Religion and You

I believe in God, the almighty; but not in religion.

Needless issues, controversies rock the world all the time but nothing was this huge, widespread and violent. It is amazing how a cartoon, which is supposed to be funny, witty, creative and thoughtful, could brew up something which is uncontrollable now.

I am concerned for all the people who have lost their lives, of all their families who lost their loved ones. My anguish knows no bounds for all those who tried to escalate the situation for their personal triumphs. An Italian minister, just to prove his mettle wore a tee shirt with the cartoons on it. One of our own ministers from U.P. set a bounty of 50 million rupees for the man who gets the head of the cartoonist. Well done you all, I am proud of the leaders we have chosen to lead us into the future.

Every religion preaches tolerance, where did that go? May be it’s the first for Islam, but things like these happen all the time. A German company printed Lord Rama on tissue paper, Goddess Kali’s pictures with whisky bottles, in each of her eight hands are still being used by a popular liquor brand for advertising, ‘The Simsons’ makes fun of every religion and every walk of life, Madonna wears a Krishna clad tee shirt and sings obscenities, M.F. Hussain keeps painting all Hindu goddesses in the nude… the list continues.

We protested, we submitted a plea, we fought but as long as we show our dissent these things will keep coming into the lime light. And that is all these offenders want. It is enough publicity for the Danish newspaper and the cartoonist, who is now in hiding by the way. People are so evil that they try to use these delicate issues for their own good, for money, for power, for publicity. People like these must be flayed, I agree. But that does not mean you can riot, break public property, hurt others just to show how religious and pious you are.

You have so many responsibilities to fulfill, victories to achieve… miles to go before you sleep. Think about it, religion is secondary, humanity is primary. Be tolerant friends, it has a much better impact. Scores have lost their lives because of religion and millions will. It is the biggest mass murderer man has ever seen.

I blame not God for all this sorrow, but us all who have chosen to be stupid enough to kill one another for the sake of the almighty we pray to, and how we do that.

I can hear their desperate cries; let those be alarms, for all of us. Let’s wake up, from this deep slumber. Let’s understand how insignificant religion is before humanity and love. Let us all rise.

What we lack - II

Thanks friends for all the support.

This week I was discussing with one of my dearest friends regarding the virtue of sincerity and how all of us badly need it. He agreed and pointed out towards an often encountered direction - 'The System' - for not scaring the masses off corruption and bribery. He reminded me that very few American cops are corrupt while most Indian cops are. The reason he inferred was because Indian cops do not fear the system.

I am not asking everyone to go the Paritrana way or bharatudaymission way. I am not. It is not possible for everyone of us. We have our own lives, our own responsibilities, our own goals and our own victories. All I am asking is to be sincere to your own self, just don't expect everyone around you to be the same. You will feel left out and stupid but you know you are doing the right thing. You will set an example, to somebody else. PAY IT FORWARD. That somebody will do the same. More and more shall join the movement. This is just a silent movement but trust me, it will have an effect. We will cleanse the soceity form the roots. Let us be good bricks, as Rajaji put it. Lets strive to make our country strong and developed.

Be sincere in whatever you do. You are at work - give in your best just don't do it for what you get out of it, put in your heart. You will expect the same from employees you hire for your own company. You are preparing for an exam - just don't study to get through the exam, master it, love it and embrace it.

Now after all this tell me, do we really have to fear the system? Yes. But there is something which is the ultimate court. Your conscience. And the worst part is, you are the judge. There is no other God more powerful than your own conscience. If you feel doing something is wrong, don't do it, even though it may look lucrative or appealing. Do not hesitate to help and do what is right, if you think it is proper even though it is demanding and effortful. It is your prerogative. Use it with your heart.

All my friends, just be answerable to your own selves. Think good, be good, do good and you will feel good. Good day everybody.

What we lack

I guess it was in my ninth class when we discussed this - What is the main problem which is pulling India back from its path towards becoming a developed nation. We came up with a list, a small vicious cycle, each effecting the other. Here it goes - Poverty, Illiteracy, Caste System and population.

We were prety young and discussing a big bad topic, and I feel we did a god job don't you think? But do you know what's missing in that list? We only came to know about it after our stepping into the brutal real world. 'LACK OF SINCERITY'.

You think this is an anti climax? Let me explain. Think about this incident, which might have happened in everyone of your lives. A teacher helping a student to cheat in an exam... If only the student was sincere enough he would have never asked the teacher's help. But if the teacher was sincere enough to teach the student properly, this wouldn't have haappende in the first place. All the student wants is to get through the exam and the teacher just wants to keep his job. But do they put any effort in? No they are pretty much sure things will work out in the end.

This is just a scenario but as you might have observed by now, the problem is really grave. Put a little thought into this - a student who doesn't work hard, a teacher who wastes time in a class, a peon who is ever searching to get some bribe, a dad advising his son to bribe the TC for a berth, an elder brother who educates his sibling on how to cheat in an exam, an employee just trying to ward off work and spend the day... We are all culprits shame on us. But you know what, surprisingly in our society we thugs are called smart people.

I know it is difficult to stay sincere and argue with everybody, that is stupid. But all I ask is don't just blatantly be insincere. Don't just always try to squeeze in, put some effort. There will always be people who will put in zero effort and get the same results as you do. They are smart people. But even now, after seeing so many people of that kind, I have firm faith in the fact that hard work never gets wasted and we shall reap the sweeter fruit. (May be I am being too optimistic and didn't lose faith, correct me if I am wrong!)

I shall write more later. Let me sleep now. After all I need to go work sincerely at my office tomorrow.