Well i donno whether i’m one, but for the better part of my life i’ve been a theist. Well at times i’m caught in between too. Why I am an Atheist (October 5, 1930), was one of the last essays of Bhagat Singh.
He projects himself as a complete atheist, with reasoning. He states that
“Religion is the outcome of human weakness or the limitation of human knowledge.”
Its a must read essay. It holds strong points questioning the religions and holds the differences in faith as root of evil.
… All these faiths differ on many fundamental questions, but each of them claims to be the only true religion. This is the root of the evil. Instead of developing the ideas and experiments of ancient thinkers, thus providing ourselves with the ideological weapon for the future struggle, – lethargic, idle, fanatical as we are – we cling to orthodox religion and in this way reduce human awakening to a stagnant pool…
He is righteously questioning the theists and asking them to give irrefutable reasoning to their beliefs. When i posted the same set of question to some one rooted deeply in faith and God, thus was the reply
…That article u sent is sentimental philosophy and tries to explore answers in the narrow realm accessible to our senses……There are difinitely answers to all the questions if you are interested to know. You need to have open mind to listen and understand and you will find answers. Go to a realised soul, read BhagavadGitha As It IS and you will have all the answers…
It was just the answer i had expected. I dont think a country having 4000 years of rich heritage, simply got built upon blind faith without evidence. But rather the truth got lost in translation.
He had some interesting views about Gandhi too, i must say.Here is what Gandhi wrote about Bhagat Singh’s Martyrdom in Young India
Every time I think, I get into a realm of conflicting ideas. In due course I have come to belive and realize that the truth that I’m facing is the God that I belive in.
October 7, 2006 at 10:19 am
[...] Read about it at Mutiny.in too – Why I am an Atheist [...]
October 8, 2006 at 3:36 pm
My version of God is Krishna, yet even then I think my view is different from other Hares and othe Vaishnava…
October 9, 2006 at 9:22 am
Here is something really interesting – I just killed GOD and you are invited to murderers club!
October 12, 2006 at 3:43 am
“truth that I’m facing is the God that I belive in.”
That’s the silliest circular reasoning I’ve come across in a while!
October 12, 2006 at 11:30 am
Thanks ..
October 12, 2006 at 5:08 pm
Why I am an Atheist « The Great Indian Mutiny
Why I am an Atheist « The Great Indian Mutiny posted at IndianPad.com
October 13, 2006 at 2:39 pm
Good Post.. thanks for posting link to Bhagat Singh’s writing.
November 21, 2006 at 1:05 pm
I am sorry. Nice and all to say about being athiest… I dont agree to that. I believe in all religions. I did think about becoming an athiest, but had to reconsider as they get no holidays !
January 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
Religion seems to be broken into two components; namely, God and the wonder of it all, and Ethics, how one should conduct one’s life.
The “God” part does vary widely by culture. Does God depend on where you’re born and whom your parents are?
The Ethics part varies little by culture.
Cultural evolutionists believe that Ethics improves our ability to reproduce. It’s all about Darwin and evolution. Ethically-driven cultures are better at lasting for centuries and producing more offspring than non-ethically driven cultures. Ethics, the right way of living, is wired into us by millions of years of evolution.
You and I are “good” not because of religion, but because it’s the right way to live, and efficient in an evolutionary sense.
Religion is good because it celebrates the wonder of it all (the “God” part) and tells us how to live a life (the “Ethics” part).
The two need not be from one source. The ancient Greeks kept the “God” part separate from the “Ethics” part and worked out the beautiful Ethics which Augustine later incorporated into Christianity.
April 6, 2007 at 5:32 pm
Hi ..a nice blog u have in here..
I am working on an article on Bhagat singh…and I am really impressed by his life and thoughts!
June 10, 2007 at 11:49 pm
“…That article u sent is sentimental philosophy and tries to explore answers in the narrow realm accessible to our senses……There are difinitely answers to all the questions if you are interested to know. You need to have open mind to listen and understand and you will find answers. Go to a realised soul, read BhagavadGitha As It IS and you will have all the answers…”
Athism is not a sentimental philosophy, neithor does is close the mind to the wonders of the world. In fact it starts you on a path of wonder. Yes there are no definite answers yet, to the wonders around us, but we can work on finding it, or just remain laid back and ignorant with the contentment of “God did it, because he works in mysterious ways”.
And I would like to ask sir, the very question Vivekananda asked every one, could you guide me to any realised soul? Even one? And yes I have read the Bhagavad Githa and its many interpretations, and enjoy it as much as any star wars book, It satisfies my need for the fantastic, and yes I wish I had the “force with me”, but at the end of the day I will be content with not being blinded with belief, but set free with question and wonder.
“It was just the answer i had expected. I dont think a country having 4000 years of rich heritage, simply got built upon blind faith without evidence. But rather the truth got lost in translation.”
This contry with is many many years of rich heritage, has a heritage not on blind belief, but one based on deep thought and debate. The very essence of the vedas, could be argued to be athiestic at is core (Though not by me), but if you read some of it you will realise that we do have Atheism rooted within our philosophy. Though zelious theists tend to forget it, or hide it. If you have the time please search and read about the Lokayata school of thought.
July 7, 2007 at 6:39 pm
Great Bhagat Singh for sure. Thanks for the link.