Vieled Atheism or Secularism? (Editorial)

[Guest guest]

By Sarva Aishvarya Dasa (President, ISKCON Coimbatore)

 

The scenes in Gujarat and the wild massacre of ones fellowmen has always bewildered many a sociologist. Violence in the name of religion has generated abhorrence of religion in the minds of the thoughtful ... What ails our men of religion? Wither faith in the Supreme or good samaritanism? Whatever happened to the stories that we heard of our great stalwart ambassadors of religion?

 

As I go around picking the remnants of real religion from the debris of history .... in the land of dharma, I cannot but recall the words of King Yudhishtira from the pages of the Maharbharatha : "The solid truth of real religion is hidden in the heart of the pure devotees of the Lord and therefore one must follow in their footsteps... "

 

Understanding real religion is a daunting task as one swims the ocean of the Vedic scriptures and the practice of it in myriad interpretations in the land of India. It seems the supporters of real religion are very few. The rest of them use religion to only achieve their materialistic ends. Under the circumstances what is the stance of the government in the worlds largest democracy and the worlds most ancient and religious tradition?. As we grapple with the state and the inevitable religious bedrock in governance, in a country steeped in tradition and culture, we cannot but admire how a concept of marrying the two has stealthily evolved in whats called Secularism. Secularism as it has come to mean is a political solution pressed on to a great country governed by culturual and religious traditions by an alien influence seeking to thwart the happy dependence of a peaceful people on values free from the debilitating clutches of the modern world. It's a demoniac theory with the label of tolerance and a content of all political sorts.

 

The dictionary defines Secularism thus :

 

sec.u.lar.ism

n.

SECULAR + ISM

 

1 worldly spirit, views, or the like; esp., a system of doctrines and practices that disregards or rejects any form of religious faith and worship

 

2 the belief that religion and ecclesiastical affairs should not enter into the functions of the state, esp. into public education

 

Being secular simply means keeping religion out ! With all the tradition and cultural history that is "interred in our bones" the Indian polity is striking bold to have us believe that we are still being given religious freedom while being secular. That religion is anathema to the governance is a demonic idea of the west. In the rich Indian history some of the best kings of yore are those who were the most religious. Parikshit Maharaj, Yudhistira and the like are examples.

 

With this definition, to state that India is a secular state cannot be a greater insult to Mother India ! Whatever happened to the Indians? However the so called understanding of secularism promoted is that of tolerance for all faiths. This is far from the truth. Secularism from what we know of in practice is nothing but veiled atheism. The acts of violence in the name of religion testify to this widely-understood-and-little-spoken-of-meaning. The government is promoting atheism under the mask of redefined secularism and the gullible religious public are swallowing it hook line and sinker. We have heralded the age of kali in this grave step motherly policy of Secularism.

 

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu who was none other than Krishna himself defined the religion for the age which would unite all true lovers of God under one banner. By performing Sankirtan or the congregational chanting of the Holy names of the Lord , anyone can derive great benefit and true brother hood. A governance divested of religious grounding is bound to meet an ugly end or at best perform woefully lacking. The travails of the people in Gujarat or elsewhere are simply a lesson in the folly of the leaders foisting their new found secular governance on a people who are fundamentally hungry for God .

 

The governance does not replace God but only serves Him. In recognizing the supremacy of God lies India s real successful governmenta. The history of greater India is replete with such instances of great kings. As long as we are slaves to the ideas of an alien paradigm and as long as our leaders remain subservient and servile to the crumbs doled out by the western leaders with no appreciation of the greatness of spiritual India we shall suffer this repurcussion from the mass of the Indian populace. The rare secretion from its navel as Kasturi is not known to the poor species of the deer who sniffs around to trace the source of the scent in ignorance.

 

Om Tat Sat.

 

Sarva Aishvarya Dasa

(President, ISKCON Coimbatore)

 

[Guest guest]

Prabhu,

Hare Krishna.

Iam directing this mail to Prabhu Sarva Aishwarya Dasa.I would be very happy if he could read this.

My name is Pradeeph Sundar and I was a member of ISKCON Coimbatore.As of now Iam working in Bangalore and I would be happy to know how can I create a spiritual atmosphere in my home.And moreover could you please explain me what is the process to be followed to offer food to lord Krishna.

It would be very helpful if you could help me with this.

My email id is

pradeephsundar@.co.in

 

Hare Krishna.

Thanks and Regards,

Pradeeph Sundar.

[Guest guest]

Hello