Part! Dr. Gurbakhsh Singh (Washington)
Religion requires wishing and praying for the welfare of all the people. Politicians also claim that their projects will help people to live a better life. The two should therefore be: compatible but actually people do not want religion to interfere in the politics of a country. Why? This needs to be examined.
Religions and political thoughts are very strong forces of our society. Their fields of activities so much overlap each other that there have been a continuous tassel between them since they occupied the human mind. Religion, having been born earlier and having deeper roots, (believed to influence our souls even after death) than political thought, always had an upper hand. Even when legally not recognized, the religious beliefs continue to exert their pressure to modify and give directions to the political thought of even the countries called the free world.
We recognize, today, that man has certain birth rights e.g. freedom of worship, thought and expression. In addition to these basic rights, a good government is required to give equal treatment to all its citizens irrespective of their religion, caste, color or sex. In such a political set up there is no place for a convention religion. However, we know it well; religion has always played an effective and important role in politics the world over.
Many countries have secular constitution which directs their government to provide equal rights to all their citizens. In practice, the governments are run by the people whose decisions are governed by their faith, caste and color. We always hear that a particular person was hired/not hired or nominated to a public office, just because he belonged to a particular faith or a community. When a person is appointed a judge or is given some other powerful chair, people of his faith openly express their pleasure, hoping that his decision would favor members of their community. Thus we find, even in the free world where religion is constitutionally out, the religious considerations affect the decision of the government.
Religions interference has been agreed to be undesirable because it discriminates between the followers of different faiths. This obviously is against justice according to the present day thought. Catholics want abortion to be made illegal as they consider it to a be a murder of an unborn child. Others think it a social necessity because of so many unwanted pregnancies and want to legalize abortion. Even in the economic field, political decisions can be made to favor or disfavor a community.
Ego, anger, sex and other inferior emotions are very powerful forces in a man. They also commit a man to do injustice to other people. They are more powerful than even the religious thought. Puranic stories provide ample proof of it. Saints and gods have been mentioned to commit sins under the influence of these forces. Indra, a senior Hindu god, could not keep control over his sexual desire. Rishi Gautam was mislead to go to the river at midnight for his “morning” bath. Indra made himself look exactly like the Rishi and entered his house and had sex with his wife. Politicians appear to be good outwardly. Inside they are under the influence of these inferior emotions and they continue to suck the blood of the common man for their personal gains. We can conclude that unless the politicians are bound by the oath of a “faith” which neither permits religious bias nor can lets inferior emotions to influence their decisions, the people neither get justice nor peace.
Has anyone ever thought of a “faith” whose tenants direct its followers to do justice to all people irrespective of their faith, caste, color or creed?
Yes, Nanak laid the foundation of that faith and demonstrated its practicability to the people in the East.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 29, 1985
