WATIMA: Does religiosity have positive influence?

“Humanism is feasible because of sympathy but our circle of sympathy is limited”

The above quote is from Harvard University’s cognitive scientist Steven Pinker explaining human progress and moral set of beliefs. Now, take a minute to picture packing winds speeding at about 240 kilometres an hour towards your direction. The trail of death and destruction expected is just unimaginable. That was the reality faced by 1.85 million people in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi when Cyclone Idai hit their coastal towns killing more than 750 people last month.

The infrastructure in these coastal towns was built to withstand only half of that intensity, Mozambique, the worst hit, lost structures built more than 100 years ago.

Cyclone Idai is one of the worst catastrophes in African history. Though our circle of sympathy may be limited asProf Pinker notes, there are inspirational stories to be told out of this calamity and one is the feasibility demonstration of humanism by India-based Ram Katha preacher, Shri Morari Bapu.

When Cyclone Idai’s devastation hit global headlines, he sympathised with the families on how they would rebuild their lives and requested people in India and other countries to offer their support to the flood victims. He donated $75,000 to the families of the deceased.

Among those he reached out to help his cause in the three African countries was Lord Dolar Popat the British MP among many other influential people.

It’s not the first time he has rendered help at the time of natural calamities and tragedies.His concern for humanity transcends religious identity. After last month’s terrorist attacks on mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, claimed 50 lives, Morari Bapu donated more than $30,000 to the families of those who lost their lives.

To him citizens all over the world are his family and his entire living is to bring many different branches and sects of religion (even of other faiths), different parts of the globe with a variety of languages, and the different levels of society with a panorama of cultural variation to a common ground of undivided understanding. His concern and compassion for mankind going beyond words and walking the talk inspires many.

Morari Bapu has three binding eternal values, which are Truth, Love and Compassion. A way of living life that is a stable source of inspiration to tens of millions from all walks of life both in India and abroad. For any economist and social scientists interested in the growing study of “Economic studies of religion” Morari Bapu provides a case study of religion as an independent variable in its interaction with political economy.

Does religiosity have a positive influence on individual characteristics such as work ethics, honesty and thrift thereby influencing overall economic performance?

A few months ago, Morari Bapu stirred a religious controversy in India when he invited sex workers for a 9-day long religious discourse and at the same time organised a fund-raising for them so as to help provide financial support and medical care for these women.

As expected there was heated opposition on whether the initiative was morally right. In response, he simply explained that his motive is to make spiritual recitation accessible to the neglected, exploited and marginalised segments of society. And he himself led the way in visiting the red-light streets inviting sex workers for the event.

Thereafter, the idea of taking spiritual teachings to sex workers was taken up and today live screenings of the spiritual recitation are now beamed in the red-light streets of India.

One curious thing about Morari Bapu that will need to be a subject of study is his influence to his followers in relation to their economic behaviour. Economic studies of religion postulate that religion and culture update economic behaviors and economic systems, markets and institutions.