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Good morning. Speaking on this programme on Monday, Archbishop Justin Welby raised an important point: that all religious leaders need to take responsibility for their own theological tradition. I agree. He explained that: “as a Christian, one sees enormous heroism and courage and beauty coming out of that, but one is also aware that, in the past, there has been a dark side to it.” I believe this is true of most, if not all faiths and ideologies. Each has the potential for inspiring great good in the world. But, we’d be fooling ourselves not to recognise that lurking within our theologies and doctrines are some unfortunate texts and statements that can easily be judged, twisted or misinterpreted to justify some terrible injustice or evil. Within Hinduism, perhaps the two most prominent such issues arising from interpretations of its theology are the caste system and the treatment of women. Both continue to perpetrate immense suffering within Hindu society, despite much progress thanks, in part, to many Hindu leaders condemning these inequities and stressing that the versions of the texts used to endorse them are at odds with the overall message of the scriptures. But, the texts are there - easy fodder for the misguided. The Archbishop also called for greater ‘religious literacy’ particularly of others’ faiths and what inspires or motivates them. I suspect that, of all religions, Hinduism is the most unfathomable. For instance, ask ten Hindus which day of the week they fast and you’ll get ten different answers – possible because of the lunar calendar. This Monday was nirjala-ekadashi and many of us fasted without food or any water all day. But, on the streets in India, many Hindus were giving out water and sharbat drinks to everyone. Seems contrary; but both interpretations of observance offer positive outcomes – one developing personal self-discipline; the other encouraging kindness and generosity. According to the Bhagavad-gita, scriptural knowledge is defined, not as facts and figures, but as enlightenment. Knowledge isn’t something we have, it’s something we are. Knowledge lives in our character; and character manifests as beneficial behaviour. Therefore, says the Gita, we can recognise true knowledge when we see: humility, tolerance of others, avoidance of putting anyone into anxiety, self-control, non-violence and a sincere and open search for truth. This definition of knowledge doesn’t stop the debates over right or wrong. But, I think it does offer a benchmark. Any claim that we make about the truths of our faith, ideology or our politics can, and should, be tested by how well our ideas and opinions contribute to promoting these qualities of knowledge, character and behaviour for the benefit of everyone.