When I was a child I read the story in the Bible about Abraham sacrificing Isaac. I asked my father what he would do if he heard a voice from God telling him to sacrifice me. He told me he would see a psychiatrist. Dad had more sense than the Bible or Koran bashers.

david f

Not much longer now before you might be answering for your contempt for religion.

Not sure we see much of this in today's Australian society. Or when Muslims bombed Bali or beheaded Christians in the M.E.

Pretty words are nice, but pointless when not backed by action!
Alan B.

What David f says.
Alan B.

Dear ttbn,

I have no reason to think that I will have any experiences after I die any more than trees or possums have. We can gather rosebuds while we may. Religion is been a solace for some, a justification for oppression by others, a source of education, a source of repression of thought, a justification for violence, a justification for compassion etc. I believe it's very much a mixed bag and has done more harm than good. Others will differ. If the story in the Bible is true, it tells me that Abraham was a fanatic nut.

Religion is a man-made concept.
You won't find the rest of the animal kingdom going to church regularly.
Nor do plants get together for 'devotions'.
It is altogether something peculiar to man.
It was devised by men to exercise control over people, and gain access to their money.
Pure and simple.

Superstition and fear play a big part in any religion.
Superstition is an instinct we need for survival.
It makes us avoid sources of possible danger.
And likewise, fear of immediate harm does much the same.
These instincts have been hijacked.
And it works for the simple minded.

A person dies when his brain ceases to function.
At that point he no longer exists.
The support system used by a living brain still remains.
It will very quickly reduce and be absorbed by the earth?
Then the person will be nothing but a memory for some.
There will come a time when no one living has a memory of him.

So however much you wring your hands, and proclaim eternal life, it won't happen.
When you die, you will cease to exist.
Anything 'bad' or 'good' you did whilst alive might possibly remain.
I note that the religious can be vindictive.
'Look what will happen to you when you die' etc etc etc.
It is a shallow and ineffective remonstrance.
Whilst we are alive, best to live a productive and rewarding life?
Don't be mean-minded or narrow-minded: or vindictive.
Engage responsibly with the world around you?

Dear Syed Atiq ul Hassan,

May Allah bless you.

Unlike in the olden days, very few people today have sheep or other farm animals as friends which they hold dear.

But many have other pets, both animal pets and non-animate pets.

Suppose you had a pet which you treated like your child, which you have taken into your own bed when it was cold, which you spent sleepless nights when it was ill, trying to find a vet in the middle of the night and going there with heart fluttering not knowing whether they will survive, and when they did you not only paid $1000's in vet fees, but also thanked her with a special card and flowers.
Suppose then you believed, rightly or wrongly, that Allah wanted your pet sacrificed and so you wiped off your tears and did, then you could have been following the principle and spirit of Qurbani.

Qurbani literally means "to bring [oneself] close [to Allah]". It does so because by performing the physical act, one reaffirms Allah to be their highest priority.
Slaughtering an anonymous sheep to which one is not particularly emotionally-attached, for its meat, for you and your family to eat and for accruing the merit accompanying charity to the poor, does not fulfill the spirit of Qurbani and I doubt it would be endearing to Allah at all.

*-*-*
Sacrifice that is performed according to scriptural injunctions without expectation of rewards, with the firm conviction of the mind that it is a matter of duty, is of the nature of goodness.
O best of the Bharatas, know that sacrifice performed for material benefit, or with a hypocritical aim, is in the mode of passion.
Sacrifice devoid of faith and contrary to the injunctions of the scriptures, in which no food is offered, no mantras chanted, and no donation made, is to be considered in the mode of ignorance.
*-*-*
[Bhagavad-Gita 17:11-13]

Dear David F.,

«He told me he would see a psychiatrist. Dad had more sense than the Bible or Koran bashers.»

I agree and like your father's response!

(in such case I could also suggest him getting a hearing-aid...)

«I have no reason to think that I will have any experiences after I die any more than trees or possums have.»

You may have no reason to think so, but even then, a devotee who truly loves God would still worship and sacrifice just the same.
If one worships for the sake of having desirable post-death experiences, then they are merely mediocre traders who try to do business with God, just as I quoted above to the author: "know that sacrifice performed for material benefit, or with a hypocritical aim, is in the mode of passion."

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Dear Ttbn,

«Not much longer now before you might be answering for your contempt for religion.»

David F. never stops thinking about God - I think that should please God very much!