Part 3 - Different Views Regarding Religion

Both the Western and Indian scholars have given their concern regarding the religion. As the Western scholars have great belief in theism, their views are mostly influenced by it. James has opined religion as the feelings, acts and experiences of individual men in their solitude so far as they apprehend themselves to stand in relation to whatever they may consider the divine.^[1] Again, the great scholar Galloway holds religion as man’s faith in a power beyond himself. The power he has mentioned is the supreme power that helps man to fulfil the emotional needs giving the stability of life.

According to him, man expresses religion in the acts of worship and service.^[2] Another Western scholar Flint considers religion as the highest possible form that is theistic one.^[3] Patrick has mentioned it as the consciousness of the practical relation of the people to an invisible spiritual order.^[4] Kant has mentioned that whenever people look upon all their moral duties as divine commands then there religion constituted of.^[5] Alexander defines it as the faith in deity.^[6] Of these, the definitions made by James and Galloway about religion look like more reliable than that of Flint and others as they possess both the inner and outer senses of religion. The Indian scholars have also tried their best to define religion. Among different scholars, Swami Vivekananda has viewed religion as the manifestation of the divinity already in man. He has said, “Religions manifest themselves not only according to race and geographical position, but according to individual powers. In one man, religion is manifesting itself as intense activity as work. In another, it is manifesting itself as intense devotion, in yet another, as mysticism in others as philosophy, and so forth.”^[7] According to him, the Aryan and Semitic races are the two great sources of all religion.^[8] S. Radhakrishnan has remarked in this regard thus: “Religion has been identified with feelings, emotion and sentiment, instinct, cult and ritual, perception, belief and faith and these views are right in what they affirm, though wrong in what they deny.”^[9]

Religion mainly comprises three parts; firstly, philosophy of religion, secondly, the mythology, and thirdly, the ritual. Without the philosophy, religion can not be survived. It presents the whole scope of religion setting forth the basic principle of it; the goal, and the means to achieve it. In the second place, mythology consisting of legends relating to the lives of men or of supernatural beings and so forth makes the philosophy concrete. And, lastly, the ritual is more concrete than that of the earlier two. It is made up of forms and ceremonies, physical attitudes, etc. With these three parts, a standard religion is formed in any race of the world.