The Idea of 'God'

Date: 6/12/14
Time: 1:15 PM
Location: Kolkata, India


                                      Day before yesterday, my friends and I were having a discussion on God and the ultimate power. It turned out to be a very interesting conversation and I got to know a lot of opinions regarding this power. Few were really staunch believers of God being present in idols  (even though they possess a very scientific and logical mind)...and there were a few who had ideas closer to mine. For instance, one of them believed in a power which transcends all our imaginations and another one never really believed in 'God' but confessed a respect for some higher power.

                                     A theory can be the self-induced idea of God (it's an old theory probably). This very idea keeps the conscious mind in check subconsciously. Another theory can be that the Universe is so vast and mysterious that those with the slightest knowledge about it's expanse, tend to fear as well as respect the power an infinite object can hold. We always tend to think that there must be something beyond the circumference of the observable universe, and if that beyond is reached, there must be something even beyond that...but the ultimate fact is, our finite brain cannot fit the infinite universe inside it. There will always be something beyond our reach and in order to satisfy our hungry minds, we name this 'beyond' appropriately and shape it into a perceivable and imaginable being.

                                    Well, coming back to 'God', I think and believe that God is the ultimate source of all the chemical and physical phenomenon which can exist. The energy which runs in our veins, which brushes against our face when we open the window, which makes us feel nothing in an empty room...all of it constitutes the ultimate power which we know by the name of 'God'. So if God just took rest on the 7th day, we would all have vanished into thin air. Actually, even thin air would have vanished! The presence of God is very important and that too in every aspect of life..and the best part is that God willingly agrees to be present. If we just try for once not to think of God as a human figure or idol, perhaps we'll be able to perceive God as a feeling and worship that feeling (instead of lighting incense sticks and polluting God's own creation.).

                                    Energy constitutes everything. Its energy which is absorbed and released by the living during every passing moment...and that's the ingredient which runs our whole being. As Einstein figured out years ago, energy and mass are synonymous (he can be wrong of course as no theory or result can be absolute). This means that everything that's there and ever will be is energy. Every object has some amount of internal energy, which if not there, the object will not exist in the first place. This makes energy one of the most magical and mysterious elements in the Universe.

                                   According to another well known scientist, Stephen Hawking, the concept of 'God' (the generalized concept) does not exist. He is very open about this idea and clearly does not believe in a power which controls everything from our destiny to the fate of the objects moving in space. However, as no theory is absolute, no one can really be sure about the validity of the idea.

                                   Given all the scientific details and explanation about the creation - the big bang, some people still can't change the concept of God that has been implanted in them from the very early stages of their lives, and its worse than a sin to force them to change their minds if they aren't willing to. Freedom of thought and belief cannot be forfeited under any circumstances. Its a right which cannot be defined or guarded by constitutions but must be functional at all times.

                                  I have been through many conflicts regarding the subject of 'God' (discussions and healthy debates often act as food for the mind) where many have vehemently opposed my views and have tried to force their's on me, and I'll admit that I have been guilty of doing the same. However, few of their questions really intrigued me. When in order to prove my point, I told them about the tiny ball of huge density which resulted in everything, they questioned me - Who created that tiny ball? From where did it come? Who created the first particle that ever existed?...and lots of other rhetorical questions.

                                  Isn't it an irony, that both the scientific and unscientific men of today have the same questions to ask? The only difference is that, these unscientific men (sort of) already know the answers. Perhaps their answer is the ultimate truth, or maybe just an assumption to satisfy the curious and hungry mind with an answer which the subconscious knows is far away from the present point in time and space.

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