Skip to main content

Love Thy Neighbor - The Hindu Viewpoint

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR: Why almost all religions emphasize on love?
 
You may not have thought on the subject and maybe you think loving others will take you to heaven. Maybe that's the sole reason why you are being nice to others. It might also be your personality trait - some people empathize with others without expecting anything.

Anyway, let's see what a Hindu has to say about "Love thy neighbor." I could think of just two reasons (other than heaven and hell concept) for spreading love instead of hate. The first is the karma thing mentioned in scriptures. The second is the advaita philosophy. Let's see them in details.
 
 
 

When you throw a stone with enough force, it will some back to you from the other direction. That is how karma works. You have to enjoy the fruits of what you do - irrespective of whether those fruits are bitter or sweat. I said earlier that God does not interfere with Karma. That means, you have done something - good or bad - you have to bear the karma. The pain, if any, can be reduced by dedicating yourself to God. But no one can kill karma entirely. So, if you hate others, you will get hate or worse in return. Likewise, if you love living beings, the universe will reciprocate that love. The love you give out, comes back to you sooner than later. While we are at it, karma can be avoided altogether by dedicating your actions to God (ref: Bhagwad Gita).

The second concept I could think of was the advaita philosophy. According to the advaita philosophy, God and creation are one entity. That again means two things. When you love others, you are loving God. Since Advaita also means you are God, loving others mean loving yourself. Nothing could be better than that.

Hence "love thy neighbor" is preached in almost every religion. If you have anything to add, please comment.

Problem with the above post? Send us an email

DISCLOSURE: Please note if you purchase any products using links in this blog (excluding links in comments), Powercut Media (India) may receive some commission. Rest assured, our reviews are not biased. We wont recommend anything we did not try.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular on Powercut Media

Best app for Android phones - Clean Master from Cheetah Mobile

After five years of testing different multipurpose apps for Android maintenance, I realize Clean Master from Cheetah Mobile is the best maintenance app for Android phones. Not only maintenance, Clean Master offers you much more than you can expect from a single app.

For a while, it felt the "All in One for Android" is good. But turned out it leaves out add-ins even after you remove it. What is available in single code in Clean Master of Cheetah Mobile, is available as add-ins in All in One app for Android. When you uninstall All in One app, the add-ins continue to run in RAM. I could not find any method to remove them as they were not visible in any App Managers. I had to do a factory reset and that was when my doubts were removed and I acknowledged Clean Master of Cheetah Mobile is the best option for Android phones.




Lock Screen
Here are features at a glance. Let's start from Lock Screen. Replacing your phone lock screen, you can set up Clean Master Lock Screen. It help…
Post a Comment
Read more

Significance or Meaning of Swaha and Ithi in Sanskrit Mantras

You might have noticed that all mantras begin with the sound of "OM". What you might have ignored or failed to notice that mantras in Sanskrit end with "ithi" or "swaha". Some of you end mantras with just a "namah".

Not to scare you, but if you fail to use "ithi" at end of each mantra or at the very end of any stotra (hymn), the mantra & related offering (sacrifice or prasadam) doesn't reach the god being prayed.

The word "ithi" marks the end of mantra, and urges gods to accept whatever you are offering.

The word "swaha" is used more in havans (rituals were you put offerings/prasad directly into fire). Since people put offerings into fire while saying "swaha", many of us associate it with "destruction". When anyone says "sab kuch swaha ho gaya (everything became swaha)", it does and should not be concluded that he or she lost things. It is a wrong notion that associates "sw…
Post a Comment
Read more

Analysis of Mahabharata Characters - Bhishma

Bhishma is one of the powerful characters of the epic, Mahabharata that contains and shows a pious way of life to the mortals living on earth. I am starting this Analysis of Mahabharata Characters with Bhishma as he is the oldest character in the epic/saga and has tremendous influence on the other characters of Mahabharata. Bhishma was the son of king Shantanu and Ganga (the river Ganges in female form). Bhishma was considered one of the eight Vasus (rishis) who had to take birth on earth due to a curse. Before we analyze the character, let us take a quick look at the story of Bhishma according to the Mahabharata.
Background Of Bhishma Bhismha is considered one of the eight Vasus who stole a cow named Kamadhenu from a sage. When the sage cursed them to take birth as humans, all Vasus asked for his forgiveness. The sage, for seven Vasus who helped the main Vasu to steal the cow, reduced the curse to death just after birth. However, the main Vasu who actually stole the cow was to stay …
Read more