Non religious
upbringing and living may emerge eventually why?
It is not anti-religious or irreligious.
Yesterday’s article in TOI ‘Raising good kids
without GOD’ dt 31 st March 2019
It is probably an aspect of the inevitable stride of
human evolution to opt for a non-religious life.
Stuff of sermons and scriptures without contextual
relevance of day to day life will get sidelined.
Stuffing rituals without rationale that is understandable
and useful for present generation will not carry weight.
Suffocating with too much of taboos and traditions
without tangible benefits may cease to have any appeal.
Shifting priorities, drifting value systems, jilting
relationships, wilting spirits seek only befitting systems and swift solutions.
Befitting systems must prioritize humanitarian concerns
and care, address basic needs of livelihood, comfortable living, care for the
environment, in brief all things impacting life every moment rather than
socio-morals of ancient times [legal and justice systems have taken over that
task].
Befitting system must enable to manifest uncalibrated
compassion and unqualified love.
Even if it is a very small segment which gets to go
non-religious, still, it also sends us signals to scrutinize why such a system
[which was considered almost as a panacea and solace for human beings to accept
or assign the things not that easily graspable by human intellect and emotions
and which , therefore, had almost an unquestioned universal acceptance and
following] has made people to move away.
This is required, not to force everyone to compulsorily
follow some religion but to learn and to realize that anything that does not
permeate as an intrinsic part of life’s important activities, may and can face
in significance for some, if not for many.
We must also question is it necessary to bring every human
being into the ambit of some such system [by system I refer generally to
religions as I do not want to call by any name or institution].
With this intention, let us move into look at some aspects
of religion in general.
None of the statements that follow refer to any religion in
particular nor attempts to make judgment about religion but mere observations.
Befitting system must offer opportunities and freedom for
the present generation to explore and experience life, according to their own
terms [of course with wisdom acquired through knowledge and observation] only
then, the interpretation and understanding [sometimes with clarity as bonus]
will get internalized. Otherwise, the well intended sermons of religions and
advices of elders gained through years of experience will be the prerogative of
preachers, teachers and elders and whether to listen to them, how to interpret
them and understand them will be the privilege of the present generation and
they will also start reacting to society [ of religious preachers and other
ideology injectors] trying to
orchestrate the perception of the present generation .
If these are ensured basically, then, only after that we
can offer the package of aesthetic sensitivity, cultural appreciation and time
tested traditional values.
Human psychology is more comfortable and conversant
dealing with premises, frames of references and observations rather than
through indoctrinations, conditioned prejudices which will collapse at some
point of time when the poor people will be left to suffer in a vacuous
inanity without a proud socio cultural and psychological identity and will also
be very vulnerable to adopt anything and everything irrespective of its long
term benefits or inherent value so let us impart more importantly
humaneness and humanitarian values.
Problems crop up only when we as a species try to feel that
we must authenticate every aspect of life through social approval further validated
through sanctification by either religion, or substantiation by accepted
scientific practices, commercial success or stamp of socio cultural sanctions.
Any topic I normally throw into the cauldron of life in
context as it is happening now along with all that has happened and churn it
with a churn staff or kirn swee of contextually relevant observations and also
observe the external impacts that play their part in the evolution of
anything/everything.
Too much of criticism and analysis [especially using a cocktail of Meta
terminologies, remotely relevant or totally irrelevant factors with a mix of
strong spirited information infusion] creates critical paralysis.
Loads of suggestive or justificatory information do not
necessarily contribute to or help a better understanding and projecting them as
if distilled wisdom of some unique religious or spiritual knowledge when most
of the writers are aware of only distilled spirits.
Nothing eternal can be known eternally by anyone because
everyone of us is basically a mortal as a conscious living being
leading a life inside a human body and mind.
So, when we do not know what is eternal, how can we make
claims or counter claims or worst of all try to exercise control over or
exclusive marketing rights for it?
This is where religion pitched in as it primarily
evolved if one were to analyze intellectually perhaps as Scott Atran, a
respected Anthropologist called as “belief in hope beyond reason”.
Erich Fromm, “humans have a need for a stable frame of
reference. Religion apparently fills this need. In effect, humans crave answers
to questions that no other source of knowledge has an answer to, which only
religion may seem to answer. However, a sense of free will must be given in
order for religion to appear healthy. An authoritarian notion of religion
appears detrimental.”
Individual opinions, ideas that inundate the social media
space must be followed, observed and encouraged because after all they manifest
reactions and participation of individuals.
They can at best produce islands of 'micro beliefs
leading to macro behavior' or confirmation bias enhancing group coherence but
not homogenizing madness insisting on ignoring variety and marrying up with
specific identity which was what the mass opinion molding and belief
manufacturing and/or marketing domains mentioned above do namely- religion,
politics, media and any other biased ideological or cultural identity based
outfits or communities.
Why are
religions losing their relevance?
“We live in a changing universe, and few things are
changing faster than our conception of it”-Timothy Ferris
“There is no tomorrow. There is only a planet turning on its
axis, and a creature given to optimistic fancies”-Robert Brault
Evolution has taken us from Kuru disease generators to cyber
Guru Venerators.
Socially certain societies, why most human societies, are
groomed as a group with more incentives and encouragement to follow than
explore; exercise hypocrisy rather than skeptical questioning and this is
precisely the technique adopted by all religious institutions either with or
without organized set up. However, change in every aspect of life is an
inevitable truth that cannot be avoided or wished away.
The status quo may get disturbed but it is a necessary
adventure for emancipation of human spirit.
As Winston Churchill said, “The truth is incontrovertible.
Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, there it is.” I
may add taboos and tradition may tuck it in or turn away but truth is
‘inconvenience’. G.K. Chesterton’s definition is the best ‘An adventure is only
an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly
considered’
When human intellect resorts to defend or justify, more than
define or explore or accept facts for what they are worth, normally it becomes
sharper with additional vindications from many allied areas because the defense
is further enforced with adrenal reactions which are all normal.
Guy Murchie declares, “Evolution itself is an open ended and
indeterminate process”… “Given the remarkable progress in our understanding of
biochemistry, molecular biology, and evolution as a whole … we have failed to
develop concepts, ideas, even a language that could capture the dance of this
life”
I would like to add it is mostly due to our intellectual
reluctance and religious impediments.
But the whole malady started when certain societies, already
well connected, intellectually more advanced ones and therefore got so well
conditioned by their traditions and religiously prescribed ways of life based
on such sound base, obviously ended up, out of lack of humility and refused to
or blocked to accept alongside biological evolution the evolutionary trends in
psychology and sociology as well.
In evolutionary biology we find that all creations have shed
the unnecessary parts or shrunk them for better survival; in evolutionary
sociology too human race has shed too many models of social groups and narrowed
down on a few that would be easier for global interaction; in languages too,
from a few thousands languages that existed humanity has reduced the number to
just a few hundred languages.
Why it is not being done in religion, i.e. shedding the
contextually irrelevant parts – aspects of socio-cultural life that have
outlived their expiry date.
As the great scholar and my favorite author
Bertrand Russell writes in POLITICAL IDEALS (1917) CHAPTER
IVINDIVIDUAL LIBERTY AND PUBLIC CONTROL
“The creative impulses, unlike those that are possessive,
are directed to ends in which one man’s gain are not another man’s loss. The
man who makes a scientific discovery or writes a poem is enriching others at
the same time as himself. Any increase in knowledge or good-will is a gain to
all who are affected by it, not only to the actual possessor. Those who feel
the joy of life are a [source of ] happiness to others as well as to
themselves. Force cannot create such things, though it can destroy them; no
principle of distributive justice applies to them, since the gain of each is
the gain of all. For these reasons, the creative part of a man’s activity ought
to be as free as possible from all public control, in order that it may remain
spontaneous and full of vigor. The only function of the state in regard to this
part of the individual life should be to do everything possible toward
providing outlets and opportunities”
Religion -The Great Brand
The blessings, benedictions, beauty, businesses, battles,
browbeats, bluffs, barrenness and much more are packed as mixture inside a box
with a brand name called ‘Religion’.
However, certain items are expected in this box as
ingredients of the mixture especially items like God, Enlightenment, Spiritual
experience, philosophical concepts, rational explanations, debates, syncretism,
ideological veneration, blind faiths, belief systems, scriptural authority,
devotion, worship, socio-cultural activities, traditions, customs, scripture
sponsored or life’s experience propelled doctrines and so on.
Human beings born in different environments, cultures,
societies are invariably initially initiated without their consent at a very
young age as children and most cases even as babies to behold the box with a
brand name called ‘Religion’.
The mixture is the result of the churning process wherein at
different times and at different places different ingredients of the mixture
dominate to the detriment of other ingredients or perhaps to compliment other
ingredients.
Blessed are the poor, innocent, ignorant are meant to
assuage lack of growth.
The whole problem arises because we are all groping about in
the dark and are trying our best to grasp the spiritual aspect/element/facet of
human life besides/beyond its two other fundamental aspects physical and mental
life. We are all injected with a belief in a supreme
power/god/divinity/universal energy which is supposed to be/ really in charge
of or part of this spiritual dimension of human life.
There are many things or even anything can help in the
process [ as Dhattareya is said to have learnt from many things and rightly so]
like religion, reason, philosophy, psychology, science, social life, events,
ideas, intellectual sharpness, crisis, nature, attitude and cultural milieu.
It was perhaps religion which primarily dominated the
discussion on many issues or perhaps assimilated and appropriated many rules to
decipher the hitherto unknoen aspects of life and developed multiple
belief systems and ensured that most human beings had a great
affinity/attachment/atavistic association with religion along with all its
beliefs, faiths, rituals etc.
While other mediums of attempting to know the unknown may
have produced many works of tangible benefit to humanity;
Religion has not, except many activities of entertainment value,
festivity,
unrealistic/unverifiable/unverified pronouncements of the self
proclaimed/institutionally appointed marketers of divinity/god starting from a
local priests to great saints.
They have neither shown nor produced God /Divinity as they claimed.
So, as much as these marketers claimed it was all
consumer rights violation.
The whole problem hinges there on the hinge with a swaying
door of uncertainty wherein some get in; some get out; some watch the door
swaying whether and when the God/Divinity will reveal for sure , whether is he
/she inside or whether/when he/she will come out and reveal himself/herself or
can humanity have any easily recognizable/visually apparent confirmed
clarity on this issue; let us also put aside multiple theories or long
winding lectures with trite words used for the convenience of language or
satisfaction of the status quo addicts because it is always easier to say that
you believe in some god for various reasons and get on with life rather than
getting into skeptical mode/philosophical mode/scientific inquiry and get
branded as someone with multiple labels attributed [mostly with a condescending
tone] to such a position that one takes .
Many things exist and happen irrespective of one's
belief/non belief or irrespective of what any brainy chap claims/ or
criticizes/condemns.
One credence that can be given to religious beliefs is that
the very fact so many religions have so much of literature, culture etc
indicates that some people somewhere at some time would have come in contact
with someone/something like a powerful passing lightening impacting them with
enlightenment and /or bliss and also played perhaps, though a very remote
possibility, some role in the evolution of human species.
Otherwise humanity as a species would not have bothered to spend so much of
time, energy and money in the name of religion.
Or probably in some dire situations like insurmountable
crisis when all human faculties like reasoning, thinking and intellect
have failed to come to the rescue but some unknown element or happening
beyond or besides the known human approaches has given a solution and helped,
then, perhaps, it is only normal and expected of the beneficiaries of such
elements to extol, popularize and perpetuate those elements or aspects that
have helped them out in such dire situations. Some aspects of religious belief
fall in this category too. Whatever happened was perhaps a part of evolutionary
process wherein in probability some coincidences may have occurred.
Of course, we have an overwhelming sea of blind beliefs,
fettered faiths, frenzied following, silly superstitions, presumption that the
greater the number of adherents the greater the religion is and doing many
things to achieve it and many other negative and irrelevant things,
unfortunately, form a major part of many religions and these things in fact
bring the greatest disrepute to religions in general.
Harsh reality of religions.
"Either you deal with what is the reality or you can be
sure that the reality is going to deal with you." - Alex Haley
No rituals, practices, cultures and traditions
connected with any religion are part of any innate or intrinsic requirement of
the human species either for its physical, mental, social or spiritual
existence.
However, over many generations they ( many practices of
many religions ) have contributed so many positive and pleasant aspects to
enhance human EXISTENCE into a better LIFE with good intentions and sometimes
with great results too.
Many individuals, groups, societies and nations have
appreciated, understood and adopted those practices because of the significance
of those practices.
The problem arises when there is an attempt to institutionalize
and claim only one's own version is the best and with a dictat that only such
version must be followed by everyone.
It was this facet of religion that has caused much
destruction and many deaths.
Belief is a personal choice like dress.
There must be freedom.
The very fact that NRMs and multitude of cults mushroomed
some 50 years back was an indication to all status quo addicts and venerators
in the realm of existing world religions that human beings are seeking many
more things from religions beyond what is already being offered by
religions.
Any extraneous project or product must attract human being
not compel through interference.
In the process of evolution everything changes:- values,
ethics, morals, beliefs, ideologies etc.
NRMs have popped up to provide the much needed tools to deal
with the changes.
While we have allowed evolution in every sphere of human
activity in religion alone, we have cautiously protected with love status quo,
of course with certain selective misinterpretation of select books or
scriptures. This, if you ask any psychologist will tell you is the
manifestation of sense of insecurity.
All religious leaders must remember that the greatness of
religion does not hinge on the number of adherents but in the temper of
tolerance towards others, though there is no harm in having more number of
adherents. It does not hinge on louder mikes and larger places of worship or
even reclaiming historical mistakes with histrionic attacks
Religions are a good mix of theories, dogmas, doctrines,
rituals, traditions, scriptural dos and don'ts, sermons for better behavior,
cultural entertainments, socio -cultural values, physical care, environmental
care and nature worship.
Religions also have imparted many philosophical concepts meant
to enhance human life imbued with humanitarian values; to improve social life
imbued with compassionate values and to enlighten the spiritual life imbued
with sensitivity to all forms of life .
All of the above are influential, important,
and impactful in varying degrees at different contexts.
Unfortunately most of them also have been subjected to
multiple interpretations due to lack of empirical authentication or for want of
documented evidences.
However, some of them are always relevant, time tested
and useful for humanity.
It is good to want to adopt them or to appropriate them.
But then when they are done with some ulterior motives
and manipulations and in some cases done because wanting to desperately appear
relevant, or merely as an outcome of either ideological or traditional
indoctrination then it deviates from all the seriousness and substance of
religiosity and becomes a mere ritualistic perpetuation of another activity
devoid of both its intrinsic essence and contextual relevance.
The line that differentiates between faith, ferventness and
fanaticism becomes too thin sometimes to justify inhumane activities in the
name of religion.
So, we all need to respect that role of religion. But at the
present movement predominantly there are too many things that need to be
prioritized over religion, I mean all religions.
So, I personally feel that all religions and most religious
activities could be relegated to the back ground in terms of relevance to life
on the whole as large amount of population are struggling for basic survival
needs and are devoid of any literacy or education.
It is precisely this vulnerable people who are portrayed as victims and the
preferred beneficiaries of divinity with slogans like ‘God loves the poor’ etc.
The line that differentiates between faith, ferventness and fanaticism becomes
too thin sometimes to justify inhumane activities in the name of religion.
Though there are many exceptions and I would not like to
brush everyone with the same color, still there are many whose very sustenance
financially, and/or identity socially hinge on tagging on to some religion or
religious connected activities.
In certain cases that inspire and in some cases instigate.
The manifestation of mass opinions, obsessions, and objectives takes various
forms depending on certain inherent attributes, imbibed cultural attitudes or
instructed method of operation.
It is difficult to define intentions; Science/technology has not come up with a
machine which can deduct intentions.
So it would be better that sanity prevails over everyone
that they cannot lead a life only with all the tall claims of religion, it at
best helps the marketers of divinity in all religions.
Because we need to remember one thing, while all of us
feel the need for unity, what unity needs is feeling for all by all.
SEARCH INTO NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS, (NRMs) CULTS, SECTS,
ETC
What are they? Why have they come about? For whom? What role do they play? Why
search? Inquisitiveness is the eternal spring of human psyche and it is through
this stream that flows from the spring that traces of ignorance are washed away
one by one as Phenella writes in “The Unwritten Comedy”.
“To be ignorant of many things is expected
To know you are ignorant of many things is the beginning of wisdom.
To know a category of things of which you are ignorant is the beginning of
learning.
To know the details of that category of things of which you are ignorant is to
no longer be ignorant.”
All the N.R.M.s, Cults, etc. are the offshoots of that great, wonderful
complicated subject called Religion.
As a fact of history, Religion is inescapable and it is profoundly influential
in any culture or society because beyond its rituals and pompous paraphernalia,
beyond its creeds, beyond its myriad forms, it has been in spirit and in truth
a great binding power. That in fact is the literal meaning of the word Religion
from the Latin Relig(are) : To tie, to fasten. Re-RE +LIG=Bind , tie. That is
binding the Part with the Whole. Integration of
the individual Self with the Universal Self; perception of the presence
of Universal Self in all forms of life.
What is Religion in reality? How it is perceived and
practised? What are its many facets? Once I set on the task of finding answers
to the various aspects of Religion. In my search to find out why despite the
all embracing cover and almost immortal existence and unquestioned appeal of
Religion, still, many NRMs, Cults, have cropped up. And that too, diverting
individuals from the mainstream religions which have withstood the test of
time.
In my search, the literature on Religion was infinitely vast because the
subject matter is INFINITY, which every one attempts to grasp with specialized
finite skills. Besides trying to intellectually pursue religion is like
drinking sea water to quench the thirst. The more we drink the more we become
thirsty. The subject does not fit into any specific definitions as it deals
with science of life and art of living based on the belief in an undeniable,
undefiable, and not so easily definable SUPREME POWER as the main maker and
mover of all life. So any definition would risk the criticism of deft
commissions/admissions and daft omissions; to write
Eclectically about Religion is not an easy task, any attempt to provide a full
picture risks superficiality, and any over selective and simplified version
would be viewed as parochial due to the blinkered vision and tinkered
perception.
As religion concerns about the intrinsic values and aspects
of life and the Universe no one can either resort to allowing criticism and dry
logical intellectualization [as do the Philosophers] or can anyone blinker his
vision with uncritical love [as the Theologians do]
Philosophy and /science must basically accept the undeniable
fact that life and universe are continuous processes involving constant
movements and changes.
Hence they manifest infinite variety and delicious
diversity, and consequently, defy patterned, prepared, and patented idle
analyses or empirical evaluations which work better with static phenomenon. As
Heraclitus says while explaining that the Universe was in a state of flex ‘You
never step into the same river twice’.
So philosophy cannot sandwich religious perception between reductionism [which
attempts to generalize, homogenize, and ultimately simplify into a rule or
principle the complexities of reality] and heuristicism [which prepares a
theoretical or ideological explanations as the key to unlock the doors of
perception] because religious values which concern life and universe, if at
all, we can compress them into any generalization, are either personal or
psychological [innate] or extra-personal [socially and culturally
molded]-either traditional culture, i.e. emanating from present trends] or
supra-personal [metaphysical] or mystical or spiritual or at times a clear
harmonious combination or a clumsy mixture or a compromised compound of some or
all of these.
Religious scriptures and their relevance
Wisdom is never in short supply.
The fault lies with the religious preachers who have
misinterpreted and also misapplied some concepts out of context because
religious scriptures ,all religious scriptures have many things applicable at
the time they were written based on the historical, social ,regional and
cultural behavioral patterns of that period and place and therefore may not be
relevant now and perhaps , not required at the present moment.
Before all these things one must try to first understand why
we want religion? what aspect of our life are we going to make religion play a
part? Our physical life is governed by natural laws; our social life is
governed by social laws, our intellectual life is governed by the power of
reasoning; what is left is the spiritual aspect of life dealing with our soul.
First we must personally know and feel the existence of soul or spirit in us,
not because someone else says so, then try to make use of whatever is said in
our religious scriptures and find out whether within our limited perception
whether they help us enhance the quality of our soul and spirit and also
understand that all other species also have the same soul and are governed by
the same universal spirit or spiritual laws.
Religion and love- the two great unifiers in reality how?
The underlying theme of both love and religion are relating,
reconnecting and reuniting with real involvement
Both these words are much misused and therefore their real
meanings have been either masked or maligned.
The topic is really wonderful because original meanings of
both these words have very important and vital components for life as a whole.
The vital components are the initiations of 'how we
relate' with others and by extension to higher
spirits.
In both, we try to reconnect our feelings,
emotions, expectations in joy with someone else known to us [which
is called love] or some other unknown source [which is called religion].
The expectation is primarily a source of support,
comfort and belief that other is reliable.
To all those who may doubt the commonality let me clarify
that etymologically the word Religion is
derived from the two latin words “re” and “ligare” which means “to
reconnect”
'Ligare' incidentally is the root for words like link,
liaison etc.
Another commonality is those involved in love
and religion get involved with total intensity and intense totality
without any half heartedness and hence there is immense desire with
expectations.
In love it to manifest in reciprocation and
commonly referred to as aspects of compatibility.
In religion it has to manifest in one's own evolved
character with a sense of responsibility, compassion, equanimity and
respectable behavior.
There could be varying degrees of intensity on different
aspects.
Love could be romantic or rejoicing or
responsible or reverential.
Religion could be ritualistic or rock solid belief based or
recreational or rational or real seeking for enlightened states of human
consciousness.
Therefore, both love and religiousness defy any standard
measurable quantification based evaluation or judgment.
So, it is no wonder that Sanskrit has at least
96 words for love
Like we do for diseases the diagnosis for love and religion
too must proceed from the manifestation.
Diseases are negative manifestations affecting
through disintegration human health, happiness and hacking life itself
ultimately .
Whereas, Love and Religion are positive
manifestationsintegrating human reasons, responses, reactions,
reciprocations andreuniting and creating synergy synthesis
and Synderesis*ultimately.
The word love etymologically refers to the manifestations
like theGermanic word leubh- "to care, desire, love" (cf. Latin
lubet, later libet "pleases;“ Sanskrit lubhyati "desires;"
So, the reality of religion and
love is unity of human spirits, senses and sanity.
“In the end nothing less than the whole of everything can be
the truth of anything at all”- William James
"The important thing is this: to be able to give up in
any given moment all that we are for what we can become." --DeSeaux
The "Either you deal with what is the reality or you
can be sure that the reality is going to deal with you." - Alex Haley
* "Synderesis"["Synderesis"
is a technical term from scholastic philosophy, signifying the innate principle
in the moral consciousness of every person which directs the agent to good and
restrains him from evil].
