Correlation between Philosophy and Religion

Philosophy is often defined as:   Love of Wisdom or search for Reality or Truth. It is the study of principles of human action or conduct of life, and the principles underlying the thought, nature, and happenings.

Religion can be defined as: Human recognition of superhuman controlling power – call it GOD, Supernatural Power or Something that is beyond one's imagination – with the emotion and morality connected therewith. It's also described as a System of Beliefs with either an institutionalized or a traditionally defined pattern of ceremony.

Let us look at both of them a little closely, and then we will be able to find the correlation:
To understand philosophy, one has to have a love for nature, knowledge, willingness to regulate one's life through morals and wisdom, and build in inner calmness by developing awareness to keep track of thoughts coming in the mind at all times.

It is unfortunate that philosophy has been relegated to bookshelves and theological institutions. Two generations ago, study of philosophy was as popular as perhaps study of engineering is today – but no more. It encompasses all realms, including science and technology. It is flexible, evolves, grows – and helps the individual to grow. Here are some examples of philosophers:
Euclid of Alexandria lived in Greece around 265 BC. He wrote "The Elements," the most significant text book on Math, which was the most, published and translated book for the next 2,000 years, next only to the Bible. In the 19th century modern Math took over, and today he is only of historic interest.
Aristotle, the Greek philosopher, studied under Plato, who in turn was a disciple of Socrates. He believed that happiness was the most important thing in life, and one should not waste one's time in the pursuit of pleasure, but should seek happiness instead. He believed that happiness depends upon ourselves, and not on the outside world.

Some deep thinkers were also atheists, for example Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Carl Sagan, and Bertrand Russel, who said: "My conclusion is that there is no reason to believe any of the dogmas of traditional theology and, further, that there is, no reason to wish that they were true. Man, in so far as he is not subject to natural forces, is free to work out his own destiny. The responsibility is his, and so is the opportunity."

Most of us know Christopher Columbus and his desire to circumnavigate the globe. But very few know that he was inspired by the travels and writings of Marco Polo, who went the on-land route to China, and opened the doors for the Europeans to understand the Asians. These were practical philosophers who converted their quest for knowledge into practice. As civilization progressed, we also had philosophers who were condemned by priests, kings, the masses – anyone who was basically scared of change, or of losing control.
A great thinker of the 20th century, J Krishnamurthy said (on 25 Jan 48): "Please do not agree with me. It is not a question of agreement, but of understanding what is. If you merely agree with me, you will make me your authority; but if you understand, you will cease to worship authority, because the problem is not a matter of substituting one authority for another, but of being creative."

Thus we see that philosophy is a flow of learning, introspection, change, evolving, and it is equally valuable in any field of significance to humans. It is open to questioning by the lowest of mortals, something like the one little child in the crowd who questioned the existence of the King's "golden gown" in the children's story, "The Emperor's New Clothes."

Philosophy goes beyond Right and Wrong

Any great thinker would rationalize that if murder is wrong, what about murder for revenge of rape of the murderer's sister, murder when he sees someone actually raping or hitting, murder through police encounters, the army man killing an "enemy"? In today's burning context in India, are Maoists enemies? But the beauty of philosophy is that it allows an individual or society to question, to change opinion, and to find alternatives.

The term philosophy has two popular uses:

1. The careful examination of a topic (for example the philosophy of science / the philosophy of biology / the philosophy of music / the philosophy of logic). This generally denotes an academic discipline or area of study.
2. A summary of one's attitudes towards life, including one's values, creeds, and beliefs. This needn't be logical at all, let alone "calculated".

The conservative nature of most religions not only preserves the accumulated wisdom of its traditions, but also cultural knowledge which may clash with more progressive ideas. This can range from anything from supernatural versus scientific explanations; social norms based on sex, gender, ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation; or even schisms within the religious tradition itself. These conflicts are perpetuated by framing the devotion of faith as unquestioning loyalty and acceptance of unchallenged ideas and beliefs. This in turn sometimes leads to uncharitable characterizations of both "faith" and "religion".

Now, compared to the first mentioned usage of philosophy, some aspects of religion can be seen as a philosophy of life & existence. Yet one can also have the philosophy of religion, so indeed, at this level the two may overlap at times but can be seen distinguishable. When it comes to the second mentioned usage of the term philosophy, again, there can be overlap. In fact, your religion could be your philosophy, but the reverse isn't always true.

Keeping this in context, a few crucial factors arise. You can have your own philosophy, but you cannot have your own religion, because by its definition and practice, religion is the practice of a mass of humanity. Similarly, it is difficult to claim to be "religious" unless you follow a religion. Also, traditionally, every religion and community has come to rely on priests to interpret religion and to control the followers – to the extent that sometimes the priests have become more important than the scriptures or the faith.

Rigidity

The saddest element of religion has been the rigidity brought in by zealous religionists, ostensibly to protect the faith and the morals of the community, but more often resulting in suppression, stagnation, superstition and destruction of some very basic human principles.
I have equal faith and regard for all religions, but I lament the fact that Religion is an organized approach, and whenever we are organized we get lost in the organization. Some incidents that come to mind that are painful and questionable are:

• When Copernicus said that the earth rotates around the sun, he was killed.
• Destruction of temples by Muslim invaders when they conquered Indian territories.
• Inquisition, and armies raised by the church to oppose other faiths.
• The recent destruction of a Hindu Maratha library in Pune by Maharashtrian Hindus, since the library was supposedly associated with a writer who questioned Shivaji's ancestry.
• Sikh Guru Ram Rahim Singh being attacked for dressing up like Guru Gobind Singh

The exclusivity demanded by religionists is the greatest enemy of religion. Use of the tool of divinity gives self-righteousness to religious leaders, and they refuse to be questioned, and also gives them the moral right to put down others under the provision, "if you are not with us, you are against us". Martin Luther, a devoted Catholic priest, questioned the act of the Pope and his Bishops in granting "salvation" to those who gave donations to church – and that simple questioning resulted in a vertical split among the Christian community, into Catholics and Protestants. Often those in power show that they follow the letter of the law, without following its spirit. The King of Saudi Arabia falls in line and prays with the commoner at Ka'aba, but he is unbending when he makes rules such as not allowing women to drive cars.

This rigidity has in fact converted some very beneficial knowledge to mere superstition. Vasthu-shastra, a science of habitation much ahead of its time, has degenerated into superstitious beliefs such as, "if a blind man crosses your path when you go to start construction of your house, it is an ill-omen". Or the way people hang plastic "neem" leaves on their doors, when the original concept was to sanitize the house with the fresh neem leaves.

Thankfully from time to time we have had great thinkers and truth-seekers among Gurus:
Swami Chinmayananda in 'Art of Living' says: "The essential nature of man being absolute freedom, he detests any shackles being put on him. The religious text books provide us with the material for a subjective scientific analysis by which we can intelligently understand and appreciate the necessity for such voluntary self-restraint.
"One has the freedom to use electricity in his home in any manner that one chooses, Nevertheless, to establish a correct relationship with it and to benefit by it, one has to religiously follow the laws of electricity or otherwise the same power can mercilessly destroy him."

True religion possesses two important limbs, namely, its philosophy and its ritualistic injunctions. Mere ritualism, bereft of philosophy is only superstition, while bare philosophy without ritualistic practices tantamount to madness...... Philosophy is the theoretical aspect of religion.

Swami Anubhavananda has mentioned in his book "Be Happy" in very simple terms, "You ask me why I don't like idli. My reply will be "I don't like means, don't like", and that's it. There is no logic, there is no reason, and there is no cause behind it. Yet, if you insist, I will discover the cause – "Idli! It looks as if it is made out of tissue paper, no taste, who will eat that rubbish? The nice rice is spoiled over night and next day fermented stuff is steamed in another bowl and you have to eat it with a great taste." Because you don't like it, you can find out causes.
I am proud to be an Indian, since the Indian Constitution was amended in 1977 to include that "it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform."
Every Human Being seeks happiness, in this process he/she looks outside guided by the 5 senses (sight, sound, smell, taste & touch), to achieve Happiness / pleasure, Hoping that these pleasures will be permanent. Disappointment sets in when it is realized that these pleasures are momentary only; the desire to get more pleasure leads one to Likes and Dislikes and thence to Fear. The real nature of all humans is Love, Peace and Happiness which is the personification of the Divine  within. The Aim of all Religions is to understand this fact and reunite with the real self. To achieve this, it involves a high standard of Self Discipline and intense practice. So one has to ensure (a) A healthy Body (b) Clean , Calm and Healthy Mind (c) Go beyond Likes and Dislikes (d) Be free from fear. The above can be achieved by following a regulated habit in Eating, Exercises, Regulated Breathing (Pranayam), and finally – control of the Mind to remain calm and steady.

If only one can keep away from rigidity, develop a philosophical bent of mind (which I equate with being child-like), and agree to be a permanent disciple of nature, one can find all the joys that religion can ever give. One simple person I admire is Sri Ram, a lecturer at Hyderabad, whose book "Divinity in Nature" touched my heart when he explained that all divinity is visible in every aspect of nature, and one does not have to seek anything beyond. And this is what perhaps all great Gurus have taught. It is ironical that every great preacher came and said that he is confirming the teachings of the great people before him, but his followers (either during or after his lifetime) used him as a focus to break away and form their own community, and to look down upon all other faiths.

Worst is the tactic of some unscrupulous religionists who create a scare, inculcate superstition, threaten innocents with dire consequences of their "so-called" sins, and then offer their benevolent hand to pull them out of their quicksand – for a price, of course. We have entered the 21st century. If we break free from these age-old practices, we can re-create beautiful religion and faith all around us, one that will bring unity, not strife or hatred.

I recently had a discussion with someone in which she argued that philosophy and religion are the same -- all religions are philosophies and there is no difference between a religious belief and a philosophical view. I don't really have much of an opinion on this myself, but another person hearing the conversation strongly argued that there is a great difference between a religion which is based on belief that defies logic and a philosophy which relies upon calculated logic. Give your opinion; help me to decide what is right.

Whether you are a Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Jain, Jew, a combination of all these, an agnostic or an atheist, open out your hearts to receive the blessings and joys that nature is willing to bestow on you at no price (not even credit card), and then you will lead such a fulfilling life that you yourself will become a philosopher. Best of luck!

"This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness." -- Dalai Lama

-- By Dr. Ali Khwaja