A conversation with my dad

This post is about a conversation with my father which had a deep impact on me.

My oldest memory of an impacting conversation with my father is one when I was eight years old. We were discussing about God, and he said out of the blue, "Well, who knows if God even exists?"

It was the first time I'd ever heard anything so incredulous; how could someone question the existence of God?! But if my dad was doing it, maybe it was right; after all, to me, he was the smartest person to ever walk the Earth. Thirteen years later, that conversation has turned into the basis of my religious beliefs. Religion is a way to keep people from being insecure; an assurance that there's someone watching over, making sure that all that happens is fair. But the truth is, not everything that happens is fair. If you believe in rebirth, and argue that the scores are settled in lives to come, I would say that another life has nothing to do with this one, since no one remembers their past lives except in fiction. Payback for someone's deeds given in another life definitely isn't fair. It's scary out there; there's no one to make sure that all that happens to you will be good. So why believe it? Stand outside in the storm and face it all by yourself, and maybe you'll be strong enough to retaliate when the next one comes along.

Religion is also a set of traditions left behind by our ancestors to make sure that we follow certain rules and customs in the fear of being punished if we don't. These are rules which were originally devised to help us follow a simple and satisfying life. However, so many of them are outdated now. The world keeps changing, but religion stays constant. Why should we be pushed to do follow baseless ideals? Even staunch followers of religion sometimes end up committing grave crimes. Every adult has his own idea of right and wrong. It's enough if we can stick to our own rules, the ones that will help us to live our lives without regrets.

Another thing that religion tries to teach us is charity; to serve those in need, and not use the less fortunate as stepping stones in our lives. I think that humanity should take precedence over religion to make this happen. Anyone with the intent to help others can do this on his own, sometimes even better than one who's a strict follower of the books.

I am glad that my beliefs have resulted from years of reconsideration. But of course, my father, the one who's led me to be this way, grew older to become quite a religious man - so maybe the bigger lesson he has taught me is to always be open for reconsideration.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.