Letter: Asian view of Hindu `miracle'

Sir: The recent "miracle" experience by the Hindu community worldwide has no explanation in the realm of Western materialism ("The little miracle in Lady Margaret Road", 23 September). The West is usually inclined to seek the explanation of various natural and unnatural phenomena in terms of a finite set of variables. But, according to Hindu philosophy, the world is multi-dimensional, and there are many "happenings" which cannot be accounted for by using the existing model of Western rationalism.

Traditional Asian scientists have always subscribed to the view that science is only a means, not an end in itself. For example, when Professor Abdus Salam came to know that he had won the 1979 Nobel Prize for Physics, his first reaction was to go to a local mosque in Battersea and thank the Almighty God for bestowing this honour on him. Other Asian Noble laureates such as CV Raman and Rabinder Nath Tagore were also deeply religious men who had scant regard for Western rationalism.

The way the Western media has reacted to the Hindu "miracle" bears testament to its inward-looking approach.

Yours faithfully,

Randhir Singh Bains

Gants Hill,

Essex

24 September