THE BLOG - ...

When it is not raining, what will the primitive tribe do? It will arrange a ritual, perhaps a sacrifice of a living human being – their god is very bloodthirsty. Or, if the tribe has evolved a little, then instead of a man it will choose an animal. If the tribe has evolved a little more then it will choose not even an animal, not even a man, but something similar.

For example, in India they break a coconut because is very similar to the skull of a man. They put a little mustache on it, add two eyes, a little nose. In fact, in Hindi the skull is called 'khopri' and the narial 'a coconut' is called 'khopra'. They have found a good substitute. They think whatever makes them feel pleasure also makes their god feel pleasure in the same way. A naked, beautiful girl will be placed before the god, all kinds of foods will be prepared and placed before the god, and they will go into a mad dance: it is a way of pleasing the god.

God is displeased, that's why rains are not coming. If he is pleased, rains will be coming – and rains, sooner or later, do come; then their ritual is proved valid. Once in a while it happens that rains don't come at all. Then the god is really very badly displeased and needs more sacrifice, more ritual.

This is the lowest kind of religion – call it magic-religion – the belief that just by chanting a few words, doing a few actions, you can change the course of existence. It is simply stupid. Existence has no need of your sacrifices, existence has no need of your dances – and nothing reaches to existence. But the instinctive man, the primitive man, cannot do more than that. That is the limit of his understanding.