I like what allen ginsberg (the late legendary beat poet) had to say:
'Either God is in me or is not at all.' And then what Nietszche said about
religion being 'a tool' to guide humanity towards goodness. Of course, he
attacked most organized religion without fail in most of his other writings,
but that quote (i think it was 'Beyond Good and Evil,' someone help me out if
im wrong) sort of helps to see religion in a different light. God, to me, is
like St. Thomas Aquinas said, "the highest form of thought in man.' God
lives or dies or stagnates in the mind of the individual. And religion seems
to me like separate paths up a mountain, the peak being the same thing. I am
a Muslim, but above that, im a human being with a human mind in a human
existence with the rest of the world. Too many times religion is put above
humanity and wars start.
Further, I disagree with what Matt said:
'Just because you believe in God or meditate on the
Nothingness doesn't mean you are part of a religion. Being part of a religion
means being part of a whole set of static social patterns.'
YOu can look at religion as these sweeping static codes of which disobeying a
single rule can lead to an eternity of hell, or you can simply look at
religion as a way to better the self. I pray 5 times every day, and
sometimes i rush through and sometimes i take my time, but i notice that by
slowing down and sometimes reaching a sort of meditative state and sense on
oneness with God, i am at peace when i fold the rug and stand. it's not
about whether there was a real God that i felt, the only thing that matters
is the mindfulness that i cultivated while i prayed. I think an important
Dynamic event of this century was when Mahatma Gandhi gave up Hinduism and
called his new religion 'Love.' It wasnt an organized social code, just a
simple inner and outer knowing of the self and the world and a feeling of
compassion for both. People could follow that religion, as many do today, or
change it as they saw fit, which makes religion, in my view, a Dynamic
concept.
rasheed
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