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by Jayaram V
The ego loves religion and pretends to be religious for
appearances sake. It
takes great pride in its religious beliefs
and becomes deeply attached to its religious identity. It loves
the drama, the mystery and the aura associated with the
religion, which it follows, and the power and authority that
stems from it. For egoistic people, religion is just another
tool to propagate their own identities and further their vested
interests. Through religious activity, the egoistic self tries
to balance its guilt and shame with the illusion of being pious.
The superficial, ritualistic and superstitious aspects of every
religion are the invention of egoistic people, who find in them
a great opportunity to extend their influence and establish
their authority. Religion gives the egoistic individuals an
opportunity to protect themselves against their own sins,
without making major sacrifices or eschewing their vital
interests. They follow religion according to their needs,
aspirations, convenience and beliefs, speaking on behalf of God
or against Him, in the name of God or in the name of scriptures
and in favor of authority symbols or against them. They may
accept or reject their religious beliefs, according to their
convenience and personal agendas. In short, for the human ego
everything connected with religion is a means to further its own
ends.
Because our egos extend so much influence upon our attitude
towards religions and shape their beliefs and practices, no
religion in this world is free from the pollution caused by our
distorted thinking and irrational behavior. Our religions do not
represent God as much as our egoism and ignorance. They do not
reveal truth, but the truth we want to pursue. They do not
represent God, but the God in whom we want to believe. Although
we are ignorant, we live and act as if we are certain about our
religious beliefs and our notions of what God is and what He is
not. We use religion to boost our egos, to enhance our
identities and to proclaim our authority and superiority over
others. Under the influence of our religious beliefs, we take
pride in our religious identities, in the scriptures we read and
in the prophets and masters we venerate. We use religion to
compensate for our shortcomings and personal failures and hide
our fears and insecurities. We invoke the authority of religion
to inflict pain and suffering upon others. We use religion to
curtail the freedom of individual people, where as in truth
religion is supposed to free us from all bonds. When ignorant
and egoistic people usurp religious authority, you cannot
expect much from them.
In today’s world, religion is misused for many selfish ends.
In almost every religion we find people who want to help God,
instead of seeking His help for their own salvation. They speak
for Him and try to assist Him every step of the way, as
defenders of faith and soldiers of God, as if God is some kind
of a political leader who wants His people to speak for Him and
defend His reputation and ideology. Serving the humanity in the
name of God is one thing. But indulging in acts of violence and
destruction in the name of God is entirely different. It is
ignorance and pride which makes people indulge in the most
heinous acts and fight religious wars in God’s name, as if God
has created this world to stage His holy wars and violent
crusades. Such ignorance and arrogance degrades the very aim
which our religions intend to serve, which is spreading the
ideal of oneness and universal brotherhood. How many times you
have heard, “My God is a jealous God?” Is He? Have you met Him
and talked to Him? How can God be jealous about Himself? Can
your left hand be jealous of your right hand? Can your right
brain be jealous of your left brain? Only jealous minds can
invent a jealous God.
The material world is an integral and inseparable part of
God’s universal body. You harm it and you are but harming a part
of God’s body. You defile it and you are but defiling a part of
God's universal form. Some may assume that God lives only in the
heaven and rules it. They may tell you that all the divinity,
sanctity and morality come from the heaven or some invisible and
formless God. It is stupidity and profound ignorance to believe
that God is not found here upon earth, but only in the heaven or
in only certain holy places where you can set up your shop and
do your business.
When people talk to one another egoistically about God and
religion, nothing much comes out of it, except hatred, ill will,
skepticism, anger and violence. When religions come under the
influence of our individual and collective egos, they become
responsible for much of the bloodshed and violence on earth and
unleash the very evil which everyone wants to avoid in the first
place. Even after centuries of ill will and religious hatred, we
have not learned from our past. We continue to divide the
humanity in the name of God and religion, denigrating the very
moral and spiritual values which they preach. The image of God
which our religions promote is discolored and disfigured by our
narrow mindedness and social conditioning.
Although we know that God is beyond all limitations and
conditioning, we impart various levels of conditionality and
personality to Him and engage in endless debates to prove or
disprove our respective beliefs and theories about Him. God and
ego have a peculiar relationship. The latter is a shadow, a
formation, which can exist only in relationship with God or
Self. It cannot exist independently without Him. It cannot also
coexist with Him as His equal. But it strives to usurp His role,
speak for Him and engage in acts that defy His law. The
traditional role assigned to the egoistic self is that of a
follower or a devotee. But many people act egoistically as if
they are His spokespersons and guardians. The ego is truly an
enemy of God, while it pretends to be His serious devote and
earnest follower.
Note: This excerpt is part of a new book titled "The Awakened Life"
by Jayaram V, which is currently under publication and will be
available soon.
Suggested Further Reading
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