"When Will You Be A Human On Your Own? "

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 14 December 2023 "A man can only remain on the correct path in this life if he has faith and believes in the Hereafter. Without being held accountable, he wouldn't be concerned about changing his behaviour. When the faith in the Hereafter is absent, he adopts a similar reckless attitude brought on by both doubt and denial, and this is the true reason why man is bound to perish in the afterlife." While I appreciate Mr Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi's temperate tone and language in his comment (which must be lauded and emulated by all readers), I simply cannot buy his statement that, 'A man can only remain on the correct path in this life if he has faith and belief in the Hereafter'. Since the learned writer has studied Semitic religions, he should be aware that the Talmud tells us that we should not serve “the King” (God) in expectation of a reward. Please read Benedict Spinoza's 'The Road to Inner Freedom: The Ethics' (originally in Dutch). Spinoza did believe in a god. He was certainly not an atheist. But he didn't believe in a god defined and envisaged by all religions and scriptures. Spinoza believed that the evolution of ethics didn't depend upon eschatological beliefs like Hell, Heaven, Hereafter, Afterlife and even god. One can remain on the right path till the end without ever going astray if one combines Three Cs: Conscience, Consciousness and Compassion. To be on the right path because of some reward or punishment is not a manifestation of an enlightened behaviour. That's thralldom. Have you observed Japanese? They're least bothered about god and god-generated artificial morality (GGAM) just like Artificial Intelligence. Japanese, in general, are ethical and good people who won't short-change you as frequently and rampantly as the followers of all religions will do. An individual's goodness is his/her intrinsic behaviour. When you behave well in anticipation of getting some rewards, your goodness gets tinged and tainted. This is toxic goodness that brings you down to the level of your pets and toddlers with very limited intelligence. Hit your dog with a stick and it'll behave well. Likewise, if you show a candy to a crying child, the baby will stop crying. All these (desirable) behaviours are controlled and regulated by external agencies, temptations, rewards and punishments. "When will you be a human on your own?" French existentialist and Sartre's muse Simone de Beauvoir's most piercing question is still relevant and shall remain forever relevant. She had no faith in any damn god or Hereafter, but she was one of the most conscientious individuals the world has seen. Because, she was an exalted human on her own and didn't need any esoteric belief or agency to be morally upright and conscientiously alive. One can be a humane human, unaided and unaccompanied by greed and fear, generated by all religions. Read Taoism and Confucianism. Both believe that worldly goodness is the alpha and omega; be-all and end-all. It's the sole objective of your existence. Nothing beyond that should matter to you. When will religious people, esp. Muslims and Christians blinded by their Books, understand that to be an eternally good human, one doesn't have to be fearful of god, Hereafter, Thereafter, Afterlife and all that rank nonsense and utter garbage. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/human-faith-muslims-christians/d/131309 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism