Category: criticism

Rajini and Religion

On By PriyaIn criticism, random, ranting3 Comments

Dr.Richard Dawkins always says that religion has acquired an unique status that enables others never to speak ill of it. You cannot criticise your own or others’ religion in public. You can, however, do so in private among your close friends. Such high criticisms on religion and how it poisons the minds of the people will bring about much chaos from all corners, if made known to the public. In our world, atheists are still a minority only.

Now, why am I comparing Tamil actor Rajini with religion? To say that Rajini has also acquired such an unique status, whereby you cannot criticise him openly, in public. You will be mauled by his enormous number of fans. What Dawkins days is very true. Everything in this world should be able to be subjected to criticisms. Why should anyone or anything be put on a pedestal?

So you are asking me what is there to criticise super star Rajinikanth? I have a nothing to criticise him about. I disagree with few of his methods to attract his fans. But there is nothing to criticise him about. However, I’m saying that he should be able to be subjected to criticisms by those who are or are not his fans.

In almost every show I see, each and everyone of them praise him and like him. I would ask, well what has he achieved, that I could also follow him and take him as my inspiration? According to me, nothing. So I do not care about him and I have nothing against Rajini. But these people just blindly quote him to be their inspiration. If they are actors, well it’s understandable. But even the general public? Why does everyone have nothing critical to say about Rajini? Why do they all just follow the crowd?

Well, you can ask me, those who know me well. Why do I like Vijay, if I am ignorant of Rajini? You might say I’m being an hypocrite. Let me be clear. I do not like Vijay as an actor. I do not approve of his ways of acting in those so-called masala movies and wasting his talents. But I likie Vijay as a person. And they don’t call him ‘Ilaya thalapathi’ for nothing. He has talents. He’s just wasting them right now.

I have watched a lot of Vijay’s interviews. I like the person I saw in those interviews. His personality, his like for aloneness and all that, I like it. I like his chubby face. I liked him a lot in ‘Kathalukku Mariyaathai’, ‘Bhagavathi’, and ‘Puthiya Geethai’. In Kushi, he was fantastic! But he’s just simply wasting his talents in movies like ‘Mathurey’, ‘Thirumalai’ and ‘Sivakasi’.

I would really like it if Rajini does good roles, like some hollywood actors in movies like Die Hard, or Mission Impossible. I don’t like it when people act typical tamil actor roles. Like a hero, saving the heroine, fighting the villains and all that.It’s quite boring. Tamil film industry has still a long way to go. I also agree with Dawkins, that nothing should be left out when it comes to criticisms.

The Purpose Driven Life?

On By PriyaIn Atheism, book-reading, criticism1 Comment

I have heard about Rick Warren’s book called “The Purpose Driven Life”. A lot of people have told me that the book is really good and that it has helped them a lot. So I borrowed this book from my friend to read it during the weekend. But before I talk about the book, I would just like to give this disclaimer. I am not here to criticize the people who have read, or reading, or are going to read the book. I am only criticizing the writer and the writings in the book.

But who am I to criticize the writer? Afterall, Rick Warren has done a lot in his life and he is certainly well-qualified to write this book about Christian faith. So on second thought, I am only critizing the writings in this book.

When I started reading the first chapter, no matter how hard I tried to read every word and sentence patiently, I couldn’t go on. I wanted to read this book to understand how people of christian faith try to spread their faith. So I tried reading it patiently, trying to understand. But finally I had to start skipping certain pages. After that I started to skim through all of the pages and read certain paragraphs closely. Gosh! It was that boring! And I couldn’t believe that people actually say that this book is great. It is nothing more than a Christian Self-help book, no matter what the author writes to convince us that it is not.

The book is also filled with contradictions. Both self-contradictions and contradictions with what the Bible actually says. For example, one part of the book says that God was so grieved that nobody lived to please him except for Noah, that He wanted to wipe out the human race. Another part of the book says that the God knows that we are incapable of being perfect or sinless and yet he still loves us. Not to mention Rick Warren’s cherry-picking of verses from the bible. It’s self-evident that the book is so biased.

In Matthew 22, Jesus says, “thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind”. In the book, Rick’s interpretation is that our love for God should be heartfelt and genuine. But how can you love God genuinely? Do you know Him? How can you love someone who you don’t even know about? During the times of the Bible, people were well aware of what they were talking about. The historical events in the bible happened near their time and so their beliefs in God and their love for Him were stronger. But now it’s already 2000 years since the events claimed to have been happened.

Rick’s cherry-picking has done much damage here. We should not misinterpret the words of the scriptures. Everything should be read, both good and bad. The verse continues, “And the second is like unto it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself”. Love you neighbour as you love yourself. Because he is none other than you, but just in another form and shape. Before you love God, you have to love yourself first, and then other fellow human beings. But Rick condemns selfish behaviour. Because loving yourself is a selfish thing. But this doesn’t matter. This is just my opinion based on my other book readings.

The book also focuses much on the Intelligent Design theory. But you know about me. You readers know that I’m an atheist when it comes to supernatural gods. So I viewed the writings of this author sceptically. I don’t believe in the ID theory. But if I have to believe in it, then I face a big problem. If everything and everybody is indeed created by God, then who created God? If God is the father of Jesus and God created Jesus, then who created God? The problem doesn’t stop there. The predicament continues infintely. If it is true that every design has a creator, then who is the creator of the creator?

Well, I’m going to finish reading the book. Anything else to say, I’ll do that in my next entry.