[Reader-list] secularly secular.

[asad abbasi]

Dear rajen, 
Your idea was interesting but only to the point of its complexity. Not only, as i see it, you posted a very biased view of religions but also that view lacked some common sense. I understand that you said that 1)every individual knows "what is right and what is wrong for him" and 2)happiness comes in society when people practice their rights but at the same time showing respect to others' rights as well.
you seem to miss a point, when these two are incompatible. Let’s say when showing respect to other peoples' rights is not ideal for an individual. So that particular individual may violate point 1 or point 2. but as we live in a very unselfless  society most people will do what is good for them rather than for themselves.
Your point of view is a way very Marxist that people will care for overall welfare of the society rather than maximising their own personal utility. Whether Marxist view is pragmatic is a separate debate but surely as I think our world is no utopia so rights will be violated and they are violated, Individual rights, human rights, property rights, minority rights and many more.
At this point 'state' enters. And the role of state is very complicated and we have different sides to this idea. And these are the questions that we need to tackle down. How much of a state should interfere or should it just play a night watchmen role? Will society benefit from secularism (with all its different meanings)? Or shall we follow a religious law? Do religions contradict with moral ethics? With this we can go forward and get something significant, if not for the society, but for our own personal prejudices. 
 
warm regards,
Asad 

 





Date: Sun, 5 Apr 2009 13:41:27 +0530
Subject: secularly secular.
From: rajen882uppinangadi at gmail.com
To: asad_abbasi at hotmail.com
CC: reader-list at sarai.net; aliens at dataone.on

It is indeed interesting views about being secular and its hues of definitions. 
  As I see it all faiths are secular, if they are not under control of its clergies.Because all faiths teach us of compassion, empathy, concerns for fellow living beings and good way of life to live ethically and morally correct.All faiths talk of love( not in western meaning of love making) to other s in society, and secular life in democratic rule of governance means all citizens get good governance, right to property and all fundamental rights so that they can be facilitated by good governance to avail all opportunities in life without depriving others of their rights.And that is dharma, or duty to accept rights of others to live as they feel fit, without impinging on others rights in society.Respect to other individuals rights is the duty or dharma as long as it does not hurt the societal peace and harmony, if it does the laws are there to take action, and none can take laws in their hands to correct the deviant behaviour of the few.

As we see today, the clergies have bigger role in some faiths, they after prayers provoke the followers of faith into violent acts, only to strengthen their hold on the community so as to deliver votes to the needy who pay the price for such votes, not to community but to these self proclaimed leaders of the community. Thus they become king makers of the community.

 This is more marked in christian faith and some ects of islamic clergies and we see the taliban and evil effects of such clergies who have no respect for rights of individuals of their own faith.!

In christian faith the role of pope onwards is that of a fascist dictator who orders with money power to harvest souls of the poor and convert them with material needs. It only reflects the fact that bad governance, governance of discrimination on caste and faith has made all feel deprived and thus naalism, deviant fanatism of violence is born out of bad governance.Proper implementation of rule of laws will be only method were individuals do not take laws into their own hands at the percieved injustice in governance where the judiciary acts promptly to prosecute the violaters of rule of laws.

Any faith helps individual to have good ethical, moral material life, intellectual life and spiritual life at his/her own choice, but clergies mess up the life with fanatism, with their considered dos and donts. Every individual knows what is correct, and what is wrong for him.When an individual respects others rights in practice of his rights, that is happyness for all in society.

Regards..


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