RIFLE RANGE BOY

Miniature boats on Karthika Purnima to commemorate  the  rich maritime glory of ancient Odisha. It marks the  change  of  monsoon tides. Sail is set for Java from Odisha . We like to convince ourselves that a particular ritual will help us in our life ahead. Perhaps paying tithe or giving alms will ease our path to salvation. They say that a cleansing bath in a specific lake on a particular day will symbolically wash away one's previous sins, even of previous births. With the conviction that we had of our past lives and have more future births to sail  through to attain Moksha, the breakaway from the curse of repeated birth and attainment of eternal bliss, we religiously indulge in this activity and that. Karthik Bath in Odisha The recurrent thought that has been going on throughout my life is this. Am I so lucky to have been told these secrets of life by virtue of my birth as a Hindu? My other good friends who, through no fault of theirs, had not been expo...

  House of Secrets: The Burari Deaths (2021) Netflix, 3-part documentary. Director: Leena Yadav Just like a thin line that delineates ingenuity and insanity, there surely must be a fine line separating faith and delusion. There is a constant need to remind ourselves that religion was introduced to mankind to help him to make correct decisions to stay grounded on the most fulfilling path of life. Towards this end, specific do's and don'ts in life were decreed. At a time when humanity's mental facilities were not fully developed, these rules helped Man make rational life decisions. Along the way, these religious edicts took control over logical thinking and questioning culture. Many things were taken in wholemeal from sensory nerve to somatic nerve bypassing cerebral cortex and higher centres. When we were growing up, we thought bizarre crimes and UFO sightings were only seen in the USA and newspapers. I remember reading about the Jonestown mass suicide in Jonestown, Guyana, ...