Why Burn And Tear The Holy Books?

I don't know why are there so many distortions and differences? Why can we not live in peace in a humane manner? Why are we called humans when there is hardly any humanity left in us? It is sad how we no longer have any respect for each other and not even for our religions, values and cultures. Our hearts are filled with hatred though no religion preaches that.

Yesterday, a Muslim boy - Akhtar Hussain retaliated to the burning of Holy Quran in Florida by tearing the Bible in Lahore. He tore the Holy Bible into pieces outside Saint Joseph's Church on Lawrence Road. He even tried to burn it but was caught red-handed. The Christians were busy in their religious sermons on Friday when the sad incident took place.

Akhtar was caught by police and was stopped from entering the church by the officials posted there. He then started tearing the Christian holy book in anger. It is being reported that an FIR under section 295 A of the Pakistan Penal Code was charged against him and he was arrested. If convicted he could be jailed for 10 years.

I don't want to go into further details of what happened next and what will happen to the boy but the point remains that are we not becoming blind? We are losing our senses. Was Jesus Christ not a loved Prophet of God? Did he not suffer so much yet refused to say a single unkind word?All the records speak of his kindness and perseverance. Do we don't know that our Prophet Mohammad (p.b.u.h) was such a wise, sensible person who too faced all atrocities bravely because he knew God would always be there to protect him? His belief was his strength. Are we going to forget how a rich man named Gautama Buddha left all the riches and comforts of life to seek inner peace and gave us the real meaning of ENLIGHTENMENT?

Have we forgotten all that these great chosen ones left for us to cherish? We are just making our own rules and routes that are filled with prejudice, hatred and revenge.

If somebody ends up doing something wrong why do we have to react in a similar manner? If one person cannot see things with respect why should we hate and judge everybody else who practices the same faith?

This hatred can only be wiped through respect. We need no degree or education to understand how to respect and accept others. The heart can love as much as it can hate...can we not focus on love instead.

Sluts & Eunuchs

In my write-up “You are not my judges,” I said, “I think men, women, old people, children, eunuchs, sluts, animals – they all have genuine problems.” I don’t know how could I forget teenagers. They have some serious issues & those issues if not tackled properly may acquire the shape of demons later on & fighting your demons is always a big problem. However, I shouldn’t be forgiven for one thing – I didn’t mention that feminists & chauvinist too have problems. In fact, their problem should be everyone’s problem; that is the problem.

I was accused of using the judgmental word slut in my writing. Although the word eunuch too was there in that sentence, but how can any feminist notice that? First of all, relevance is the main thing. At least to me, it is. My topic had nothing to do with sluts. But on my note, I was painted as someone who doesn’t feel sorry for prostitutes. Isn’t it strange people who advocate about judgmental words can be so judgmental themselves! But that’s okay.

“The prostitute has the advantage, not only that she is available at a moment's notice, but that, having no life outside her profession, she can remain hidden without difficulty, and the man who has been with her can return to his wife, his family, and his church with unimpaired dignity. She, however, poor woman, in spite of the undoubted service she performs, in spite of the fact that she safeguards the virtues of wives and daughters and the apparent virtue of church-wardens, is universally despised, thought to be an outcast, and not allowed to associate with ordinary people except in the way of business.”

Bertrand Russell

I mentioned this passage in one of writings a couple of months ago. Now even if I use the word prostitute or whore, would that change the meaning? It’s the business of flesh. Women are available in the market as commodities & they are being used & then nobody gives a damn. Most importantly, by talking shit & dancing on irrelevant stuff, can we provide respect to these women in the society? The answer is pretty obvious. Still if some people want to bang their heads against the wall, they are most welcome.

Anyway I have been thinking about eunuchs. They too are being forced to lead the same sort of life as sluts. When they are little, some elder eunuch castrates them & so they become a part of the clan. Yeah some are also born that way. They too are humans. They too are suffering. Just like sluts, we can’t feel sorry for each & every eunuch though. But everyone has a story. If we take interviews of say 100 prostitutes & 100 eunuchs & they give honest answers, are we going to feel the same way about them? It’s just a question, but I think it’s a pertinent one.

Yesterday I was talking to my friend on the phone & I mentioned that almost 10 years ago, some of my friends went to Heera Mandi (Diamond Market). I too wanted to go there, but my mom didn’t allow me. My friends saw that even 14 year old were in this business, which is quite depressing, to say the least. We all know that many are forced into this profession & we do feel sorry for them. Again some are born there but some choose it.

However, we are also aware of these high-class prostitutes. In rich families too there are characters who charge men & they have it for fun…I think I should use the word lust here. Even if it sounds judgmental, this is the only word I could think of. Nobody calls it judgmental when we use it for men. Anyway, some practice this profession for good money. I do feel sorry for a lot of things, but I don’t feel sorry for such women. And I have been thinking that we may feel sorry for every calamity & misfortune, but are we going to change anything by feeling sorry? Again the answer is no. So I really don’t see the point as to why people want everyone to feel sorry for a situation that we can’t even alter.

I have also met people who say that prostitution is the oldest institution. Why do people want to put an end to it? Everyone is entitled to their views. There are some who say that sluts are sexually liberated women, but when they hear of any woman who sleeps with men, they can’t help calling her a slut. We also know that people sleep to go ahead (it happens everywhere, not just the film industry), now some feminist would also want us to feel sorry for these women. According to them, men are responsible for all the badness in this world.

I really don’t have time to fix the blame on anyone. I have seen that people just want to confuse others. I don’t even think the plight of sluts or eunuchs even matters to them, it’s just that they want to act weird or something. The thing is…I don’t see any solution at all. And all I know is that different people suffer in different ways in different places. Everyone has a story & that story could be tragic. How can you tell that the misery of one is greater than that of another?