Religious superstition

Why do we believe in these saints, who often speak utter nonsense with no reason whatsoever? The answer to this question lies in the fact that we are fools or more appropriately we want to be fooled. Why does not even an iota of doubt arise in our minds when they say, "Perform this or that ritual, you will get to God." ? Here I would like to quote a dialogue from one of my favourite movie The Prestige, it says, "Now you're looking for the secret. But you won't find it because of course, you're not really looking. You don't really want to work it out. You want to be fooled."

 

With above question in my mind, I turned to one of the greatest Indian philosopher to look-out for an answer, and as usual he didn't disappointment me. This is what he had to say about God and Priests.

"We want to worship a living God. I have seen nothing but God all my life, nor have you. To see this chair you first see God, and then the chair in and through Him He is everywhere saying, "I am". The moment you feel "I am", you are conscious of Existence. Where shall we go to find God if we cannot see Him in our own hearts and in every living being? "Thou art the man, Thou art the woman, Thou art the girl, and Thou art the boy. Thou art the old man tottering with a stick. Thou art the young man walking in the pride of his strength." Thou art all that exists, a wonderful living God who is the only fact in the universe. This seems to many to be a terrible contradiction to the traditional God who lives behind a veil somewhere and whom nobody ever sees. The priests only give us an assurance that if we follow them, listen to their admonitions, and walk in the way they mark out for us — then when we die, they will give us a passport to enable us to see the face of God! What are all these heaven ideas but simply modifications of this nonsensical priestcraft?" - Swami Vivekananda

And there's more, this is what he had to say about miracles:-

"I look upon miracles as the greatest stumbling-blocks in the way of truth. When the disciples of Buddha told him of a man who had performed a so-called miracle — had taken a bowl from a great height without touching it — and showed him the bowl, he took it and crushed it under his feet and told them never to build their faith on miracles, but to look for truth in everlasting principles. He taught them the true inner light — the light of the spirit, which is the only safe light to go by. Miracles are only stumbling-blocks. Let us brush them aside." - Swami Vivekananda

And this is what Buddha himself had to say about the need for rational approach:-

"Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.” - Buddha

Now, it is upto us whether we want to believe in God, the way we have had for years or we want to apply our rational mind and search for the truth, the way we should. I bet the latter one is a better option.

Summing it up with one more quote from the same movie, it is, "But if you could fool them, even for a second, then you can make them wonder, and then you... then you got to see something really special... you really don't know?... it was... it was the look on their faces... "