Not For The Religious Kind

Was wondering why people become absolutely "religious" (only/mostly) when there is some sort of perceived trouble in their lives that makes them anxious and consequently makes them perform all those rituals that are monotonous and are plain abnormal repetitions (like ringing the bell "x" number of times or dangling an incense stick in a particular direction around a few particular creatively created objects of mankind at the rate of "y" number of rotations per second or giving "z" amount of tithe to the nearby institution as commanded(by who?!)) that one feels compelled, obligated and impulsive to perform dutifully; hm... could religious ceremonies and rituals-the brainchild of those who created religion-then be a symptom of an anxiety disorder capitalized due to a rising fear that the scientific warlords of psychiatry and scientific temper dare not refer to, name it and slot into their diagnostic catalogues as a certain treatable disorder for reasons quite obvious to the rest of the thinking minds?! 

Most religious people I see are carefully designed, impeccably created, wonderful crackpots-who reveal more of a broken image through their eccentric, idiosyncratic, absolutely mental and finely distinguishable (in the most derogatory way imaginable) acts that they interestingly perform for the rest of the finer world (though small) that still exists and boldly walks up and about and around to see. This small minority of carefree souls sans any religious obligation or ritualistic obsession, strolling on a spiritual journey on Earth-the minority in this aspect-are so much enviably free-that perhaps is the possible bunch that God wanted and created in his own image.

I think these religious, self-acclaimed-sacrosanct-religious creatures (some of them and their strange behaviour that I got a chance to watch up close in an organization I was caught up as a slave recently) believe in papers more than the divine; they are some of the many who believe in papers and bonds to convince themselves that marriages are sealed that way and silently head towards a divorce and would absolutely pretend to be surprized when that happens (thanks to their acting skills born out of their hypocrisy); they are like many who believe in religion than spirituality; these are who are generously referred to as the flocks that need a shepherd all the time to shoo them around and would possibly without the shepherd around be weak, blind and confused all the time; they look around the ground and miss looking towards the sky; these are who often convince me that humans can indeed survive without the grey matter along with the appendix as well; these are the parasites that the other religious parasites suck on for mutual survival; these are the ones who probably would never understand one bit of what I have tried to communicate here and would be disturbed for a while after reading this (truth always disturbs them as you may see); these are the ones that truly amaze me just like those flying insects that are a nuisance when they buzz around your ear that you manage to tolerate when you can't swat; these are the sacrosanct, moral, mad, self-advertising religious mongrels and mongers who would preach love and display hatred; the ones who talk of peace and are walking barrels of poisonous violence; they are disturbed and feel indebted to disturb others... yet, the minority few (the rest of the saner minds living in the free world) may as God would want, not mention any of these and treat them well with kindness (no matter how irritating and trying they can be and may get) as the good One above might call to do. Though unique, strange, absolutely retarded, under-developed and imbalanced they might be, they too are part of His creation possibly left behind to strengthen rationales, liberals and free souls in their reasoning and/or/otherwise walk around avoiding them like a piece of stinky crap that need not be stepped onto if and when noticed lying around... hence, smile, when they pass by or lie around when you walk by; for they are one amongst the several strange creations of God that we dare not name nor define scientifically for diplomacy's sake (Diplomacy as they say is to say "Good dog! Good dog! to the dogs till you can reach for the stones.) 

Well then, "Good dog! Good dog! each and every single one, it is nice to watch you sit, lie, bark and roll over on command to those tunes... go on and carry on-as I search for and reach for the stones (where the #u$! are the stones?!)" 

A World Without Religion(s)

"Can you imagine a world without religion?!" was the question I woke up to one morning... 

What a crazy question?! Then there would be no more crusades, no more witch hunt, no more human, animal and bird sacrifice, no massacre, no vandalism, no more destruction of works of art, no more superstition, no more tax-free accumulation of wealth in trusts, Churches, Temples and Mosques (and the Pastor'shouse), Theologians would have to shut down their school, the students from there would have to find more sensible and reasonable jobs, books of scientific temper based on progress will sell more than books of fantasy, progressive thoughts will increase and regressive thoughts will decrease, there won't be any more caste and compatibility of marriages will be based on love, there will be lesser debates on "whose imaginary friend is greater" in schools, institutions and streets, admission to mental asylums will decrease, no more wars, no more internal violence, more peaceful communities, lesser pollution (air, water and noise especially), lesser hate speeches, lesser beheadings, stoning and people walking around with that "Holier than thou art (sacrosanct) attitude, lesser politics, lesser sick politicians, there won't be priests to take us for a ride and godmen to take every woman for a bride, people will have more money to save and more to spend, instead of waiting for an external power to save them from their misery, people will be wise enough to wake up from their laziness and work their way out of their issues, time will be saved, the Earth will still spin, the sun will still rise and set, the moon will gleam through the clouds and poetry will still be enjoyed and prose will take a readable tone, art will flourish and we will all be sane and act normal... 

Yet then, why would we want all these?! How could we live without all the chaos, catastrophe and confusion we have now in this world?! How complacent we live in this "perfect" world otherwise?! How could we now imagine living in a better world?!...

Who Decides How Good You Are

Why does anyone need someone to recommend how good another person is? I have seen people uninterestingly ask, "Are you religious? Which place of worship do you go to? Who is the priest there? Can you recite a verse? Can you say a prayer? Can you sing a song? Can you sing a song and dance along?... blah! blah! blah!" Very few are able to digest the fact that one can lead a spiritual life-far above anyone can ever imagine, have a personal relationship with the good one above and still manage to stay off the madenning crowd of religious fanatics and misleading clowns in cloaks and find liberty sans getting shut in conditional boxes and be threatened with guilt if anyone begs to differ. 
Can values be tested and marked? Can we say how honest a Man is? Today, institutions (both religious as well as academic) think they can. Probably an essay competition can be held on 'honesty' and the best essay may be handpicked by the priest/teacher and the bishop or headmaster who heads the institution may give a big trophy for the one who wrote it and the audience may be enthralled and applaud and may consider "that someone" who receives the trophy as the most honest in the crowd indeed... yet I ask, "What if no one knew that the whole essay was actually written with a stolen pen except he who wrote??? Would he who wrote the best still be considered honest by the rest?! Who would know except him how "honest" he really is?" 
Spirituality stands tall then, rising far above religion, by being good not for someone else or for others to see yet for oneself even when no one is watching. This being the difference of being good from within for oneself than to covet and pretend to be good for others on the outside. So how spiritual are we really to ourselves?! 

pic: this was a photograph I clicked in Bangalore of a temple priest getting ready to do something he thinks only he can do-get people married.

Its Different Sabji!

The scribblings on the walls of silence has not been scribbled on for a while... too much of unwordable scribblings. The humble acceptance of humiliations, the anticipation for more and the immunity attained from such with the frequency of humiliations like it was other's birth right on the rise.

Interestingly some ask me now whether I am an atheist, an anti-religious person or an antitheist. It is mostly the admirably religious fenatics and orthodox who ask me this and honestly I must confess that I am a believer... an extreme one in that case; totally have faith that there is a wonderful God up above, a belief so strong that I do not see the difference in humans unlike them who follow a religion.

Either I am too old or too tired to fight at the moment. Ignorance, ego, malice, manipulation, corruption, apathy... the list is endless and the need to have the energy to stand up, question and smash the regardless being the ideal, here I stand not knowing the ideal anymore, not knowing what is there to fight for, what is there to stand for and not knowing if at all a difference can be made, nevertheless if a difference needs to be made when everyone shares the comfort of being the same. The irony is that through the silence I helplessly keep, quite amusingly I have killed my soul and have let everything that I have stood against breed like maggots on living flesh. Feel so crowded when alone and alone when crowded. This is the best career performance as an actor in the stage of life I have done so far... and hardly does anyone realize there is a soul dying within. Sometimes people don't even mind killing the actor to get the performance they want. And I thank thee...

Bottomline: "Irony differentiates. Cynicism never does." Paul Horgan

Chanting the Cry Away

There is something that I noticed recently. The reason to chant. There is this guy who introduces himself as someone who has a lot of influence with people and matters relating to religion. Though a good friend of mine whose feelings I do respect, personally, I do not contain myself in shackles of religion. However, there came a point when he tried to tell me something that he wanted me not to do and as usual, I did not quite appreciate someone who had the nerve to tell me what to do and what not to. So I had to ask him to mind his own business and let the decisions I need to make be mine. Saying that, I was carrying on with my work and suddenly I hear humming of some strange kind. This guy was sitting in his lotus position and chanting mantras! Duh! Was he trying to intimidate me? Or maybe wanted to remind me that he is somebody who realms in power everyone sees and very few oversee. Or could it be that he was trying to find his own space to come clear off that disturbed peace by walking off into his world of surreal fantasy?! However, I was trying to smile with these thoughts.
Then came a situation when we had to rush in to oversee the rescue attempt of a few labourers who got trapped in a landslide. Interestingly the situation was more complicated than we expected; to find that the landslide was more man-made than natural. This situation arose not due to negligence yet due to complete submission by the so called “engineers” who worked around a heap of loose mud to keep a tree intact and went about building a structure around it commissioned to do so by one of the unquestionable high priests from a religious pact. 2 died. Still more awaiting the same destiny… though noone still can refute the foolishness of the structure. Is it the poverty of the people that makes silencing their cry so easy?
The self-acclaimed and often accepted power of this religious clan makes me wonder if other’s life is so easy to be taken for granted and easily coverable under chants which many do not understand. These are unsaid stories that will remain unsaid. The victims of these overt thinkers who profess their world of fantasies which they proclaim capable of seeing so blatantly misguided and taken for a ride… which by the by, they seemed to enjoy. So who cares?! Power does play its rounds so well.

Bottomline: This land where I live is a land where someone said “Even if thou reavelth thy third eye, thy mistake shall be a mistake”