Is Religion a Matter of Spiritual Choice?
by Vikash Kumar
A truth seeker recently asked me a question that we have often been asked, “What religion are you convinced with and follow in your life?” My answer to them on all occasions has been that if we know the concept of religion, then you will find a bit of every religion in all of us, but the majority of no religion at all.
Whenever people discuss ‘What is religion?’ they often talk about the aspect and extension of a particular religion and its theory, but seldom the discussion is within the proposition of religion in toto. We should refrain from naming any specific religion or sect, for the purpose of discarding undue extension of theme and losing the topic of focus here. One needs to understand the role of religion in the context of individuality. Ask yourself, how is it that you are connected with religion? Through society or masses or was it your soul’s urge? With a slight dip inside, your answer will be the former – society or masses. For many of you, it could be your parents inherited or even imposed. A few of you would have adapted to the rituals, some of you would have abandoned the formalities. The rest of you would be struggling for a long time trying to make up your mind whether to accept, adapt, or abandon.
Religion is an affair of your deep core within the individual spirit, so how can someone else’s impositions fit you and your life? When buying an undergarment for yourself, it is you who judges the fitting and comfort based on how it feels on your body. That snug fit that gives you ultimate comfort and confidence. The feel-good factor can never be chosen by someone else. It is for you to choose, comment, and decide. Your trusted friends can help you narrow down your options by suggesting brands, texture, or size, but ultimately it is you who will feel and choose the best fit. This is an object, which is a matter of outside of your body, yet it is tangible, visible, and open to influence by others to some extent. So very simply, how anyone else can decide for you the comfort and suitability of a religious belief for you? How can someone else impose it on you if it is not even a matter of the body, but the soul and spirit?
We often use the phrase, ‘Religion teaches us,’ but what can’t it offer? A religion should leave some space for an individual to utilize their brain for selection or rejection. Religion is not a universal truth, like the sun rising in the east. In fact, it is a contextual comparison based on facts and findings. Findings can be deduced and could be offered to you, and it will not be compulsive for you to accept. If it suits you, you can follow them and embrace the belief, or else you also have discretion to reject it. Teaching and training is essential in our day-to-day life. For example, we have to teach younger children their basic chores and activities according to the easiness of life pattern. The training we provide will be selective and could be extensive, too, when required. Similarly, in religion, it is up to the individual to choose what learning they wish to imbibe in their lives. Another example is when a student gets selected to study engineering, he or she will not receive any training as a medical student, and vice-versa.
You should have a choice to select religion and related ground, according to the propensity of spirit for connectivity with the Divine. When we say the word, religion, it doesn’t only mean the names available in the column of a form, or only mean ritual, treatise, and laid down dogmas. It means the essence that lies at the center of it. Religion has been so clouded with institutional affairs that they completely overshadow the underlying essence and spirit. Many of us blindly follow the words of holy men and clergy who have interpreted the Holy Scriptures for us, only with fear that non-following will bring many curses in life.
It is due to these underlying fears that our individualistic view of religion goes missing. Fear, a categorized negative emotional phenomenon, can never give birth to love, compassion or positive aspects. However, many people with blind faith repeat prayers in fear and negativity, with the expectation of positivity in life. The essence of religion is religiousness, which is like the center to a circle. However, people get stuck at the periphery with an expectation that they will someday reach the center.
Ultimately, religion should bring religiousness, although there are numerous hurdles in reaching the center. A number of modern intellectual and cultural forces have accentuated a difference between these two. Therefore, we know that it is very difficult to experience the real essence of religion. Many real, enlightened persons are still undiscovered and unidentified, as the world is so vastly divided due to religion.
Be a proponent of religiousness where no religion hinders you in knowing yourself. A knower can never be a follower, so there is no question of us being a follower of any religion. This subject is definitely not something that can be traced by traveling on a highway. This search can be concluded with a pathway. One cannot travel on a highway of predefined thoughts and beliefs to discover the truth of religion. Make an all-out effort in real understanding of religion, and religiousness will soothe and provide comfort to the spirit in your perishable body.
Click HERE to Connect with your Daily Horoscope!
About the Author
Vikash Kumar is a Mindfulness Coach & SQ Trainer, known as “ForeZorba.” He offers counseling, corporate coaching, meditation & Astro-Numero guidance. He transforms and empowers people with psycho-dynamism, which is more than just advice and talk therapy. A voracious reader and ceaseless thinker, Vikash is an ardent writer who writes for magazines worldwide.
www.mantrawithzorba.com www.lifepositive.com
