From the practice of ‘tawaf’ — going around the Kaaba — to ‘umrah’ — the pilgrimage of which ‘tawaf’ is a part — everything has been stopped in Mecca. Pilgrimage to Muhammad’s burial site in Medina has also been halted. Quite possibly, they will stop the Hajj as well. Numerous mosques have cancelled Friday prayers. In Kuwait, new azaan can be heard asking the people to stay at home for prayers. Clerics are no longer claiming they will go to the mosques and pray before Allah to save people from the virus.
That is because the businessmen of religion know very well that Allah will not save us from the novel coronavirus. If anyone can, it’s the scientists, who are busy finding a vaccine, a cure.
The ones who should be truly surprised by such a turn of event, the ones who should have a lot of questions, are the idiots who believe in religion. The ones who flock together like sheep and follow the herd without asking where or why. Neither do they ever seek proof of god’s existence, nor do they have any faith in rational and free thought. Are they not curious today as to why their religious institutions, the ones that are supposed to help them find refuge against disease, have shut their doors? Is serving the common people not the actual purpose of these religious institutions?
Gods are saviours for many, the ones they pray to throughout the year for protection. But when humanity is in peril, it is usually the gods who flee first.
Also read: Saudi Arabia halts pilgrimage to Mecca, Medina amid coronavirus fears
From Vatican to temples, gods are fleeing
Coronavirus has been detected in the Vatican too, the holiest of all places for Catholics. Apparently, the Pope can communicate with god. But why is he not doing that now? Even he has not been able to lead us to any wonder drug revealed to him by divine intervention. Instead, the Vatican is reeling from fears of a viral outbreak and the Pope is not appearing in front of people. Numerous Christian religious festivals are held there. Holy Week, Good Friday, Easter, and all other upcoming events stand cancelled and congregations have been prohibited.
Brahmin priests in Hindu temples are moving around wearing masks. In fact, in some temples, they have put masks on the idols of gods and goddesses too. The Hindu Mahasabha has organised a cow urine party because the outfit believes gaumutra will prevent COVID-19. Some have chosen to cover, even bathe, themselves in cow dung because apparently cow dung acts as a shield against the virus. Religions and superstitions are usually complementary. The Tarapith temple is shut, there are no long queues of people seeking flowers, blessings or holy water. Tirupati temple and Shirdi Sai Baba temple have also put in restrictions. The evening puja and the aarti are being projected on a big screen at Kolkata’s Belur Math.
Isn’t that incredible? Where is god then? Do religious people not have this question?
Also read: Despite coronavirus, lakhs to gather in Ayodhya because this ‘Ram Navami is different’
What’s the point of religious places?
Governments everywhere should stop all grants and subsidies that are guaranteed to religious institutions. The popes, priests, clerics and sundry religious heads of the world are feeding off people’s hard-earned money but come to no actual use to them in times of need. Instead, they are force-feeding people untruths and unscientific facts, sexually abusing children and pronouncing misogynous judgements from time to time. What is the use of such institutions? What have all these religions done over the centuries other than causing harm? Other than perpetuating abuse of women, riots, partitions, bloodshed and pervasive hate?
Religious structures should be repurposed for the betterment of people as museums, science academies, laboratories and art schools. Nature has demonstrated again and again, science has proved again and again, that there is no god and religion is a fairytale. Although many people have managed to extricate themselves from the jaws of religion, especially in the more developed parts of the world, one can find a hyper-reliance on gods and worship wherever poverty, social inequalities, misogyny and barbarism are acutely present.
Also read: 10-year-old US firm with Harvard and MIT brains begins first COVID-19 vaccine trials
Science, for god’s sake
It’s been nearly 160 years since Charles Darwin disproved the existence of god by his theory of evolution. Humans were not made by a Creator, they evolved from apes. Long before Darwin, 16th-century figures such as Galileo and his predecessor Copernicus had shown that the biblical notions of space and cosmos were wrong. Despite this, most people in the world have continued to believe in the divine. Their invisible gods have remained invisible, no proof of their existence has been found to date, but blind faith has persisted.
And now with the coronavirus pandemic spreading from one person to another, country after country, most religious gatherings and congregations are shut. People who would otherwise run to their nearby temples, mosques, churches and other places of worship to seek protection from illnesses and diseases have nowhere to go — except hospitals and isolation centres.
So, the facts as they stand now are clear: diseases are not cured by Allah, God or Bhagwan; diseases are cured by scientists. Human beings are not saved by supernatural powers but by other human beings. Religious people are no longer waiting for benevolence from their respective gods; they are waiting for a vaccine.
Isn’t it time people cast aside their religious madness and embrace reason?
The author is a writer and commentator. Views are personal.
Lord Jesus said Blessed are those who have not seen me but still believe in me. This is the right time to stand strong in faith and prove our faith fullness towards The Lord our God
Only media seems to be having a field day, thanks to Coronavirus!
You are so narrow-minded to acknowledge the God. The air that you breath the water that you drink are not created by science.
If God does not exist then who saves the earth from asteroids?
No one. No one saved the dinosaurs and no one will save us
It’s upto us to save ourselves
When you express your views , please be careful not to hurt the feelings of others.
shes right actualy
I agree to an extent with the author we as a country are too religious and not scientific enough in our approach.
The article is another arrogant ignorance. It is written with utter disdain. The writer does not understand what religion is all about. Religion NEVER promised crisis free world. I actually envisaged thinking like this. True religion does not suggest immunity to what are considered evils in the world. Rather religion points to how to truly overcome the challenges.
Someone also mentioned the theory of evolution as nullification of idea of God. Wow! There is need for education for so many arrogant ignoramus.
A question for the writer, does this pandemic mean failure of science?
You said ‘Diseases are not cured by Allah, God or Bhagwan; diseases are cured by scientists. Human beings are not saved by supernatural powers but by other human beings’. In regards to Coronavirus, many people have recovered at home without the help of scientists through their own inborn God-given immunity over coming Covid-19.
It’s ironic you believe science here is the silver bullet when several medical people have died of the virus.
Not everybody’s immune system overcome Cobid-19. You’ll need medical help to increase your chances of recovery.
Immunity is not some god given commodity. Humans like me and you develop it on our own through our daily way of life. There is no god who is building it anywhere.
People are recovering at home by taking medicines and following care protocols that were created by scientists. Our immunity has also developed over time / evolution!
Isn’t she a happy ghoul? Preening over the thousands dead. I think we should thank Theprint.in that in this time when everyone is coming together helping out each other in calamity that they expose how empty and cold heart they have . What is this? News,? analysis? History? No just gloating over dead bodies .
Had this wretch taken time to be more involved in Islam she would have found that Allah extorts time and again to find signs of reality of Allah the creator, at various place in the quran he calls upon human to ponder in the existence of mountains, the clouds, the love of a mother bird, the bee, the rain
The dead, the love between humans, the variety of cultures and races, the any maps which give milk, the ground which goes barren and then comes back alive on first rain, the sleep so much like death that one wakes up revived, the motion and regularity of sun, moon the winds which carry rain and even birth and death even the knowledge of a scholar, he exorts humans to study these and asks are these not the signs of the creator Allah. The prophets all died, lived , endured defeats even in their darkest despair the thanked their creator. The Quran and Bible tell the story of Prophet Yusuf the handsome prince who endured tragedy after tragedy for years from being betrayed by his on brothers the being kidnapped, jailed then released then accused of rape then struck by disease, abandoned by his wife, thrown in garbage where he unable to move and flesh rotting eaten by maggots was still found thanking Allah. Or have you forgotten history? The forefathers of the current Wahabbis 200 years back destroyed the shrine of karbala. That did not stop the piligrims. They killed one of every two piligrims to send message back but people vived to be chosen to be filled . They even put a price of a limb if piligrims wanted to continue still people gave there limbs. More recently the people in Peshawar would take out Muharram processions unarmed even when Taliban shot them year after year even in places where they were firing still people went . The Iran Iraq war lakhs of young men armed only with sticks over took artillery tank columns. Nearly a million were killed but they prevailed. Do you think few thousand deaths will deter their faith.
The scholars have always told do what is your duty and pray you succeed. But if you do not then exercise patience. In fact patience during helplessness and being thankfulness to Allah in adversity is mark of a believer.
You and your family are alive right now is a proof that your ancestor’s God’s are protecting you. Be thankful for being alive and do not earn the wrath of nature (God). All this disaster is created by you and me and not God. And, now you want a vaccine from God, how selfish.
Well said. Religion is a con that has continued long past its sell-by date. Tax exemptions only continue to prolong it.
Divine: It’s the ultimate entity one reaches to find a solution by mind or by a symbol. Through ages, huge amount of human lives were lost in the name of religious symbolism and rituals. Now, in this digital era, current ‘corona’ turbulence will create a new perception on life and after-life.
Ignorance is not a Crime. Who gave intelligence to scientists. This kind of disasters will increase in the coming years. The reason is Atheism, Idol worship, Extra marital affairs, homosexuality, wars, terrorism, rapes etc. It is not God’s punishment, but God has taken away his protection for some time. Appointment sheri
Ignorance is not a Crime. Who gave intelligence to scientists. This kind of disasters will increase in the coming years. The reason is Atheism, Idol worship, Extra marital affairs, homosexuality, wars, terrorism, rapes etc. It is not God’s punishment, but God has taken away his protection for some time.
My dear sister who put this news. Ignorance is not a Crime. Who gave intelligence to scientists. This kind of disasters will increase in the coming years. The reason is Atheism, Idol worship, Extra marital affairs, homosexuality, wars, terrorism, rapes etc. It is not God’s punishment, but God has taken away his protection for some time.
sane voice in an insane world
My dear sister who put this news. Ignorance is not a Crime. Who gave intelligence to scientists. This kind of disasters will increase in the coming years. The reason is Atheism, Idol worship, Extra marital affairs, homosexuality, wars, terrorism, rapes etc…It is not God’s punishment, but God has taken away his protection for some time.
I don’t know that you area believer or an atheist….. u are blaming all the religions. A true believer can understand what is happening around. I don’t know how can u make such a comment in this tragic situation. It’s better to have introspection.
My sister i don’t know what made you write such a hateful article about God.People are not allowed to enter masjid because one of man may have covid-19 and may transfer it to others.In the religion of Islam if you even save one life it is equal to saving whole humanity(surah-5) and talking about “God not curing Covid-19”.My sister Covid-19 is a test from God for the people of faith and for the humanity as Allah says in the quran “we will surely test them to make evident of who are steadfast and those who lie” and indeed cure lies in the will of God.So my sister take heed and please be not among the ignorant and among the rebellious who will not be granted respite on the day of jugdment for it is the reality and Allah says the worldly life is nothing but lie and delusion.
You must know who you are ? First
The creator of heaven and earth is not answer abl to you ? Are you geater than the creator ?
You must have lost faith or mental balance or either or both ,
Are you dumb ??!! The writer of this blog shud be ashamed to write fake news..tawaf is not stoped.only the ground floor is vacant cz of cleaning provces.umrah n tawaf still going on on rest of the floors.plus there is no entry of non arabs to perform umrah bt citizens and people living n working nearby can perform.its a safety precaution taken by the govt to stop spreading of the virus. Not like ur india which cant stop prayers in mandirs .. it wont be a shock when the number of cases in india increase..
All those who are abusing the author should arrange a party of C virus infected persons with party caption as wine, embrace and dance. I am sure they soon would be flying high to meet in person their respective GODs.
The author in the name of freedom of speech has resorted to abuse of religion and sacred places. If she has the right to freedom of speech, then what should stop me from expressing my anger on her in the name of freedom of expression? The whole world is worried about the virus , who created it? scientists? governments? Darwin? no doubt created by Someone we call Almighty ALLAH. Its cure also lies with HIM, scientists are just mediators. Who has created the neural network of the brain and its functioning. Open your eyes. The author is hurt by her personal experiences but that doesn’t warrant her to spew venom about religion and Islam in particular. Tsunami, diseases other calamities are not man made. They are for a purpose created by Almighty. One has to rely on Almighty more than calling others to denounce religion and its best practices. False beliefs and superstitions should be however be shunned always while looking for right way of prayers. Quarantine is a best practice of Islam.
There can’t be a better truth than ” the gods flee first”. However for believers there are numerous cases to keep them confused and continue trusting imaginations. C virus has indeed woken up and activated the sleeping KUMBHKARANs in people who had been ignoring the hygienic practices in favor of CHALTA hai. So all is not bad contributed by the C virus.
DID YOU WROTE GOD IS FLEEING BY DETERMINED INTENTIONS OR BY IGNORANCE. . BOTH CHOICES ARE SHAME ON YOU .
If you should abuse, abuse the book from the sky.
As this is your personal opinion, so no one can deny your feeling and what you tried to express cannot be everyone’s feelings as well.
God didn’t flee from any where……May be we need a proper concept of what is God and where he lies.
If somone doesn’t pray in mosques, churches or elsewhere; doesn’t mean there is no God.
There were many other instances in our daily life where we can say God had already flew…..from our hearts. We are just worshipping our self made Gods.
Just look around, other than Corona issue…… Was there any God…….whom we were really worshipping as God?
GOD DOES NOT FLEE , HUMANS ARE SHAKING IN FEAR AND SCARE OF VIRUS THEY DO NOT SEE .. THIS IS BECAUSE OF THE IGNORANCE OF HUMANS. AND THEIR SHORT VISION.THEY THINK THEY KNOW EVERY THING, IN REALTY THE DONT KNOW, GOD SENT ON THEM THE UNSEEN CORONA VIRUS , BECAUSE OF THE SINS THEY COMMITTED , THIS IS JUST THE WARNING , PUNISHMENT OF GOD IS COMING LATER.
You are a fit case to become C virus bomb to be dropped by ISIS. I was wondering why Pakistan’s ISI has not created C human bombs and dropped them in India with C love letters.
My words in support of non-existence of any convincing evidence that there is a supreme being , even if there is something, that it cares about the mundane nature of a typical person’s requirements. Since the dawn of photographic/video recording of events, there has been NO indisputable, unquestionable recording of the presence of any being intervening in any event [man-made horrors or natural calamities]
Nazis gassed 20 thousand children every single day for nearly 4 long years. No supreme being can hide under any excuse for not intervening and stopping this attempted extermination. Krishna [as an example] cant use the logic that, I can see this happening [all knowing, omnipresent god], but I will not intervene because they are not my ‘bhakts’.
The tsunami on the Indian ocean and later in Japan, No supreme being came to stop or ‘lift the land’ out of harms way. There are so many legends of frankly unrealistic stories across the world of ‘their Gods’ doing , nothing in the last 150 years. There isn’t going to be any, coz there is none.
Humanity – Stop wasting your time, energy, resources trying to live in the past. Move on, educate and liberate yourself from irrationality. That’s the ultimate freedom.
I am really sad to read this entire piece. I know, as a writer you are entitled to your own opinions but they don’t have to pose questions that are so vague. You are legit questioning 80% people’s choices about the Almighty. God/Bhagwan/Allah do not make elixirs to save humankind from deadly diseases. The Supreme Energy exists to give you strength from within to fight deadly diseases. Our immune system is wonder in itself and definitely your ancestors didn’t make create you unless it was for the Supreme Being. Get a hold of who we are. COVID-19 is a new issue anyway, but there have been wars and epidemics earlier which started and ended (some Wars haven’t ended yet) and people still believe in the Almighty. Your article has hollow, vague, and utterly useless and mindless questions. Sorry
Perhaps because the duty of religion in to lead people through their believes and hopes rather than through pure law.
Many people get the sense of comfort from religion more than from the police or any governmental body and as such they, the religious leaders, have to take steps to ensure the safety of the believers.
The point of gods is not to give miracle cures but to provide sense of unity with local community and to support people is such way that panic is reduced and acceptance of measures is accepted.
As such the religious bodies have taken fairly good approach.
…. Plus… Puting masks on holy statues is surprisingly logical since it clearly communicates what one mist do in the pandemic.
Warns of floods + food shortages . Only people with a mark on their arm will be able to get food. All somewhere in the Bible. How low to blame God.
Let’s not hate, but disagree with controversial author. So, wait for Print to publish a counter. In the film OMG the dialogue “we are not God loving, but fearing people which is what is getting exploited by those who are managing the affairs of temple and of course we have politicians who are always there to exploit our belief and faith, very well play the role of dividing us using God and religion. In fact, we in India has unique distinction of electing a government which has exploited one particular God and has come to power. Unless we find some who can remove the myth that we don’t need a broker to connect to God instead we can connect directly do by performing our duty. The place of worship is only to discipline our mind to keep away from distraction. God is omnipresent and it should be our choice to connect with him at home or a particular place called “place of worship”.
Ms Nasreen literally begged the Indian Govt for temporarily granting asylum. Now targeting the pandits, temples, Priests and Maulvi’s will fuel more hatred on her part. Moreover her inertia towards religion is well known as she had denounced Allah/God’s / Bhagwans etc on her personal grounds. Hence scoring on religious believes is unnecessary and she should refrain from such views in future. Its the same Indian’s who granted her the permit to stay and the ones with varied belief’s. If she feels she is a product of interface of her parents genetically developed from a scientific experiment, its upto her to consume such view’s, why she is leveling her’s on the masses. The iconic religious establishments on earth from various faiths have not shut down as God’s are on run, instead it is to abide with the basic principle of keeping the epidemic at distance. Remember the famous line “Precaution is better than cure”, hope Ms. Nasreen remember’s this. I feel Ms. Nasreen remains a fugitive on run from the country of her birth and can understand her agony towards religion and its belief’s as she feels abundant by the Almighty. Although this is not the case. She has the blessings of the creator of the Universe and that’s why she is living a life to her length. I am sure she will be facing the Almighty with all the negativity she inherited in her life to set her accountability.
It can be argued that God is helping the human race through these scientists to find a cure for this virus.
She is one type of cronavirus to human needs of religion. Very soon the nature itself will cure both the viruses , New ones will come and so the cure.
Absolute bullshit! Nonsense! A person with common sense will know places where people gather in huge numbers should be avoided at this moment.
Gods don’t have to flee. Nature takes its course and God is Nature Himself. I appreciate priests putting masks on the God Himself, bcoz that’s the kind of connectivity, love and affection they have towards God. People don’t seem to understand basics of spirituality. Irrespective of any religion, if love towards God and Nature is absent, only such BS articles will show up.
What a breath of fresh air. After reading Jyoti malhotra every week and her ranting against everything India does, it is so refreshing to read an author who is down to earth and is never scared to tell the truth.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
“If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place.” (Reported by Bukhari and Muslim.)
The Scientific Fact:
Modern science now understands the ways in which microorganisms multiply and the diseases they cause. Scientists affirm that healthy people who have no symptoms in the place of plague are already carrying the microbe and so they represent a real threat because they may transfer the plague to another place if they move to it.
Thus, this system of quarantine, in which all the people of the city that suffers from plague are prevented from leaving, and visitors are also prevented from entering, has now been established worldwide. In the 15th century, plague hit Europe causing the death of a quarter of its citizens. At that time, plagues and contagious diseases were much less in the Muslim world.
Facets of Scientific Inimitability:
At the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as well as before and after his time until Pasteur managed to discover the existence of microbes, people used to think that diseases were caused by devils, demons, and stars. That is they were not related to cleanliness or certain behaviors; thus, they resorted to sorcery and magic as a remedy.
In such an environment, the Prophet (peace be upon him) established the system of quarantine which is considered the basis of modern preventative medicine after the discovery of the microbes that cause diseases and plagues. The Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered his Companions: “If you hear of an outbreak of plague in a land, do not enter it; but if the plague breaks out in a place while you are in it, do not leave that place.” In order to make sure that his order would be carried out properly, he (peace be upon him) established a wall around the area of the plague and promised those who are patient and stay in the area of the plague with the reward of the martyrs, and those who run away from it were promised doom and perdition. Thus, he (peace be upon him) said: “He who runs away from the place of the plague is like the one running away from fighting in the cause of Allah and he who forbears it and stays where he is, he will be rewarded with the reward of a martyr.”
If a healthy person was asked two hundred years ago to stay with the sick people in a plague area, he would have considered this some kind of nonsense and in response to his desire to live he would have run away to another place. Only Muslims did not run away and leave at the time of plague in compliance with the order of the Prophet (peace be upon him). Non-Muslims mocked them for this act until it was later discovered that those who appear to be healthy with no symptoms, are the germ carriers who might transfer the plague to another place if they moved to it. They would move freely and mingle with healthy people, so they might cause them to catch the disease.
Who told the Prophet (peace be upon him) this fact? Could a human being know something like this fourteen centuries ago, or is it revelation from the All-Knowing, the Almighty Allah. Allah, the Almighty, says:
وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّـهِ سَيُرِيكُمْ آيَاتِهِ فَتَعْرِفُونَهَا ۚ وَمَا رَبُّكَ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا تَعْمَلُونَ
And say, “[All] praise is [due] to Allah. He will show you His signs, and you will recognize them. And your Lord is not unaware of what you do.”
The Noble Qur’an, Surat An-Naml, Verse 93
Plzzz try to do your homework properly Prophet himself advised people to stay at home in such a situation…….do proper research before jst typing things ok?
Great article! I hope people will open their eyes and see the so-called gods and their representatives run as soon as the calamity strikes. It’s time people to shun their blind faiths in gods and religion and support science and rational thinking. This world would be a better place then!
Mr. & Ms All. This virus test is from God. So shut the up your mouths and try to repent ur sins. HE warns you that u shd come clean to him coz God loves u despite hw unthankful and stupid u are. He knows u well inside out coz HE created u. God is never on run it is the minuscule you that is trying to out run HIS grip. “God created us all and to HIM is our return”. See u on the otherside
I can’t help but feel that you’re high on mushrooms like other priests who wrote these nonsense books so that morons like you can be kept in mental slavery. Enjoy it and keep barking about it. Scientists will find a vaccine for a cure for coronavirus soon but there will be no cure for your ignorance.
God said: Indeed, they were not expecting an account, And denied Our verses with [emphatic] denial.
Indeed, We have warned you of a near punishment on the Day when a man will observe what his hands have put forth and the disbeliever will say, “Oh, I wish that I were dust!”
I had a remote sense of respect for this lady for her persecution by Bangladesh government. But that is completely lost with this terrible article. She has no clue about traditions, religions, science, medicine, or philsophies. She has picked up a very slim reed to disprove god and surely sinks.
The author has demonstrated a very poor understanding of religion and possibly has an Atheist mindset. In the context of Islam, God doesnt lives in mosques or Mecca. They are places designted for woshipping. He is defined as All Encompassing of everything.He created including the Universe or multi-verse as we know it now. Quran says there is no calamity that befalls humans except with the decree of God whether its natural disaster, calamity or pandemic. Muslims are encouraged to seek help from people of knowledge doctors, scientists and professionals as Nothing from the knowledge of the All Knowing God reaches humanity except by His will. Being religious doesnt means throwing caution to the wind. As Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said Tie your camel and put your trust in Allah.
I am surprised to read the comments from few, bashing the author.
Religion indeed a fairy tale and man made nonsense. It serves no purpose, but setting a group of people against another group. It’s a riot cause of all evil (across time) and another root cause which is a derivation of this is : Politics.
Remove these two and replace the same with Humanity and see the difference it will bring to our lives.
Main purpose of life is to be happy and spread happiness. I am sure most will agree that Religion and Politics do not achieve that.
You are essentially barking up the wrong tree. We Print readers belong to the class which continues to benefit from God, religion, superstitions etc. We know what is what. No confusion.
Mr Avinash, ” closed because of comunity spread?”, Aren’t temples , churches, mosques supposed to be place where we try to find ‘ god’ . Since they are ‘ supposedly’ god’s place don’t you think they should be averse to human induced calamities ? and people should go there to protect themselves from whatever it is!!!
I haven’t stopped participating at mass. Nor has there been a drop in the numbers at my local parish.
Darwin gave a theory, he never disproved God. Copernicus scientifically explained that the earth goes round the sun, the Bible isn’t a textbook on physics though.
A farmer cannot use his tools to treat a patient at a hospital nor can a surgeon reap crops with his forceps.
Science is a tool and it has its limitations and till science cannot disprove God’s existence, it doesn’t have much to either challenge those who believe in Him.
One cannot make music holding two stones in one’s hands….one can though throw it at a window and cause a loud noise, that’s all what this article has done for the writer.
Here she comes ranting again. Honestly, if you are good at nothing start attacking religions to hog the limelight. Anyways when is she begging again for a visa extension from the Hindutva government.
Please note that Indian government is not giving any subsidy to temples.as such they are looting temple income as they come under endowment department and using that money for other religion. What ever is said above is applicable for minority temples in India.
Believing in God does not mean leaving the pursuit of tangible means.
Going by her logic, believers should stop eating and have faith God will satiate them Or leave their homes unlocked all the time hoping safety !
Belief is to pursue material means and have faith.
Good Afternoon writer ,
You must have been mistaken alot in thinking lately. How wouldn’t you, you have alot of free time in your hands. Do wash your hand regularly
I don’t appreciate you being this salty of our religion but all is well ” if you don’t like, question yourself first before you act” that’s a great saying there. Don’t just speculate and assume as u please. As per our religion, will handle it as what seems fit. Stay out of it or even better take a closer look.
Even if religious isn’t practice at mosques and most are under shut down. If you really take the time to dig further you would have realized that we still practice our religion in these hard times and in fact it made us realize alot more than we let on . Makkah may stopped people to make umrah all day but prayer in the holy mosque is still there . Mosque may cancel Friday PRAYER gathering and ask people to pray at home , Azan is still heard 5 times a day , Kutba after prayer is still going and Imam duaa is heard in every HOME. Proves that our religion is engraved in our heart and mind and shines brighter even more than ever. Muslims and Muslimah now look after one another even more theses days. Family gather for all the 3 meals and far relatives calling every other day, friend you haven’t heard of them in years remember you and try to reach you, you have the longest call and actually enjoy family gathering. This shut down made our bond with one another even more stronger. I mean it’s was always there, but we mostly unintentionally took it for granted with work, schools, bills etc. It was hard to even make time for them leave alone time for yourself.
Look at us Now we have all the time for our loved ones without monthly plans or quick visits .
The greatest mistake this article has is that it’s understamates the power and strength in our religion and within its people.
Our government asked us to stay at home and avoid going outside to protect ourself and our dear ones. Our religion doesn’t ask us make irrational decisions and endanger our lives or loved one especially others as well. Despite that we indeed still continue practice our religion in our respective homes. Every each household together and all united in our religion Islam . Praying together with our families and children after Azan, making duaa everyday and learning and reciting Quran. ALHAMDULILALLAH
And one more thing about the cure ! Isn’t it silly of you to think that if you always ask for every single thing and expect to get it, you should get it. Every single parents would flip if they heard u say that.
Allah swt is all seeing and all knowing. He is closer to us more than our jugular vain. Subhanaallah
If you read this, I hope you reassess your allegations.
OH and have a great day, from a muslimah
Ms. Taslima has stated some facts. She believes in humanity and not religious Gods, who has apparently failed in the current situation. All those high places of various religions have proved her point by shutting/restricting entrance/prayers.
Maam,
When nothing is in human hands. God gives HOPE and that hope is very important in evolution otherwise science will also not exist.
So science and religion(Not hard core fundamentalist which is interest motivated) can cohabit.
A nice and logical critique of the myth of a god. This myth has become an addiction and Marx rightly called it opium. Poverty and illiteracy are the grounds that sustain these myths of god and religion. I demand of the State to ban public display of all religious activities to start with and take up programmes to disabuse the citizens’ minds about the non-existing god.
pretty biased response to a pretty biased article. The writer and the commentator have no idea that religious sentiments are not the result of poverty or illiteracy, but a primordial urge of the human person. The expressions may range from the superstitious to the most enlightened; but denying the fire that is deep within is blind.
The article could have been rubbished if editor had even a vague idea of a huge extant literature on anthropology & psychology of religion. This is just a rant devoid of any substance, missing even a shred of due diligence done on part of author as well as editor. The point is not to justify theism but a offensive jabber like this is just a pure disservice to agnosticism and atheism driving people away from it rather than toleration of the same . Negative journalism is counter to journalism ethics, the very essence of your (The Print) existence in 1st place.
This is a very narrow-minded approach to divinity. Temples, mosques and churches are closed not because of Gods inability to protect the people but because of fears of community spread. The same reasons why malls, pubs and bars are closed.
It is very less intelligent to conclude that God does not exist or does not care about this world by one coronavirus outbreak. There is so much sufering in this world and thousands of people die every day and millions catch some deadly disease. There are several calamities happening as we speak. The problem of evil has always been there and this corona outbreak does not change anything in that perspective.
The problem of evil is not because of the absence or negligence of God it is a part of the effort by him to chastise people and bring them back on track. In the Christain faith, it is said that ‘as you sow, so shall you reap’. And the Vedic followers call it the laws of karma. Before blaming God for this outbreak let us analyse our own activities in the last several years.
We have taken all efforts to hurt mother nature by cutting down trees, increasing the emissions exponentially and polluting the whole world. Millions of animals are slaughtered every day for the satisfaction of the tongues. The violence and cruelty are unbelievable. The exploitation of several people still continue and we ourselves invent means to create more problems for everyone on the earth. This fact is well documented and there are several more examples out there.
By the laws of God the mother nature tries to return the favour through natural calamities and epidemics which cause lot of destruction. As long as human being stop being greedy and stop exploiting the nature and other beings for their own gratification thiese things are bound to happen.
In conclusion God himself facilitates these problems as a chastisement for the human race just like a father sometimes chastises his children for misbehaviour. Finally, one has to use his human life to cultivate the love of God and go to transcendence. This world is just a temporary place for the soul to practice developing love of God. Temples, mosques and churches are like the universities for this purpose. The real success of these institutions is how much the person has suceeded in destroying his vices and increasing is love for God.
That was an awesome response sir!! So true!!
Perfect response to the very ignorant article.
what BS is this? There is a limit where you can claim
freedom to offend,We are living through an existential crisis
and the Ms Nasreen seems to be happy scoring brownie points,
The Vatican, Mecca, and places of worship have taken steps to reduce transmission
going against their usual practises, they should be appreciated not mocked.
The Church runs a lot of charities and hospitals which have been
the forefront of the battle against many diseases, Even if it’s against the innate nature of Ms Nasreen to
appreciate the good of others, she can at least refrain from unnecessary inflammatory comments.
Again what great service has Taslima Nasreen offered to mankind? considering her vitriol, she can
also, be criticised for living off governments largesse.
Maybe she has discovered that making offensive statements is the best way to stay relevant
Largesse. The freedom to speak should not be taken as a license to offend
We’ll said
Well said