Gems From Different Traditions
During a conference call of Parliament
Ambassadors preparing for our Salt Lake City Parliament, a friend from India
asks whether we might be able to provide some of the gems that are revealed
within our respective religious and cultural traditions. Indeed, that is the very nature of our
Parliament. And with that thought in
mind, the proceeding are some gems from a small number of our traditions.
Judaism
Psalm 146 (Tanakh, Chabad)
Hallelujah! My soul, praise the Lord.
I shall praise the Lord in my life; I shall sing to the Lord as long as I exist.
Do not trust in princes, in the son of
men, who has no salvation.
His spirit leaves, he returns to his
soil; on that day, his thoughts are
lost.
Praiseworthy is he in whose help is
the God of (Yaakov); his hope is in the
Lord his God.
Who made heaven and earth, the sea and
all that is in them, Who keeps (Truth) forever.
Who performs justice for the
oppressed, Who gives bread to the hungry;
the Lord sets loose the bound.
The Lord gives sight to the blind; the Lord straightens the bent; the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord guards the strangers; (the Lord) strengthens the orphan and the
widow, and (the Lord) perverts the way of the wicked.
The Lord will reign forever! Your God, O Zion, to all generations. Hallelujah!
Hinduism
Gayatri Mantra (Vedas, International
Sai Organisation)
We contemplate the glory of Light
illuminating the three worlds: gross, subtle, and causal.
I am that vivifying power, love,
radiant illumination, and divine grace of universal intelligence.
We pray for the divine light to
illumine our minds.
Buddhism
Metta Sutta (Indaratana Maha Thera,
Buddhanet)
He who is skilled in what is
(benevolent)
And who wishes to attain that state of
calm
Should act thus:
He should be able, upright,
Obedient, gentle and humble.
Contented, easily supportable with few
duties,
Of right livelihood, controlled in
senses,
Discreet, not imprudent,
Not to be greedily attached to
families.
He should not commit any slight wrong
Such that other wise men might censure
him.
And he should think:
May all beings be happy and secure;
May their hearts be happy!
Whatever living beings there are —
Feeble or strong, long, stout or
medium,
Short, small or large, seen or unseen,
Those dwelling far or near,
Those who are born and those who are
to be born
May all beings, without exception,
Be happy-hearted!
Let no one deceive another
Nor despise any person whatever in any
place,
Either in anger or in ill will,
Let one not wish any harm to another.
Just as a mother would protect her
only child
Even at her own life’s risk,
So let him cultivate
A boundless heart towards all beings.
Let his heart of boundless love
Pervade the whole world above,
Below and across; with no obstruction,
No hatred and no enmity.
Whether he stands, walks, sits or lies
down;
As long as he is awake,
He should develop this mindfulness.
This, they say is Divine Abiding here.
Not falling into views,
Being virtuous and endowed with
insight,
He gives up attachment to
sense-desires.
Truly, he does not come again
For conception in a womb.
Christianity
Beatitudes (Matthew 5:1 – 12, Revised
Standard Version, Bible Gateway)
Seeing the crowds, he went up on the
mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them,
saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for
theirs is the (sovereignty) of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they
shall be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall
inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they
shall obtain mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for
they shall see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they
shall be called sons of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted
for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the (sovereignty) of heaven.
“Blessed are you when men revile you
and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my
account. Rejoice and be glad, for your
reward is great in heaven, for so men persecuted the prophets who were before
you.”
Islam
Al Fatihah (Sura 1, Koran, Yusuf Ali)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious,
Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and
Sustainer of the worlds;
Most Gracious, Most Merciful;
Master of the Day of Judgment.
Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we
seek.
Show us the straight way,
The way of those on whom Thou hast
bestowed Thy Grace, those whose (portion) is not wrath, and who go not astray.
Taoism
Chapter 1 (Tao Te Ching, Derek Lin,
Taoism.net)
The Tao that can be spoken is not the
eternal Tao
The name that can be named is not the
eternal name
The nameless is the origin of Heaven
and Earth
The named is the mother of myriad
things
Thus, constantly free of desire
One observes its wonders
Constantly filled with desire
One observes its manifestations
These two emerge together but differ
in name
The unity is said to be the mystery
Mystery of mysteries, the door to all
wonders
Baha’i Faith
Baha’i Lecture (Abdul Baha, Paris
Talks)
“I charge you all that each one of you
concentrate all the thoughts of your heart
on love and unity. When a thought of
war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought
of peace. A thought of hatred must be
destroyed by a more powerful thought of
love. Thoughts of war bring
destruction to all harmony, well-being, restfulness
and content.
“Thoughts of love are constructive of
brotherhood, peace, friendship, and
happiness.
“When soldiers of the world draw their
swords to kill, soldiers of God kclasp each
other’s hands! So may all the savagery of man disappear by
the Mercy of God,
working through the pure in heart and
the sincere of soul. Do not think the peace
of the world an ideal impossible to
attain!
“Nothing is impossible to the Divine
Benevolence of God.
“If you desire with all your heart,
friendship with every race on earth, your
thought, spiritual and positive, will
spread; it will become the desire of others,
growing stronger and stronger, until
it reaches the minds of all men.”
Sikhism
Sikh Teaching (Sri Guru Granth Sahib
1083, Paramjit Singh)
“Practice within your heart the
teachings of the Koran and the Bible; restrain the
ten sensory organs from straying into
evil. Tie up the five demons of desire with
faith, charity and contentment, and
you shall be acceptable. Let compassion be
your Mecca, and the dust of the feet
of the holy your fast.”
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