"I can not believe in god who wants to be praised all the time"
-Friedrich Nietzsche
Throughout the History of mankind, philosophers and intellectuals have always hoped and tried for peace and prosperity through various means. The earlier ones discovered religions & god and called themselves messengers & prophets to further strengthen their claims to spread the fear of god and the fear of ending up in hell. It may not be true that they must have really wanted themselves to be called messengers but that is how common men have always been fooled to achieve the greater goals. Unfortunately, majority of mankind has always been stupid and this has been our way to deal with them.
Towards Nationalism
After Renaissance, people started questioning the very basis of religion even if they had to suffer harsh atrocities at the hands of these institutions. By the start of 19th century, the concept of nationalism caused another revolution and people even started discussing if we even needed religion for the purpose was being served by nationalism. Various countries made idols to personify the nations and people started worshiping them. So, what was the logic behind nationalism?
To start with, the societies had become so diverse, specially in the Americas, that the only uniting force was the concept of nationalism. When the thirteen colonies of America united in 1776 to form the USA and overthrow the British imperialists, nationalism was conceived in the modern era.
Towards Secularism
When democratic nations were being formed and constitutions were being framed, various threats to democracy were being analysed. And one the biggest threats was religion, of course. So, the term secularism was coined. Secularism, a belief system that rejects religion, or the belief that religion should not be part of the affairs of the state or part of public education. After all, modern states couldn't be and shouldn't be run based on religions which for centuries have said impractical things and narrated stories of men flying and beasts talking.
The christian countries were all successful in eliminating religious extremism. Some Muslim countries like Turkey and Iran were doing fine too till Shah was overthrown in 1979. For others, they had communism. The communist North Korea went as far as to ban the Bible and even reject the much practiced concept of relating years with respect to Christ's birth. But the rising religious extremism around the world in recent years shows something is wrong with the implementation of secularism. If you look carefully, secularism died the very day UN decided to create a Jewish State in 1945. It was followed by the "Two nation theory" given by the British government in 1947 to divide India. UN has been unable to solve the India-Pakistan & Israel-Palestine conflicts till date. After the cold war ceased, the Islamic extremism in the Middle East & these two conflicts alone have accounted for the majority of the terrorist incidents throughout the world.
For centuries, the radical Islamists are chasing the mirage of creating an Islamic state and have always failed to do so only to kill their fellow Muslims. The absurd concepts of Jihad and Sharia have been used to whitewash the brains of millions just to gain political control. The situation has become so worse that the protesters have demanded Sharia even in countries like Germany, Britain & Canada where the same people sought refuge after they ran away from their countries when failed to keep up with the same absurd demands. What an irony!
In India too, the rise of Hindu extremist groups is a perilous situation. I won't be surprised if it takes the shape of Taliban in another 15-20 years. Again, the very thing they pretend to oppose.
We need to do away with bigots and religious extremists seeking Sharia in western nations pretending to be victims of the western culture. If you really want sharia, why not go back to Saudi Arabia or Syria and live as their slaves. It should be understood that religion has nothing to do with politics or how people want to live. Religion is a personal choice and it can be a moral guide for the weaker ones who have lost the ability to think rationally but such bigots should stay away from exercising power. Further advocating rationality, I would say that for a better society, bigotry should be discouraged, be it any ideology. At the end of the day we should not be so religious or nationalist as to kill someone who speaks against religion or nation and at the same time so secular that we should kill someone who speaks in favor of it. Extremism is also the extreme end of humanity.
Is secularism already dead?
The christian countries were all successful in eliminating religious extremism. Some Muslim countries like Turkey and Iran were doing fine too till Shah was overthrown in 1979. For others, they had communism. The communist North Korea went as far as to ban the Bible and even reject the much practiced concept of relating years with respect to Christ's birth. But the rising religious extremism around the world in recent years shows something is wrong with the implementation of secularism. If you look carefully, secularism died the very day UN decided to create a Jewish State in 1945. It was followed by the "Two nation theory" given by the British government in 1947 to divide India. UN has been unable to solve the India-Pakistan & Israel-Palestine conflicts till date. After the cold war ceased, the Islamic extremism in the Middle East & these two conflicts alone have accounted for the majority of the terrorist incidents throughout the world.
Present Scenario
For centuries, the radical Islamists are chasing the mirage of creating an Islamic state and have always failed to do so only to kill their fellow Muslims. The absurd concepts of Jihad and Sharia have been used to whitewash the brains of millions just to gain political control. The situation has become so worse that the protesters have demanded Sharia even in countries like Germany, Britain & Canada where the same people sought refuge after they ran away from their countries when failed to keep up with the same absurd demands. What an irony!
In India too, the rise of Hindu extremist groups is a perilous situation. I won't be surprised if it takes the shape of Taliban in another 15-20 years. Again, the very thing they pretend to oppose.
Conclusion
We need to do away with bigots and religious extremists seeking Sharia in western nations pretending to be victims of the western culture. If you really want sharia, why not go back to Saudi Arabia or Syria and live as their slaves. It should be understood that religion has nothing to do with politics or how people want to live. Religion is a personal choice and it can be a moral guide for the weaker ones who have lost the ability to think rationally but such bigots should stay away from exercising power. Further advocating rationality, I would say that for a better society, bigotry should be discouraged, be it any ideology. At the end of the day we should not be so religious or nationalist as to kill someone who speaks against religion or nation and at the same time so secular that we should kill someone who speaks in favor of it. Extremism is also the extreme end of humanity.
