Universal Principles of Faith
We shall only praise the one True God.
We shall only utilise the Name of God in
Truth.
We shall abstain from making any graven
image of that which is in Heaven, on Earth, or in the Sea beneath the Earth.
We remember Shabbat; we keep it Holy.
We honour our fars and our mors; so that we may have long life.
We shall abstain from killing.
We shall abstain from stealing.
We shall abstain from committing adultery.
We shall abstain from bearing false witness
against our neighbour.
We shall abstain from coveting the house of
our neighbour, the wife of our neighbour, the manservant of our neighbour, the
maidservant of our neighbour, the ox or ass of our neighbour.
We progress Right Belief, Right Aspiration,
Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Thought,
Right Meditation.
We do unto others as we would have them do
unto us.
We abstain from the consumption of animals.
We abstain from intoxicants.
We abstain from games of chance.
Peace
These Universal Principles of Faith are
adapted from the proceeding verses from the respective Holy Scriptures of
Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam:
Exodus
20:1 – 18 (similarly Deuteronomy 5:6 – 21) from the Torah of Judaism
And God spoke all these words, saying,
‘I am God your God, Who brought you out of
the land of Egypt
‘You shall have no other deities before me.
‘You shall not make for yourself a graven
image, or any likeness of anything that is in Heaven above or that is in the
Earth beneath, or that is in the water under the Earth; you shall not bow down to them or serve
them; for I God your God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fars upon the children to the third and the
fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing steadfast love to the
thousands of those who love Me and keep My commandments.
‘You shall not take the Name of God your
God in vain; for God will not hold him
guiltless who takes the Name of God in vain.
‘Remember Shabbat, to keep it Holy. Six days you shall labour, and do all your
work; but the seventh day is Shabbat to
God your God; in it you shall not do any
work, you, or your son, or your dotter, your manservant, or your maidservant,
or your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates; for in six days God
made Heaven and Earth, the Sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh
day; therefore God blessed Shabbat and
hallowed it.
‘Honour your far and your mor, that your
days may be long in the land which God your God gives you.
‘You shall not kill.
‘You shall not commit adultery.
‘You shall not steal.
‘You shall not bear false witness against
your neighbour.
‘You shall not covet your neighbour’s
house; you shall not covet your
neighbour’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass,
or anything that is your neighbour’s.’
Kassapa Síhanâda Sutta 13 from the Digha Nikâya
of the Tripitaka of Buddhism
‘Now there is, O
Kassapa, a way, there is a method which if a man follow he will of himself,
both see and know that: ‘The Samana
Gautama (the Buddha) is one who speaks in due season, speaks that which is,
that which redounds to advantage, that which is the Dharma (the Norm), that
which is the law of self restraint (the Vinaya).
‘And what, Kassapa, is
that way, what that method, which if a man follow, he will, of himself, know
that, and see that. Verily it is the
Noble Eightfold Path, that is to say: Right
Belief, Right Aspiration, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right
Effort, Right Thought, Right Meditation.
‘This Kassapa, is that
way, this that method, which if a man follow, he will of himself, both know and
see that: ‘The Samana Gautama (the
Buddha) is one who speaks in due season, speaks that which is, that which
redounds to profit, that which is the Dharma (the Norm), that which is the law
of self restraint.’
Matthew 22:34
– 40 from the Gospels of Christianity
But when the Pharisees
heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they came together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a
question, to test him. ‘Teacher, which
is the great commandment of the law?’
And he said to him, ‘You shall love God your God with all your heart, and
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the great and first commandment.
And a second is like it. You
shall love your neighbour as yourself.
On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.’
John 15:12
– 17 from the Gospels of Christianity
‘This is my
commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, that a man
lay down his life for his friends. You
are my friends if you do what I command you.
No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his
master is doing; but I have called you
friends, for all that I have heard from my God I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and
appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should
abide; so that whatever you ask God in
my name, God may give it to you. This I
command you, to love one another.’
Matthew 5:38
– 48 (Luke 6:27 - 36) from
the Gospels of Christianity
‘You have hear that it
was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I say to you, Do not resist one who is
evil. But if any one strikes you on the
right cheek, turn to him the other also;
and if any one would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak
as well, and if any one forces you to go one kilometer, go with him two
kilometers. Give to him who begs from
you, and do not refuse him who would borrow form you.
‘You have heard that
it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray
for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your God who is in
Heaven; for God makes the Sun of God
rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the
unjust. For if you love those who love
you, what reward have you? Do not even
the tax collectors do the same? And if
you salute only your fellows, what mas are you doing than others? Do not even Gentiles do the same? You, therefore, must be perfect, as your
heavenly God is perfect.’
Matthew 7:7 – 12 (Luke 11:9 - 13) from the
Gospels of Christianity
‘Ask, and it will be
given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For every one who asks receives, and he who
seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man of you, if his son asks him for
bread, will give him a stone? Or if he
asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?
If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much mas will your God Who is in Heaven give good things to those who ask
God! So whatever you wish that men would
do to you, do so to them; for this is
the law and the prophets.’
Genesis 1:28
– 31 from the Torah of Judaism
And God blessed them,
and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the Earth and subdue
it; and have dominion over the fish of
the Sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves
upon the Earth.’ And God said, ‘Behold,
I have given you every plant yielding seed which is upon the face of all the
Earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit;
you shall have them for food. And
to every beast of the Earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything
that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. And God saw everything that God had made, and
behold, it was very good. And there was
evening and there was morning, a sixth day.
Bhagavad Gita 7: 7 – 11 (similarly 9:11 – 14) from Hinduism
There is nothing that
exists separate from Me, Arjuna. The
entire Universe is suspended from Me as My necklace of jewels.
Arjuna, I am the taste
of pure water and the radiance of the Sun and Moon. I am the sacred word and the sound heard in
air, and the courage of human beings.
I am the sweet
fragrance in the Earth and the radiance of fire; I am the life in every creature and the
striving of the spiritual aspirant.
My eternal seed,
Arjuna, is to be found in every creature.
I am the power of discrimination in those who are intelligent, and the
glory of the noble.
In those who are
strong, I am strength, free from passion and selfish attachment. I am desire itself, if that desire is in
harmony with the purpose of life.
Bhagavad Gita 9:29 from Hinduism
I look upon all
creatures equally; none are less dear to
Me and none mas dear. But those who
worship Me with love live in Me, and I come to life in them.
Sura 17:44
(similarly 22:18 ; 2:29 ; 6:38 )
from the Koran of Islam
The seven Heavens and
the Earth, and all beings, therein, declare the Glory of God. There is not a thing but celebrates the
praise of God; and ye understand not how
they declare the Glory of God! Verily
God is Oft Forbearing, Most Forgiving.
Sura 21:106 – 107 from the Koran of Islam
Verily in this Koran
is a Message for people who would Truly worship God.
We sent thee not, but
as a Mercy for all creatures.
Matthew 15:10
– 11 (Mark 7:14 - 16) from
the Gospels of Christianity
And he called the
people to him and said to them, ‘Hear and understand: not what goes into the mouth defiles a man,
but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.’
Kutadanta Sutta 1:26 from the Digha Nikâya of the Tripitaka of Buddhism
‘And is there, O
Gautama, any other sacrifice less difficult and less troublesome of greater
fruit and of greater advantage than all of these four?’
‘When a man with
trusting heart takes upon himself the precepts-
abstinence from destroying life;
abstinence from taking what has not been given; abstinence from evil conduct in respect of
lusts; abstinence from lying words; abstinence from strong, intoxicating,
maddening drinks, the root of carelessness-
that is a sacrifice better than open largesse, better than perpetual
alms, better than the gift of dwelling places, better than accepting guidance.’
Brahma Gâla Sutta 6 – 9 (similarly Sâmañña
Phala Sutta 43 – 62 [in part];
Sonandanda Sutta 23 [in part];
Kûtadanta Sutta 27 [in part];
Mahâli Sutta 15 [in part]; Gâliya
Sutta [in part]; Potthapâda Sutta 7 [in
part]; Subha Sutta 7 [in part]; Kevaddha Sutta 8 [in part]; Lohikka Sutta 19 – 77 [in part]) form the
Digha Nikâya of the Tripitaka of Buddhism
‘But also, fellows, if
outsiders should speak in honour of me, in honour of the Dharma (the Doctrine),
in honour of the Sangha (the Order), you should not, on that account, be filled
with pleasure or gladness, or be lifted up in heart. Were you to be so that also would stand in
the way of your self conquest. When
outsiders speak in honour of me, or of the Dharma, or of the Sangha, you should
acknowledge what is right to be the fact, saying: ‘For this or that reason this is the fact,
that is so, such a thing is found amongst us, is in us.’
‘It is in respect only
of trifling things, of matters of little value, of mere morality, that an
unconverted man, when honouring the Tathâgata (one of
wisdom), would speak. And what are such
trifling, minor details of mere morality that he would honour?
‘’Putting away the killing of living
things, Gautama the recluse holds aloof from the destruction of life. He has laid the cudgel and the sword aside,
and ashamed of roughness, and full of mercy, he dwells compassionate and kind
to all creatures that have life.’ It is
thus that the unconverted man, when speaking of the Tathâgata, might speak.
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away the taking of what has not been
given, Gautama the recluse lives aloof from grasping what is not his own. He takes only what is given, and expecting
that gifts will come, he passes his life in honesty and purity of heart.’
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away unchastity, Gautamathe recluse
is chaste. He holds himself aloof,
distantly off, from the vulgar practice, from the sexual act.’
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away lying words, Gautama the
recluse holds himself aloof from falsehood.
He speaks Truth, from the Truth he never serves; Faithful and trustworthy, he breaks not his
word to the World.’
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away slander, Gautama the recluse
holds himself aloof from calumny. What
he hears here he repeats not elsewhere to raise a quarrel against the people
here; what he hears elsewhere he repeats
not here to raise a quarrel against the people there. Thus does he live as a binder together of
those who are divided, an encourager of those who are friends, a Peacemaker, a
lover of Peace, impassioned for Peace, a speaker of words that make for Peace.’
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away rudeness of speech, Gautama the
recluse holds himself aloof from harsh language. Whatsoever word is blameless, pleasant to the
ear, lovely, reaching to the heart, urbane, pleasing to the people, beloved of
the people- such are words he speaks.’
‘Or he might say: ‘Putting away frivolous talk, Gautama the
recluse holds himself aloof from vain conversation. In season he speaks, in accordance with the
facts, words full of meaning, on religion, on the discipline of the Sangha. He speaks, and at the right time, words
worthy to be laid up in one’s heart, fitly illustrated, clearly divided, to the
point.’
Sura 2:219 – 220 (similarly 5:93 – 95) from the
Koran of Islam
They ask thee
concerning wine and gambling. Say: ‘In them is great sin, and some profit, for
men; but the sin is greater than the
profit.’
They ask thee how much
they are to spend; say: What is beyond your needs.’
Thus doth God make
clear to you the signs of God: in order
that ye may consider-
their bearings on this
life and the Hereafter.
Leviticus 10:8 – 11 from the Torah of Judaism
And God spoke to
Aaron, saying, ‘Drink no wine nor strong drink, you nor your sons with you,
when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die; it shall be a statute for ever throughout
your generations. You are to distinguish
between the Holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean; and you are to teach the people of Israel all the
statutes which God has spoken to them by Moses.’
Bhagavad Gita 2:16 – 17, 23 – 25 from Hinduism
The impermanent has no
reality; reality lies in the
eternal. Those who have seen the
boundary between these two have attained the end of all knowledge.
Realise that which
pervades the Universe and is indestructible;
no power can affect this unchanging, imperishable reality.
The Self cannot be
pierced by weapons or burned with fire;
water cannot wet it, nor can the wind dry it.
The Self cannot be
pierced or burned, made wet or dry. It
is everlasting and infinite, standing on the motionless foundations of
eternity.
The Self is
unmanifested, beyond all thought, beyond all change. Knowing this, you should not grieve.
Bhagavad Gita 5:7 from Hinduism
Those who follow the
path of service, who have completely purified themselves and conquered their
senses and self will, see the Self in all creatures and are untouched by any
action they perform.
We abstain from intoxicants.
We abstain from games of chance.
Om. Shanti. Shanti. Shanti-hi. Amen.
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