(This I wrote two years back, but posting it now).
On the day of Ganesh Chathurthi, I stepped out of my home to see the idol of the Vinayaka that was placed in front of our house. The idol was put under a big shamiana, along with lots of decorations. It was very big and beautiful. After my little prayer, as I stood there looking at the enormity of the idol a series of questions kept itching my mind.
"What would be the cost of the Idol and the other decorative things?"
"How many such idols would be there in the street and what would be the total cost of them?"
"Will people give donations like the way they gave for putting up the Idol for any program that is organized for the welfare of the people in that street?"
The answer what I got from my inner-self to that last question was a clear "No".
After two days, I went to my village and I could see some 8 to 10 idols each worth around 20k to 30k in a village of 2000 population. In my village, people are struggling for drinking water and the only source of water for nearly 100 homes nearby my home is a pipe connection from a motor installed (sanctioned by the govt) for the temple we manage. I thought maybe 4 or 5 fewer idols would have brought up another motor installed in that region which could be fed directly to the big empty tank in our village. I felt, that would be a great way of celebrating the Vinayaka Chavithi. But that's not our way of celebrating festivals, isn't it?
After two days, I went to my village and I could see some 8 to 10 idols each worth around 20k to 30k in a village of 2000 population. In my village, people are struggling for drinking water and the only source of water for nearly 100 homes nearby my home is a pipe connection from a motor installed (sanctioned by the govt) for the temple we manage. I thought maybe 4 or 5 fewer idols would have brought up another motor installed in that region which could be fed directly to the big empty tank in our village. I felt, that would be a great way of celebrating the Vinayaka Chavithi. But that's not our way of celebrating festivals, isn't it?
And on another day, I was waiting for a bus in a bus stand. There, somewhat far from me, I saw a handicapped girl begging for money. She asked one random guy for a coin or two, he looked at her with doubt, screened her from top to bottom to see whether she was faking the handicap or not, then after few seconds, he moved his head sideways, indicating a no. She left him with a disappointment. In the next minute, the bus which should I get in came and coincidentally the fellow who didn't give her a coin also got on the same bus. After some minutes, a guy wearing orange colored clothes with full of 'malas' around his heck, got into the bus and started asking for money by showing a plate which contains the framed picture of God. When the turn came to this fellow, who didn't give a coin to that handicapped girl, took a 10 rs note out of his purse and put it on the plate, prayed for a sec or two. It hit me really hard. I couldn't digest it. All I could think was, how could these(we) people spend so much on the invisible God in the name of rituals but think twice and give all sorts of reasoning to avoid helping the needy. I really didn't have an answer.
Some days later, I happened to attend a puja called "Sathya Narayana Swamy vratham", in which the priest makes us listen to stories about the power of god and also the ritual being performed.
I have attended such rituals many times before and listened to the stories the priest narrate but never really paid heed to them. But this time did, though little disinterestedly and the first story I heard was a bit shocking to me.
Some Part of the story goes like this. "A man with his family attends to the ritual "Sathya narayanswamy vratham" in a nearby village and he forgets taking the "Prasadam" they offered after the ritual. Because of that, the God Sathyanarayana Swamy got angry and makes his son drown to death while crossing a lake on the way back." Yeah, believe it or not, Just for not taking a stupid piece of sweet, God got angry and took away the life of an innocent child. How insane it is. I was bemused and shocked. I couldn't bear single minute of that and immediately came out of that place.
At that moment I realized why people give so much to the man-made god, who doesn't require all that if he is really a god, instead of giving to the people in need.
It's the "institutionalization" of fear of God.
From childhood we are taught be fearful to the God. Even to 3 or 4-year-old kids we teach how to fold their hands with respect for every damn God photo they see. Before every important moment of our life, be it our first day of going to school or an important exam, we are made to pray the god(out of fear). As a child whenever we walk in dark, we would be told to pray for Hanuman so as to ally the fears. To overcome the fear during thunder and lightning, we are told to recite the ten names of arjuna "Arjuna, Phalguna...",
All these stories I heard during the satyanarayan swamy vratham are also part of the process of creating the fear of God in the people. We pass these stories to children through books, through oral narrations and through popular mediums like cinema. Hence the fear of God is being institutionalized from generations to generations.
I don't know when we as a society will realize this and stop doing it but one thing is for sure. My kids will not get this crap passed to them. I would like to raise them to be rational and reason everything they do!!
