I feel and put it hard when I think about this topic. Not only my views are different from my family members on religion but I think there needs to be a change at least with the next generation. Any religion is a package of rituals, customs and habits which promotes happiness and well being at daily level. Mostly it compromises of customs which are devised some thousands years back for well being. My pondering is, they were devised long back and today is not like that day. Does everything devised then make relevance now? Does it not need upgrades or changes or customizations according to the changing world? If it cannot be customized to promote happiness why are they customs then?
It is evident that people who got to think and do these; the so called religious heads float organizations and make money out of it. People don’t even think what and why they do when it comes to religion. They just blindly follow. There are few who do everything against the religion and still propagate it. Every religion at a base level tries to promote love, share, care, peace and togetherness among people. Are these propagated and followed properly? Then who are those and where should the change happen?
I have been encountering religion based discussions for the past months and all these thoughts keep hovering on my mind. Yesterday I read this piece of story in TOI. I think this is how it should be. An excerpt of it here and please read the full story on http://tinyurl.com/yfojghe
"A few months into my pregnancy, we had decided that we would not give our child any religious identity"
“We are not against religion, but who are we to choose a religion on our baby's behalf? We will expose him to the values of different faiths and cultures, and when he grows up he will be free to follow any faith—or none if he wishes.”
Strong in their decision the couple had a fight with the local municipal office for leaving the religion field empty in the birth certificate form.
"Are you ashamed of your Hindu identity? Why don't you want your child to be known as a Hindu?" an officer asked her rudely. She shot back that while she was proud of her Hindu roots, she was not a practicing Hindu. "Why in a democratic, secular country can't parents take a decision like not giving any religion to their children?" she asked the officer.
Unconvinced, the officer cited a technical problem and passed the matter on to a higher official who understood their plea but still cited the technical problem that the system cannot accept if the religion field is left empty. There were four choices on the form—Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Others.
The mother did not want any of them for her child, as even Others required them to identify the sect or community. She argued with the officer some more and finally agreed on Others, but without any identification. "Others is just to facilitate the generation of the certificate. We know our child has no religion" she says.
Now, this is called a change. There is always a first time for every time. I am sure there are lots of couples wanting to do the same, but pressured on by peers and society. It definitely needs huge courage to face this nation choosing to be a liberal.
“But it's just the beginning of the several hurdles which are bound to crop up ahead—at the time of school admission or securing a passport for the child, for instance. We are prepared for those battles too" says the mother determinedly.
It is evident that people who got to think and do these; the so called religious heads float organizations and make money out of it. People don’t even think what and why they do when it comes to religion. They just blindly follow. There are few who do everything against the religion and still propagate it. Every religion at a base level tries to promote love, share, care, peace and togetherness among people. Are these propagated and followed properly? Then who are those and where should the change happen?
I have been encountering religion based discussions for the past months and all these thoughts keep hovering on my mind. Yesterday I read this piece of story in TOI. I think this is how it should be. An excerpt of it here and please read the full story on http://tinyurl.com/yfojghe
"A few months into my pregnancy, we had decided that we would not give our child any religious identity"
“We are not against religion, but who are we to choose a religion on our baby's behalf? We will expose him to the values of different faiths and cultures, and when he grows up he will be free to follow any faith—or none if he wishes.”
Strong in their decision the couple had a fight with the local municipal office for leaving the religion field empty in the birth certificate form.
"Are you ashamed of your Hindu identity? Why don't you want your child to be known as a Hindu?" an officer asked her rudely. She shot back that while she was proud of her Hindu roots, she was not a practicing Hindu. "Why in a democratic, secular country can't parents take a decision like not giving any religion to their children?" she asked the officer.
Unconvinced, the officer cited a technical problem and passed the matter on to a higher official who understood their plea but still cited the technical problem that the system cannot accept if the religion field is left empty. There were four choices on the form—Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Others.
The mother did not want any of them for her child, as even Others required them to identify the sect or community. She argued with the officer some more and finally agreed on Others, but without any identification. "Others is just to facilitate the generation of the certificate. We know our child has no religion" she says.
Now, this is called a change. There is always a first time for every time. I am sure there are lots of couples wanting to do the same, but pressured on by peers and society. It definitely needs huge courage to face this nation choosing to be a liberal.
“But it's just the beginning of the several hurdles which are bound to crop up ahead—at the time of school admission or securing a passport for the child, for instance. We are prepared for those battles too" says the mother determinedly.
Citing a technical problem is a lame excuse here. How big deal is it to change it or include a “Liberal” field in the form? Orkut has the option of choosing an option “Spiritual but not Religious”. Why not our own municipal corporations have it? Where should the change start from??
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