Feeding Religious Perceptions

The week before last I was mired in gloomy disillusionment over my job. Out of the blue a ray of sunshine cleared the dark gloomy sky. A chance meeting with the mother of an ex-student last week lifted my spirits. At times like these you are drawn to believing in the divine which somehow always recharges your battery in the nick of time,

Is this what is often termed as God's Mercy when something good happens? What if something bad happens? It is called God's trial I suppose. It is quite a different concept in Buddhist teachings. You are taught to be aware of your feelings be it bad or good and not to be affected by them, reason being they are impermanent in nature. If one feeds the continuous hunger for emotional food, there will inevitably be sufferings. So in my case for example my gloomy feelings should not have affected me in the first instance if I have not been so focused on the big "I". Both religious concepts are plausible.

The other day I heard over podcast the plight of both Christians and Muslims in refugee camps in Nigeria after being driven out of their home towns because of the religious strifes and killings. It is quite heart wrenching to hear how both sides mourn the loss of loved ones and homes. I just feel very perplexed why there is so much hatred towards people who do not share one's belief. This is another form of craving isn't it? The crave to feed one's thoughts and perceptions.

On yet another day I tuned to the "Thinking Atheist" podcast and heard with amusement (maybe a bit wicked on my part) the frustrations and cynicsm expressed by both a Christian and an atheist debating on whether there is morality without a Christian God. Both sounded as if they wanted to tear their hair out. The atheist implored for logic whilst the Christian kept asking "how do you know your reasoning is valid?" and maintained that God is the ultimate authority for reasoning. I see both can argue until the cow comes home to no conclusion because they are talking on different planes. How I wish one day our world will be so open and enlightened that all the young of this world will be taught the teachings of various religions. After that they can choose to align with the religion that is comfortable for them. Above all they must also learn to  avoid the crave to feed on their perceptions and taught never ever to resort to killings and insults to feed this hunger.