WHY
AND HOW I BECAME AN ATHEIST? - Confessions of a secular Humanist
NOTE : This essay was written almost one year ago. Even though I remain an atheist and rationalist and would continue to remain so in near future, my views on many other things have changed. Some of the arguments expressed here appear to be naive, so the post need not be taken represent my present opinions.
NOTE : This essay was written almost one year ago. Even though I remain an atheist and rationalist and would continue to remain so in near future, my views on many other things have changed. Some of the arguments expressed here appear to be naive, so the post need not be taken represent my present opinions.
I would call myself as an atheist/secular humanist/naturalist [1]
but above all a freethinker [2].
My views about religion are similar to the new atheist movement [3].
MY "conversion" to atheism was not sudden It happened in many stages,
this view is a result of my long intellectual quest and study. Initially some 7-8 years back I was very typical
religious (Hindu) [4]. I used to pray daily and had a lot of
interest in religion. I thought it was very good thing to do and when I see it
through hindsight it was mainly due to a sense of duty. Gradually as my
understanding of science, philosophy, history grow there was a increasing
conflict between them and religious ideas which led to sceptical attitude
towards religion. As I read the history of religions they appeared as political
systems created to make people follow rules but careful study of religion(real
history not myths) when looked through the socio-political angle it appears to
have become a tool to oppress people. They create encouraged "in group
loyalty and out- group hostility" and there was a clear “unholy coalition
of politician- intelligentsia"[5]. It is not just about
believing god and praying but religion occupies all the spheres of one’s life
and starts to dictate very personal issues of people. For example It’s not enough if u pray it has
to be in a particular way which only the priests knows this lead to a creation
of job of priests. In Hinduism this has been taken to its logical extreme
there are so many different types of
rituals for every possible event
in one's life like pooja,yagnas etc that
I think a lifetime is not enough to read them The detail and sophistication in
conducting them makes the people to believe them. Of course it requires an
entire class of priests to perform them and birth-based brahminical priesthood
and related caste system is the worst feature of Hinduism. But i won't put the
entire blame on this priest of present generations. Many of them sincerely
believe in those rituals and may be these rituals were initially created to
oppress people[6] but today even the priest of present generation
also believe them. Instead of seeing
people as opresser-opressed in white and black way we need to understand the
complex sociological issues involved. In regard to Hindu (or more properly
brahminical since most of them are practiced by Brahmins. Of course there are
non-brahminical counterparts to it) superstition basically I accept kannada
poet kuvempu's[7] views. Historically “lower-caste" Hindus were
not allowed to these many rituals in Hinduism as they were confined to
"upper-castes" mainly Brahmins. [8] Recently there is a increased
trend especially in "lower-caste” to follow these stupid rituals. Many of
them in trying to question the superiority of the "upper-caste"
people try to follow their rituals. Tragically this has led to increase of
superstition among people and of course to increased popularity and income to
priests. My point is all superstition are same when looked from the view of
science are same there is no difference between rituals of Brahmins/tribal’s/Christians.
Every community thinks its rituals as symbol of culture while others as superstitions
[9]. In short all this lead me to rejection of organized religion, made
me a sharp critic of Ritualistic symbolism in religion especially Hinduism [10].
I felt a GOD who intervenes in the personal matters of people is an
contradiction in itself and requesting god to help me in things is like bribing
policeman, judges etc [11] I see organized religions as useless
evolution byproducts [12] which are the biggest roadblock in
realizing a true free society consisting of not just all human beings but
entire earth. Religion has become "opiate of the masses"(along with
Television and other mass media).
I rejected
organised religion and become just "spiritual". Strangely enough
after reading the book ‘The brief history of Time’ by physicist Stephen hawking
I got interested in metaphysics and other philosophical issues. So simultaneously along with being very
critical of organised religion and ritualism etc I got interested and my "spiritual
but not religious" phase began. I
became a kind of Deist influenced by advaita Vedanta(esp. swami Vivekananda
teaching), Buddhism, yoga and similar
traditions of Eastern mysticism[13]. I got extremely interested
about the idea of “enlightenment” and I practiced meditation and studied these philosophical
systems in detail. I got influenced by
the life of Buddha and the fact that he didn’t required a permanent soul or a
creator god to explain the phenomena of enlightenment amazed me. Overall my
views were similar to views expressed by aldous Huxley in his perennial
philosophy. I appeared as very religious to my non-believer friends and as an
atheist to my religious friends. Also the question of ethics and suffering has
also made to look at religion.
But gradually as I started to think more about them
i began to doubt them. A series of atheist books like the end of faith by Sam
Harris, the god delusion by Richard dawkins etc became the last straw on the back. They showed that many of my beliefs were
illogical for example a deist kind of belief in creator god is not only
unjustified but totally meaningless [14]. The experience of
enlightenment can be explained in totally naturalistic terms and they make more
sense when looked from that perspective[15].All
these things not only resulted in me becoming an atheist it inspired me to become more open about my views. I think India badly needs its own
atheist movement [16].
when reading explanation
of different religions on suffering they were not explaining anything properly
for example standard karma theory of Hinduism is nothing but a sophisticated
form of Just world theory which as any sociologist will tell you is a delusion.
Similar things can be said about other religions as well. In this issue i got
influenced by existentialists like Jean-paul Sartre etc. I think there is no
explanation for suffering and it’s a meaningless question because world is run
by laws of nature which are neither good nor bad. They need not make sense when
looked from the perspective of human goodness. Of course there is a mechanical
naturalist explanation for everything but they need not look “fair” to us. (Certain
birth defects can be explained using genetics but it can’t answer the question
“why did it happen to me”?) I agree that it is not a satisfactory answer but I
feel it is more reasonable when compared to other religious/supernatural
explanations. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be good. To think that people
are good only for the fear of god is an insult on people. Everybody generally
have a moral intuition such that they think certain things are amoral[17].
I think these moral issues should be decided through rational discussion. There
exists a entire field of ethical philosophy but living our ideas of morality to
be determined by some ancient religious scriptures is not only absurd but
dangerous. In terms of ethics religion makes people to believe that following
certain rules mindlessly is itself is a good thing many of my friends including
atheists believe that following religious practices is a good thing in itself.
I strongly disagree because religion is a very personal issue anybody’s
religious belief are his own business as they are views regarding origin of universe
etc. I argue that one’s religious beliefs are in no way given any special
status compared to one’s views on literature art etc. Religious beliefs should
also be subjected to same kind of criticism as any other beliefs. Expecting others
to follow the religion in which they were brought up(or his parents belonged
to) is very common in India and i think
it is probably due to effect of Hinduism which expects people to follow the
rules of their caste. In our society skepticism is generally considered as an
undisciplined behavior and children are expected to follow elders blindly and
also the way science is taught is fundamentally absurd. Children are not
thought about scientific method science has become just another way of knowing things. So lot of
pseudoscientific things like astrology, vaastu, superstitions regarding
eclipses is widespread among educated people (many of them are atheists!!). It
is because lack of skepticism and many people have an attitude that if a belief
is widespread and ancient it must be true. In regard to ethics this will lead
to disasters consequences for example some people (who are well educated mostly
non-religious) believe that if a woman get raped by a person the best thing is
to do is to marry both of them. These kind of absurd notions exist because our
ethical notions are generally framed by either religion/elders/mass media
[18]. Some of my close friends
even supported Religious Terrorism that to they were from a well educated
family. So we need to develop a culture that encourages scepticism rational
thinking etc.
It is not just about becoming an atheist or
criticising religion. There was atheist
teacher in my school but he was more fundamentalist than religious people. He
believed in the superiority of cultural
practices[19] of his
community. We need to replace religious or ideological views with broader
concept of secular Humanism and Naturalism which takes into account the whole
world.
All Said and done i strongly agree that religion has
produced a wonderful amount of literature,art , music etc. Mahabarath,
Ramayana, Jathaka tales and other wonderfull mythological stories, Carnatic,
sufi music, wonderful temples. Similarly the renaissance
art and similar things in the west. I don’t see any reason why a non-believer
shouldn’t enjoy them. They all can be enjoyed from an aesthetic perspective.
Many people argue that many religious superstitions are part of our culture and
therefore even if they are wrong it is not right to reject them. This comes
from the misunderstanding of what is culture and Indian cultural history.
Culture is not a static entity it changes continuously. A truly wonderful
culture will try to assimilate good things from all sources. Indian Culture is
very diverse and it’s not only about certain religious practices. It
encompasses everything from different cuisines to philosophical school of
thought. To put them under a certain religious banner and using it to support superstitions
is very dangerous [20].
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
I have answered these questions above but I will try
to summarise it shortly
1) Why do you not believe in God?
Mainly because there are no evidence for the
existence of god and even if you considered as an hypothesis it is very bad
hypothesis.( read the books THE GOD
DELUSION by RICHARD DAWKINS & GOD: THE FAILED HYPOTHESIS by VICTOR STINGER)
What can be asserted without evidence can also be dismissed without evidence.
The burden of proof lies on believers.
2) Do you believe any preaching’s of any religions?
I have been influenced by advaita Vedanta (esp.
swami vivekananda's teaching), Buddhism, yoga and similar traditions of Eastern
mysticism. . I got influenced by the
life of Buddha and the fact that he didn’t required a permanent soul or a
creator god to explain the phenomena of enlightenment amazed me but I won’t
believe any of the metaphysical claims of these traditions. I don’t see them as
strictly religious they are part of my interest in philosophy. I have been
influenced by secular humanism and naturalism.
3) During times of sorrow, do you think it’s your
fate, or what do you attribute that situation to?
I try to analyse the situation and to see how much
of it is avoidable and the lessons to learn from the situation. Some situations
will be unavoidable and beyond our control. I want a comfort that whatever I
can do I have done.
4) How do you think questions of life and death can
be answered? Do you think science can answer everything?
I don’t think there is anything mysterious or
supernatural about life. Recent advances in science are increasingly confirming
the materialistic and naturalistic view of world. Certain Phenomena related to
living beings like consciousness can be considered as complex adaptative
systems [21]. Of course there are still unanswered
questions and I am not dogmatic about my views but so far we have not got any surprises so it makes more sense to
believe in the naturalistic view of the world. The fact that death is certain
and that there is only one life makes it extremely valuable.
Even though it apparently appears like science can’t
answer all questions it is the only reliable method of gaining knowledge. The
self correcting mechanism and inherent sceptical outlook makes the scientific
method most wonderful means of gaining knowledge. Science can help us
understanding and answering moral questions [22]. When issues like ethics morality etc are discussed
the same kind of open mindset should be there They should be solved through
rational discussions not through dogmatic beliefs about some ancient scripture
or supernatural beings.
END
NOTES
2. For
definition of free thinker see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freethought and
http://nirmukta.com/what-is-freethought/ and http://nirmukta.com/2012/02/10/freethought-cross-examined/
3. To
get an idea of new atheist movement see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Atheism
and read the books THE GOD DELUSION by
Richard Dawkins,THE END OF FAITH by Sam Harris, Break the Spell by Daniel
Dennett, The new atheism by Victor stinger and other related books
4. I
was born in shivalli Brahmin family
followers of Vedanta philosopher Madhvacharya. My religious views in terms of
changing time line.
2002 to2003: I got my initiated (wearing sacred
thread called upanayana) practice on 26/4/02 and sincerely practiced various
religious practices. From my 5th class to 12th class I studied
in residential school run by central govt called Navodaya vidyalaya. Here I met
friends from all communities and I started to read a lot. These experiences
created new doubts in me. When I passed my 10th class I was
practically rejected organised religion and was just spiritual. I became an
atheist recently.
5. I
mean that generally religions work to promote interest of politicians and
“intellectuals”. It is more explicit in case of Islam and catholic
Christianity. The Varna system in Hinduism is in favour of Brahmins and
ksahtriyas(Bagavadgeeta 9.32 and 33)
6. I
think initially religion were created for the betterment of society but by
attributing it to divine being it has become impossible to question religious
dogmas which results in absence of the
self correcting mechanism.
7.
Kuvempu was a famous Kannada poet who won jnanapeeta award. He strongly
criticised the priestly class and organised religion but was influenced by
vivekananda’a teachings. He called for the idea of universal humanism. His call
to all was this:There is no need for you to change the world, society or the priestly class. Nothing is possible unless you change your own thinking. If you have any honesty- bring about a change in your own life first. Get married without any religious ceremony, without dowry and all the wasteful expenditure associated with it.
8. There were not allowed in the sense that Brahmin priest didn’t perform these rituals in lower caste people home. Performing a priest job was beyond question and it’s a different issue altogether. Even today i hear many Brahmin priest who believe that non-Brahmins don’t have rights to invite priest to perform these rituals (sayings like “ these shudras are only fit to take prasadam which we gave them after pooja but see this is a bad time they are conducting yagnas in their homes”!!)
9. This as an important consequent on religious practices of people. Many people follow many superstitious religious practices because they think those are symbols of culture and thus should be protected. But when we look back our lifestyle has changed continuously and culture is not a static monolithic structure it is continuously reinterpreted.
10 There is an urgent need for a honest critical analysis of Hinduism similar to criticism of Abrahmic religions by western scholars.. Most religious people have no idea regarding the history and complexity of the systems commonly grouped as Hinduism. It has lead them to believe nonsensical propaganda spread by right wing extremists. For some detail see
11. Prayer means ‘to ask that the laws of the universe be annulled in behalf of a single petitioner confessedly unworthy’ (by Ambrose Bierce)
12 See the book THE GOD DELUSION by Richard Dawkins chapter 5 for explanation of religious beliefs based on evolutionary psychology. Also read BREAK THE SPELL by Daniel Dennett.
13. The idea
of absolute Brahman, and similar upanishidic concepts etc and early Buddhist
philosophy influenced me a lot. I started to believe that meditation based
on radical introspection will lead to
attainment of permanent peace.
14 see THE GOD DELUSION ch 4 and 5. God: The failed hypothesis, and Quantum gods
by Victor Stinger.
15. See a) chapter 7 of The end of Faith by Sam
Harris. b) Enlightenment: Myth or Reality By Paul Beer c) http://nirmukta.com/2012/03/29/sending-the-self-on-vacation-how-to-naturalize-enlightenment/
16 At least it has already started in a small way
see www.nirmukta.com
17. For a
detailed discussion on relation between morality religion, science etc see a) chapter 6,7 of THE GOD DELUSION by
Richard Dawkins b) chapter 6 of The end of Faith and Moral Landscape by Sam Harris.
18.
Mainstream Movies are the biggest culprit in this case. Many of contain
a scene where “hero” forcing a person who has raped a woman to marry her . They
don’t think this is an insult to that woman.
19. In this
case it was mainly about food practice. There are huge variations in not only
the food habits but also dining customs among various communities or castes.
These are practiced very religiously and lack of exposure to others practices
will lead to misconceptions.
20 see http://nirmukta.com/2011/01/31/is-criticism-of-religion-and-superstition-against-indian-culture/
21. see the
book Complexity: Life at the edge of Chaos and also see http://nirmukta.com/complexity-explained-the-complete-series-by-dr-vinod-wadhawan/
22. Sam Harris is doing very interesting research
related to relation between morality and science. See this
Read his books Moral Landscape and Free will.
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