Religion and rationality amid COVID-19 pandemic

As the world stands confronted with a new virus, COVID-19, with its terrifying designs and harms; our valley has also, unfortunately, bagged many positive cases setting alarm bells ringing to one and all. The anxieties and threats of the new virus are so immense  that one prefers to stay isolated and lonely than going out and coming in its fold. And in this isolated space I feel obliged to write whatever I could understand by going through the guidelines of health professionals and various socio-religious organizations working  across the globe.

My reasons to write, although I am not a health professional, primarily stem out of the reactions of the people amidst the lockdown imposed in the aftermath of COVID-19. What I have observed, especially on social networking, is an insensitive tussle  between those who profess faith in invisible power, say God, those who priortize reason or logic over faith, those who are oscillating on the pendulum of faith and reason, still unable to decide which way to go, and  those who stand Waiting for Godot that eventually hasn’t come yet.

There are people ,who, in a single stroke of tongue and pen, brush away the possible participation of God or some cosmic power in the regulation of worldly affairs by claiming that COVID-19 is purely a scientific matter demanding us to approach it, understand it, and fight it on rational lines. They find themselves psychologically troubled and their ego challenged the moment they behold any religious priest or in common parlance MouIvi commenting on and suggesting measures about the virus. They pounce upon religious people in a way as to pass a judgment that the latter  are irrelevant citizens of the globe who have lost validity of their notions and beliefs about life and thus must be cornered and not listened to.

In an environment threatened by  COVID-19, they authoritavely come up advising  people to behave rationally and abide by the dictates of logic and science by  relegating all spiritual possibilities of responding to pandemic as an outdated,uncalled for and regressive. Their exaggerated rational consciousness make them so blind and indifferent to the fact that faith is altogether a different standard of looking at life operating beyond the surface of rationality and empirical readings. Being empiricist doesn’t qualify them to pronounce judgment that all other metaphysical or spiritual interpretations of life stand nullified and whatever not proved in laboratory doesn’t exist. They seem to subscribe to J. Huxley who  writes in his book ” Religion Without Revelation” : “If events are due to natural causes,they are not due to supernatural causes”, an attitude of thought which suggests that the phenomenon of world cannot simultaneously run by keeping the natural and supernatural machinery together at work.

When natural causes and solutions are known and trusted upon,  one can’t resort to supernatural agency to guide our being. The acceptance of the former is, by default, negation of the latter and vice versa. It also suggests that illogic and irrational can’t stand to survive when logic and rational appear to govern life.

However when it comes to faith , no matter how logically conscious you are and what your empirical judgments tell you, you sink  yourself into the world where rational and logical standards are not taken into consideration. The Faith is such a powerful energy and motivation  that you are not reluctant even to surrender your life whenever situations demand so. Your physical senses turn so  blind  that you get ready to walk on embers, receive arrows and be fettered as long as your faith survives. Ibrahim (AS) for his own individual faith, despite being aware abouts its physical predicament and agony, didn’t hesitate to accept being thrown into the fire than compromising with his faith before Namrood. Faith is not what you see,it is what you don’t see; it is ,what lies ,concealed behind what PB Shelley calls “veil of familiarity”; it is not what your science tells you, it is what science is not able to tell you as of now.

Submit

As the virus flourishes more speedily in social proximity and gatherings it is vital to prevent such things from taking place. But they, at any cost, dont appear willing to shun their adamant attitude. They go on easily participating in congregational prayers and other gatherings despite  warnings issued by concerned stakeholders. They submit themselves to the faith so much so that they risk their life, the protection and safety of which is as mandatory as the prayer is. They are not ready to contextualize the principles of worship and faith in the prevailing times and they keep on maintaining their attitude of life as they used to have before the pandemic. They don’t realize the fact that faith or worship and its associated implications are not only individualistic in nature but social as well.

One’s faith and the religious practices are permissible as long as they don’t become threat to social life. Ibrahim (AS) served his individual faith by leaping into the fire but his action didn’t trigger chaos and danger for the social life around him. One’s faith is only their faith, it can’t expiate  any other person’s sins neither can it determine safety of their family or society they belongs to.

 

Today when we are endangered by frightening pandemic, the question is not what ideological orientation and belief comes victorious, what is right and what is wrong, who is saved  or who is lost, the question bothering us is that people are seen dishonoring and nullifying each other’s belief system and ideological positions in such a sweeping manner that people dont realize that one’s faith, be it on science, or God, or on both has meaning their lives.

 

In these tough times, all the communities and classes of people, no matter what ideological schools they subscribe to, should not show insensitive and extremist approach in dealing with the reality humanity lies confronted with.

 

To the readers, it is now clearly apparent that on one side there is an absence of faith and lack of trust in the possibilities which faith in God or some cosmic force can unfold and on the other side there is indifference towards potentiality of science and rationality which is an unavoidable necessity for mankind’s survival.

 

It absolutely looks wise that all the ideological parties should shun their extremist approaches and try to respect, if not embrace, each others respective ideological orientations. We have to realise the fact that humanity has not so far been able to define the reality of life categorically either on rational or spiritual lines alone. Both rational and spiritual approaches, when harmonized together, satisfy human self and make him feel contented in a world which is otherwise afflicted with existential helplessness, confusion and absurdities of being.

 

In these bleak and challenging times we should not play extreme or disrespectful. To the contrary, we must respect each others sentiments, keep faith in rational as well as spiritual possibilities of getting rid of pandemic. Apart from getting medical help and following precautionary measures taken by medical and administrative departments, we must raise hands and beg for help and blessings from the Almighty Allah. Life is beautiful when worldly and spiritual facets are unified , visible and invisible is harmonized and seen or unseen is pictured together. One of the famous writers Douglas Adams writes :

 

“Isn’t it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”

And we ask ” Isn’t it sublime to believe that a garden is beautiful with having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”

 

The author is a columnist and his writings have appeared in Greater Kashmir, Rising Kashmir, Kashmir Reader among other papers.