Three Muslim girls
wearing the hijab and dancing in a public place kicked up too much unsavoury
controversy in Kerala. The irony is that
until a few days ago these same men from the Muslim community in the state were
vociferously supporting a girl who converted from Hinduism to Islam in order to
marry a Muslim youth whose personal credentials are allegedly tainted with IS
connections. When Akhila became Hadiya,
the Muslim community called it personal freedom. When three Muslim girls danced as part of an
AIDS day awareness programme, it
became a sign of the Armageddon.
Such double standards
make religion absurd. If you advocate
personal freedom when someone leaves her religion and joins yours, why can’t
you permit the same personal freedom to girls of your own religion who dance
for a social cause?
Why would three girls
dancing bring the Armageddon on the earth?
The plain answer is that the menfolk want their women to hide themselves
behind the veil, behind the burqa, and live lives without even an
identity. It is not about the
Armageddon; it is about imposing the patriarchal order on women.
A few girls dancing on
the street may not bring about any miraculous changes vis-à-vis AIDS. Perhaps, the girls did not intend to bring
about any such miracles either. Perhaps,
they were asserting their personal freedom.
Perhaps, they were demanding certain rights. The leaders should try to understand the
feelings and aspirations of the girls.
Instead of suppressing simple human aspirations, the leaders should see
how life can be made more meaningful and fulfilling for the new
generation.
One of the biggest
mistakes of religion is to keep going back to ancient rules and regulations and
thus making life obsolete and ossified.
Religion should update itself and make itself meaningful in the present
day. Music and dance have their
relevance in religion too. What is life
without music and dance?
I am glad that you brought up this issue. What is life without music and dance and female empowerment? Well, simply put, life is what the holy books command and anything beyond that is a blasphemy. I don't think that a conventional religion will ever be a religion if it gets updated. And don't you think that science and arts as a religion would fit better with the dynamics of human understanding and appreciations?
ReplyDeleteDo we need a conventional religion or a relevant one? Yes, updating religion will alter its nature. Yet there's something called aggiornamento in Catholic church which sought to make the church more relevant in the modern world. The process was not successful because religious leaders are not interested in such renewals. Vested interests and power games. All religions seem to suffer from the same fate.
DeleteI would rather have science and arts as religion. But people need gods!
Hope they don't face any trouble
ReplyDeleteI too. That religion doesn't forgive easily.
DeleteThat religion (and many other religions too) doesn't forgive easily when those aimed at are actually not guilty. The real guilty is the religion itself. However the herd of blind followers makes the religions (or their self-proclaimed representatives) mighty. And finally, MIGHT IS RIGHT.
DeleteThat is what religion was meant to do. Stop individualism so that people could build a civilisation. It was a guiding force in the beginning governed by fear that allowed humans to settle and form a society. With science, arts and commerce, the entire conception of religion is redundant. The concept of religion has served its purpose and now is outdated (Religion is different from spirituality)
ReplyDeleteYes, there was a time when religion made sense or at least helped people to make sense of the world and the cosmos. But now? Even as you say, when we have much better lights such as science and reason, religion is redundant. Again yes, spirituality is quite a different matter.
DeleteReligion is getting more blind as time goes by..than ever before.
ReplyDeleteVery true. Politics is one chief reason.
DeleteVery logically written.
ReplyDeleteReligion has lost it real meaning and has became the orders of the dictators...
Best of luck for the girls.
My wishes are with them too. And with all people who want to make their religion more sensible.
Delete