What happened last Friday in over three continents, and what happened in our own London ten years ago next Tuesday (7th July), as well as all such atrocities world wide was and are shocking and painful for all irrespective of his or her religion, gender or colour. The horrific butchery of British nationals in Tunisia last Friday has been very widely reported. British print media, like its other sources, have reflected the agony, pain and frustration of an average Briton. Let me quote two respectable national dailies.
In it's edit on Saturday, The Times headline was: “Blood stained religion: Islamist terrorists will continue to kill innocents without warning until Islam purges itself from the inside of this vile parody of faith”. In The Sunday Times the comment was much more clear: “Hit them hard and hit them hard again”. In The Telegraph the average sentiment of all those who live in this country were reflected with the comment: “A poisonous ideology”. On Sunday it was followed up in the comment of The Sunday Telegraph: “The West must prepare for a fight that it has to win”.
Most people worldwide have predicted much more bloodshed before it gets better. Some fear that the Shia minority is bearing the brunt of fellow muslims who call themselves Sunnis. More muslims are killed by their fellow muslims, all in the name of their pure religious beliefs.
I speak as someone who takes pride in his own faith tradition. I am a Hindu. Hindus are very fortunate. I believe in one God with different names. I accept that believers can choose their preferred deity or ideology. Hinduism is also very clear, even a person who professes to have no belief is also a believer. Thank goodness. Hindus do not kill other hindus let alone the followers of other faiths or the so called "unbelievers". I am especially going through enormous pain, because I happen to know several victims and some perpetrators of the violence, through some connections.
About 400, mainly Pakistani Muslims, are serving prison sentences for being found guilty of terrorist activities in Britain. Indian Muslims are indeed very few, thank goodness. Why is there so much difference in the behaviour between Indian Muslims and their counterparts from the neighbours of India? Indeed there has been some Hindus who also hobnobed directly or indirectly with Islamic terrorism. One young man in northwest London, brought up in a traditional Hindu family, converted to Islam and took part in a ghastly attempt. In another case a British Hindu, is serving time in an American jail for attempted terrorist activity. It is sad that such vulnerable, misguided or trusting individuals were brainwashed or inspired by some bigots. I also happen to know families of at least three suicide bombers with connections in India particularly Gujarat. Those two young men who have died in Syria in the past year who were Gujarati Muslims are from hard working, devote and peace loving Muslim families and I know that all their relations and acquaintances look back more in sadness than anger.
Recently I was speaking to some of my Muslim friends who know someone else who were perpetrators of such heinous crimes against humanity. Surprisingly, they also wonder whether the terrorists have reached heaven or not with all the different bonuses or attractions repeatedly promised by those who groom them. I don’t. What I know is that all those who are dead, even the attackers and suicide bombers, have loved ones who miss them.
I have one easy recourse – whenever there is so much pain and agony and other anxieties, I can look at the Srimad Bhagavad Gita. I, as a Hindu, can have my own interpretation. I do not desire moksha or nirvan. I don’t believe in rebirth. I only believe in karma yoga. I, as someone who was privileged to be born a human being, can enjoy and serve best by his own thoughts and words and actions. But at the same time I know the pain and loss of so many people whose loved ones were victims of these dangerous band of terrorists and who give Islam such a bad name.
Islam in it's purest form surely does not preach such inhuman, intolerant, hateful and blood thirsty ideology. Not in the name of my many many Muslims friends can one justify such religious bigotry and madness. Terrorists can never win. Perhaps the recent upsurge in terrorism reflects their own exhaustion and desperation. They ought to be defeated and, like in the past, they will defeat themselves.
Next week when we pray at the 10th anniversary of what happened in London with our own home grown terrorists, we will all pause, think and try to be better human beings.
