THE MEANING OF RELIGION

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1.1 The word Religion meant originally, 'obligation', or 'bond'. It was used to

describe the bond between human beings and gods. Religion explores the ultimate

relationship of Man with the Universe and its creation. It dictates a system of

wisdom and practice to be followed by Man in life and daily living. Some of the

major religious beliefs have been expressed in Hinduism, Zoroastrianism,

Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam.

 

1.2 Religion starts with the awareness of the immense creation that surrounds

us. This awareness is followed by a wonderment about this boundless space and

the overwhelming variety of things in it. One is overcome by a desire to explain

this existence to oneself. This forms the foundation of our sense of religion.

 

1.3 The first impulse toward explaining this existence is to postulate a

tremendous Cause which somehow produced this tremen-dous effect we call the

physical universe. The concept of this Cause, as gods or God, underlies all

religious beliefs. It is followed by various personal attempts to define the

Cause and one's relationship to it.

 

1.4 This Cause is worshipped or simply acknowledged in one form or another in

all religious beliefs. It is described variously and assigned different names to

make it understood and agreed upon. The prophets, whenever and wherever they

appeared in the world, have expounded upon it with the purpose to bring a

populace together in a common survival effort.

 

1.5 To the degree a person is aware of and is imbued by a desire to understand

the creation, and is attempting to find its relationship to oneself, the person

can said to be religious. However, a person, who is practicing the prescribed

religious beliefs rigorously but doing it all mechanically, may still not be

religious because a conscious involvement and the desire to understand is

absent.

 

 

 

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