Monday 17 December 2012

Common Dilemmas in Hinduism ~ Malaysian Style Part I



Hinduism has been around for more than 10 000 years. Most of us practice Hinduism which is inherited from our parents. Whatever was taught to us, are what we are practicing now. And what we are practicing now is what we are going to teach our children. Most of us just practice without knowing the exact reason. There are things that need proper clarifications

  1.  There are many temples built in Malaysia. For instance, a religious event in Hinduism usually happens to be, those who can afford offer free food to all and for those in middle class donate money to the temple and making the temple rich and richer. And they feel that they will get blessings from God. Bear in mind no matter how much food you offer, God is not going to eat the food. The temple is so rich with gold where as our Tamil schools are still in poverty. Our Tamil students do not have proper tables and chairs to study. God seeks love and sincerity, not MONEY.



  1. 2.       Next, Thaipusam. It is actually regarded to fulfilling our vows. Some take “kavadi” just to show off, to impress other. I have a question. There are 3 people in Batu Caves during Thaipusam. 1 takes “pall kudam”, 1 takes simple “kavadi” and the other take “vette mulle”-the act of body piercing. Who gets the most blessing? Most of you will think that the 1 who pierces the body will get the most blessing. You are wrong. The fact is, the 1 who really does it for God with sincerity, pure intention will get the most blessing regardless of it being just a “pall kudam”. The concept is faith and love not the more you suffer, the more blessing you get. But some pierces their body for their own satisfaction not seeking blessings. Get your facts right, make appropriate judgement.
MU Kavadi

Livepool Kavadi

Multi-Storey Kavadi
  1. 3.       Moving on, the most common problem is having an encounter with the “samiyar”- those who claim to foresee the future. When I was a kid, aged 9 years old. He told me I am playful and naughty. My mum believed him as if he told something unusual regarding a normal child’s behavior  When I was 15, he told that my friends are bad company and if possible, avoid them. My mum believed him as if he told something unusual regarding a teenager’s lifestyle. When I was 20,  he told me I have a girlfriend and not to ride motorcycles, but at that time I did not have a girlfriend. His predictions were not true, yet my mum again agreed with him as if he told something really out of this world regarding a 20 year old. It was all fake, it is not called future sight, and it is mere facts and the most common behaviours at that particular age. Everyone can predict the future if they can explain a normal human behaviour depending on their on a guy/girl age period. If the “samiyar” told us that I had a gf at the age of 9 it is abnormal, and I would have believed him if the facts were true about me. Yet people still trust and pay money just to listen to so called future predictions from the mouth of a “samiyar”, at least rm 50 per consultation.  Recently he told me that I will be having a bad time and need to do a ritual, which will cost rm300. I did not want to do it. However, my mother did it for me. 1 month later the same temple where the “samiyar” was, robbed. I started to ponder, if he can tell me that I will be having a bad time, why didn’t he predict the fate of his own temple as well? I started to question about Hinduism,until I met a brother who knows about religion really well. He told me that never question the superiority of God. Humans are the ones who manipulate religion who their own benefits. Religion, now becoming more of a business, you need to pay money for everything. I think soon it will be just like in India where you need to pay money before entering temple. You need to pay more if you want to get nearer to the altar
              Part 2 is coming.......


Facebook Comment

0 comments:

Post a Comment