“No religion is absolutely perfect. Yet not only do we fight for religion, but also are we often willing to sacrifice our lives for it. And what we hopelessly fail to do is to live it. A true religion is that which has no caste, no creed, no colour. It is but an all-uniting and all-pervading embrace.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹

“Love of God is the essence of all religions.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²

“Yes, I believe in one God, one Source. Love of God is like a tree — the life-tree — and it has many branches. Each of the branches has its own identity and its own name, such as Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam and so forth. But they are still branches of the same tree.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²

“The true religion
Is nothing short of
God-union.”

– Sri Chinmoy ⁴

“True religion has a universal quality. It does not find fault with other religions. False religions will find fault with other religions; they will say that theirs is the only valid religion and their prophet is the only saviour. But a true religion will feel that all the prophets are saviours of mankind. Forgiveness, compassion, tolerance, brotherhood and the feeling of oneness are the signs of a true religion.”

– Sri Chinmoy ⁵

“The name of my religion
Is
Neither supremacy-peak
Nor argument-volcano.”

– Sri Chinmoy ⁶

“I feel very sad when religious sects quarrel and fight in the Name of God. If they really love God, they will not kill others in His Name. Love means oneness. If we have oneness, how can we fight? We fight only because we do not feel love for others, because we have not yet transformed our ignorance into oneness-reality.”

– Sri Chinmoy ⁷

“When the religion-bird
Flies in the spirituality-sky,
It far transcends religion-limitations.”

– Sri Chinmoy ⁸

“I also believe that all religions are ways to provide us with the experience of God, completely independent of the historical context of their messages. True, each religious teacher or prophet comes with a special message that suits the people of his time. But humanity’s ignorance and lack of receptivity are such that whenever a prophet comes, he always seems to have come ahead of his time.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²

“The modern path
Is to debate voraciously
About religion and scripture.
What a stupid path!”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁰

“The “love of God” religion
Does not claim
Man-made religions.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹¹

“Each individual seeker views the Creator and the creation according to his own aspiration and level of development. What we need is light to illumine our inner and outer differences. It is through our oneness-life that we will walk, march and run to the Supreme. We must have appreciation for and sympathetic oneness with all religions in order to create a harmony that will spread throughout the length and breadth of the world.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹²

Sri Chinmoy on other religions

“I recognise Jesus Christ not only as an unparalleled prophet and the beloved Son of God but also as a supreme oneness-friend of mankind. What he did, what he is doing and what he will be doing is far beyond the domains of history, society and certain levels of spirituality.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹³

“Hinduism encompasses many philosophies and beliefs. It is all-embracing in its love, and it gives importance to all the spiritual figures of the world. Hinduism embodies certain eternal ideals, and it sees a true harmony in the teachings of all religions. To some extent, it is more like a self-disciplined spiritual culture than a religion.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁴

“Buddhism
Has taught me how to be
Inseparably one
With infinite Compassion
And
Shed sleepless tears
For the suffering humanity.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁵

“Hinduism
Has taught me the art
Of tolerance, silence, poise and peace.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁶

“Christianity
Has taught me how to acquire
The art of God-surrender
And world-forgiveness.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁷

“Simplicity, kindness
And forgiveness –
These three are
The most powerful branches
Of the life-tree of Christianity.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁸

“Islam
Has taught me how to acquire
The art of God-reliance
And God-sacrifice
In sleepless eagerness.”

– Sri Chinmoy ¹⁹

“Jainism
Has taught me how to acquire
The art of breathless self-discipline
In the purest sense of the term
And
Concern not only for human beings
But for each and every being,
Even at the lowest status
Of the soul’s evolution.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²⁰

“Sufism
Has taught me
That the outer dance
Enraptures the Sufi seekers
And
The inner dance unifies,
Reveals and manifests
The Divinity of the lover
And the Beloved all at once.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²¹

“A seeker must believe in God’s religion only:
Love and Concern.
Man’s religion is supremacy.
Man’s religion is indifference.
Man’s religion is separation.
Man’s religion is the incredible frustration of individual freedom.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²²

Sri Chinmoy on his own religion

“I was born into the Hindu religion, but now my only religion is to love God and to be of service to God. Love of God embraces all religions: Christianity, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam and others. I was born a Hindu, but being a God-lover, I love all religions and claim all religions as my own.”

– Sri Chinmoy ²³

“Up until the age of eleven, I was raised as a Hindu. Then I went to a spiritual community where I prayed and meditated most sincerely and soulfully. After a few years, I went beyond the boundaries of any one particular religion and said, “Now I have only my sincere love of God.”

Sri Chinmoy, Sri Chinmoy answers, part 04, Agni Press, 1995

Footnotes