As I delve into my self, trying to make sense of my existence or my 'quarter life crisis' as they call it, I find myself questioning faith. Born in a typical middle class Brahmin family, I grew up watching my mom start the day with slohas. She wouldn't miss any hindu God I would say. I remember reciting many slohas every morning as a kid. As I grew older, I gradually lost the habit. I started my 20s with a lot of questions. In my mid 20s now, I am still trying to figure out the answers, if at all there are any. I must admit though, that this seeking in itself is a Joy. I have always been amazed at my mom's faith in God. But I failed to associate myself, devote myself to these physical forms, I would like to call, of Gods.
I have always believed that my God is faceless. God doesn't care about one's religion or caste. Whenever I gaze at the Sea, the mighty waters that change their color under the Sun light, with their incessant tides sloshing up and down the rocks, I find myself astonished by the wonder Nature is. Likewise, rivers give me this feeling of ecstasy. I visited Galibore nature camp on the banks of river Cauvery, near Bangalore two years back. It was pure joy to listen to the perpetual humming of the water flowing on the river bed. Moments like these make me wonder if this is what God is. The impeccable beauty of Nature, the goodness in people, the empathy that we feel towards others, those little acts of kindness in moments of misery, that feeling of gratitude, these are all my physical forms of God, of Faith. I would like to believe that.
Recently, I happened to watch a few episodes of Mahabharatham on TV. I haven't read the great hindu epics or holy books of any religion. I remember hearing stories from my grandmother though. She used to tell me how Krishna, a naughty kid, ate mud from the garden. When his mother chided him and asked him to open his mouth, he opened his mouth to show her the entire universe. I was fascinated. I always thought Krishna is this God, who is not so angry or scary like Siva or Kaali.
So I happened to watch the episodes in which Krishna gives Updesh to Arjuna. He tells Arjuna that he is the Paramathma. He is neither a man nor a woman. He is not the gender that is neither of the two. He is the entire universe. He is Lord Siva, Kaali, Brahma, Saraswathi and everything in the Universe. All human beings are a fragment of Paramathma. Well he tells a lot more. What got me thinking was, Krishna said that he is a human form of the almighty. Here the significance lies with the Universe, the Nature, the Energy, Science or whatever you want to call it. And not with the mere human form of God.
But that is where it got tricky I guess. People started associating this power and ecstasy with the human form. So one says Vishnu is the almighty. The other says Shiva is the one. So they got busy fighting for their Rama, Allah and every other God in every way possible, thus forgetting the ultimate truth that God has no face. God doesn't know religion or race. Religion was created to make men lead a noble life and give him a sense of what is just and what is not. Different people understand things in different ways and so were born different religions with different practices conforming to the geography, food habits and the very nature of people. So people understood the exact opposite of what God was trying to say. Don't you think this is an irony? Isn't it amazing that a small change in perspective could make things look different?
Well, these are just my musings. I might be wrong. Feel free to agree or disagree with me in the comments! :)
I have always believed that my God is faceless. God doesn't care about one's religion or caste. Whenever I gaze at the Sea, the mighty waters that change their color under the Sun light, with their incessant tides sloshing up and down the rocks, I find myself astonished by the wonder Nature is. Likewise, rivers give me this feeling of ecstasy. I visited Galibore nature camp on the banks of river Cauvery, near Bangalore two years back. It was pure joy to listen to the perpetual humming of the water flowing on the river bed. Moments like these make me wonder if this is what God is. The impeccable beauty of Nature, the goodness in people, the empathy that we feel towards others, those little acts of kindness in moments of misery, that feeling of gratitude, these are all my physical forms of God, of Faith. I would like to believe that.
Recently, I happened to watch a few episodes of Mahabharatham on TV. I haven't read the great hindu epics or holy books of any religion. I remember hearing stories from my grandmother though. She used to tell me how Krishna, a naughty kid, ate mud from the garden. When his mother chided him and asked him to open his mouth, he opened his mouth to show her the entire universe. I was fascinated. I always thought Krishna is this God, who is not so angry or scary like Siva or Kaali.
So I happened to watch the episodes in which Krishna gives Updesh to Arjuna. He tells Arjuna that he is the Paramathma. He is neither a man nor a woman. He is not the gender that is neither of the two. He is the entire universe. He is Lord Siva, Kaali, Brahma, Saraswathi and everything in the Universe. All human beings are a fragment of Paramathma. Well he tells a lot more. What got me thinking was, Krishna said that he is a human form of the almighty. Here the significance lies with the Universe, the Nature, the Energy, Science or whatever you want to call it. And not with the mere human form of God.
But that is where it got tricky I guess. People started associating this power and ecstasy with the human form. So one says Vishnu is the almighty. The other says Shiva is the one. So they got busy fighting for their Rama, Allah and every other God in every way possible, thus forgetting the ultimate truth that God has no face. God doesn't know religion or race. Religion was created to make men lead a noble life and give him a sense of what is just and what is not. Different people understand things in different ways and so were born different religions with different practices conforming to the geography, food habits and the very nature of people. So people understood the exact opposite of what God was trying to say. Don't you think this is an irony? Isn't it amazing that a small change in perspective could make things look different?
Well, these are just my musings. I might be wrong. Feel free to agree or disagree with me in the comments! :)
First things first... Answer to your question... AGREE... Most discussed Topic... yet dimension & viewpoints make it interesting... keep writing (keep 'rambling' :) )
ReplyDeleteMerci :)
DeleteGood one :) May the many faced god bless you :P
ReplyDeleteand no change in perspective is small ;-)
Thank you Bala :) sometimes a small shift in perspective is enough to see the difference right? That is what I meant.
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