For a long time, I have been thinking over the role of spirituality in our lives and have tried to ascertain my own spiritual path. Religion has always occurred to me nothing more than just a way of life, wherein a certain set of rules are followed which might vary from one another. It is not these rules over which I have pondered, but over the ultimate goal which these lead to. Some religious scriptures and leaders might define those set of rules, but not the goal. People following the same religion can have widely different purposes for following it. At the same time, people following different religions can have a similar purpose. In this way, I have always felt that spirituality for a person is not a matter of his or her religion, but very much a matter of his or her own self.
I spent my childhood in Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya, Narendrapur, a school which prided itself in following some well-defined religious tenets. We had a half-an hour prayer session every morning and evening. Huge expenditures were made on commemorating the birth anniversaries of the religious leaders with whom the institution is associated. This is just an example of how religion has dominated the minds of people over the ages and over the places. Particularly in a country like India, where there is an overt paucity of basic resources of life for the people, the expenditures carried out in the name of religion are bound to raise questions.
The obvious question kept coming in my mind over the pertinence of these principles. Whom are we trying to satisfy by praying day and night? And through all these ostentations, are we gaining anything as an individual or as a society? At times I really feel sorry for the poor people who don’t have enough resources to get two meals a day still spend some money seeking the blessings of some deities. And raising these questions by no means is a badge of atheism.
All this questions have so far been a part of my quest for divinity. I have realized that irrespective of the path undertaken, the ambition is to attain a certain sense of peace and happiness. And this has to be achieved staying within the realm of all the worldliness. It is neither pragmatic nor logical to go into this quest through asceticism. There are various other responsibilities which need to be taken care of at the same time.
Somewhere inside we all have that glowing light, which has a certain meaning when looked upon with regards to what life is and to what role we are destined to play in this world. We often fail to realize this and go after certain ideals which we believe will lead us to a certain supreme being. It is more rational to seek that supremacy which lies very much within us.
