Re: Zakir Naik: Inventing a Jagadguru
Originally Posted by
wundermonk
I have to differ with you here. Do you have any evidence to suggest that atheists/agnostics are "more advanced" and are more "able to find happiness within themselves" than theists? Could you suitably define these phrases?
It is purely from my own assessment having met many people in this 30+ years of existence. But what proof do you need that is already not self evident? All the wars and violence in name of religion is as old as the time when men invented religion and still continues at the same untiring momentum. Old bigots get replaced with a new generation of God crazy people.
As I said, being able to be happy with oneself is by itself a great proof. Let me define happy by being able to lead normal, healthy and mentally fit life.Being unconcerned with religious truths shows great maturity in being able to come to terms with the world on one's own terms. I don't need any better proof for my convictions.
Ofcourse this excludes those people who have found another dogma (atheism) to take refuge in through denial of everything religious. Those people are in the same or worse boat than religionists in my mind. There cannot be too many non-dogmatic agnostics in my mind, and clearly they have to be much advanced than scores of devotion crazy crowd and their leaders.
But truely, I can't prove this to you or anybody who does not accept great harm being done since dawn of human history in name of religion. It is not good for me to only blame Abrahamic religions for all ills and put an spotless picture for all others, since the issue is in the very foundation of need for religion - which is a deep seated human phobia for the unknown.
And to note, my posts were not to pronounce a judgement on SpiritualSeeker and anybody else in this forum. Sorry if it came out such a way, but maybe it is unavoidable when I criticize religion in general and all most everybody here is religious in some sense.
However, I still keep defining myself as Hindu and post here because for me Hinduism offers plenty & plenty of options outside formalized religion and a strict religious life.
If one doesn't believe Truth to be a written word in an old book, but something to be experienced inside, I believe he/she is still a Hindu.
If one doesn't believe that "religious" duties are there because some God or saint wanted us to perform those tasks or incur wrath, but rather view these duties and rituals as tools to experience the inside, I think he/she still remians Hindu.
And if one believes that these rituals and processes remain open to be applied, evaluated and validated like any other scientific technology aliebit at an individual level, I think it still remains Hinduism.
What is Here, is Elsewhere. What is not Here, is Nowhere.
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