Comparing Hinduism And Islamic Doctrine Of Salvation

Comparing Islamic and Hindu Salvation

When presented with a new idea or opportunity, humans, by nature, immediately want to know what they can get out of it, “what’s in it for me and how do I get to that?” The answer to this question when it pertains to religion ultimately lies in the doctrine of salvation. The world’s top religions offer mightily different passages to obtaining salvation, but two religions that stand out in their doctrines are Islam and Hinduism.

Islamic Doctrine of Salvation

Landing between twenty-two and twenty-four percent, Islam is the second largest religion in the world following Christianity and is also considered to be the fastest growing religion in the world. Much credit for this is given to the fact that Muslims

Mohammad is rarely called Savior. He is said to have brought God’s laws to men, and they, by keeping those laws, must satisfy God’s requirements and win His approval…. Since many Muslims realize that they [fall short of Koranic standards]… they recite extra prayers in addition to those required for each day, they make gifts to charity, and go on pilgrimages not only to Mecca, but also to other sacred shrines, in order to gain merit, and if possible, balance their account with God. But since God does not make known how the accounts of His stand, a Muslim facing death does not know whether he is to go to paradise or to hell. After all, the decision is made by the arbitrary will of God, and no one can predict what that decision will be…. And so the Muslim lives and dies, not sure of his final

Hindu “salvation,” is more of a release in the sense that they do not believe in the typical concept of sin. The closest to sin that a Hindu can experience is some bad karma, so there is not much to be actually saved from besides being reborn repeatedly. In Islam, the concept of sin does exist and it is any deed that is not pleasing to Allah. Muslim’s do not believe in a savior, per say, but they do believe that Allah will be merciful on the day of judgement. Likely the most prominent detail that separates the salvation of these two religions is the fact that Hindus are seeking release from the cycle of rebirth now, while Muslims are working for entrance into paradise