What is Humanity?

 

What is Humanity?

We have heard Swamiji say in many of his discourses that the religion of human beings is humanity and what passes as religion are just various methods of worship followed by different people. The original goal of all these methods of worship was to reach the state of void and attain liberation. But instead of using the method of worship as a staircase to reach the top floor, we have got stuck on the staircase itself!

To be human means to be giving, to be loving, compassionate, helpful, kind, etc – but most of the time we are anything but that. We can test ourselves to check whether the humanity within us is alive and kicking. The easiest test is to see how we treat those ‘below’ us in the social strata – it could be a poor person, it could be your employee, it could be a vegetable or fruit vendor, a cobbler – anybody at all! Are you polite with that person, are you kind when you interact with such people? Just go to a restaurant and sit at a table and observe other guests – how do they speak with the waiter? If they are rude in their interaction you can rest assured that person is not very nice!

When we interact with any being sentient or insentient our kindness, our compassion should be felt by the opposite being. It is all in your aura, in the vibrations, in the sense that your being emanates that decides for the opposite being what kind of a person you are. Ladies will know what I am saying – they have a natural instinct to understand when anybody is giving them a look which is not very honourable – they immediately feel uncomfortable.

When we start meditating regularly the dirty layers enveloping our soul are peeled off slowly over time, it is then that our soul starts talking to us. It is then that our true humanity comes to the fore, and you find out that kindness and compassion has become a way of life.