The second page of the book I was reading based on how to be a writer said that to be a writer you should never write about Sex,Politics and Religion.That was the last page I read of that book .I told myself that all I need to write to be a writer is to write
what I feel.
Religion….until I was 14 I did not know one person can choose his/her religion I thought once you are born as something you are that for the rest of your life.Until one of my classmates in grade 9 changed her religion.I was shocked because I was like what were you thinking of to CHANGE your religion I mean we were here listening to Avril Lavigne to feel rebellious and cool and there you were being like ”Jesus is my Savior”.Well I did not give much thought to it that time because I was just not into all this deep thinking I was happy with my religion and with Ganesh ji and Shivji,I was happy with puja ,prasad,flower garlands and colored powder.(I still am I do not have problem with my religion).
So as I grew up and got exposed to more in the world I realised religion is always something that is contaminated and pure at the same time.It is something that flows from your heart to your mind to everything that you do.It is personal and public at the same time (It is complicated )
When I saw met my Indonesian friends in a Seminar and how they pray 5 times a day,how they wear their clothes and how they Love and respect God I was pretty overwhelmed.The place I come from we make ‘deals’ with God we do not pray 5 times a day like that but we just I don’t know randomly pray and give ‘arati’ and sometimes ‘compensate’ our sins with another ‘Puja’.I felt these friends of mine could never do anything wrong because they were so dedicated to God.I wanted pray to their God too.When I saw them pray I had tears in my eyes not the sad kind of tears but the kind of tears that come when you understand things you can not explain.
So I borrowed an Indonesian Prayer dress from one of my friends and I prayed with them.It was beautiful and calm.The kind of calm that makes you reach contentment.I decided that day that God was bigger than any religion.
I went to a Convent school for 12 years so I took christianity was my second religion.(I know it sounds weird when I say I have different religions but that is just how I was,doing things that was not supposed to be done.)One of my old aunties had a problem with me going to my school’s church saying I was becoming a ‘Westernized’ person and that was not right for a woman who was to be married. I continued going to the church but I just did not say anything at home (I was not lying I just was not telling the truth).
So that day when I prayed with my Indonesian friends I decided I was muslim too,I celebrated Ramadan with my Bangladeshi friends that year and fasted a whole month rejoicing on Iftari.After having a bestfriend who is a Sikh I realised that Being a Sikh was not as complicated as I thought.So I was a potential Sikh. All in all I love my religion and all the Gods and Goddesses it has (33 million is that not a lot?) But I think they wont mind me listening to what other people’s religion has to say either.
Because afterall,all religion is ACTUALLY about is rejoicing simplicity,accepting ,forgiving,loving,respecting and doing good.
I have never known any religion that says go kill someone,or do not marry someone from another religion.
Religion is simple all it wants you to do is do good and be good but then its humans that contaminate religions with rules that say do not eat from people who are not in your religion because they are not people from your god(This idea is the lamest thing I have EVER come across because technically you should not be living in a world which was ‘also’ created by other people’s god and you should be living in another planet but oh well no judging if that is what your ‘God’ says you should do it but the last time I checked it was your religion).Religion is supposed to be something that brings people together not divide humanity but we the ”superior” beings of the planet have just misused it just like we have misused and misinterpreted everything else.
Also in my opinion the RULES that come up in people’s religion was not created by God,actually I feel God was just another human being.I mean Buddha was a normal human being who died of diarrhea,he was not God he was just someone who was very wise and we humans portray him as God because of his wisdom.I think anyone can be God all you need to do is do good, accept knowledge and spread it around.I sometimes feel the rules that come up in my religion is pretty lame too like how a women is not suppose to ‘touch’ God when she is on her periods because she is Impure..well I am sure even the Goddesses have periods but oh well I am too young to be taken seriously and plus I am someone who thinks about things that are not that important
So whether you follow Allah or Buddha or Christ or Bhagvan..everything and everyone is the same you just choose what is more appealing to you does not mean you need to judge people from another religion or ”assume” people are beneath you.God is much more than religion so in order to be religious all you need to do is love and accept instead of looking for God in stones and crosses and books and statutes..God lives in every being all you need to do is open your eyes..
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