All World
Gayatri Pariwar

Science and religion [1], both, are important in individual and social life. Without these two, life cannot move forward in the right direction. Both are, of course, different in their nature and working. But their union is similar to that of a blind person and a lame one. Separately, they cannot do much, but unitedly they can cover any distance.

Science is the stream of knowledge that unearths the hidden aspects of matter; and, religion is the stream of knowledge that searches deep within human consciousness. Thus both are important. If the world strives to be only scientific, it will see increasing level of material comfort, but the happiness level will not increase. Conversely, if people are only religious, they may achieve happiness but the majority will be suffering from different kinds of scarcity. Science creates conveniences, religion gives peace.

Historically, the civilization of the East was essentially built around religion. But the West developed its civilization on the basis of science. Consequently, the West made tremendous material progress. It produced riches and comforts but lost its collective conscience. As a result it appears restless today.

The civilization of the future, if it has to be for the benefit of mankind, will have to strike a balance between these two core elements of religion and science. This civilization cannot be simply scientific or simply religious. It will have to be a blend of science and religion.

In a human being, the body and the soul are not opposites; they merely work at different levels. A person, who cares only for the body and its comforts, cannot attain spiritual growth. Similarly, a person who always keeps thinking of inner progress only will completely neglect his bodily requirements. This is not good either. Just as human being maintains a harmony between body and soul, the coming civilization too should have the right balance between science and religion. Science should constitute its body, religion its soul.

A short story would be very appropriate and instructive here. The king of Greece once fell seriously ill. The physicians thought that he would not survive. The ministers and the beloved ones were in anguish. The atmosphere was gloomy. A wandering fakir entered the kingdom. He was known to cure any type of illness. He was brought to the palace. He observed the king and said, “Don’t go mad. This is no illness. It has a very simple cure.” All were surprised. The fakir continued, “Bring a loose tunic from any prosperous and happy inhabitant of the kingdom. The king will wear it and he will be perfectly all right.” The state had no dearth of rich persons. The officers rushed outside. They visited such households and asked for used tunic. The residents said, “We are ready to lay down our lives if that would save the king. We are undoubtedly rich but we are not really happy.” The courtiers had thought in the morning that the prescribed cure was a child’s play, easily obtainable. But with passing hours it began to dawn on them that this medicine was almost impossible to get. When evening came they began to return home, tired and frustrated. The sun was setting. Outside one village, they saw a man playing a very sweet note on flute.

One minister proposed, “Let us make one last attempt and ask this person. He may possibly possess peace.” They approached him and said, “Your music has such joy and peace. We need a tunic from a person like you. The man replied, “Please look at me again. I do not have a tunic.” They gazed in the semi-darkness. He was wearing negligible cloth. They now realised that money is not needed for inner peace. Upon return, the ministers narrated their experience to the king who now fully understood the essence of fakir’s prescription. All sadness now left his mind and he began to feel light and joyful.

This world too will walk the right path if we are able to strike a balance between prosperity and peace. Our problem is that we have always thought about progress in a piecemeal way, not holistically. Our habit is to go to one extreme or the other. This is the biggest weakness of human mind - fragmented thinking and perpetual desire. Our mind is never satisfied with less or the needful; it wants more and more, and this tendency takes it to excesses, dishonesty and restlessness.

It is unwise to think of one’s body as a physical entity only or a soul only. The human personality is a synthesis of the two. A body without soul is not possible. Civilization too would have a bright future when both religion and science have a harmonious interplay. Of course in this scheme, religion will be at the centre and science will constitute the surrounding mass. In other words, in this synthesis, religion will be the guiding wisdom and science its follower. Just as the corporeal body cannot be the master, science too cannot be the master. Controller can be religion only. Only then we can build a better world. In this scientific age, religion is on the back foot, but we need more of it. The pace at which science is advancing can be both extremely beneficial as well as extremely harmful. It has many inherent dangers which can completely ruin mankind. The entity which has the power to keep this hurtling science within the desirable perimeter is religion.

Religion shows the right path. Science is blind; it is blindly and ceaselessly making experiment after experiment......any and every
kind of experiment without much regard to repercussions. Religion, on the other hand, has eyes but it is lame. It needs the strong
shoulders of science to move forward. Only a right blend of the two will save mankind from the impending catastrophe.

Note:
1. The term ‘religion’ here does not imply a particular sect or a particular system of faith and rituals of worship; it implies positive human attributes like humility, honesty, trustworthiness, discipline, fairness, love, peace, caring and sharing, etc.