My Quest For The Truth

Religion – irrespective of which one, never really did fascinate me. At least not enough to start voraciously reading up on it. I think I lived in a blissful state of unawareness till now where my generally extremely curious mind slept. But something at the back of my mind has had me hooked now and I am craving to know more.
Hence I have been poking around in books, on websites and reading papers published that document some of the actual happenings of all the major religions of the world right from the crux to its origins to contemporary practices. I have spoken to numerous people who adhere to a particular religion devoutly and probed them with questions. After all this though it has left me utterly perplexed.
There are highly skewed views flung everywhere that contradict incessantly and therefore in the end, it has become extremely hard for me to decipher the truth. Sometimes it infuriates me to know however that all that I am reading and hearing might be a terribly altered version of the true fundamentals just like a spiced up remake of an old classic movie that just isn’t that good.
Sure enough every religion as we know it at the moment is not what it was originally known and made out to be. Societal rules and local culture, politics and then the fanatical greed of some that tainted it for their own desires pooled into it and now – we have a well-blended mixture that is administered today. Hundreds of wars have been fought in the name of God and atrocities are still perpetrated everyday that in my view will never be vindicated. By all this I am not saying that I have the supreme authority to judge the faith of millions but it definitely does make me wonder for myself.
I have always understood that religion is a fraction of life that leads to the betterment of an individual but it does not rule his rationalè by making its followers abide by a certain set of rules that then guarantee his ‘salvation’. Infact I believe that our faith is not actually in what religion and God we follow but heavily relies on who we really are and how positively we’ve lived so far. How we've touched lives and made it a better world in our ways. Whether or not we have contributed to humanity. Whosoever said this said it very well “In the end what matters is not the years in your life, but the life in your years."
I often wonder though how it is feasible for every man who has the capacity to reflect and question to blindly consent to the daily dose of religion offered in holy books and otherwise without actually grasping all of it and then sifting to know what they discern is right. And trust me, I have met plenty of people who propagate their opinions and fling allegations around like they are pieces of trash. It is not justified when without knowing them with clarity and having a solid foundation to base them on you rest the blame on others shoulders claiming they are in the wrong. As Hellen Keller said "To be blind is bad, but to have eyes and not see is worst.”
I also barely think that judging fellow men based on their religion, sexual orientation, critiquing other religions for being inferior for any number of reasons and entirely --even their path of religious focus and objectivities are a matter for any inequity whatsoever and in no way substantiates the strength of your conviction in your own faith when you yourself don’t know it all. It is your highest moral acceptance and actions that makes you a better human being and closer to God than merely hide behind the pages of a holy book and justifying your beliefs.
In supposition it is somewhat like when you let your devout faith become like a blindfold over your eyes and like your untied shoelaces that make you constantly trip over and lurch in your path that they become a problem. And sooner or later another individual will stumble over you as you falter to collect yourself.
It is important that we know that your true religion lies in your very own heart and mind- not in holy books – where beyond anything else it is important first that we know who we really are. It is very much in our place to question and we should. Build up our own ideals and principles and not entirely base them on what we have been told but rather on what we have seen and felt. Building empathy for other religions and relating ourselves to every human being out there is the first step. If we truly want the world to be a better place we need to start with ourselves.
~I know my truest religion – beyond any boundaries of books and prayers lies in my helping a blind man across the street or giving a beggar child a hot meal. It means discovering my own paths through pain joy and pleasures. Through my experiences--good and bad. And truly, this poem describes it all:
The Mind is my house
Truth is my worship
Love is my Law
Form is my manifestation
Conscience is my guide
Peace is my shelter
Experience is my school
Obstacle is my lesson
Difficulty is my stimulant
Joy is my hymn
Pain is my warning
Work is my blessing
Light is my realisation
Struggle is my opportunity
Future time is my promise
Equilibrium is my attitude
Order is my path
Beauty is my Ideal
Perfection is my Destiny

Currently reading: Jesus Papers by Michael Baigent