Confessions of an Atheist

People often visit temples and other sacred places.Some believe in the powers of the almighty,some look for peace, some for architectural brilliance and some just accompany theirs kins.But we all do visit temples.And most of us do not know anything about the temple we go to.We just say our prayers, put something in the box,take the prassad and rush out.But that is of no use.I used to go to temples before just to find peace.Nowadays even that is not possible with the kind of population we have.Anyways, I never believed in the concept of praying to God.Well if God exists, would he really want us to pray to him.That would be a trait of a dictator.I certainly do not question the existence of a higher power, but cannot accept his greatness for it being a dictator.

Well let us not drift away into a debate on the existence of God which is like a black hole.Lets talk temples.Recently when I visited Nasik, literally a city of temples , I realized that I never bothered about the stories that resulted in those sculpture.But this time when I heard all the stories answering why that particular temple is standing there and why that is shaped this way and what is it's significance.I was surprised that each pillar & each corner had a story to tell and all made sense.May be all this is not enough to transform an atheist like me but I surely know that there is always something to learn for these places of religious importance which you can relate to present times.And sometimes you also find those answers you have been looking for.

Amidst the grandeur of the Ram Kund , there was a neglected small temple of Ardhanareswara
with a deity half man half woman.That was so to depict that half of the power of a man lies in his woman.A fact that makes men uncomfortable but is damn true.All wise men would not deny.I was amazed at the simplicity of that deity and the colossal truth that it asserted.One might wonder if these deities and the temples were created just to pass messages for the coming generations from the learning's of our ancestors and not for any religious compulsions.

There are many other such instances from that trip, but I would say the best way is to go there and feel it yourself. I am not preaching here.Just making a point that if you go to such places, try to know the history behind.Because History is not boring.Not always.