Talk:Rebirth or Resurrection: Gateway to Evil and Ego
In Chapter 16 of Gita, Bhagavan Krishna warns (to paraphrase): "The egoistic people say- ‘I have done this action today. I will do this tomorrow. I practice charity, perform religious rites for attaining Heaven’. Indeed, overcome with ego, such people bring about their ruin." The warning of our Lord is so very true and it clearly depicts the dangerous mentality that naturally results from the doctrines preached by the Semitic faiths. These religions teach that we should perform good actions to go to Heaven, while Hinduism says that we should perform good actions not because they lead us to salvation but because they ought to be performed as an offering to God. In fact, Hindus hold that good actions performed with a sense of ego can only lead to further rebirths. It is clear as daylight that the Christian/Muslim concept is not conducive to development of virtues like humility, gentleness of character and so on while the Hindu theory naturally leads to humility and gentleness of characters. Indeed, when the Christian missionaries first landed in India, the Hindus were appalled to witness their haughtiness and arrogance. What else will one expect from followers of St. Paul who (in one of his Epistles in the New Testament) states that due to his service to the Christian God, he feels like a runner who will come first in the competition and win the prize! In fact, humility seems to be one virtue lacking in the lives of so many Biblical and Muslim prophets, as is evident from stories of their lives in the texts of these religions.