Morality in Sacred Texts:
A study in similarities
Although many site the concepts of faith and belief to be of paramount importance in the study of any major religion, especially with regard to study originating within any particular religion, there remains a striking aspect of similarity between most major religions when the concept of morality is introduced. Indeed, although the theological basis of the four major world religions -- Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are often cited as divisive (again, especially in the collective imaginations of the members of each faith), the similarities of the moral precepts contained within the defining texts of each religion seem to underscore a fundamental unity.
The concept of "morality" is generally defined as that which constitutes virtuous conduct, or right behavior. Of course, given the vast cultural, economic, and societal differences between the majority populations practicing the aforementioned religious traditions, one might expect the moral precepts of each faith to be strikingly different. Interesting this is not the case. In fact, one can clearly observe that in the areas of human behavior and responsibility toward others, (again, as opposed to injunctions concerning belief), including violence, truthfulness, sexual purity, the avoidance of greed, and the importance of devotion and worship, the main religious texts of all four faiths are almost identical.
To begin a brief examination of the holy scriptures of Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam with regard to personal morality, one can begin with the Bhagavad-Gita, most commonly referred to as simply "The Gita." Known to Hindus as a "song of God,"( Isherwood, Prabhavananda, 1987), it is a text detailing a discussion between Krishna and Arjuna concerning both the nature of humankind, as well as life itself. As such, The Gita is rich in moral teaching. Consider, for example, the following lines from the text, enjoining the importance of the avoidance of selfishness, and the pure merit of divine devotion and worship:
One who does all work as an offering to God abandoning selfish attachment to the results remains untouched by Karmic reaction or sin as a lotus leaf never gets wet by water (5.10) ....I am easily attainable, O Arjuna, by that ever steadfast devotee who always thinks of Me and whose mind does not go elsewhere (8.14) ....I personally take care of both spiritual and material welfare of those ever-steadfast devotees who always remember and adore Me with single-minded contemplation. (9.22) ....Engage your mind in always thinking of Me, be devoted to Me, worship Me, and bow down to Me. Thus uniting yourself with Me by setting Me as the supreme goal and the sole refuge, you shall certainly come to Me. (9.34) (BBT, 1998)
Clearly, within these excerpts, one can see the immense moral responsibility charged to the reader to abandon selfish striving in favor of devotion and worship. Of course, not only does this illustrate the theological importance of religious devotion within the Hindu faith, but it also underlies the tremendous emphasis on the moral virtue of the abandonment of selfish "worldly" desires and concerns -- a theme one can see in all four religions.
In addition to the merit of selfless striving toward the divine as a moral attribute of the faithful, so too, the Gita emphasizes the importance of the avoidance of "sinful" behaviors. Chief among these are lust, anger (especially violent anger) and greed. The text reads:
The one who sees the same eternal Supreme Lord dwelling as Spirit equally within all mortal beings truly sees (13.27) ....Lust, anger, and greed are the three gates of hell leading to the downfall (or bondage) of the individual. Therefore, one must learn to give up these three. (16.21)
Here, the reader is presented with the idea that every living being is imbibed with the essence of the "Supreme Lord." Of...
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