Women causing earthquakes ! Should they cover up?

"Many women who do not dress modestly... lead young men astray, corrupt their chastity and spread adultery in society, which increases earthquakes" an Iranian cleric was quoted, while giving an explanation for frequent earthquakes hitting Iran, a few years ago and more recently, a few foreign tourists in Malaysia were blamed for a massive earthquake because they stripped naked to click photographs on top of a sacred mountain.
At first glance, all of us (self-proclaimed) sane people would laugh at such an incident. But, if we think about it, it's something we all come across in some form in our normal, day to day life, be it Asia, Africa, Europe or the Americas. This isn't something limited to the developing countries. It also exists in other (non-superstitious) forms elsewhere around the world. It is the manifestation of a deep seated gender bias which most people won't even realize they are a part of.
I came across this disturbing incident while travelling in the metro, the day before yesterday. A girl seated on one of those 'two seat spaces' of the metro, wearing a rather short dress, which I guess she was very comfortable wearing till, a gang of 8 to 9 guys, all in their early 20s walked in. If it could be considered as a concession they were not vocal, abusive or passing comments but, when all of them just stare at your thighs...... To catch a glimpse of as much as they can or should I put it, raping you with their eyes,
I guess it is a rather uncomfortable situation to be in (like I'm a guy yet, even I wouldn't be comfortable if, I'm being stared at like that). Having observed such incidents previously in the metro and in the news I know, even if she complained to the police, the maximum these guys would go through, is being forced to de-board and given a warning and let of. Because, merely staring can't be justified as a crime to our policemen, especially when the girl is wearing something inappropriate according to them. They would in fact, say, "pehen ne se pehle sochna tha na? Agar shaukk hai toh khud ki gaadi main aa jaana" ( did she not think about this possibility before wearing anything like that? If she has a penchant for donning such clothes she should travel in her own vehicle.)
So, it just occurred to me and I walked up to her stood in front of her, blocking those stares and requested her, if she could hold onto my backpack as it was too heavy. At first, she looked offended and reluctantly took my bag and kept it on her lap covering her legs. She seemed to have realized then, what I was doing, which might explain the smile that followed along with a soft, thank you. I merely smiled back.
Sometimes I, as a person who takes immense pride in India and Indian cultural heritage, am ashamed when I come across incidents like these. Like come on our ancestors were the ones who created the erotic marvel of Khajuraho, the Kamasutra and that voluptuous beauty the Didargunj Yakshi { check her out ! ;) She is a few 1000 years old } among many other things.
            
There was a time when in ancient India (no, not stone age!) Women just covered up, in a single piece of un-stitched clothing ( mentioned in the Rig veda) much similar to a saree without blouses. I think it was still in practice till a few decades back in Kerala. So, wearing something revealing or literally nothing is not un-Indian, according to our culture and it never invited such unasked for or unwarranted attention earlier. Then WHY  NOW ?!
A woman’s life choices are nobody’s business except her own!
Women are not some trophy. They are not a property that, a man possesses and boasts of as his. They are not those colour coded ranking based Karate belts, that with each higher/better colour you show off your supremacy. The idea that any woman owes anything to any man will always do more harm than good to our society. We need to teach our kids who will someday grow into adults that, "what a woman wears or does or doesn’t do with a man or another woman, is her choice and nobody has a right to force anything on her. Ever !"
If one has a differing opinion, one can but try making a point in an attempt of convincing her and even that, in a very benign non-intrusive way!
A healthy discussion is always welcome and a person convinced by it will easily comply and be glad about it too.
Perhaps one of the most blasphemous stereotypes perpetuating rape culture or eve teasing or molesting or any forms of physical/sexual abuse is the justification that, a woman was dressed so and that she was “asking for it."
Boss, if you are a man and wearing just undies on a beach it doesn't mean some gay guy just comes and pins you down there on the beach(assuming he is too powerful to overpower!) and you can imagine the rest!
Okay, nothing against gay people, just that most straight men won't get it without this example!
A woman’s clothing choice is not an invitation for you to disrespect her. If you want to approach her, go about it the same way you would if she was wearing a pair of casual jeans paired with tees, a salwar kamiz, a burqa or any dress for the matter of fact. Gauge her interest by having a good conversation and seeing her for what she actually is and not through baseless assumptions.
Women were forced to cover up because it would give men impure thoughts. Not only is this a stupid notion that suppresses their womanhood, but it is also insulting to other men. I for one, am deeply insulted by such a notion, "Am I such a primitive caveman that, I will not be able to hold myself from assaulting a female if she is wearing too little to cover herself?"
Coming back, even I find some girls randomly on the streets to very 'attractive'. Doesn't mean I open my mouth, start salivating and gape at her, as if, I have never seen a girl in my life. Like come on every man (though most won't admit) does find some girl to be hot, it is a natural thing, but you can appreciate it by looking at her through the corner of the eyes, keep it subtle (even women know they are being looked at, 6th sense!). Don't just keep staring, that would make her uncomfortable!
(It's a different thing I have stopped checking out random women because I don't feel like, blame it on some Four lettered crappy phenomena - L#VE)
This was one of those impulsive posts, I felt disturbed by that incident and I had to pen this..... Err... Type** this and post it!

Would be glad to hear from you, about your experiences, if any.

God, Religion and my perspectives on them..

“History badee bewafa, raat ko padhi subah safaa…”

(translates to something like ‘History is an unfaithful mistress you read it in the night only to discover in the morning her whereabouts are unknown’, alright, I know, my translations certainly aren’t improving!)

WARNING: If you are a religious fanatic, it is advisable that you do not proceed beyond this line.            

If ever you find some time and plan to go through history since pre-historic times, from a few credible, secular sources with a purely scientific orientation and without any prejudice you might actually get an unbiased glimpse of how religions evolved, how certain customs and practices came about. Initially even I thought, I was turning into an atheist, but with an enhanced understanding I had my spiritual and to a certain extent my intellectual renaissance, as well. We today have sufficient evidence that the initial concept of religion was to hold the society together, to govern it and to enable people to live peacefully avoiding conflicts as much as one could. It was like the spiritual and legal guide for a person, much like the modern day constitution in a democratic state. Religion’s power lay in enforcing a moral-ethical obligation upon one, driven by fear of God or the judgment day or re-birth or an after-life doomed to be spent in hell, as opposed to the present system where not much of morals, ethics and values have any role to play. It might also be the reason behind increasing crimes and social disorder as, that fear has eroded. Modernization without social values, loss of trust in each other, a materialistic world instead of an utilitarian one, adds to an insatiable greed.
            A religion's age old customs deteriorated with time due to non suitability of those in the present context and also due to the imposed perversions of the orthodox who wanted to continue with their hegemony. Some enlightened soul then came to challenge it, modified it and either intentionally or by happenstance established a new sect or a whole new religion itself. He was later elevated to the status of God or labeled as the messenger of god i.e. a Prophet or a sage or a saint, who with time and ignorance got elevated to a level where he or his sayings could never be wrong, for his followers. The flaw, however is that the sayings are often misinterpreted by the priestly class to suit themselves. It's a vicious cycle that, keeps repeating itself over and over in different forms. All religions came to happen like that. Hinduism is unique, because it perhaps assimilated many such religions, tribal beliefs and prophets and constantly evolved and imbibed some of their aspects or even absorbing a few of them into itself. Hence, we can’t even roughly point out when it began or who founded it, but it has lasted quite long!  At a certain point of time, Buddhism emerged as a major challenger and was probably very progressive and popular, perhaps more than the Brahmanical religion (which later evolved into the Hinduism of today) and hence even spread out to most of eastern Asia like Japan, China, Indo-China countries, Mongolia, etc....
But some wise Brahmans(priestly class) came out with a contingency plan to save the day for their Brahmanical following n#ggahs. By imbibing some concepts from Buddhism like emphasis on vegetarianism, prohibition of animal sacrifice, etc…  The transfer of ideas happened in both directions. Buddhism eventually got absorbed into Hinduism in India by the cunning ploy of including Buddha as one of the avatars of Vishnu. Though, it still maintains its distinct identity outside India.

Some practices and traditions followed by certain religions were probably because of totally logical reasons which a sound mind can deduce, if it ever happens to stray upon it. Like the practice of cremating (burning) the dead in Hinduism because India had abundant resources of wood from forests, while in Islam which originated in the deserts of Arabia had little or no water, let alone any wood or forests, the best option was burying. While alcohol is a necessity to survive in the extreme harsh winters of Europe and hence became important part of Christianity and the Church, where it is served as Sacramental wine whereas, in a desert in the extremely arid and hot conditions it is more of a poison and hence banned in Islam. Or the system of burqa and even the long white robes worn  by Arab men evolved because of the need to protect oneself from the extremely arid sand laden desert winds and the high temperatures. There are numerous such concepts one can deduce with a scientific temperament. I might be wrong, but I am just speaking my mind!

Coming back, since then Hinduism has been picking up something from every other religion or culture it came across.... But later it became rigid with the stagnation of caste system on the basis of birth instead of the earlier criteria of merit... Now, I guess that rigidity is eroding with time in our modern world and even in India of today albeit at a very restrained pace, yet change nonetheless. The pace of this change will depend on us and our acceptability and open mindedness. In this change the most important factor is we shouldn't lose our basic rational secular culture and ethics in the name of modernity. Modernity doesn’t mean embracing everything that the West does blindly. Things which are really good about it are the ones to be imbibed. Sadly, anything Indian/Desi is not “Awesome” for most (mind you, not all) people from our Gen-Z . Most things that are Indian/Desi are part of Social Media memes or Jokes. Oh yeah, everyone wants branded Western Products even if the 'country made' aka Swadeshi stuff is equally good or better.

Due to my limited understanding and knowledge I can't comment much about other religions as of now although, I am trying to enrich myself by understanding their philosophies. Also, it is not just limited to Hinduism even a few Catholics tried to break the shackles of rigidity to embrace liberalism in the form of a new sect called Protestants, Islam saw the Sufis, they were the liberal wise minds and philosophical guides behind the rise of the Caliphate which reigned over the Ottoman Empire, yet the empire soon succumbed to a slow death after the persecution of Sufis by the Orthodox, while the Jews have turned out to be one of the most progressive and prosperous religious communities for their reliance on scientific temper and self introspection. The Parsis and the Sikhs are not far behind for their liberalism, separation of their professional life from religion and their respect for other people’s religious beliefs.

  So, presently I am more like a spiritual person. I believe religion is a personal choice which you choose for yourself and practice on your own, what someone else does or says about your religion shouldn’t affect you until the hurt is translated to physical or economical problems for you. If he abuses your God, he will be dealt by your God, why do you need to punish that person?                     
                            

God for me is hope. Someone who explains what science can't explain yet, someone you bestow your hopes on, to keep yourself going. We all need hope for important things in life, be it career, love, personal goals or wading through some crisis. Of course, for others God is something else depending on their own wisdom and belief.
Each religion has something unique about it, with at least some aspect appealing to even non-believers (even if they might never admit it openly.). Just that, like the constitution of a nation which keeps changing with time, religion also needs to adapt to time and needs of the present day. It needs to be amended and ratified with open discussions and deliberations by the participation of all who follow it. Yet it should not compromise on certain basic principles of humanism, scientific temper, logic and preservation of cultural and ideological diversity which keeps the whole system dynamic and open to new ideas and modifications which are vital to survive in changing times.

God is anyone who gives you a sense of euphoria, the sense of Nirvana/ Heaven/ Jannat/ Swarg/ Elysium and Religion is the way to approach it, it could be war as in the case of religious extremists, charity like we rarely see in the case of many genuine philanthropists who work in anonymity, the unique benign love - like that of the Sufis, it could even be the non-interference of anyone or anything in how one leads life as in the case of an atheist.It’s basically anything we want it to be, it's OUR choice. It's all in our mind. With this as the basis of our will, mental strength or moral backing we are capable of, achieving anything provided we know how to tap our full potential!  Nothing would seem or be impossible.

This is what I perceive we can term as ‘Miracles’.

I tried to read the Gita during a certain ‘Low’ phase in my life. Must admit, you really need a lot of patience and deep understanding to really comprehend the philosophy hidden in that book. Of course for best results the interpretation should be by you, yourself not that of someone no matter how learned. But, who reads such rich Sanskrit literature nowadays? The very few Pandits who know it are mostly interested in memorizing it to fool us into shelling out our money for getting some Puja done. Where the Pandit shows of his memorization skills by monotonously chanting something which is pretty Hypnotic & makes you so drowsy that you might literally fall down and sleep there itself. Although, I think I am well versed with a certain version of Mahabharata, credits to the super complex intriguing storyline.

The only moral I could get out of it is:
If you are simple and straightforward the world will screw you big time! So you have a choice to be part of that, by joining it and screwing someone else’s life too or take a stand and go against it to uphold your own core values of goodness and benevolence if you really believe in it, by saving someone else from the screw up(which you might have been through in the past or if you are witnessing someone else going through it)  it can be done by using the situations and conditions to your advantage like “Monsieur Le Krishna” did, by finding loopholes out of inescapable situations to uphold the Good. (You would understand what I mean if, you have at least read/seen some part of it. If not just read the parts to do with the death of Bhishma, Drona, Karna, Duryodhana, etc. those are the perfect examples amongst many such incidents in that story)

Bucket List of readings to complete before I perish.
Srimad Bhagavad-Gita
Quran
Tripitaka
Bible
Torah
Avesta
Guru Granth Sahib
(More might get added over time)
             
                                     
                                                 
On second thoughts, that is too ambitious of me. Let me keep it to one, to start with right? Else, I’ll carry on with my ‘sasta, sundar, tikau’ (Cheap, beautiful and workable) above stated “Moral”.

Okay, this might disgust most, but a large part of this post was drafted and conceptualized on the Pot which I refer to as “The Thinking Pot.” I am sorry if I hurt your sentiments religious or otherwise. :P
(I mean jokes apart, people kill in the name of religion! I might become the target of some serious Holy War!)
I just wanted to be honest. There is nothing unholy about it! That place is where your mind is completely calm and relieved to give birth to some great thoughts and ideas. Where nothing else is there to distract you!

God- please forgive me for this Sin !

Post Scriptum: Anyone who is offended. I am really sorry. I am just a young, little brat with a lot of things still left to accomplish and experience in life and also in my multiple bucket lists! So, forgive and forget !

If you disagree with something, your invaluable comments are most welcome. :)