Disclaimer : The views and opinions expressed in the post below are not targeted to any individual or any religion is particular. Peace !
Imagine a growing civilization and you had the responsibility of maintaining decorum and harmony - what would you do ? How would you tame head strong individuals , keep rouge in check and acknowledge the righteous ? Also it had to be self sustained, meaning overbearing such that it instilled enough fear in people's mind to prevent them from committing wrong doing in the first place. And thus religion was born. Primitive humans worshiped nature but with mankind making leaps and bounds at scientific inventions, nature could be controlled and so was not fearful anymore. But the fear of divine was still at large - a supernatural power that can not be seen but felt could be the perfect solution. Make no mistakes, God is everywhere and watching you and you'll be punished in some form or the other for your lapses - this is what is at the crux of every religion. And it worked !! So science and religion were divided with priests taking over control of your soul and dictating how you should live while advanced minds worked on science and attempts to make sense of the physical world.
Fast forward decades and centuries later and we are still the same - majority of us blindly following religion and practices that were appropriate for a population back then. One of such practices which I fail to fathom is of 'fasting' . All religions offer some form of fasting rituals aimed at being reminders of doing the right thing and leading a good life. But majority of it has become a farce with people just following rituals because they are made to , or they don't want to feel left out.
At a recent holy month long fasting period, I have overheard people crib and complain about waking up early to say their prayers, looking forward to the day end so they can have a feast or just hoping the month is done with soon. In another of my recent conversations with a person who was planning to fast for an extended period, I casually inquired how they would manage and the answer will blow your mind - key to fasting is distraction it seems !! So if the person wouldn't work the regular / extended work hours it would be difficult to spend the day and complete the ritual. Then there have been instances in the past too when I have interacted with an individual who while fasting was making a list of all the food items to eat once the fast ends - you miss the point buddy !!!
The basic concept of fasting is to give up worldly cravings (including food) and develop the control of mind over body. So its meant to be done in isolation and with devotion not looking at the clock waiting for time to lapse and the activity to be ticked. Also its meant to be a penance for any sins committed which doesn't mean you fast a few days and then get the liberty of doing wrongdoings for the rest of the year. Why not be good 365 days of the year ? Or say sorry and apologize when you are wrong, resolve issues at the outset and not let enough time pass for it to fade and cause scars.
Be good and do good and we don't need any religious sermons to make the world a better place.
Imagine a growing civilization and you had the responsibility of maintaining decorum and harmony - what would you do ? How would you tame head strong individuals , keep rouge in check and acknowledge the righteous ? Also it had to be self sustained, meaning overbearing such that it instilled enough fear in people's mind to prevent them from committing wrong doing in the first place. And thus religion was born. Primitive humans worshiped nature but with mankind making leaps and bounds at scientific inventions, nature could be controlled and so was not fearful anymore. But the fear of divine was still at large - a supernatural power that can not be seen but felt could be the perfect solution. Make no mistakes, God is everywhere and watching you and you'll be punished in some form or the other for your lapses - this is what is at the crux of every religion. And it worked !! So science and religion were divided with priests taking over control of your soul and dictating how you should live while advanced minds worked on science and attempts to make sense of the physical world.
Fast forward decades and centuries later and we are still the same - majority of us blindly following religion and practices that were appropriate for a population back then. One of such practices which I fail to fathom is of 'fasting' . All religions offer some form of fasting rituals aimed at being reminders of doing the right thing and leading a good life. But majority of it has become a farce with people just following rituals because they are made to , or they don't want to feel left out.
At a recent holy month long fasting period, I have overheard people crib and complain about waking up early to say their prayers, looking forward to the day end so they can have a feast or just hoping the month is done with soon. In another of my recent conversations with a person who was planning to fast for an extended period, I casually inquired how they would manage and the answer will blow your mind - key to fasting is distraction it seems !! So if the person wouldn't work the regular / extended work hours it would be difficult to spend the day and complete the ritual. Then there have been instances in the past too when I have interacted with an individual who while fasting was making a list of all the food items to eat once the fast ends - you miss the point buddy !!!
The basic concept of fasting is to give up worldly cravings (including food) and develop the control of mind over body. So its meant to be done in isolation and with devotion not looking at the clock waiting for time to lapse and the activity to be ticked. Also its meant to be a penance for any sins committed which doesn't mean you fast a few days and then get the liberty of doing wrongdoings for the rest of the year. Why not be good 365 days of the year ? Or say sorry and apologize when you are wrong, resolve issues at the outset and not let enough time pass for it to fade and cause scars.
Be good and do good and we don't need any religious sermons to make the world a better place.
