Speech by Dr. Ezekiel Isaac Malekar, 9 December 2007, Kirpal Sagar, World Conference on Unity of Man

(Transcription of the recorded speech)

Respected religious leaders on the dias, brothers and sisters,

(Quotation in Hindi) This is Psalm 133: How pleasant and beautiful it is to see our brothers and sisters dwelling in unity. To my friends who have come from other countries I would like to tell that Jews have been living in India for the last 2000 years without anti-Semitism and persecution, and therefore we always considered India as our motherland. India is a multi-religious country and you will find that there are representatives from 10 different religions, but they are co-existing without coming into conflict with each other. They live in harmony. Our India – as it is said Vasudeva Kudumbukam , means The world is one family – is a global village. We always believe in the principles of unity in diversity, and we welcome guests by saying ' Atithi devo Bhava ', means, welcoming you all we welcome God.

What is religion? Hinduism is 5000 or 6000 years old, Judaism is 5600 years old, other religions like Jainism, Sikhism, Islam are less than 6000 or 7000 years old. Now, can anyone tell me, was there any religion earlier than 7000 or 8000 years ago? God created man and man created religion. There was no religion earlier than 6000 or 7000 years ago. What is religion? Religion is like a rainbow. A rainbow has 7 colours, but where it is merged, you get one colour, that is white. Look at the cows of different colours, they are black, white, brown, but you get milk of one colour, that is of white colour. So the same is true for religion. It is said in the Rigveda (quotation in Hindi), Truth is one, we may call it by many names. It is said in Srimad Bhagvadam (of Lord Krishna), Like a honeybee extracting honey from various flowers, wise men read holy scriptures of all religions and take the essence of goodness not only of one particular religion. This is the essence of religion.

What did Mahatma Gandhi say? Truth is my religion and I will obtain it by non-violence. 'Whatever is obtained through love and non-violence could be written forever, and whatever is obtained by hatred or violence cannot be written forever. It is said in the Vedas that there are three runas which you have to clear: First is your obligation to God, that is deva runa , second is your obligation to rishi runa , your obligation to Master, and third is pitru runa , your obligation towards your parents, but above all it is said that you should fulfill one more obligation, that is your obligation towards humanity ( manushya runa ). If you did not fulfill the deva runa, rishi runa and pitru runa, (but fulfilled your obligation towards humanity only) automatically you would get God's blessings.

If you look at the 10 commandments, the first five commandments are your obligations towards God, and the next five commandments your obligations towards your family. What is the fifth commandment? Thou shall honour thy parents! If you honour your parents, (and) you will not go to any place of worship, God will automatically shower upon you His blessings. But nowadays, are we looking after our elders? As soon as a son is getting married, you know, the fathers, the parents are on the street. What is the condition of the elderly persons? Who is there? There is no joint family – not in India and also not abroad. So my main concern is about the elderly persons in the family. There will not be unity unless and until you take care of your parents. You not need not go to a Mosque or a Mandir (temple) to pray to the Almighty, but you should take care of your parents,(and) you will fulfill all the obligations.

Nowadays has become a fashion, someone goes to the cinema or to the Mosque or the Mandir (temple) – it has become a fashion. Prayer has to be said from the core of the heart. There is a beautiful couplet in Hindi (quotation in Hindi): What you utter from your mouth is a song – what you say from the throat is like a devotional song. 'Prayer is like a ladder, God is invisible, but through prayer you can make God visible. And there is no difference between Ram and Rahim. (Passage in Hindi). So this is the essence of all the religions.

In Judaism it is said, Love thy neighbour as thyself. Somebody asked Rabbi Hillel, 'What is the essence of Torah? Just tell me one sentence!'. And Rabbi Hillel said, 'What is hateful and what is hurtful to you, do not do to others!' If you follow this principle, there will be unity and peace. We are talking about peace. What is peace? Peace is a very unique, dynamique concept. Peace is not falling (on us), peace is to be built. Some persons build peace in the heart, other persons destroy it. It is said in the Bible and the Koran, Blessed are those who are peacemakers. Because they will be called the sons of God.

But there is no peace within ourselves. We are all mentally disturbed. We do not only want physical fitness, we want mental tranquility, tranquility of mind. And that gift India has given to the entire world. Which are those gifts? That is Yoga, Asanas, and Pranayama to keep the body physically fit. And in order to have mental fitness, India has given the gift of Vipassana. If you follow these principles, you will be very hale and healthy. You cannot have peace unless and until you have tolerance. Ego, I – if you use the word 'ism', Judaism – an 'ism' – , Sikhism – an 'ism' – if you do not remove the 'ism' and do not remove the ego, there will not be unity. We have to follow the art of tolerance. You might have seen the snake, it has no feet, but it climbs a tree. You must have seen the tree – if you throw stones on the tree, you will get the fruits in return. Similarly you must be humble in all your activities.

At the end I would like to say, 'O God, you have taught us how to fly in the air like birds, how to swim in the ocean like a fish. But o God, kindly teach us how to walk on this earth in brotherhood, in dignity.'

When I came here to Kirpal Sagar, I felt the vibration of spirituality, and when I will go back, I would like to tell to all on behalf of my friends here: 'Kirpal Ashram (Kirpal Sagar) – we cannot forget this Ashram! And I would like to express my feelings in Hindi (speaking about Kirpal Sagar in Hindi).

Salam!

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