Disharmony...

All the disharmony of the world caused by religious differences is the result of
man's failure to understand that religion is One, truth is One, God is One; how
can there be two religions?

Bowl of Saki, May 30, by Hazrat Inayat Khan




Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

God is one, the Truth is one. How can there be two religions? There is one
religion, the only religion. ... Yes, we are living in different lands, but
under one sky. So, we have many churches, but one God; many scriptures, but one
wisdom; many souls, but one spirit, the only Spirit of God.

The one Spirit of life is given different names, the sacred names. We more
easily recognize the [Spirit of life] by the particular name to which we are
accustomed. So far we are right, but the mistake we make, and it is to our loss,
is to ignore or deny the same truth because it is given to us in another form
and under another name. We limit it. We say the truth existed only in that
period when certain teachers came to the world, and that after that it stopped.
But the spirit of illumination can never stop as long as life goes on.
Illumination has continued from the beginning, and will always continue until
the manifestation ends; so long will the spirit of illumination continue to
spread out its rays.

We accept some forms and ignore others. It is the natural tendency of mankind.
It is this that accounts for so many religions. Even if a person cannot see
things in this light, he can at least be tolerant of other people's religions.
He can respect the religion because he sees others respect it, even if he
himself has no respect for its teacher. After all, spirituality means respect,
advancement. Man shows his evolution according to his respect, his
consideration, his thoughtfulness. If we could only develop that faculty in our
mind, it would not matter not believing or recognizing the Spirit of Guidance
shown in different human forms. If we held our own teacher or master in the
greatest esteem it would do a great deal of spiritual good. The disharmony of
the world is usually caused by religious differences, as were the wars of
ancient times. The differences are caused by men failing to understand that
religion is one, truth is one, God is one. How can there be two religions?

God is one, truth is one, and the religion is one. There cannot be two
religions; that is the confusion, the illusion of the human mind. When people
cannot understand each other, then they say, 'Your religion is different, my
religion is different.' But the difference does not belong to God, it belongs to
the earth. ... And in the realization of God, in the love of God, what are we
expected to do? We are expected to unite with one another in the thought of God,
in the love of God. ... All wisdom is from God; from whatever scripture,
whatever religion, whatever form, it all comes from one source.