A Religious Liberal

I am a Hindu Bengali. I come from a middle class family in Kolkata. Also, I am from India, a country where religion, caste and other archaic social definitions still count for a lot. As a bengali, I celebrate Durga Puja and pray when I see the idols on the streets during the festival. Suffice to say, me and my parents are religious.

Religion plays a vital role in the Indian society. The practice of religion does not only mean praying to God during festivals, but is a way of life. Sons and daughters are raised by their parents in a way where they think and act along the lines of the religion they believe in. Going out of that boundary is an unforgivable sin.

I have been lucky in my upbringing. My parents did not let religious perspectives cloud my own thoughts and outlook. On one hand they taught me about my motherland, Bengal, its literature, music and culture. On the other hand, they also bought me a CD of Simon and Garfunkel and read me Shakespeare to relish and understand the West.

I eat beef which baffles at lot of people. I do not have to engage in everyday prayers to reinstate the fact that I believe in God. One of the best aspects of being liberal is having the ability to appreciate different religions and cultures and being able to perceive them in a non-judgemental manner.

Being from India, where Hindus and Muslims are heavily partisan on different issues, I do not buy into the fact that Muslims, being the minority should be treated with contempt.

I am brave enough to criticise my own religion and talk about it.

I am living in one of the biggest cosmopolitan cities in the world, London. I am now able to understand the value of my liberal upbringing. I am talking and meeting various kinds of people from different countries and backgrounds. Thanks to my liberal mindset, I can understand the highs and lows of different cultures. I am trying to imbibe the good and filter the bad.

I am proud of the fact that I was raised a liberal, amidst a conservative society which still has a long way to go in terms of inclusivity and appreciation.

As a hopeful future journalist, there are advantages to being liberal. I hope to inculcate the same perspective in my writing and reporting.

Religion is not negative. The problem arises when people use religion to narrow down their views and turn a blind eye to others sentiments. Being liberal makes me feel free and unchained. It lets me embrace the possibilities life has to offer without having to carry a mental baggage of cultural and spiritual restrictions.

Being liberal doesn’t mean that one should stop believing in God. But, it is maintaining a balance between religious beliefs and the sense to keep an open mind about others.

Hence, I call myself a religious liberal.