god and man
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all the gods of all religions, created the universe, the solar sytem, the earth, the life in it and mankind. surprisingly, only man had the intelligence to figure out the existence of god and each man is trying to prove his belief of god and god's rules i.e. religion is superior. i find this a little funny because if you ask all of them what god is and what is the relevance and meaning of religion, they say all the same things.
so what does each man think about god? to broadly put it, the views are:
I1. god will help you out even no one else in the world would
I2. god will be with you even in the worst of odds or when you are totally alone
I3. pray to god whenever you really need something
I4. confess to god if you have realise you have committed a mistake
interestingly, there are also some adages that apply: (connect with the help of numbering)
I1. god only helps those who help themselves; jiska koi nahi hota uska khuda hota hai
I2. jodi tor daak shuney keo naa ashe, tobey ekla cholo rey (tagore saying in bengali that if no one hears your cry, march ahead alone)
I3. jo sachche dil se maanga jaata hai woh zaroor milta hai
I4. subah ka bhatka agar shaam ko ghar aa jaye to usey bhatka nahi kahte
the tenets about god and the wise sayings are dont seem to go together in the first glance. that made me think about why are we told about two opposing viewpoints all our life. i did some research on theology and applied my own thought to it.
the conclusion i came to was that god is a necessary concept for mankind. we need to accept that man is a social animal and emotions (both base emotions and secondary emotions : refer linked note-yet to be written) are the primary influence in any man's life. so at an individual level, god is required for:
1. reminding man that a specie can survive only if each member wills to survive
2. moral and emotional support in times of loneliness
3. focus his energies and concentrate on priorities for propagating his species
4. controlling contradicting emotions in man to sustain his survival
but there is more to it when we look man as part of a community. most emotions and instincts arise due to existence of other members of the same species around. these are regulated by the use of religion and associated rituals.
1. common religious festivals provide a sense of bonding within the community. this is required because like any other animal, man prefers the feelings of being safe and wanted.
2. man has abstract intelligence that is far higher than any other species. this is the reason why secondary emotions drive most conscious decisions life. to help in this scenario, religion provides universal comparisons and benchmarks for paap, punya, good, bad etc. to aid in decision making and keep the secondary emotions in control.
i remember one shloka of our scriptures that means : do not believe the words of even a reknowned sage even if your mind does let it, but believe the words of an innocent kid if you mind deems it fit.
whether to believe in god is a matter of personal faith. the spirit of what i said above has been repeated in better words in the hymn of creation (Rig Veda Volume 10 Verse 129)
The Original Sanskrit Hymn (with the translation given below each couplet)
nµsad àsãn n¢ sád àsãt tadµnãü nµsãd rájo n¢ vy•mà par¢ yát |
k¡m µvarãvaþ k£ha kásya ÷ármann ámbhaþ k¡m àsãd gáhanaü gabhãrám ||
At first was neither Being nor Nonbeing.
There was not air nor yet sky beyond.
What was wrapping? Where? In whose protection?
Was Water there, unfathomable deep?
ná mçty£r àsãd amÆtaü ná tárhi ná rµtryà áhna àsãt praketáþ |
µnãd avàtáü svadháyà tád ‚kaü tásmàd dhànyán ná paráþ k¡ü canµsa ||
There was no death then, nor yet deathlessness;
of night or day there was not any sign.
The One breathed without breath by its own impulse.
Other than that was nothing at all.
táma àsãt támasà gå×hám ágre 'praketáü saliláü sárvam à idám |
tuchy‚nàbhv ápihitaü yád µsãt tápasas tán mahinµjàyata¡kam ||
Darkness was there, all wrapped around by darkness,
and all was Water indiscriminate, Then
that which was hidden by Void, that One, emerging,
stirring, through power of Ardor, came to be.
kµmas tád ágre sám avartatµdhi mánaso r‚taþ prathamáü yád µsãt |
sat¢ bándhum ásati n¡r avindan hçd¡ prat·ùyà kaváyo manãùµ ||
In the beginning desire arose,
which was primal germ cell of mind.
The Seers, searching in their hearts with wisdom,
discovered the connection of Being in Nonbeing.
tira÷c·no v¡tato ra÷m¡r eùàm adháþ svid às·3d upári svid àsã3t |
retodhµ àsan mahimµna àsan svadhµ avástàt práyatiþ parástàt ||
A crosswise line cut Being from Nonbeing.
What was described above it, what below?
Bearers of seed there were and mighty forces,
thrust from below and forward move above.
k¢ addhµ veda ká ihá prá vocat k£ta µjàtà k£ta iyáü v¡sçùñiþ |
arvµg devµ asyá visárjanenµthà k¢ veda yáta àbabh½va ||
Who really knows? Who can presume to tell it?
Whence was it born? Whence issued this creation?
Even the Gods came after its emergence.
Then who can tell from whence it came to be?
iyáü v¡sçùñir yáta àbabh½va yádi và dadh‚ yádi và ná |
y¢ asyµdhyakùaþ param‚ vy•man s¢ aïgá veda yádi và ná v‚da ||
That out of which creation has arisen,
whether it held it firm or it did not,
He who surveys it in the highest heaven,
He surely knows - or maybe He does not!
He also does not know probably because he does not exist. He is imagination of man at work, working all the time as the brain, heart and breath of man, within each man, to make him live like a 'Man'.
(wrote on 24-oct-2007 after a brief discussion with bhavna on god and belief a day before)
