Quote:
Originally Posted by dyna mo
can't slight him for that at all, can't really criticize a personal take on the original source, as long as it's based on some amount of reality.
|
I'm glad you mentioned REALITY. This is crucial.
Sadly, too many otherwise intelligent people define reality based on BIASES.
Now, these aren't people who necessarily wear white sheets and burn crosses on their fellow humans' lawns.
They may just be ... well... passive.
There's something COMFORTING about just KNOWING ABOUT something based on secondhand reports or reputation or others' experiences.
The problem with this is it's like eating by having someone chew your food and spit it into your mouth.
Not very appetizing... and it can lead to some unhappy endings.
Why?
The ISIS and ALQAEDA extremists many people conflate with islam engage in the same thing. in fact, the same process PRODUCED THEM.
They let their radical mullahs TWIST the Koran into an US versus THEM and 'they should die' message.
The big difference, as mentioned, by the dude from Serbia in this thread (in a very shrill way) is that those extremists are operating in different circumstances and that's why they think a VIOLENT way of expressing their US versus THEM mindset is acceptable. Economic deprivation is one key factor. Another key factor, for terrorists radicalized in the West, is the sense of CULTURAL deprivation -ie., feeling disconnected from cultural roots often defined as communitarian (ie., community is the most important part of one's being) etc leads them to carry out extremely VIOLENT expressions of the whole US versus THEM mindset.
That is a reality but thankfully, that is a minority.
The sad reality is that too many in the West think that the Quran is The Chtuhlu Code-something so vile , so repulsive, so alien that it brainwashes anyone who comes into contact with it to become VIOLENT and want to kill.
You can see this in the very selective and ham-fisted presentation of verses from the Quran made available for public consumption in the West. Sure, it drives clicks and newspaper circulation but it goes a long way in dehumanizing the over 1 billion people who are believers in Islam.
The reality is that both cartoon versions are wrong.
If anything, reading religious literature for ourselves is a WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY to set aside our BIASES.
It is an opportunity to reawaken what UNITES us instead of what divides us based on language, religion, race, creed, theism vs atheism, etc.
Instead, it enables people to realize that we're ALL asking the same basic questions:
Where are we as far as universal history is concerned?
Where is our place in the universe?
Where are we going after we die?
What does life mean?
What does it mean to be a good person?
Sadly, your REALITY comment also brings to mind another key point that I would be IRRESPONSIBLE to leave out...
The sad reality is that there is a HUGE GAP between our highest aspirations as written in our spiritual literature and HOW WE REALLY ARE
We are slaves to flesh
We are prisoners of our senses
our senses lead to bias
It's easy to love others if they look like us, talk like us, act like us, and love us back
That's why there's too much religion and not enough SPIRITUAL TRUTH EXPERIENCES.
Religion is all about US versus Them / IN group versus out group
The focus is on what you wear, what you look like, how you talk, do you say the 'right'' things
In short, it is externalized. Another label.
No wonder religion leads to hypocrisy and war and destruction.
It is it the EPITOME of idolatry-a counterfeit, a CARTOON, a COMIC BOOK
We feel 'holier than thou' and draw imaginary lines among us
Religion is looked at as something you were simply BORN INTO... It's like being given a tremendously beautiful and expensive gift and not getting around to tearing off the wrapper and diving deep into the box.
Spiritual experience, on the other hand, is INTERNAL. And works itself from inside to the outside.
The Jewish Torah (and by extension Christianity and Islam) nails this on the head: G-D DEMANDS MERCY NOT SACRIFICE
What's the point of 'keeping the commandments' when you equivocate, cheat, steal, defraud, commit injustice, and, in other words, FAIL TO LOVE (while still being 'within the letter of the law')?
Which brings us full circle to Extremists and the REALITY of RELIGION-the bombers and people who carry out crucifixions publicly state they are simply acting out of their faith. They are simply 'keeping the commandments.'
What a tragedy.
Thankfully, there are many more who INTERNALIZE classic truths and let it CHANGE THEM.
Historically, Judaism put an end to the rampant child burning practiced in the Levant.
Similarly, SLAVERY was a Scourge to humanity. Christianity put an end to global commercial slavery. It wasn't economic self-interest. It wasn't the 'forward march of history' (as Marxists claim). It was Christianity. Likewise, Islam, DESPITE WHAT TELEVISION TELLS YOU (and the relatively recent-historically speaking-Saudi Arabian restrictions), actually improved the LOT OF WOMEN.
Add to this, the COUNTLESS drug addictions overcome through faith. Prison recidivism is also decreased through faith. I can go on and on.
All these happen when people EXPERIENCE some key universal truths in their spiritual traditions instead of just EXTERNALIZING faith.
Religion is a dead end
But spirituality is what makes the burden of being human such an exciting one.
Before forming an opinion about something as PROFOUND as a spiritual path, check the original source, compare it with your own experience, put everything together and be prepared to realize that we aren't all that different. While I have no desire whatsoever in converting to Islam, having read Muslims' central book has at least opened my eyes and my mind to the fact that we're not all that different after all.
To put it in NERD TALK: we all pretty much have the same hardware ... we just choose different software to install and (depending on where on the planet you're born), that software is factory-installed.
It's your JOB as a HUMAN BEING to grow beyond factory installations and default settings and tap into the WORLD WIDE WEB of shared humanity.
This is not Hippie talk like the video below
Instead, as you say, this is REALITY.
Shalom,
Peace,
Salaam