The same is true in every religion — the Parsis and their kusti, the Christians and their baptism. So also, the Christian philosophy espoused by the present-day so-called "ministers," to the effect that "salvation" can be had only by accepting the faith of Christ and by undergoing baptism, that all non-believers in Christianity are "heathens," and so on. What is the meaning of all these practices in the sacred name of religion?
If it is not a sin to make others doubtful of their religion, it is surely a great weakness, or rather cowardice. What earthly benefit is there in increasing the number of people who believe in a particular faith and boasting before the world that their faith has so many thousands or even lakhs of followers? Is the merit of a religion to be measured by a count of numbers of its believers and followers?
If you give the poor, needy, destitute, and illiterate teeming millions of India the little inducement of some good food, clothing, and money, they would agree to accept and embrace any creed! And then they would leave it again and accept another creed if some better inducement is offered them from another faith! What's great in all of this? Nothing!
Continuing, Baba advised:
I say, therefore: Will [control] your mind; lead a pure, clean, and virtuous life; remove low desires; follow One who has realized God; and then you are saved. "Following" in this sense does not mean giving up your own creed or religion. The mind is to be renounced!
If you try to set green grass on fire, it will not burn. But if you set a match to a haystack, it will immediately catch fire and burn to ash. The haystack symbolizes the accumulation of sanskaras. In order for green grass to dry, it has to be kept near a fire. This means that in order to destroy one's sanskaras, a person should stay with a Sadguru in whom the divine knowledge is always burning. In his contact and company, sanskaras accumulate but also dry. Finally, with the flame of his grace, he sets fire to and uproots all one's sanskaras. Even red sanskaras of lust and anger, which are the fastest growing and most deeply rooted, are nothing to worry about if you have contact with a Sadguru.
What a time [Kali Yuga] we live in! Such barbarous, brutal bloodshed for religion on one side, and then the "forced Avatar" [Krishnamurti] and associated prejudices on the other!