WHAT IS MY RELIGION? - Part I

              I find it quite strange that today Religion is the single most contentious thing and is the cause of maximum discord amongst us human being without it having been "deliberately adopted" by us. Our religion is decided by the womb that has carried us to our birth or by the religion of the man who has fathered us. We actually never had any choice in it. What would have happened if our society had a norm similar to suffrage? That no human being can have a religion till he attains the age of 18 or 21 or 25 and that he or she will chose a religion only after attaining a certain age. Is following a religion so casual that we give it less importance than casting a vote in an election, where we are expected to have reached a certain maturity level(age) before being allowed to take a decision?

          Well, whatever may be the situation, the fact remains that we all follow one religion or the other, right from the time of our birth. What exactly is this "following" a religion? I think it is nothing but an indoctrination. As we grow up, we see around us certain rituals happening and we get accustomed to them. We are constantly subjected to stories of supernatural powers and miracles that strengthen our belief in the religion we are following. By the time we come of age, we find a sense of belongingness to the customs, beliefs and rituals of our religion and feel that it is now our moral duty to follow and take further ahead whatever practices that are prevalent in our religion. 

         By simplifying this process, am I trying to undermine the concept of religion? NO. Not at all. Firstly, I am not qualified enough to do so & secondly within the limited realms of my wisdom I am all for it. All religious scriptures and the stories of divinity have more or less similar messages of love, compassion, self discipline, morality etc. Only the religious proponent has changed. And we associate all these teachings with a certain religious figure. All the religious lores also have stories of victory of "good over evil" & "right over wrong". They basically are guides to direct us on to the path of righteousness with a sense of pride in the religion we follow. Most of the religions are very old and have been followed by human beings for centuries. Over these times, they have strengthened the beliefs of their followers and has helped them in their hours of crises by giving them a ray of hope, moral courage and will to fight back against difficult situations.

           If things are so harmonious, where do they go wrong?  Why do we have so many problems that emanate from our religious beliefs? Problems begin when the "Created thinks he needs to protect the Creator." That's sad. If we believe that our existence is because of some supreme power, why should we then start doubting His/Her power to take care of Himself/Herself? Or have we become Frankenstein that we have started threatening our creator itself? Even then, so far as I remember, Frankenstein could not kill his creator. If we have been created by the Almighty just like He created this Universe, what gives us the impression that He, whose creations have stood the tests of time over the centuries will need the help from us mere mortals to protect Him. We, who are afflicted with so many ills that the best of us can't last a century; We, who need his blessings even while stepping out of our house; We, who, out of our weaknesses have got down to even bribing Him; have the ability or vision to protect our religion? Funny, Sweet but ultimately Tragic ........