Why don’t I feel the need of a God?
It was Durga Pooja celebrations in office today. A priest had come. He chanted some incomprehensible lyrics in Sanskrit which none of us could understand barring a few sholkas here and there. In between he changed to sherawali, jota wali and I felt Narendra Chanchal crooning in his “Can’t be measured on the Octave scale” voice.
The entire office was there. The god fearing ones had gathered around the small idol which was installed this morning, right at the place where we make our guests sit. So was she another guest for a couple of hours. None of the God fearing fellows came out when the installation was being done, or the decoration was being done. It was left for the housekeeping staff to do the same.
People had funny and angry looks in their eyes when they saw me not attending the “Aarti”, someone called me Groucho Marx (I am not sure why, also I haven’t read him). I had this question which nobody could answer, why do we celebrate Durga Pooja or any other Hindu festival with so much fervor, do the Pooja, aarti etc. but why don’t we do a namaaz, or observe Roza? Why was Baisakhi not celebrated with equal fervor, why was Christmas was a mere holiday, why there was no celebration for that?
It is such a façade. People are afraid. They fear God. So God is a fearful person. Is he a villain? Is he a goon? I just refuse to understand this strange philosophy. You are afraid of any person only when you are wrong. You fear God because you want him to forgive you for all the wrong doings of yours.
I don’t fear any one because I live up to the expectation which I have set for myself. I may be wrong but who decides. Definitely, not the society who has no spine or strength to handle the evolving relationships between human beings.
While the whole tamasha of idol worship continued, I had a few questions buzzing along side the besura pundit’s devi maan ki bhentein.
1. Why is that we celebrate Hindu festivals better than any other festival?
2. Why do we fear God? Why cant we just own up to our own mistakes?
3. And the most pertinent, which I don’t think anybody will be able to answer. Who created God and why?
If it is about having faith, I have faith in my hands because of them I am able to work. I have faith in my legs because of them I am able to walk. I have faith in my eyes, ears and nose. I have faith in my hair which make me look good. I have faith in my brain which allows me to think and gives me enough power to earn my livelihood and earn a living for my family. Does that mean, my body is God?
I guess, we did realize that our body is God that’s why the brain is situated in a place called temple. (loosely borrowed from Dan Brown’s new book “The Lost Symbol”)
Am I being too cynical?
