Author: Maria Wirth

We keep using the English term „God“ as if we know what it means. But do we? “Of course”, many may reply: “God is the English term for the Creator of the universe, for the Highest Truth.” Few will doubt that this universe and we included have to come from somewhere and ‘God’ is given as the answer. He is seen as the ultimate power, the highest truth, from which all else emanates. Yet somehow, ‘God’ has taken on strange attributes in public perception: He is invariably male, and has allegedly spoken to a few special persons and told them…

Common people in the west know hardly anything about India. But one thing they all know: India has an ‘inhuman’ caste system, which is an important feature of their religion, Hinduism. Most also ‘know’ that Brahmins are the highest caste, which oppresses the lower castes, and worst off are the untouchables. I learnt this already in primary school. The Indian caste system with Brahmins as villains was part of the curriculum in Bavarian schools in the early 1960s, when we children had no idea where or what India is, and it still is part of the syllabus today: some time…

Some months ago I attended an Interfaith Dialogue in Delhi. Hindus, Muslims and Christians spoke, all were nice, smiling. But it was not a dialogue. It was a promotion for the Abrahamic religions. Christians praised Christianity, Muslims praised Islam, and Hindus praised Christianity and Islam. Why were Hindus extra careful not to step on any toes? Christians and Muslims never showed such consideration towards Hindus. It almost looked as if Hindus still feel the need to please their former Christian or Muslim masters. Fortunately, those masters are gone. Unfortunately, they have made sure, through their education system, that many Indians…

Some years ago, I met an American from Seattle, who studied Sanskrit at the university there. He had come to India to meet his guru and had even taken an Indian name. He told me that westerners, including professors, at his university who had accepted Buddhism had no hesitation to openly identify as Buddhists, yet those, who felt close to Hinduism, would not identify as Hindus. He summed it up: to be a Buddhist makes you look intellectual in the eyes of others, but to be a Hindu makes you look somewhat suspect. A few months after I had met…

There are several good things in Hinduism which Christianity and Islam are lacking and which are obvious, provided a Christian or Muslim can get over the negative stereotypes with which Hinduism is (probably purposely) associated all over the world, like caste system and idol worship. In fact an unbiased observer will come to the conclusion that Hinduism not only has many beneficial aspects that the others are lacking, but also lacks the harmful aspects which Christianity and Islam have unfortunately incorporated into their doctrine and which have caused so much suffering over almost 2000 years. The most glaring difference is…

There are different criteria on which one could compare those 3 religions. I want to focus here only on the most important criterium: which one of the three religions is closest to truth. Christianity claims that the full truth has been revealed 2000 years ago only to Jesus Christ by the one Supreme Being (called God in English), and therefore truth is only with his Church. All must become Christians and follow what Christ said, if they want to be saved from hell. Islam claims that the final truth has been revealed some 1400 years ago to Prophet Mohamed by…

This is the Hindi translation of https://mariawirthblog.wpcomstaging.com/2016/09/02/hindu-dharma-needs-to-spread/ बौद्धिक निष्ठा तथा सत्य वर्तमान समय में स्पष्टतया अवांछित हैं। इन्हें ‘राजनैतिक औचित्य’ द्वारा प्रतिस्थापित कर दिया गया है। ऐसा क्यों हुआ, रहस्य है किंतु मुख्यधारा में सम्मिलित मीडिया एवं ऐसी अन्य संस्थायें ‘राजनैतिक रूप से उचित’ धारणा का पुरजोर समर्थन दे लागू करती हैं। वे प्रभावशाली ढंग से हमारी सोच की दिशा तय करती हैं चाहे वह सहज समझ के विपरीत ही हो। उदाहरण के लिये सन् 1999 में पोप ने जब भारत में घोषणा की थी कि चर्च 21 वीं सदी तक एशिया में ईसाई मजहब पूर्णतया स्थापित कर देगा तो…

This question was asked on Quora and the questioner had added: “RSS and BJP say everyone living in India is a Hindu. Then who are actual Hindus? Is Hinduism really a religion?” I have expanded my original answer: Whether Hinduism is a religion depends on how religion is defined. Most people probably would say that religion is: about believing in an invisible Supreme Being, which is the cause of our existence, about methods and rituals to worship it, about living according to its laws or will. In this case, Hinduism is definitely a religion. In fact, it is the Mother…

A Hindu nation is projected as the worst possible scenario by the wrongly called ‘liberal’ media. Yet, the same media don’t react when America or most other western countries are referred to as Christian nations. Nor do they get agitated about the numerous Muslim nations; not even about those which still have harsh blasphemy laws. Why are these ok, and a Hindu nation is not ok? They don’t explain; they just insinuate that minorities (read Muslims and Christians) will suffer in a Hindu nation. Maybe they came to this conclusion because minorities like Jews or Hindus suffer in certain Christian…

When I was in high school in Germany, I had a recurring phantasy. I imagined that some fine day the anchor in the news broadcast announces that science has found proof that God exists. This was at a time when doubts started creeping in whether it was true what I had believed so strongly in childhood, and such an announcement, I felt, would settle the issue once for all. This was in the 1960s, when science made great strides for example in space exploration. Yuri Gagarin, the first astronaut in space, allegedly said after returning to earth that he had…