The Ultimate Music

I often find myself returning to the topic of religion in my blog. I've written so much about it that every time I'm motivated to express my view on the subject, I have to search through my blog to make sure that I'm not repeating the same thing again. And more often than not, I've said it before. I found this blog article of mine written in 2008, which kind of summarises my views about religion pretty well.

What more should I or do I need to say? Well, the only thing that troubles me about religion are religious people. These are the so-called learned preachers who spread messages of hate and spite for other religions and treating 'unbelievers' as people who are too blind to see the obvious truth. They think only they have a monopoly of divine insights.

That immediately screams of ignorance. It is like someone who specialises in a specific genre of music, say Jazz, claiming that it is the only true form of music; all others are false. Jazz is supreme because it sees through the 'falsehood' of traditional harmony. One can see how naive that is.

Music and art in general are creative products of human culture and civilisation. There are many different schools and forms of music that emerges, in response to the epoch which the humans live in. It's a beautiful thing. Why limit ourselves with one type of music? 

Now hang on, I can hear the religionists objecting: religion is not like music. It is Truth with capital T itself. It determines the purpose of our lives and where we end up after death. Isn't the question of death something that should be treated seriously? How can you treat it as like as some kind of frivolous entertainment like music?

I've explained why music is a good metaphor for religion elsewhere before and will not repeat my arguments here. But the most important thing that bears repeating again is this: if only our attitude towards religion is like what we have towards music, the world would be a much better place. We all listen to the music that speaks to us personally, so why deny others their own choice of music? If you don't like the music, switch to another radio station. What's the big deal? Why should I be so bothered that you not dig Jazz?

While comparing religion with music, it is also interesting to note that some religious authorities also take issue with music as a kind of frivolity that corrupts the soul of its listeners.  Throughout history, religions have always been suspicious of anything that involves the pleasures of the senses.  Piety is seen as something that rises above the base cravings of the mortal body. 

Music, dancing and the consumption of intoxicants seem to go hand-in-hand and are often associated with activities that are immoral, in the eyes of the religion. At one time, even coffee--which induces a strong craving and consumed in coffee-houses where people socialise and supposedly engage in licentiousness--provoked strong debates among religious authorities as to whether it should be banned.

Every institutionalised religion sees itself as a kind of social and political framework for building a utopian society. If everyone adheres to its doctrinal rules, it would usher in a golden age where humanity flourishes. That is the dream of many religious visionaries--the realisation of the Kingdom of God on Earth.

We all love utopias, especially when we are young and just becoming aware of all the injustices in the real world. Religion and other ideologies like communism offer a vision of a better society which is worth fighting for. It feels great and meaningful to be fighting for a cause. And sometimes you are even willing to die for it. Dying for a noble (and better still, divine) cause gives life meaning. And God knows we cannot live without meaning.

We've seen this movie before. It gets played again and again, like we are caught in some kind of infinite loop. It is a zeal that is difficult to comprehend, but it is part of the human impulse. 

It is what I see in the software development world too. A new framework comes up that promises to be the ideal one for web development. And religious wars are often fought over them (e.g. React vs Angular), with fanatical supporters on both side. Who is right, who is wrong? Well, it depends. Adopt what suits you best. Inevitably, another framework or programming paradigm will come along, promising a more utopian vision. 

Let's all for once, grow up when it comes to religion. Appreciate them as one would, when listening to music. They might or might not be to your taste. You can celebrate them, but never dictate what others should or should not listen to. There is no such thing as the Ultimate Music.