Karen Armstrong’s lecture on ‘What is Religion?’

Thursday, November 02, 2006

* In symbolic acknowledgement of the spirit of Armstrong’s message that God is ineffable and beyond the concept of words, Daily Times has decided not to give a headline for its coverage of the event

Staff Report

KARACHI: Religion is compassion, empathy and the ability to look at situations from the other person’s point of view (do unto others as you would want others to do unto you), said renowned writer Karen Armstrong at her much-awaited lecture on Wednesday on “What is Religion?” at the Aga Khan University (AKU).

Ex-nun Armstrong refers to herself as a “freelance monotheist” who draws inspiration from all Abrahamic faiths. “Judaism, Christianity and Islam, all have similar traditions, and similar ideas; they tap into the structure of humanity,” Armstrong explained to her immediate audience and the hundreds of others watching via video conference across the campus. Religions did not develop on hillsides or in deserts-they developed in cities, and were shaped by market economics and capitalism.

She compared organized religions with the teachings of the sages of the Axial Age-Socrates of Greece, Isaiah of Israel, Zoroaster of Persia, Buddha of India, and Confucius of China. Armstrong described the Axial Age as a time when people were trying to find “a new and different way of being religious.” The sages preached that God was beyond the concept of words. To define God in words was equivalent to “cutting Him down to a human system of thoughts.”

She related an incident where Buddha was once pestered by a man who wanted an explanation about the existence of God. And Buddha replied: “Why does it matter? Even if we found out who created the world, would that solve any of the problems being faced by the world today?” The secret to finding Nirvana, Buddha then explained, was to find your own faults and correct them.

One of the points that Armstrong spent a lot of time on was on how ineffable God is, that is too beautiful or great to describe in words. She cautioned trying to define God and gave the example of a definition of God she was forced to learn as Catechism when she was eight-years-old.

The orthodox Greek, Armstrong said, maintained that any statement about God should fulfil two salient features: it should be paradoxical, and it should “lead to silence.” A statement that described God “should be like a poem, or a beautiful symphony, where you hear a beat of silence at the very end, right before the applause breaks out.”

Armstrong then went on to describe the “issues of ego.” According to Chinese doctrines, she said, the problem with dogmas was that they endorsed egos. “Nobody can have the last word on something that exceeds words,” she said.

She was also critical of the way Yoga was regarded in today’s age. The yoga she referred to was the ancient art of yoga, and not the modern version, contorted for the purposes of consumerism and capitalistic ventures. “Yoga is for spirituality, not losing weight,” she said. “It dismantles the ego, and takes the ‘I’ out. Once the ego is out, a person sees and experiences the world differently.” This does not mean that a human being actually becomes selfless. “It means that a person behaves as though the ‘self’ does not exist,” Armstrong clarified, adding that when Muslims prayed and bowed down before God, it was an exercise in “surrendering the ego.”

The much sought after ecstasy (from the Greek Ekstasis) and Nirvana were attained after a person learnt to “step outside the self,” and that, Armstrong explained, was attained only through compassion, and learning to put others before one’s own self, without expecting anything in return.

Confucius preached this concept in his “Golden Rule.” He was once asked what was the single common thread in all his teachings to which he replied: “Look into yourself, and find that which pains you most. And then, never-under any circumstance, whatsoever-do the same to anyone else. Do unto others as you would want others to do unto you.” The Chinese referred to this as the “ultimate reality,” and even Buddha said “compassion brings you to Nirvana.” Armstrong explained that a lack of compassion and empathy was what was leading to the polarization of the world today. “Religion is not at fault,” she said, rather political problems and egos and selfishness.

The Torah orders followers to “love strangers.” (Leviticus) This does not mean that you have to be soppily emotional with them, Armstrong explained. “It means that one is supposed to support and help strangers practically and to look out for them-to treat them as you would like yourself to be treated.”

Islam preaches non-violence, Armstrong said, adding that this needed to be highlighted to the world, in order to remove misconceptions about Islam. “[Prophet] Muhammad (PBUH) was not a warrior. His wars were forced on him, when he was attacked by Mecca.” And even then, he tried his best to find non-violent means to end the skirmish, Armstrong explained, and quoted the incident of the Hudaibiya Treaty to prove her point. “The catalyst for all major religious change in the Axial Age was an attempt to retreat from violence,” she said.

Also, yoga (the ancient, unadulterated form) teaches non-violence, Armstrong said. “A five point programme was devised by the guru for a yoga student. The first point was Ahimsa-non-violence, the control over self. And only when students mastered this were they allowed to even assume the yoga position.”

Answering a query during the question-and-answer session that followed the lecture, Armstrong explained that the way the world was moving she saw a catastrophic end for future generations. “I see a bleak scenario. However, we must never lose hope, because hopelessness leads to despair. A situation where people see that they have nothing to lose ends up creating suicide bombers.”

“The problems we have today are not religious-they’re political,” Armstrong said, in reply to another question. “They are about power and resources. A major example is the Arab-Israeli conflict, which has been blown out of context, and developed into something with religious consequences.”

Religion does not endorse capitalism, she explained, adding that capitalism had converted humans into “greedy beings who wanted the best for themselves.”

We do not need a new religion, or new factions, Armstrong concluded. “We need to preach the Golden Rule globally. We do not need a new prophet or a new sage. We need to go back to the core, and discover the lost heart.”

Armstrong’s lecture was refreshing and enlightening in its lucidity, however, it was more geared towards a personal look at religion. From the questions that people asked - what about violence in religion and hell fire and brimstone etc - it appeared that the audience was hungering for a secular voice to answer or give solutions to the biggest conflicts and dilemmas Pakistan and its Muslims face. Sadly, though, Armstrong did not touch on any sore or sensitive points, which are ultimately, for many, the real issues that need to be addressed.

Nonetheless, Armstrong’s message was clear and for any thinking member of the audience contained the solutions for much of the pain in our society.

Hundreds of people turned out for the sobering and enlightening lecture. The hall where Armstrong spoke was packed and security was tight. However, at least four other halls were filled to the brim also with people lining up along the stairs and along the floor. There were technical problems with the video conferencing in the beginning and while panicked the audiences patiently waited till the sound came on