I find that most of the people I interact with are really superstitious. Not that I am not one - I have my own quirks. But then, all of it is very self-centered and nothing religious.
So when such a major comment was made, I first started thinking why someone has such an opinion of me. What was that I said or did?
So I took up the part of the statement that said I am an atheist. It was easy for me to find out why. Here are some of the incidents that have probably given rise to that opinion:
1. I loathe astrologers. My hatred to that breed of human beings is quite strong. Astrology may very well be a great science. But its my strong opinion that those who practise it are predominantly frauds. Those that are not frauds, are ones who don't know enough but always influence the life of many others.
I have expressed this in my blog earlier too. Have also said similar things to most of you in person as well. I say the same thing to my friends in office also.
But when I see many of them still talk of horoscopes and sun signs and the likes, it irks me a lot and I spew a lot of venom on this matter.
Probably this was a good base for the atheist charge.
2. A couple of weeks back, our local Pillayar Kovil was closed earlier than usual. I found out after a couple of days that the reason was the death of someone in the street adjoining the temple.
I somehow felt that it was not needed. To me, a temple is a place for someone to come for mental peace. By closing a temple much earlier than usual, I feel that someone is denied the opportunity to get some peace of mind. So why close the temple because someone passed away in an adjoining street?
I expressed this sentiment to the group. I was given answers on the lines that its the norm. That all temples do that when such events happen in the maadaa streets.
But this temple and most of the modern temples, dont really have the concept of maadda streets in place. I dont know what the aagama shaastras say about a temple not having a maadaa street. All the old temples built in the time of kings, have had maadaa streets. Can you think of any of your local temples - consecrated in the last 100 years - having maadaa streets in all directions? NO.
The temple I am talking about, is on the main road. So probably, I can take that up as one of the maadaa streets. There is a small dead end lane along one of the compounds and so we have our second maadaa street.
The other two sides of the temple have no such lanes. The temple has proper neighbors on the 2 other sides. So the maadaa street network is not really in place.
Then, does the rule of closing a temple for the passing away of someone in a maadaa street apply here?
Furthermore, in these modern times, most of the maadaa streets are occupied who follow different religions. So if a non-Hindu dies, do we still close our temple?
Basically, what is the logic behind this practice? Is it simply a mark of respect to a departed soul?
When I expressed some of this, one of the people said that they very well expected me to react on these lines.
3. Then there is the Srirangam temple. I heard this for the first time in my life that this temple actually has a chamber where the body of Sri Ramanujar is kept. And apparently this has some signs of life, because the nails are said to be growing.
This was a bolt from the blue for me. I've never heard this before and so was stumped totally.
I had many questions to ask as usual. Is this for real? Is it really possible for someone to stay alive this long? Else is it okay to have a lifeless form inside the temple? And as a bigger question, when do we actually say that a person is dead?
I blurted out some, but held myself back cause even at that time I knew that I was treading a minefield.
4. Whenever such topics come up for discussion, I always have some questions to ask and almost invariably I do. I question the rationale behind certain actions. The answer I get is that since they have been brought up that way, they feel that they are too old to change.
So my retort has always been that I will see to it that my kid doesnt go through all this. And the remark I got was "like an atheist" and I said Yes.
Basically, all my questions are not really to make fun of the practices. I ask these questions only to get answers that will help me understand this great religion of mine. I dont want to do something just because everyone does it.
Even today, it was karthigai celebrations at home. My mother was all worked up over keeping agal vilakku all over the house. This in spite of her bad health. Till this afternoon she could not even walk because of the pain. And in the evening, she is the same person who is so into lighting of all these lamps, preparing the pori urundai etc.
Why? Whats the big need for the oil lamp? Didnt our forefathers use it to light up an area. To remove darkness. Now that we have electricity, doesnt it serve the same purpose and in fact to a better extent? So cant the lighting of the lamp be relegated to a symbolic status or purely aesthetic values?
Does asking such a question actually make me an atheist?
For the record, I still do not step out of the house without saying at least a quick prayer.
Next, the non-believer in marriage aspect....
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