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We Attain Bhagavan Following One Path Or Another – No Need To Quarrel

Kanchi Jagadguru Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Mahaswamigal (20 May 1894 – 8 January 1994) states that we attain Bhagavan by following one path or another and there is no need to quarrel over religions and teachings.

"Love everyone.” "Live a life of sacrifice." "Serve mankind.” Such are the teachings of the various religions. If a man lives according to these tenets, it is believed that his soul will reach God after it departs from his body. Those who subscribe to Advaita or non-dualism declare that the soul will become one with the Godhead. According to another system of belief, after reaching Bhagavan, the soul will serve him and ever remain happy as the recipient of his compassion. There is no need to quarrel over the nature of the final state. "By following one path or another we attain Bhagavan. And that will be the end of all our sorrows, all our frustrations and all our failures in this world. There will now be nothing but bliss, full and everlasting. “No more than this do we need to know for the present.”

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Ordinarily, it is not easy to develop faith in, or devotion to, God expressed in abstract terms. For the common people devotion must take the form of practical steps. That is how ritual originated. Sandhyavandanam, puja and other forms of prayer are examples of such ritual. The religions teach people their duties, how they must conduct themselves to God in the very midst of their worldly life.

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No religion teaches us to live according to our whims and fancies; no religion asks us to acquire wealth and property for our personal needs alone. If a man believes that he alone is important, that he is all, he will live only for himself. That is why all religions speak of an entity called God and teach man to efface his ego or I-feeling. "Child, “they tell him" , "you are nothing before that Power, the author of this universe. It is he -- that Power -- who has endowed you with intelligence." Your intelligence, your intellect, must guide you on the path of dharma, righteousness. For this purpose, you must look up to this Power for support. The great importance attached to bhakti or devotion in all religions is founded on this belief, the need for divine support for virtuous conduct.

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You must look upon the world as belonging to Bhagavan, and it is your duty to so conduct yourself as to conform yourself to this belief. This constitutes the dharma of humanity. Acts dictated solely by selfish interests will push one into unrighteousness. A man must learn to be less and less selfish in his thoughts and actions; he must always remember Bhagavan and must ever be conscious that he is the master of this entire world”. This view is the basis on which all religions have evolved.