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Quote by Abhijit Naskar

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Abhijit Naskar

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“Is it possible to be a person of integrity while maintaining a radical bifurcation between one's outer and inner lives? And if that inner life should value, above all, rationality, free inquiry, and the right of us all to flourish to our fullest, then how can you keep silent as to the conclusions to which your rational free inquiry has brought you? How can you deny for yourself the right to flourish in the company of like-minded people who will not disapprove of you for subjecting your beliefs and actions to the standards of rational accountability? If you believe in the integrity of your conclusions then you must show them to the world, making the case for them not only by the arguments you hash out in the privacy of your own mind but by the life that you publicly lead.”

“Do you think science matters more than dogma? Do you think this life is all we're going to get, so we need to make the most of it? Do you find that helping other humans in the here and now gives you well-being? Do you think common sense is more important than rules in ancient texts? Do you trust your experience and knowledge over those who claim a personal connection to their god? Then, whether you recognized it before or not, you're probably a humanist!”

“Humanism is the not so radical idea that you can be good without a god. It's the discovery that you not only don't need outdated texts or god experts to make good choices, but that those are frequently poor resources for decision making. Humanists affirm our ability and responsibility to lead ethical lives of personal fulfillment that aspire to the greater good of humanity. We ground that pursuit not in theism or supernatural beliefs, but in the best of modern knowledge determined from trial and error and the scientific process.”

“In the first act, humano-divine relationships are founded on reciprocal similarity. God is regarded as having created humankind in the divine image and likeness. 20 Philosophically, of course, it will be said instead that humankind, from time immemorial, has represented God in human image. One of the basic traits of the God of the religions is personality.”

“In a society that constantly pushes us to perform, we no longer know how to 'eclipse' ourselves when we feel vulnerable, taking the time we need to re-energize and to gather our strength. When we are bereaved we're told that 'life goes on.' After a heart break, 'there are plenty more fish in the sea,' or after a pet dies, 'well it was only an animal.' Life tries to push us forward, as though we don't have every right to retreat into ourselves and to be sad, mourning the fact that after a bereavement life isn't the same, or that a beloved animal will never come back...In our modern human lives, we are rarely afforded the time necessary to recover from our sadness, to nurse our wounds and to perform the necessary transformation before we re-emerge into the world.”