I open my eyes to the intangibility of the beauty of a constant paradigm of belief, faith and devotion, plural in its sense in the contemporary world- religion. However, this beauty has fallen into ashes of conflict, violence and stereotypes. The plurality mention in the its definition is what proliferates various groups dedicated to different religions, assumed of being absolutely and completely different from one another, and tensions between these groups are created. Distrust amongst different religions has started being prevalent these days. With the inception of terrorism, religious extremist attacks, increase in mob lynching cases and civil wars, this tension has increased due to lack of trust. As is the case of the spread of islamophobia across the globe, and consequent attacks on some innocent muslims. But, as long as there’s religion, there’s faith and as long as there’s faith, there’s mankind. It is so indispensable to the world that it is found in almost every nook and cranny. And if such a thing itself starts causing tensions between different groups, it hinders the path of harmony in a nation. In some countries, it even hinders the normal way of living for a lot of people. So we see, that this needs to be countered.
Religion is a beautiful abstract concept, orchestrated by ideals and morals. Every religion eventually leads to the same virtuous values, only the path is different. There is only one transcendent, ultimate truth and revelation, known by different names, which may be perceived as having various attributes, and which manifests in various forms or as formless.I strongly feel that it’s when we, in our roles, misinterpret religion, conflicts and tensions are created. Religions are, as they are, safety values of faith, it’s when we extract a wrong understanding of it that we craft a fiendish web of hatred and intolerance. The first step for creating harmony is looking into our own selves, delving into our own thoughts. Your mind is a mirror you can look into. We need to see if we, in the claws of our own thought processes, are, peaceful or neutral or radicalised or intolerant. Do we see different religions as stars of the same sky or two different universes? Because at the end, we need to realise that faith is like a colourful, vibrant sky, and different religions are the different colours across it, only when each is acknowledged, we see how truly beautiful the sky above us is.
Although, our thinking matters a lot, changing the thinking of everyone is a long and cumbersome process, and there are various other factors also which help fuel various religious crisis in the contemporary world. One of the main factors is, the action of state authority. The steps the government of a nation takes, has its own wide implications for the various communities living there. When ideologies clash, how the government reacts to it has hefty effects and implications. If the steps they take compromise on the dignity of a religion, the people of that religion revolt, as was the case in Sri lanka where the Tamils after being discriminated by the government with Buddhist majority revolted as a form of resistance. Sometimes the government not only fuels the crisis but creates it, as is the case in a few of the African nations that promote religious education in school, which deliberately creates differences between religions. In Nigeria the government itself is accused of killing Catholics. Crisis plaguing some countries of Africa and the Middle East emanate from religious differences and the governments further exploiting them. In Middle East, people have found differences in their own religion, that is, shia and sunni sects of muslims, and the governments have taken sides, creating not only a crisis within the country but also a proxy war within the entire region. Thus, we need to be vigilant and educated citizens, holding the government accountable for every step they take. We need to understand that we hold most of the power in a nation. The government alongside also needs to be sensitive to the beliefs of others and choices they make. As is in India, where the government follows the supreme constitution, accommodating every religion in the diverse nation, and where the citizens know their rights very well, and appreciate the good of the government while also complaining of the wrong. Here. In fact, right to religion is a fundamental right, fundamental in the sense that not even government can subvert it. India stands strong in the eye of the storm of differences, by clutching on tightly to principles of democracy.
But, at last, what’s important is, spreading love, making it prominent in every nook and cranny of the world, so no sharp shard of hatred ever pierces your heart. So your heart is alive even when it stops beating, because the love you give prevails forevermore. It’s all about teaching the kids the right values; teaching them of kindness and trust. It’s all about loud voices of tranquility, vouching for the values of freedom. And it’s our own heart, flying with its free wings, cleaving through the sky of religious differences, just to make it fall back into perfect pieces of equality.
