KUALA LUMPUR – Which came first – humanity or religion?
Through science and other studies, we know that human beings have been around for far more than 200,000 years, while most known religions have been around for less than 2,000 years.
Therefore, it is fair to say that before these religions came into being, humanity was already in existence.
Indeed, humanity is the true religion of mankind, stressed Datuk Pardip Kumar Kukreja, chairman of the Global Hindu Federation.
Human beings were already civilised before institutionalised religions emerged. There is ample evidence of people living out their cultures, having families and progressing in their day-to-day lives in such a past.
Regrettably, precious civilisations have been destroyed by radical religious ideologies and individuals throughout the annals of history.
Extremist religious practitioners have killed off cultures by using all sorts of different tactics, said Pardip, a successful businessman and community leader. And most notable among the tactics is the use of politics.
Pardip was speaking to The Vibes for the second episode of its five-part special series titled “Humanity beyond religion” published every Sunday, starting December 20. The project features views on this topic by eminent thinkers from four different religions in Malaysia.
In the context of Malaysia, he has observed that unfortunately, harmony does not exist now as it did before.
To a large extent, politics, at some stage, took over and “hijacked” Malaysian society. For politics to survive, the easiest formula is to divide and rule, he explained.
Politicians use the opportunity to divide people because the latter forms a “vote bank” for them. The more the people are divided, the better they can secure the vote bank, he said.
Pardip gave an example from an experience he had five decades ago, when different races were on excellent terms with one another.
“It is a blessing for me to be born during that era, when I had very, very good friends from all ethnic groups and we lived together.
“We would not look at each other’s ethnicity or religion. If we wanted to help each other, we would do it because of humanity. That was how we operated.”
He believes that Malaysia is now in a fragile state, and it is important for Malaysians to stay united and eliminate any form of malicious attempts made by those in power.
“We must come back as Malaysians, and everything else should be secondary. I believe that it will make us a very, very successful nation again.
“So, Malaysians, we really need to be aware of this.”
Pardip also took note that the political landscape today is far different from before; politics in the early days was an act of serving the people, whereas now, it has become a career.
Religious agenda misused
When in power, politicians tend to use religion repeatedly against one another, causing a dilemma among the people.
“When they are successful in brainwashing the masses, after a certain point in time, the masses will stop asking questions,” said Pardip.
“They will start believing what the politicians are telling them because they are being indoctrinated.”
If they are not careful, people will start to believe that wrong is right, specifically in the context of becoming ethnocentric and corrupted, he added.
Hence, the importance for people to educate themselves and recognise that politicians do not always say the right things. This is especially so since it is common in Malaysia for political parties to help their own ethnicities first.
As such, the future of humanity is in the hands of the people themselves. They must stand alert should they want to make Malaysia a better nation for future generations, said Pardip. – The Vibes, December 27, 2020
Watch out for the next edition of The Vibes’ special series on ‘Humanity beyond religion’ next Sunday. The five-part series, featuring eminent thinkers of major religions in Malaysia, runs every Sunday until January 17, 2021
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