LemonLaw,
The simple fact of the matter is that Jews, Christians, and Muslims who are "good" people are so DESPITE their religions. Dharmic philosophies on the other hand extoll self-abnegation and self-effacement which create the state of mind and temperament for compassion to be cultivated. The lifestyle that follows is one that is dharmic (life-affirming). Hence, practices such as vegetarianism and ahimsa (non-injury) became part and parcel of the culture. It is not a coincidence that Indians never invaded foreign countries and engaged in pillage, rape, and genocide of non-Hindus. Hinduism and Buddhism spread far and wide without any bloodshed; it was soft-power at its best. From far away Japan to the Khmer people of Cambodia, Dharmic philosophy instilled peaceful coexistence as the hallmark of civilized society. Indonesia was almost completely Hindu; even the names of many of the places and people there are distinctly Hindu today! Yet, it is the largest Islamic country today! Thousands of temples were demolished and millions of people were converted and/or killed. India could have easily conquered these lands and made them pay tribute to the Indian kings converting them through force and destroying their local cultures. They never did. Bali has its own distinct version of Hinduism and is still in vogue today. Buddhism has adapted and morphed on to the local cultures and people's temperaments in China, Korea, and Japan. When Indian monks traveled there they didn't destroy Taoist temples or Shinto shrines telling them that it is "garbage" and that Buddhism is the only way! When Cambodians embraced Hinduism and the Khmer king, in tribute to Hinduism, built the Angkor Wat, did so out of his own volition. Indians could have conquered other lands and settled there. They didn't. That is why India is "overcrowded" today. It is a pity that people denigrate India for this reason when it in actuality Indians never felt the need to destroy other cultures, peoples, and ways of life. It is something to be admired.
Nobody says all Jews, Christians, and Muslims are "bad". That is simply an untrue statement. The fact of the matter is that these religions (I call them cults) foster hatred of the 'other' and create rancor between human beings. This has given rise to untold misery world over. Think of it in terms of an analogy. I consider Abrahamic religions to be like viruses; once "implanted" (in a person's mind), they change the person so drastically that divisiveness, hatred, animosity, and disdain are given room to grow. This is primarily because these religions are based on the satisfaction of the ego; that one is to be 'saved' or 'protected' because they are in the 'in' group and others are expendable and/or doomed because they are in the 'out' group. This pits people against each other and subsequently these religions become venues for people to denigrate others.
From the reading, research, and personal experiences I have had with an assortment of people from these Abrahamic religions, I have come to the (proper) conclusion that these ideologies are fundamentally a danger to humanity, world peace, and human progress. This may sound outlandish but all one needs to do is study history. Don't take my word for it. Read Bertrand Russell. Read Will Durant (about the Islamic conquest of India).
The virus that is the Abrahamic ideology festers in a person long enough to completely take over their mind; just as a computer virus eventually cripples the computer. If you look at the various ancient cultures, peoples, and civilizations around the world that existed prior to these Abrahamic cults arriving there, they had their own histories, identities, and way(s) of life. The pre-Christian European "pagans", pre-Islamic Arabs, Egyptians, Hindus of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia, Zoroastrians (Persians), Mayans, Aztecs, and a whole bunch of other native Americans, and of course the pre-Christian/pre-Islamic African peoples. Wherever these cults went, they destroyed the host (native cultures/peoples) almost completely; rendered them useless and incapable of defending themselves. They are now living in museums as artifacts and in children's textbooks as "subjects" to be studied. None of these great cultures/peoples, except for India and Hinduism, actually survive today! For that reason alone India and Hinduism should be supported and protected by those with equanimity of mind and heart. Only those who have a disdain for the 'other' seek to tear down differences and prep the 'other' to be digested and absorbed as a tiger would a deer. One cannot coexist with a virus and/or cancer. Either the host annihilates the cancer or it destroys the host. India has already suffered a tremendous blow with the partition; it literally was an amputation to stymie the cancerous growth of fundamentalist Islam. And look at what resulted; Pakistan - the epicenter of terrorism in the world today.
Instead of focusing on how others are doing it "wrong", one should focus on one's own path. That is the fundamental flaw with these Abrahamic cults; they are too busy telling others they have it wrong or are worshiping the wrong way instead of focusing on their own path for betterment of themselves. This arises from insecurity and lack of knowledge. It is too bad that those who don't react (Hindus) to being ridiculed and denigrated out of kindness are mistaken for weakness. Not everyone is going to be silent about the atrocities that go on around the world in the name of these adharmic (life-negating) ideologies.
Since time immemorial, India has been a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, and diverse country. When the Abrahamic cults arrived with their bloody hands, the Dharmic civilization was traumatized. All of Afghanistan used to be Hindu and then Buddhist. It was the center of many trading posts along the Silk Route before the time of Ashoka the Great (3rd century BCE). Look at it today; torn apart by perennial warfare and subjugation of certain sections of society. Pakistan was ripped apart from India (as was present-day Bangladesh) based ONLY on the reason of religious animosity; between Hinduism and Islam. Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, agnostics, and atheists coexist peacefully even to this day. Why, even look at the small Zoroastrian community (from Persia) that has flourished in India since they sought refuge after the Arabs invaded Persia and destroyed the great Persian empire. The Bahai people also have sought refuge in India and are more or less peaceful.
Islam and Christianity were at each others' throats during the Crusades and only because the brutality of the Arabs was matched (or even exceeded at times) by the Europeans were they not converted to Islam. Jews, who were enslaved for millenia, made their religion such that they put themselves in a comfortable position philosophically; as "chosen" people. Their overt disdain for non-Jews is the reason for so much hatred against them by Muslims explicitly and Christians implicitly. Although it is wonderful that Jews don't proselytize, their ideology is still one of turning people into the "in" group and "out" group. This is at the base level just tribalism. Such thinking has been deemed dangerous and is castigated by all corners of modern society except when it comes to religion. I am not sure why and how religion gets a 'pass'. I, for one, am sure as hell not giving them a pass.
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