CHENNAI: Many intellectuals, throughout the world, shy away from the subject of religion. Religion throughout the world has lost its credibility and no longer has any significance in daily life. The more you examine, the more you are aware of the whole content of all the religious structures, the more sceptical you become about the whole business and like the intellectuals, you have nothing to do with them. And those who are not sceptical, treat religions romantically, emotionally, or as a form of entertainment.
If one puts aside the intellectual, the romantic and sentimental attitudes towards religions, they can then ask, with seriousness: what is religion that is not looking for the mere meaning of that word, but deeply. Man, from ancient times, has always thought that there must be something beyond ordinary daily life, its misery, confusion and conflicts.
In his search he has invented all kinds of philosophies, created all kinds of images - from those of the ancient Egyptians and the ancient Hindus to modern times - always getting caught apparently in some kind of delusion. He then out of those delusions he creates all kinds of activities. If one could brush all that aside and be free from illusion, then they can start examining, enquire profoundly if there is something beyond all the contagion of thought, all the corruption of time, if there is something beyond one's usual existence in space and time and if there is any path to it, and how the mind can reach it.
If one asks that of oneself then how shall one set about it? Is any kind of preparation necessary - discipline, sacrifice, control, a certain period of preparation and then advance? First of all it is important to understand that one should be free of all illusions. So, what creates illusions? Is it the desire to reach something, to experience something out of the ordinary - extrasensory perception, visions, spiritual experiences? One must be very clear as to the nature of desire and understand the movement of desire, which is thought with its image and also have no motive in one's enquiry.
It may be difficult to have no intention, to have no sense of direction so that the brain is free to enquire. There must be order in one's house, in one's existence, in one's relationships, in one's activity. Without order, there can be no virtue. Also is there something to be learnt from another source? Yes they can learn from another, history, biology, mathematics, physics; the whole complex knowledge of the technological world they can learn from books.
Is there something to be learned from psychology about our lives. Or is it that there is nothing to learn from another because all the human experience, psychological knowledge that humanity has gathered together for millions of years, is within oneself. If that is so, if one's consciousness is that of the whole of mankind then it seems rather absurd and naive, to try to learn from somebody else about oneself. It requires clarity of observation to learn about ourselves.
There is no psychological and spiritual authority, because the whole history of mankind, is in oneself. Therefore there is nothing to experience. There is nothing to be learnt from somebody who says: 'I know' or, 'I will show you the path to truth'. To learn about, understand oneself, all authority must be set aside. Obviously. authority is part of oneself, one is the priest, the disciple, the teacher, one is the experience and one is the ultimate - if one knows how to understand.