OF MATTERS MUNDANE AND OF DELUSIONS GRAND-1

The hottest book to have hit the stands recently seems to be “The God Delusion” by Richard Dawkins. The title unambiguously states the intent of the book.

I personally love this guy’s book “The selfish gene” and being an avowed atheist for over more than a decade now, I am sure I will love this book.

At the heart of the matter of this book is the idea that the question of God’s existence is a scientific question, not a theological one. I haven’t read the book myself , but a New York Times review says that it is along the lines of Russell’s famed “ Why am I not a Christian “ essay.

Dawkins writes with an elegance of prose that is equaled only by his proficiency as an evolutionary biologist. One website even calls him “everyone’s favorite atheist”. I guess this is the closest anyone can ever come to Carl Sagan. Sagan has probably been one of the most dominant influences on my intellectual life (or whatever little of it that exists). His writings opened my mind to new ideas, shaped my attitudes towards life and religion and changed the very way I look at things once and for all. Tells you a lot about the power that ideas carry with themselves. No wonder, books are still burnt around the globe and movies stopped from screening.

Anyways, coming back to the matter on hand, I think Dawkins makes one hell of a point when he says that the question of God’s existence is a scientific question. It is very much a mundane issue. I think we are doing a great disservice to ourselves, if we answer this question, which without doubt is the greatest question of all , with nothing more than “faith” as an accessory.

Dawkins says that the greatest slap on the face of logic is the word “Miracle” .

I don’t want to talk too much about these issues as much has been said about them Ad nauseum but let me just mention two of the many arguments of the believers that really really get my goat:

I have always wondered about that allpowerful , omni present , omniscient , omnipotent , all good God , leaving only vague references to his existence and that too open to varied and often conflicting interpretations. Believers say that God’s intentions are not be known and in fact , he need not reveal all his intentions. But I would say it must be a pretty stupid God who wanted people to be good and yet left so many doubts as to the existence of the enforcer Himself. A booming voice from the heaven now and then would have neatly done the trick. (ok ..a little flippant , but I guess you get the point)
Second is the argument that , if you don’t believe you cannot behave in a moral fashion. I guess this is exactly where the people who say the existence of God is a theological question make a mistake. Because , if God were the arbiter of good and bad , and good and bad ,mind you, is the realm of the mundane , not the divine , then whether God is, is a mundane issue .

Let me sign off with two of my most favorite arguments as to the existence of God !!!!


“ Abracadabra , therefore God exists”

“ See that fire ? Therefore God exists”


Believers don’t have any arguments better than the ones above.