A Scriptural umbrage
Religion is grossly misused nowadays for materialistic motivations says PACHU MENON
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An off-the-cuff remark in a periodical as to why, ‘of all religions of the world, the defenders of Islam alone have to claim time and again that Islam means peace’, set me thinking.
At the very outset, let us accept the fact that religion is a creation of man, arguably a matter of convenience; one which would enable him lead an honourable life within the constraints of an orderly society and a concept that would enable him to differentiate between good and vile deeds.
With the righteous and the evil attributes of a human personality clearly emerging with the evolution of man, the perception of sins and virtues was thus becoming a gateway to the thoughts of a Supreme Being, an omnipotent presence overseeing our very existence. Thus God was born! Needless to say, man created God in his own image! The impression of the Gods too started altering with the relevance of the period. Fire and water started giving way to animals and birds. Any notion that was scary and was unexplainable manifested in Godly forms. Natural calamities and such other disasters were the consequences of displeasing the Gods. To appease them, the idea of sacrifices was thus mooted.
The ushering in of the era of mumbo jumbos, saw the need for a special class of people, who could decipher the signs of the Gods. This saw the birth of ‘high-priests’ who were thought of as the privileged class due to their assumed ‘proximity’ to the Gods. The prominent rise of this priestly rank in the hierarchies of power assumed alarming proportions and very soon the commoners were being alienated from their own Gods.
Considering that the modern times have seen large scale violence in the name of religion, many feel that the world would be better off without it. I sincerely feel that religion has been grossly misused by vested interests nowadays, and throughout history at large, to give a convenient excuse for their ‘materialistic motivations’.
The ‘culture’ of any region is an amalgam of all the social and religious beliefs that together makes for the temporal identification of the inhabitants there. With the religious fervour being kept alive by age old scriptures that dictate the modalities of worship, one is compelled to believe in the potency of religious texts, those that have time and again been cited, or misquoted, for appropriate or unfortunate reasons.
With the study of these scriptures being the prerogatives of the aforesaid ‘restricted sect’, quite obviously, the elucidations of the sacred texts would be ‘time and need’ based — flattering interpretations in order to curry favours from the royals, which turned equally oppressive when it came to the hoi polloi!
The trend continues to flourish to this day, with an exception that the expounders of the ‘Word of God’ may not necessarily be the ‘men of God’. The Gita, Quran and the Bible have today become texts that are being researched and analysed day in and day out, with exponents presenting their own views and putting up their own theories. All that is fine, but what is disturbing is the tendency of the present generation to move more and more away from God and instead lay an undue stress on ‘His words’, as revealed by a host of peripatetic proselytizers, here today, gone tomorrow.
Let us get to current affairs! Of late, one has suddenly woken up to facts about Islam that wouldn’t have been forthcoming in the last decade or so. It rather appears to be contrived efforts by a few, who, sounding apologetic for the spate of murderous attacks worldwide accredited to the Muslim brethren, want to set the records right. They take pains to tell us that ‘Islam means peace’. “Islam comes from the root word salaam, which means peace. It also means submitting ones will to God.
Thus Islam is a religion of peace, which is acquired by submitting one’s will to the will of the Supreme Creator. But critics wonder as to how Islam could be called the religion of peace when it was spread by the sword?
The problem lies in the laying bare of the Quran for public deliberations. Verses from the Holy Text have been crudely misappropriated to perpetuate myths that the religion promotes violence. A Holy writ that could have been the apt reasoning in the period it was conceived, need not necessarily apply verbatim in a future age for a similar situation.
Strict adherence of the Sacred Commandments without proper understanding and misinterpretation of the basic tenets of the religion amounts to fanaticism. This statement of belief is very dangerous, an affront for any religion, and this is precisely what is happening with Islam!
At such a time, when religion is being overshadowed by virulent commentaries by orators who appear to incite a benign public with their senescent translations of the revered books, even the Bhagavad Gita and the Holy Bible have not been above reproach. With insinuations of these divine manuals promoting violence, protection, more than the practice of one’s faith has assumed precedence over matters spiritual. This could well be the ‘justifications’ for the communal conundrums that have become the order of the day!
When Islamic fundamentalists claim to be engaged in Jihad perpetrating those heinous terror activities on an unsuspecting public, the assertions by moderate Muslims that ‘Jihad’ is an internal fight against the enemy, the evils within one’s self, becomes a contradiction by itself – an incongruity brought about by distortions of the original text.
Mahatma Gandhi, in one of his many jottings, questioned the wisdom in doubting the essence of Bhagavad Gita with relevance to violence. The Mahabharata war gives the impression that The Gita recommends war. Although the essential theme of the Gita is apparently a heartrending battle, it would be wrong to say that The Gita promotes violence. On the contrary.
The Bible likewise condones violence in any form. In the New Testament, war is seen as evil and Jesus Christ emphasised peace instead. “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also,” “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” “Be at peace with all men,” and “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with Good” are some of the sagacious advices one comes across in the Christian texts.
All the Sacred books promulgate a theory of peace and forgiveness and several similarities in expression and meaning between them should convince mankind that, though born in different ages, at diverse localities and speaking distinct dialects, prophets and messiahs were blessed with an uncanny instinct to see truth.
For illustration, if in the Gita, Lord Krishna is seen telling Arjuna that, “I am the beginning and the middle and the end of things (Ch. X. 20), the New Testament, Bible, expounds, “I am Alpha, Omega, the beginning and the ending.” (Rev. 1.8)
When man unwaveringly swears by the Gita, Bible or Quran that he will speak ‘only truth and nothing but the truth’ in a court of law, he is acceding to the ultimate truth that these Holy Scriptures define his moral conscience.
In any way one looks at it, down the years, The Gita, Bible and Quran have allegorically taught humankind to strive for an upright and practical existence. Various beliefs, if seen and understood in the correct perspective, gives one an insight into the simplicity that defines life. Yielding to an undue stress on the type of religiosity being advocated these days, man is making an inglorious exit from the spiritual path and enforcing a religious order that will demand a bloody oblation — the sacrifice of soul over body!
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Live life and laugh out loud
By Vanessa Lobo
Life is funny. I know what you’re thinking “that’s not much of an opening line.” Well maybe not, but coming to think of it, life is actually pretty hilarious. It seems to provide us with a good many reasons to laugh out loud.
Have you noticed how it’s so easy to do the wrong things, but it’s so very hard to do what we know is right. If you are on a diet, that last piece of chocolate cake is so tempting that to resist temptation seems excruciatingly painful! And junk food always tastes so much better, than healthy meals! If there’s no policeman on the road, it’s so easy to just go the wrong way. When the going gets tough, how we love to just give up and wash our hands off the whole matter.
It is amazing how you plan so meticulously for things to go one way and then just the opposite happens. You expect one thing and then without warning, you have to face the unexpected. Then again, I am sure all of us have our share of embarrassing moments. Unfortunately, no one is spared from those.
The worst part is something embarrassing happens just when you want to create a good impression! It definitely does not seem very funny to the person involved, but I am sure the spectators could enjoy a good laugh! Human beings, by nature, are funny too. We complain that it’s too hot and then when it rains, we complain about how inconvenient the rain is!
Humour is one of the most important gifts that God has given us. Many of us have the impression that God is a serious, solemn power, just waiting to punish us for the slightest mistake. The truth is actually far from it. I am sure God wants us to be happy and enjoy our life.
Why else would he create such a gorgeous world and fill our lives with so many funny moments? “A sound, healthy body and a cheerful attitude are more valuable than gold and jewels” (Sirach 30:15).
Humour helps us to make it through this world, which can sometimes be cold and cruel. It enables us to get through the tough times. It keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously. It helps us take life in our stride. Humour helps us take life with a pinch of salt which is exactly what we should be doing. It helps us look at the silver lining rather than the dark clouds. Only a truly great and humble person can laugh at himself.
Its such a shame that we rarely have time to smile nowadays, let alone laugh! We let all the good things in life pass us by and then, we complain about how dull our lives are. We can all see the humour in life, if only we look hard enough!
