Unity of religions

"Religious scriptures do not contain an iota of hatred; they inspire peace within, peace with ourselves which leads to peace around us, peace in the nation and peace among nations,” commented Dr Homi Dhalla in the course of a multimedia presentation on "Dimensions of Peace and Violence” under the aegis of the Gujarat chapter of Sarvodaya International Trust in Ahmedabad on October 7, 2006.

Since knowledge of different religions makes people more tolerant, Dhalla stressed that this must form part of the academic curriculum, according to a press release by Dr Armaity Davar. Bombay University has already introduced the subject of Communal Harmony and Social Peace. Speaking of the efforts of social leaders in creating awareness for peace, Dhalla said

Dr Homi Dhalla: peace within

establishing harmony among different religions is possible only through dialog. Terrorism is the worst enemy of the nation and we have to tackle it with a positive approach. Dhalla rued the negative role played by the media in highlighting violent incidents.

The following day Dhalla spoke on "Important dimensions of Zoroastrianism with reference from other scriptures” under the auspices of Ahmeda­bad’s Ushta-te Foundation Study Circle, after a brief on the Foun­dation’s various activities by Meher R. Medora, foun­der and managing trustee. He explained how the first monotheistic religion was established, which in course of time influenced three Semitic religions — Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Emperor Cyrus and other Achaemenian kings were influenced by the message of Prophet Zarathushtra which combined spiri­tual quest with deep social concern. This has been reflected in active philanthropy, said Dhalla, making the listeners proud by citingseveral instances of the role of social service and charity from recent and past history of the Parsis.

Comparing the Zoroastrian ethical code with other religious traditions, Dhalla referred to the high ideal of peace, generosity, obedience and truth as mentioned in the Avestan Tandorosti. He drew an interesting parallel between the three paths to reach God — service, knowledge and devotion — as gleaned from the Bhagwad Gita and the Ahunavar prayer.

Of the six Amesha Spentas, the attributes of Ahura Mazda, three are male and three female, exemplifying gender equality, an important contribution to human thought. Fire is central to our faith and light too plays an important role in our religion.

Fire reminds devotees of the radiance of Ahura, while light is knowledge, dispelling the darkness of ignorance. Light signifies the power of spiritual illumination. Dhalla stressed the importance of free will in Zoroaster’s preaching and the corresponding responsibility attached to it. The Zoroastrian religion being ecologically sensitive, it is our responsibility as trustees of nature to preserve the purity.

Zoroastrianism being a religion of action, we ought to work for the progress of creation as a ‘hamkar’ (co-worker) with Ahura Mazda in combating evil.

To honor the memory of the late musician Navroze Mehta, the Parvez Katrak Foundation organized "Ek sham Navroze ke naam” at Zoroastrian Colony in Bombay on November 12, 2006. Mehta had provided harmonium accompaniment, gratis, to kirtankar Katrak for 30 years in many Indian cities. Picture shows Darius Gandhi of Baroda, who sang old-time favorite film melodies at the memorial program, being felicitated by Katrak.