are proud of their Hindu ancestry. The official mascot of the 1997 Southeast Asian Games played in Indonesia was the Ramayana epic character "Hanuman". The Ramayana, known in Java, Indonesia as Kakawin Ramayana is an Indian epic, which spread into Southeast Asia including the Indonesian archipelago during ancient times. It not only exists in oral and literary works but also serves as the underlying theme for art performances and as the inspiration for other works, such as sculptures, paintings, and literature. Parisada Hindu Dharma, the largest Hindu organization in Indonesia, has succeeded in reconverting millions of Muslims back to Sanatan Dharma through a ritual called Shudhi Wadani. Ifa Sudevi is the Chief Judge of Indonesia. She was a born Muslim. In 2002 Islamic terrorists attacked the country with explosives. She gave the death sentence to all the terror convicts. One of the convicts was even an Imam. After spelling out her judgment, she studied Sanatan Dharma deeply and converted to Hinduism. Kanjen Raden Mahendrani, the princess of Java, the capital of Indonesia, re-converted to Hinduism after she went through a Shudhi Wadani Ritual on July 17, 2017. Sukmawati Sukarnoputri, 69, the daughter of Sukarno, Indonesia’s founding father and the first president also converted from Islam to Hinduism in 2021.

 

 

 

In October 2022, the Hindu Festival of Lights, Diwali, was celebrated at the BAPS Hindu Mandir by over 10,000 devotees for the third consecutive year. His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Tolerance and Co-existence of the UAE, after lighting a lamp, wished everyone a very happy and luminous Diwali.

Earlier Raksha Bandhan, Janmashtami, and International Day of Yoga were also celebrated in the midst of thousands of devotees and Arab dignitaries. Thousands of Arab men and women have taken a liking for Hindu Bhajans, Ramayana, Mahabharat, Gita, yoga, meditation, and Ayurveda. During the visit to Sant Murari Bapu, an Arab lady carried the holy book Ramayana on her head and the Arab dignitary welcomed the audience by uttering Jai Siya Ram. If a Hindu Mandir can come to Arabia before Ayodhya, we can expect Hindu mandirs in Mecca and Madina before Mathura and another mandir in the Vatican before Varanasi.

 

 

 

¨ Hindus should prepare a dictionary showing Sanskrit-based words in Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Russian, and other languages. This will help the neo-Hindus to feel proud. ¨ Short plays based on the moral, family, and eternal values of Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Bhagwad Gita should be uploaded in different foreign languages and in Urdu and Kashmiri languages to foster enduring peace. ¨ Efforts should be made to start radio and TV Programs to attract lacs of Baluchs, Sindhis, Iranis, Arabs, Chinese, Indonesians, Marathi-speaking Jews in Israel, Russians, Lithuanians, and Spanish listeners.