SHOULD RELIGION BE POWER CENTRED?

Abstract

"Should religion be power centered? It is an important question in view of what is happening in the world today when dangerous weapons are in the hands of some nations on one hand, and religious fanatics, on the other. In fact religion, by its very nature, cannot ever be in pursuit of power and if at all it gets associated with power it is either due to some historical factors or due to lust for power by its followers. Religion, primarily is spiritual and moral entity and comes into existence due to social degeneration or neglect of moral and spiritual values by the people among whom religion comes into existence. Be it Buddha, Mahavira, Moses, Jesus or Mohammad (PBUH) they were seriously perturbed by moral and spiritual decline around them and gave to the world spiritual and moral system, never a political doctrine. However, with passage of time these religions came close to power structures and their followers primacy became political power rather than moral and spiritual uplift of its followers as intended by its founders. Let alone primacy of moral and spiritual concern, due to political power struggle among its followers, morality takes a sharp dip and religion, at best becomes institutions of certain rituals. Rituals too are then performed mechanically, loosing touch with spirituality in which they were originally deeply rooted."(pg 1)