Chapter 22 Chapter 20: First Contact with Various Religions

At the end of my second year in England, I met two Theosophists.They are two brothers, and both are unmarried.They talked to me about the Psalm of Gida.They were reading The Song of Abundance, translated by Sir Edwin Arnold, and asked me to read the original with them.I feel ashamed because I have not read that hymn in Sanskrit or Gujarati.I have to tell them that I have not read the Gita Psalm, but I would love to read it with them, and although my knowledge of Sanskrit is limited, I hope my understanding of the original text is sufficient to allow me to identify corruptions in the translation .So I began to read with them the "Psalm of Gida", in which these lines from the second chapter made a deep impression on me, and still haunt my ears: If one pays attention to the things of the senses, then You will be seduced by it; temptation begets love, love stirs up desire, and desire disregards everything else; once the barrier is broken, the aura is gone, and finally the spirit is lost, and the body and mind die together.

I think this book is like a priceless treasure.I was more and more impressed by this book, and to this day I still regard it as the best book for people to know the truth.When I was bored, it gave me invaluable help.I have read almost all the English translations, and I think Arnold's is the best.He is faithful to the original and does not read like a translation.Although I read "The Psalm of Gida" with these friends, it was not a research at that time, and it was not until a few years later that it became my daily must-read book. These two brothers also introduced me to The Light of Asia by Sir Edwin Arnold.I used to only know that he is the author of "Song of Abundance", until I saw this book, I think it is much more interesting to read than "Bhagavad Gita".Once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down.Once they took me to the Blavatsky house and introduced me to Mrs. Blavatsky and Mrs. Bessant.Mrs. Besant had just joined the Theosophical Society at that time, and the debate about her conversion interested me greatly.These friends advised me to join the club, but I politely declined.I said, "I don't know much about my own religion, so I can't join another religious group." I remember reading Madame Blavatsky's "Introduction to Theosophy" on the advice of these two brothers.This book aroused my desire to read about Hindu texts and removed from my mind the idea that Hinduism was full of superstitions as propagated by the missionaries.

About this time I met a kind Christian man from Manchester in a vegan flat. He talked to me about Christianity.I told him what had happened to me at Rajkot, and he was very upset.He said: "I am a vegetarian and I don't drink alcohol. There is no doubt that many Christians eat meat and drink alcohol; but eating meat and drinking alcohol is not what the Bible teaches. If you read the Bible, you will know I have." I accepted his advice, and he gave me a Bible.I have a vague recollection that he used to sell Bibles himself, and I bought him a Bible with a map, index, and other advantages.I started to read, but couldn't finish the Old Testament.I read "Genesis" and fell asleep after reading the next few chapters.But to show off that I also read the Bible, I read through the others very reluctantly, with neither interest nor understanding.My least favorite is "Numbers".

However, the "New Testament" gives people a different impression, especially the "Sermon on the Mount", which really penetrated into my heart.I think it can be compared beautifully with "Jida Psalm".It says "I tell you: Do not oppose the wicked. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other cheek and let him strike you. If anyone wants to take your underwear, let him take your coat too", I think Appreciate endlessly afterwards.And it reminds me of the passage of "give me a glass of water, give me a good meal" said by Samar Barth.My young mind tried to hold together the lessons of the Hymn of Gida, the Light of Asia, and the Sermon on the Mount.Letting go is the highest form of religion, and it has inspired me greatly.

These few books I have read have aroused my interest in studying the lives of other religious figures.A friend recommended Carlyle's Heroes and Hero Worship to me.I read the chapter "The Prophet is a Hero" to understand the great, brave and serious life of the Prophet. Apart from this little understanding of religion, I was unable to do more research at that time, because I was busy preparing for the exam and had little time to dabble in other things.But I already have a plan in mind, in the future I will read more religious books in order to familiarize myself with all major religions.

But how can I not know a little about atheism?Every Indian knows Bradlaugh's name and his so-called atheism.I once read a book on atheism, the title of which I forgot.This book has no effect on me, because I have come out of the atheistic Sahara desert.My objection to atheism was also strengthened by the fact that Mrs. Besant, a prominent figure in society at the time, had converted from atheism to theism.I read her book "How I Became a Theosophist". Around this time, Bradlaugh died.He is buried in Woking Cemetery.I went to his funeral because I thought every Indian living in London would go.Several priests also went to pay their last respects.When we came back from the funeral, we had to wait for the bus at the station.An atheist in the crowd asked one of the pastors, "Hey, sir, do you believe in God?"

"I believe," whispered the good man. "You also agree that the circumference of the earth is twenty-eight thousand miles, don't you?" said the atheist with a confident smile. "of course". "Then tell me, how big is your God? Where is he?" "Okay, as long as we pay attention, he lives in both of us." "Come on, come on, don't kid me," said the atheist, looking triumphantly at us.The pastor was humbly silent. This remark added to my prejudice against atheism.