Beyond the narrow barriers of race and creed
Hazrat Inayat Khan was the founder of the Sufi Order in the West in 1914 and teacher of Universal Sufism.
He initially came to the West as a Northern Indian classical musician, then turned to the introduction and transmission of Sufi thought and practice.
“Beyond the narrow borders of race and creed we can all unite, because we all belong to one God. ”
Commentary by Hazrat Inayat Khan:
The soul is the Spirit of God, and the Spirit of God lives within the shrine of the heart; this shrine can be closed or it can be open. There are some things in life that open it and some that close it. The things that close the heart are those which are contrary to love, tolerance and forgiveness, such as coldness, bitterness and ill-will, and a strong element of duality. The world is more upset today than ever before; in many ways man seems to go from bad to worse, and yet he thinks that he is progressing. It is not lack of organization or of civilization; both these things he has. What he lacks is the expression of the soul. He closes his door to his fellow man, he closes the shrine of the heart and by doing so he is keeping God away from himself and others. Nation is set against nation, race against race, religion against religion. Therefore today more than ever before there is a need for the realization of this philosophy. What we need is not that all religions should become one, nor all races; that can never be. But what is needed is undivided progress, and making ourselves examples of love and tolerance.
By talking about it, by discussing and arguing it will not come, but by self-realization, by making ourselves the examples of what should be, by giving love, taking love, and showing in our action gentleness, consideration and the desire for service for the sake of God in whom we can all unite beyond the narrow barriers of race and creed.