Concept of Rationalism....!!!!!

                         Concept of Rationalism....!!!!!


wt is meant by rationalism....any guesses....
there is no clear cut definition about rationalism any where in the world.... I quote few meanings here:

"Reliance on reason as the best guide for belief and action"

"The system that makes rational power the ultimate test of truth; -- opposed to sensualism, or sensationalism".

"Rationalism as a philosophy is defined as using reason and logic as the reliable basis for testing any claims of truth, seeking objective knowledge about reality, making judgments and drawing conclusions about it"

 To sum all these definitions or meanings, i would rather give u a vague definition, " Rationalism is using our reason to guide us and draw conclusions  about anything".

This concept is not a new one but it existed in primordial times too...but during those days rationalists were called as outcastes, and they were termed as religious enemies....(might b true during tat point of time)....during those days hardly there was ny person who used to go against blind beliefs, traditions, customs and religious dogmas.... there was no one to stop child marriage, women abuse, sati system, women being treated as slaves, the pathetic condition of widows, widening gap between the haves and the have nots, dalit's downtrodden condition, carrying human waste on their heads, casteism and numerous other problems with priests of respective religions (who termed themselves as true worshippers of god) adding injury to wound that existed during that period of inequality...

But as and when man's brain started developing and he became started seeing the world with a different perspective, a small cult started questioning the religious inadequacies....

They started questioning y should a dalit b seen as a slave of the zamindars or y should he carry the human waste of the upper castes...albeit he does this cleaning job still he is treated as untouchable....
y a widow should not marry or y a woman who has lost her husband should enter fire with him for no fault of hers or for no valid reason....
They also started questioning the practise of child marriage, its after effects on the society and as well as on the two kids who knew nothing about marriage at such a young age....

Though this was a very small group of people who wanted to reform the society but they were pushed to the bottom or they were suppressed due to lack of support or intellectual inertia among the people....but even now it has not grown to tat xtent 2 wch it should have been but it has striked a chord in the minds of many ppl 2 think about social upliftment in myriad ways....

Karl Marx had said that " Religion is the opium of the masses"

How I became a rationalist....???????

                          How I became a rationalist....???????



I have asked this question umpteen number of times but till now i have not got any concrete answer....It's every day's fight within me..

Frankly speaking, i was an ardent desciple of god (4 me only one god existed by the name) till i was in 10th wn my capability to think independently devoid of other's impressions, or customs, traditions etc..etc..started developing..

I was watching an interview telecasted on Chandana tv way back in 1994 or 1995 with my mentor on rationalism, Dr. H Narasimhaiah ....(whom i call as "manasa guru") who was in his white dress with glaring eyes and exceptional thoughts on rationalism.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._Narasimhaiah

I quote his words, " naavu yaavudannu vignaanikavaagi vichaara / prashne maadade oppikollabaradhu"
(meaning: we should not accept anything without due scientific reasoning).

He followed the same principle throughout his life untill his last breath.

Actually it did not change my mind or my life immediately or on that day but eventually " YES". It changed my way of thinking..

Slowly, I started questioning about the customs, traditions, blind beliefs, religious dogmas and other stuff...( luckily my mom was spared from all these questions...i used to ask them to myself...)
4 few ????s i used to get the answer nd 4 few i used 2 chk with other learned frns of mine or elders (albeit most of the times i used 2 be admonished 4 my thoughts)....

Later, as years passed, i was becoming more thoughful about things, practices, surrounding me....i started observing things in a more clear and thoughtful manner, but it was in Maharaja's degree college where i joined to do my graduation in Arts in Mysore in 1998
tat encouraged my rationalist thinking with the very famous rationalist Prof Ramdas teaching Kannada and i came to know more about Rationalism, rationalists and rational thinking..

It was here my concept of rationalism was nurtured to the core by my Professor M Vasanthamma with my other friends like Jayapal, Hari prasad and others. I gained new perspectives when i took social thought as an elective in sociology during my final year in graduation. This led me to see the social problems in a new and wider perspective.

Social thought was taken by my beloved Proffessor M Vasanthamma and she showed the world beyond us and our intellectual horizons became wide open....

Even to this day, i attribute my thinking and my questioning nature to be the gift of my Almamater Maharaja's degree college, Mysore.


Alemaari...