The Opiate of the Masses

The salient points of the following essay, found after the tag, though dealing with religion and human thought, can easily be applied to any ideology, including political.  It's how I choose to approach any different or opposing viewpoint.  Those who flame will be mocked not for their beliefs but for their failure to grasp the irony of doing so.  Enjoy.

     Religion is a touchy subject.  It’s among the three that my grandfather used to say one should never discuss with new friends or among strangers (the other two being politics and sex).  While I’m not certain that I disagree, it seems to be a topic on which everyone possesses a strong opinion, even if that opinion happens to be one that eschews religion as a whole.  Often, these opinions come to light in heated, defensive arguments, but perhaps more telling are the subtler signs, the rolled eyes at the mention of a particular faith, the scowl or sarcastic chuckle when talking about the beliefs of another. 

     At the heart of such things, as always, is fear.  In those who claim to be strong in a particular faith or belief system, as even atheism is a belief system, but who panic when it is questioned, directly or simply by the presence of opposing views, it is the fear that they may be wrong.  What they fail to understand is that, when it comes to the development of the human mind, the only wrong answer is the one which excludes all others or has a defined and rigid end point past which no alteration can be made. 

     What so few seem to realize is that these things are not only detrimental to the building process of the burgeoning global community, but also, perhaps even more so, to those who enact them.  As beings of higher intellect, we face a unique and difficult burden; we are driven both by reason and by the baser instincts of our animalistic nature.  One of the places that people turn to rectify this existential dilemma is religion.  At its heart, it provides two things. 

     First, it is a source of comfort in the cold, dark moments of the soul, when the universe seems like much too large a place and ours much too small.  In short, it gives us that most important of qualities, hope.  That hope, derived from the idea that there is something more to the universe than cold logic and chaos, serves the same process as medication being given to the victims of trauma while they undergo treatment.  It stabilizes and allows the focus to be placed upon the problem, rather than its symptoms, and, in so doing, aids in the exploration and healing of the wounds. 

     While it’s all well and good to say that people should just pick up and move on, self-actualize and ration their way out of any and every personal difficulty, it’s been my experience that those who say such things have either never faced a sufficiently life-altering issue or injury or have, as is one of the blessings of the human mind, forgotten their own struggle.  Marx has often been paraphrased as saying that religion is the opiate of the masses and I would agree, wholeheartedly, with the caveat that opiates, when used in measured quantities, can be of great service.  It is the choice to abuse them that leads to their negative consequences.  Much the same can be said of religion.

     That being said, religion, in its purest form, which is to say the primary doctrines less than the followings built around them, offers a wealth of knowledge regarding how to come to terms with both reason and irrational urges.  In the teachings of Christ, The Buddha, Muhammad, Lao Tsu or any of the great philosophers of human history, we find the basis for a path to reaching a better self and, in turn, a better world.

     It is an unfortunate irony that, in many cases, those baser urges have led astray the institutions built around the enlightening teachings of their founders and greatest thinkers.  By giving in to the lust for supremacy amongst their chosen followers, be it for power, greed or some other selfish motivation, such leaders have released, sometimes in small bits, sometimes in large, the reason which they first sought to embrace.  And to say that it is simply human nature to be corrupted is simply a choice to forego reason, and its accompanying action, for the most vile and base of urges, laziness.  It is laziness of thought to generalize, to allow the actions of one, or a few, define the reaction of many.  We are better than that.

     Instead, it is the prerogative of humans, as creatures of higher intellect growing ever closer by both technology and a dwindling lack of space on our crowded planet, to rise above our animalistic tendencies and embrace the variations in one another, to see the meeting of two cultures or faiths as an opportunity, rather than a challenge.  It is the sharing of these higher ideas which are the sole things separating us from the animals with which we share the Earth that will allow us to progress beyond where these tense and trying times.  You cannot hope to build a bridge if the road to the water is closed.

     In the more than two decades since I began my own spiritual search, during which time I have studied more philosophies and religious doctrines than I can count here, I have found in nearly every one, including all of the major world religions and pagan faiths, a few underlying strands which I have used to good effect.  No belief system should ever marginalize anyone, of that system or not, nor does it have the right to force itself upon those around it.  It takes more faith to forgive and seek understanding for transgressions than to belittle or seek remuneration or vengeance.  Finally, the mark of one who seeks enlightenment is the knowledge that it has not yet been achieved, but, rather, that development of the human spirit is an ongoing and organic process which must, by necessity, remain open. 

     Next time someone mentions religion, pay attention to your gut reaction and ask yourself why it exists.  Most often, it is the result of conditioning and experience with others, rather than an honest exploration of one’s own moral reasoning.  Listen.  Think before you speak or act.  Spend your mental energy finding understanding, rather than erecting walls to keep from having to do so.  And, most of all, remember that we are not the terminus of our species.  There are generations waiting to be born who will bear the burden or blessing of the things we say and do today.