A few days back, we had a long discussion in a whatsapp group on God and the World. It ended without any consensus. But why? Why do we always fail to reach any conclusion on such topics?
1) There are many definitions of God and His relationship with the World, but none of them can be proved, because
- The definition of God and His relationship with the World lie in a non-physical (or a non-material) domain, which is beyond the purview of present-day science.
- Further, whatever the human mind constructs, it is always based on a set of assumptions. Since these assumptions vary from person to person, the definition of God and His relationship with the World varies from person to person.
2) Thus, people have different definitions of God and His relationship with the World, as per their own preferences. This is natural and absolutely fine, but the real problem arises when a person believes that his system is perfect and all others are incorrect or partly correct. Or when he believes that his worldview is better than others’. This is a problem of human psychology: we are imprisoned in our own worldview and unable to see things from another’s standpoint.
- For our worldviews are a result of our observations/ our experiences, the depth of our reasoning, and our affinity to a particular worldview. Our worldviews are different because we are different in all these aspects.
3) The right attitude, then, should be that all these definitions of God and His relationship with the World are our own choices. None is better than the other, for each one is simply a hypothesis that can’t be proved.
4) An important learning that arises out of this discussion is that whatever our beliefs are, they are simply our choices, which cannot be proved. Just as we have made one choice, we are free to make another. So, our approach should be, not to condemn any worldview but to realise that all of them are simply hypotheses. We shall learn to treat them as equals. If we want to pursue a particular worldview, it is simply our choice; it doesn't make us wiser than others.5) A still more important issue is, are we happy with our worldview?
- If so, we may continue with whatever we believe in.
- If not, we shall be ready to change our worldview. We may revisit our experiences, examine our conclusions, and explore and rework our affinities, for whatever worldview we have is simply a borrowed vesture and not us.
For we are born free, but as we grow, we are entrapped in the norms, rituals, conventions, opinions, etc, of the world around us. Once we understand this, we shall strive to live freely unbound by any worldview, and choose a worldview that appears to us right at the moment. And we shall be ready to change or modify our worldview the moment we find flaws in it, for all our worldviews are borrowed worldviews and not our true beings.
Reality is vaster than Mind and always escapes its reach.
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