GOD n RELIGION- MAN MADE OR REALITY??

Ever wondered why there are births of so many religions, cultures, creed and caste and not to mention the amount of bloodshed and hatred that have been associated in the name of religious war and the bellicose patriotism that has found place as a cause of all these?? Let me not beat around the bush to deliver this point to you. "Religion is lame without Science and Philosophy is lame without Religion". The rest is all what I have in my mind to share my "stuff" with you.

Hinduism, Christianity, Islamism, Buddhism and the list goes on.. As time immemorial man devised new ways to bring together people with similar beliefs and thoughts. I always tell my friends its better to have an open mind than to have an empty mind. An empty mind accepts anything it receives, to the contrary an open mind knows what to accept and what not to. In short the one with an open mind receives ideas and suggestions and knows how to iron out the differences between the right and the wrong and form the correct opinions. Keeping in mind the fact that we are living in a country that boasts about "Unity in Diversity" my opinions about God and religion are quite different .

Religions have existed through centuries and man actually created religion for his own purpose and intentions. Hailing from a typical Indian family who are God fearing I was taught discipline and "good" habits in the name of God. Sharing an incident in my life would give you a better insight to my point….. I was about 5 years old when the day came I had graduated from my Kindergarten to the Primary Level. The first day to my primary school was special but definitely a different one- Expecting my teacher to hand me a few toys or asking me play in the sand was all that was running through my mind.Alas, everything was not as how I had expected it to be.. The first hour of the day was moral science, the teacher read out from a book and I vaguely remeber these sentences…" Good children…. Dont lie to others.. Good children… Dont steal… Good children…..???….???". Then it's the usual story of a school going kid.

One day my friend who sits next to me had brought a brand new PEN-PENCIL(A pencil with the graphite tip fixed on a white plastic material, which can be removed and inserted at the bottom of the pencil so that the sharper tip pops up). Young as I was and more innocently I had fallen in love with that pencil with a "difference". Innocent at that age I offered my friend a NATRAJ PENCIL in exchange for the Pen-Pencil he had. Little did I expect him to give me the pen-pencil when he reluctantly pushed the pen-pencil to me. Overjoyed by successful exchange that I had made I decided to keep the pen-pencil in my pencil box safely…!!!

THE NEXT DAY WAS THE MOST DISASTROUS DAY THAT I HAD FACED IN MY LIFE

As soon as I entered the class I was escorted to the Principal's room. Going to the Principal's room was like a pushing a harmless goat into a Lion's den- everyone knows what'll be left over. Situation looked rather grim inside. A woman quite shabbily dressed in a red crumpled saree was standing near the principal's desk. She was fat, a huge bulky figure with a big red bindhi on her forehead and her hair worn into a bun had a small space enough to seat a bunch of woven jasmine flowers. I was taken in for a surprise to find my friend Babu who lent me the pen-pencil the previous day.

The Principal a grim looking woman in her late forties with a horn-rimmed glasses eyed at me rather suspiciously.Silence in the room broke when she finally asked "Prashanth Sathu what's your telephone number?". "Ma'am my daddy does not have phone at home" I replied honestly in a childish voice. She was signaling to the peon and all I could make out was that she is giving orders to him. I smiled vaguely at Babu who didn't respond to my smile, rather he looked at his mom with a raised brow.

Silence prevailed and minutes later at a distance I saw a woman who looked like my mother. Slowly the door opened. A confused and a rather perplexed woman entered the room. Both the Principal and the burly woman smiled at her sarcastically. Little did I know I was the reason for the pained look in my mom's face. "Your son has robbed my son's COSTLY pencil", shouted Babu's mother. My mom was in for a complete shock, and for a mother who adored her son more than anything these words ripped her heart.The Principal chipped in,"don't you teach manners to your son???". On hearing that my mom slapped me hard and my face went pale. The rest was an altercation between my mom and the burly woman. My mom succumbed and said sorry on my behalf and asked me to return the pen-pencil. She again slapped me hard in front of everyone and shouted " Why did you lie to me?".

Strange as it sounded the rest of the day was rather a gloomy one with my peers looking at me at the corner of their eyes. That evening my mom was waiting at the door step and I knew I was in for another round of spanking. As I entered my mom stared at me coldly. Tears rolled on my cheeks and I was sobbing continuously. My mom interpreted my tears to having realized my mistake. She wiped my tears and said,"GOD WILL POKE YOUR EYES IF YOU STEAL OTHER PEOPLE'S PENCIL OR RUBBER OR SHARPENER OR ANYTHING!! GOD WILL TORTURE YOU IN HELL IF YOU LIE TO OTHERS". But my CONSCIENCE told me that nothing will happen to me- because I had not lied nor had I stolen the Pen-pencil. ON that day I inferred that borrowing is equivalent to stealing and not having the integrity to tell your parents even the smallest thing that you do is equivalent to lying.

Today I am an agnostic, quite skeptical about the existence of God. I would not argue that God does not exist rather I would drive home the point its only a supreme power that controls the Universe. I don't believe in idol worship rather say there only one super power in the name of God. My belief is that God is a name used to teach discipline and good habits. To have a control over the conscience of the inner self man created God. A paradox as it may sound that is the opinion I have about God and religion. Never have I borrowed a penny until I was matured enough to understand what to borrow and what not to. Never have I missed out on the integrity factor in my life!! Thanks to that day when my mom corrected me in the name of God and today I am an agnostic. A simple concept….. When we were 4 years old we were taught sun rises in the east and sets in the west… when we were 8 years old they taught us Sun does not move but it's the earth that revolves around the sun. SAME CONCEPT BUT DIFFERENT WAYS OF EXPLAINING. Thats the age we are living in now. We should now know more clearly that God was only a concept created to have a control over your conscience. In short if you are true to your conscience you are divine. The DIVINITY is within you. You have to find the soul within you.

As John Milton said " Thy serve Him best who bear His mild yoke". Very true indeed. Life through the toughest times of your life and you are a MAN. Service to humanity and Mankind is the shortest way to attain divinity.

ANBE SIVAM!!!

Signing off…….. Wait and watch…..