If God Exists, Why Isn't It Obvious?

My point is I have not understood the models yet. Not everything true is obvious or easy to grasp.
I might understand at some point and deem them not good enough .But until then I reserve the judgement.

Yes but when he writes about neuro surgery I will not be so quick to dismiss.
Everything written by an expert is not valid but when an expert writes about his domain I will read it very very patiently.

 

Part — 1 (Why am I an atheist)

“In dark ages people are best guided by religion, as in a pitch-black night a blind man is the best guide; he knows the roads and paths better than a man who can see. When daylight comes, however, it is foolish to use blind, old men as guides.”
― Heinrich Heine

I cannot recollect when I forswore God. I feel like I was atheist from conception. My episodic memories of being introduced to God point to festivities celebrated at home where I grudgingly uttered prayers, monotonously chanted slokas and prostrated to every idol in the altar. I never protested but inward I never enjoyed what I was doing. But I was scared that my mom might thwack me if I defied to gratify God. At the age of seven or nine I tuned to paranormal literature. I used to hoard magazines on paranormal and super-natural mysteries. Then came Pustak Mahal books, Twilight, Paranormal Investigators and X-files on the telly. My summers were engrossed in papier mâché of UFOs. I was convinced by ten that I desperately wanted to be abducted. I secretly wished that my room lits up in green vapours, an alien craft hovers above my roof and two gangling arms air-lift me. When that happened I would not longer have to propitiate my imaginary play mates. I must be slightly older when I told my mom that I don't want to be dragged to the inner sanctum of temples. I don't find it sublime and all. Then in my teens I no longer pretended that I was pious. Next in college, I put down my feet to all pilgrimages. My family travelled on their own leaving me behind. By twenty I declared that I cannot oblige to any kind of religious indoctrination. "By the way, am I adopted because the genes don't reconcile?"

When I accepted that there is no higher-order derivative self-perpetuating power to guide and protect, I took to Existential literature. Every one starts with Nietzsche and I was no different. Then came Camus, Sartre, Spinoza, Voltaire, Dave Allen, the Four Horsemen of Atheism. Followed by Smithsonian, Templeton, Nautilus, LessWrong articles. I've not consciously dated non-religious men but I found them more appealing. Most of my friends were atheists by then so I was not in any social circle where religion played a big part. I still can't grasp "spirituality" as a concept so never dabbled in it. There are annoyances and irritations in life but no despair that I was compelled to importune consolatory sustenance from invisible entities. By and large, I was a happy hippy in life.

I've vague memories of childhood and of a life where I was clueless why I was doing what I was doing. Today, I am content with my lifestyle choices and social beliefs in life. There is no confusion around why's, what's and how's of life. KV is also non-traditional and non-religious so there is very less of God, divinity and religion in our daily activities and no expectation of waking him up in the morning holding a censer: "Aye ji, ghar jaldi aa jana aaj karwa chauth pooja hai"

Part— 2 (How is life as an atheist)

“Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”
― Douglas Adams

I bought a cottage couple of years ago in India and my parents were thrilled. So I accepted their offer to decorate it. On my next visit to India my mom beams at her interior skills. I give her side-eye and walk into every room and inspect. The whole place looked like I walked into a shrine. There were religious frames, symbols and icons in every room. I just smiled. My folks are one adorable couplet, did not want to scowl. Last year I bought a holiday home in India and I thought it was time for me to have a gentle talk.

Transcript of the conversation as I remember:

The entire family gets on a video call.

Repeat after me, nothing will be hung on the walls without running through me. Every passport sized frame should also be sanctioned by me. Kapish? (5 heads nod)

No upholstery , furniture, pedestals with any religious symbols. Kapish? (5 heads nod)
Talk to the builder and extend the balcony to the space allocated for pooja room. Kapish? (5 heads nod)
Don't foist any beautifully engraved doors with divine signification? Kapish? (5 heads nod)

Any doubts?

Where should we do satyanarayana pooja? We can set up makeshift altar and perform. We can invite few people and a priest who performs express ceremony. You may have to sit for only few minutes. Or may be we will ..

There won't be any kind of pooja with me. You want to do something, make the arrangements and wrap up before I show up. (Aye, 5 heads nod)

Unfortunately I cannot upload the pictures of the holiday home due to privacy concerns but my folks diligently did the interiors as per my taste this time. All geometric embellishments and minimalism of Luis Barragán. Being non-religious means spelling it out (multiple times) what you want to be surrounded with. Being an atheist means no precarious walk on the fence but having feet firmly on the ground. Being a non-conformist (by virtue of the aforesaid traits) means being true to oneself. I don't think I changed gears in life. In retrospection, I never understood "God" a.k.a Supreme Power so I accorded with what my thimble-sized brain can comprehend. That does not mean I understand Einstein's "Special Theory of Relativity", it means I chose something that sounded less absurd of the two.

 

In the same Lord of the Rings when Frodo Baggins declares the Fellowship of the Ring, Samwise Gamgee though initially reluctantly and wary breaks all the barriers and clings to Frodo Baggins steadfast. There are few things you don't question, you don't doubt, you cannot even arraign because the dark forces conspire to keep them together. Samwise does not know what Frodo is upto neither does his antics deter him but he only believes one thing that when Frodo trips into a ravine or wards off an Orc or even battles Sauron's looming army he won't atleast be alone.

 

@justanothergirl now tell these two to get a room pls?

 

Why a room you think we can't squeeze into this chinese ceramic teapot?
That's fine, we will ride off on our Atheist Pony

 

Heyyy! They are expecting YOU to reply or directing their responses to you! This has become more snippet-y like G ji! You post, they give feedbacks and wait until the op responds to them, or the faith argument thrown back at the 'others' vaguely... You tell me what to do but go silent?! : )

So... Its -3??? Ouch.

 

While we are discussing the "obvious" or the lack thereof, here is a debate by the big kahunas in theology from another virtual universe in this cosmic, er, cyber multiverse.

Link: A Templeton Conversation: Does science make belief in God obsolete?

 

Thank you! A rookie needs to start somewhere! Definitely its not finding the 'faith'! : )