Ghantakarna - Religious Fanaticism

Ghantakarna was a Shaivite & a hater of Vishnu. He used to hang bells from his ears so that their jingling could drown the name of Vishnu if ever uttered by anyone in his hearing.

This type of fanaticism has been always present in spite of saints like Shirdi Sai Baba, Sri Ramakrishna & Sri Satya Sai Baba, to name a few, having spoken against it.

Swami Vivekananda, a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna has pointed out the irrationality of such thought & even went so far as to say that "if one religion is true, all must be true." He also advocated the application of the scientific mode of analysis to religions.

Unfortunately, in the twenty-first century, the prolification of social media, instead of alleviating this Ghantakarna Syndrome, has aggravated this & contributed to further polarisation. If Ghantakarna was content to just shut out other deities, now the fringe elements are indulging in hate speeches leading to inciting  of violence towards all religions except one's own.

Other ways of perpetuating this polarised way of viewing things is by way of family influence. Also one tends to make one's political leaders' views their own, which may not be advisable as the leader may have his own agenda instead of the nation's good.

It is a paradox that the Internet, providing information of all creeds, instead of drawing people closer, has driven wedges between them.