prasad1
Active member
In a scene from the recently-released film, PK, is left clutching a single shoe belonging to his friend Sanjay Dutt, after a blast caused by religious fanatics kills him. An alien, unused to religious diversity and the accompanying conflicts on earth, PK wonders which creator would want his children to suffer and his belief that all religious leaders and godmen are sending our pleas to a 'wrong number' or a wrong God is strengthened. Rajkumar Hirani's film is a nice little satire on the corrupt custodians of religion and how they use the insecurities of the devout to justify their own position. It gives out the message that every human is born equal. But outside of reel reality, it has never required an alien to question dogma.
The curious or questioning mind has always challenged blind faith. Most of the religions practised today were born as breakaway factions from an existing belief. The conflict between rationalism and religion can be traced back at least to the 16th century when contrary to the church-supported belief, Nicolaus Copernicus said the Earth revolved around the sun, and not the other way round. A blow to the Adam-Eve concept of creation was dealt by Charles Darwin in the 19th century with his theory on the evolution of the species. In India, questioning God and religion has traditionally been less frowned upon, with Hinduism including within its scope various forms of non-ritualistic and imageless worship, as well as belief in nature. This was before recent cases of Hindu conservatism. That despite controversies, PK continues to run in these religiously polarised times therefore, is a measure of India's critical spirit.
In the land of a million Gods though, the God-less live in fear. Anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar was shot dead by two youths on a motorcycle in 2013. In 2012, Edamaruku moved to Finland to avoid indefinite arrest in a blasphemy case when he stated, after investigation, that the water dripping from a crucifix in a Mumbai church, believed to be a miracle, was caused by a clogged drain.
"There should be an atmosphere of tolerance. I have seen that people, even when religious, are open to our interpretations. The godmen and religious heads are the one who feel insecure by our work," he says. Some feel the need for the presence of atheists/rationalists in policy making. "Politicians such as AK Antony, Arun Shourie, P Chidambaram and George Fernandes are atheists. But they never did anything to encourage the growth of rationalism in the country," says Nayak.
No moral policing, no communal violence, please: We are Indians - Hindustan Times
The curious or questioning mind has always challenged blind faith. Most of the religions practised today were born as breakaway factions from an existing belief. The conflict between rationalism and religion can be traced back at least to the 16th century when contrary to the church-supported belief, Nicolaus Copernicus said the Earth revolved around the sun, and not the other way round. A blow to the Adam-Eve concept of creation was dealt by Charles Darwin in the 19th century with his theory on the evolution of the species. In India, questioning God and religion has traditionally been less frowned upon, with Hinduism including within its scope various forms of non-ritualistic and imageless worship, as well as belief in nature. This was before recent cases of Hindu conservatism. That despite controversies, PK continues to run in these religiously polarised times therefore, is a measure of India's critical spirit.
In the land of a million Gods though, the God-less live in fear. Anti-superstition activist Narendra Dabholkar was shot dead by two youths on a motorcycle in 2013. In 2012, Edamaruku moved to Finland to avoid indefinite arrest in a blasphemy case when he stated, after investigation, that the water dripping from a crucifix in a Mumbai church, believed to be a miracle, was caused by a clogged drain.
"There should be an atmosphere of tolerance. I have seen that people, even when religious, are open to our interpretations. The godmen and religious heads are the one who feel insecure by our work," he says. Some feel the need for the presence of atheists/rationalists in policy making. "Politicians such as AK Antony, Arun Shourie, P Chidambaram and George Fernandes are atheists. But they never did anything to encourage the growth of rationalism in the country," says Nayak.
No moral policing, no communal violence, please: We are Indians - Hindustan Times
