Religion is fundamental to the very being of man. But God did not speak only in Palestine, "remaining dumb elsewhere", to use Lymon Abbott's expression. He revealed Himself to people all over the globe at different periods of time through Jesus Christ, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Lao Tse, Mahavir, Guru Nanak and others.

To be religious is to be alive to the truth of His existence, and to feel Him in His creation, to realise that fraternity is the key to peace and harmony, that all religions point to the ultimate reality.

Human perceptions of the supreme reality are bound to differ in terms of man's environment, cultures, stages of historical development, levels of awareness, modes of imagination and ontological understanding oftraditional myths. Then, why not accept this fact and regard even the apparently faulty perceptions of the Divine as stemming from the human heart?

Irreligion is born of ignorance, prejudice, conceit, intolerance or egoism. It has led to wars, persecutions, communal riots or dormant violence. Goethe's adage that he who knows but one language knows none may aptly be applied to different religions.

Each provides `a stair to the Divine'. Each makes an attempt to reveal man to himself `to trace his own lineaments in the mirror' as pointed out by Eliza R. Sunderland. Each has a history, a philosophy, a mythology, and a set of rituals and symbols. Each meets the requirements of persons of different mental dispositions in their quest for the ultimate reality.

The early Fathers of the Church were more or less hostile to the theological beliefs of others. They thought that all non-Christians were hell-bound and that the only way to the Divine was through Jesus.

During the Middle Ages, Cardinal Nicolas made aplea for religious harmony against the background of the Crusades or the Wars of the Cross. But, subsequently, the Catholics and the Protestants agreed at least on one point: condemnation of other faiths. To St. Francis Xavier, for example, all Hindus were idolators, all Buddhists atheists, and all Muslims infidels; an attitude akin to that of Martin Luther.

The Parliament of Religions held at Chicago in 1983 marked `the first genuine inter-faith encounter'. To American writer Ella Wheeler Wilcox, a new era had dawned as orthodoxy was at last allowing people of different faiths to interact without attempting to sever their heads or burn them alive.

The Chicago Parliament stimulated inter-faith studies, seminars, and symposia. But it took long before such activities could gain academic credibility. Among the pioneers of the study of religion on a cross-cultural basis were Max Mueller, P.D. Chautepie do la Saussaye and C.P. Tiele. But those who regarded Christianity as being synonymous with religion did notappreciate such a study. Karl Barth, for example, regarded non-Christian religions as `invitations of the Devil to draw men away from the Truth.'

The Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions, which commemorated the centennial occasion of the Chicago Parliament in 1993 was a unique gathering as it dealt with a number of key issues like ecology and environment, social and economic justice, and racial and cultural harmony, besides deliberating on religion and spirituality.

India's contribution to inter-faith dialogue has been immense in recent years. Inter-religious understanding can be of great help in obliterating social tensions, racial bitterness and communal violence. The praxis of relationship between different holy traditions needs to be based, primarily, on the concept of the oneness of existence.