Religions, between faith and mental purity

We can define all existing religions around us into two categories: Religions which are based on faith and religions based on mental purity rather than faith.

Those emphasize faith more than mental purity believe that they could obtain their final salvation through their ardent faith alone. To them, mental purity is not the subject of importance in the quest for salvation.

That is why they said that no one could obtain final salvation by observing morals and precepts without also developing strong faith towards god or the religion.

We are in the opinion that faith is not the most important aspect in practice (although it is still an important component of practice) but that purity of mind is. When we have purity in mind added with wisdom, we can never hold wrong ideas as the real truth.

Faith alone cannot purity the mind and to get rid of doubts in order for us to understand the truth. People can uphold wrong beliefs blindly without analysing it or without having any sense of reasoning and rationality because they may be afraid that if they do that, they will be frowned upon, condemned and accused of betrayal to the religion they profess.

And this is exactly what has been going on in our nation today. Those in power and having the authority has distorted the religion and turned it into an instrument of the state in order to remain longer in power. The people are systematically divided, discriminated, misinformed and confused as part of their divide and rule strategy to ensure that the population would not unite to question or oppose the government.

Asides, the religion was also being misused to ensure that the people fear and obey the administration by the issuance of some kind of decrees regularly to remind the people of their “faith” and not to carry out anymore “sins” against the establishment.

The fact that is, prior to accepting any belief or whatsoever kind of decree, we must first study, investigate, question, practice and see the results for ourselves first. When we already come to a conclusion after making a thorough analytical investigation and critical thinking, we gain confidence on the truth as we have satisfactorily verified it for ourselves. By realising the truth on our own, we will naturally gain confidence.

This is neither mere faith nor belief but realisation. This is also neither to believe nor to reject anything in the first hand. And our people should adopt such stand in order to discover the truth.

As we have human minds to allow us to think soberly, we must then give our minds an independent thinking and to understand things in their correct perspective.

Some people are too lazy to study an issue or problem in-depth, analysing it, simply do not want to try to understand things as they really are and tend to seek an easiest way out by surrendering themselves to what others say or dictate, because they too are lacking in confidence in themselves.

This is why religious extremism here today is spreading rapidly because some believers did not care to find out, study, analyse and to understand issues or matters in regards of the said religion, instead choose to obey or listening blindly just because the “religion” has the authority over the people.

Therefore, people today must realise that each of everyone of them has self-respect, knowing fully well that he is responsible for himself, his actions and salvation. No one should dictate nor determine our destiny but ourselves.

Do not be bound by blind faith.