Scripture and its mindless acceptance

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The unquestioning reverence to scripture permeates all faiths of the world.  Even some of the educated among us hold the archaic scriptures above logic and reason.  It must be noted that the word ‘educated’, not ‘enlightened’, has been used here.  How adherent a person is depends largely upon his or her upbringing.  Many so called educated people engage in eloquent and emotionally charged discussions on the interpretation of the scriptures.  Many twist these interpretations to their convenience – and many-a-times use scriptures to justify their acts of cruelty and greed.

The crusades launched by the Christians against the Muslims were a ‘holy’ war.  The massacre of the Persians by the Imam Omar was also a ‘holy’ war.  Years later, the great grandchildren of these very Persians who had accepted Islam under threat of the sword, went eastward into Hindustan killing ‘ in supposedly holy wars, because in the words of those who killed in name of Islam, one had to kill ‘infidels’ to become a ‘Ghazi’.  They were completely blinded by the ‘sanction’ of the scriptures that completely over-rode one of the most basic attributes of human intelligence – their conscience.  This is apparent from their ‘journal entries’ that they left behind – detailing how systematically and without any inkling of guilt, they killed thousands and looted, raped and plundered simply because, according to their interpretation of their holy book, it was okay to kill ‘kaffirs’ (infidels) and take their property.  Today the great grandchildren of those very ‘infidels’ who were raped and looted and forced to ‘convert’, are hell bent on trying to change the secular nature of India and impose Sharia law.   The Buddhist and Hindu past of Afghanistan has almost completely been erased from the consciousness of most people.  The Spanish Conquistadors who brought Christianity to South America also indulged in massacres of the natives – justifying their acts by the claim that the Natives who died at the hands of Christians would be spared the fires of Hell.  So, in fact, the Conqistadors claimed that they were doing a favor to the natives by killing them!  In Hinduism too, the people of the Asur tribe, if killed at the hands of Rama were considered to be earning a passage to heaven!

Coming to modern times, the reference to the invasion of Iraq as a ‘crusade’ by George Bush, (the 43^rd, and arguably one of the worst Presidents in US history), brought frowns from many quarters.   When the operations began in Iraq, word leaked out that a few free lance evangelists were managing to get ‘embedded’ with the army units and were out proselytizing. Immediately the army distanced itself and the matter dropped below the radar.  The penchant of the 43^rd, who claimed to get his instructions from God, is well documented.

Most of these people take the scripture to be the ultimate truth.  Some believe it to be the word of God – brought to them through the prophet.  Rational people know that these were written by people who lived at a time when there was no electricity, anesthesia or the internet.  Smart among their peers, they were still knuckle scrapers and buffoons by today’s standards – because human knowledge hadn’t progressed as far as it has done today.  Some ranted the visions they saw through their minds impaired by drugs or hobbled by superstition.

We should not let the scripture over-ride our commonsense.  Any and every belief must first be filtered through minds shaped by scientific knowledge and rational thought.