#im bad at speaking but im better at martialling my thoughts in text so i figured id write this down.

[sarah-ankh]

"does god exist?" Is a very simple question with, imo, a very complicated answer.

Setting aside the question of which god, I think the starting point is to establish if anything can be proven to exist?

The fundamental nature of human existence is that we live in a sort of simulation, a virtual reality constructed by our brains based on stimuli that cannot be objectively verified.

our brains project both forward and backward in time, compiling our lived reality from a collage of sensations gathered by faulty organs that are processed and updated in chunks, and a series of predictions based upon them. As such our experiential present is not a singular point, but a moment smeared across several seconds of both past and future.

The very essence of the world we inhabit is therefore fundamentally unreal and subjective. Merely the best guess of our subconscious. And add to this the "inter-subjective" realm of our shared culture that is itself an ever-shifting social construction.

To quote Poe; "all we see or seem is but a dream within a dream." And that includes gods and nations and corporations. And even the grass between your toes. It is all simply ideas.

God is as real as everything else within this vivid hallucination, if you believe he is.

I believe that religious beliefs play an important role in human psychology and society. Like the grain of sand inside an oysters shell, the shared belief in a god (or in any other religion or ideology) gives us a nucleus around which to build a community, and a cultural identity, and all else that comes with them, like the layers of lacquer that form a pearl. They can form a powerful core to your sense of self and your worldview and can provide a much needed stable anchor in your life.

To that extent, God, or the Gods can have as much power over a group or an individual as does a corporation. It is the collective belief in that entity that gives it power.

If you choose to believe in a god, you will naturally construct an idea of that god in your mind that will be incorporated into your individual simulated reality. You will personify that deity, give them will and ego. feelings and opinions that can be consulted, something outside of yourself.

That does not make them any more or less real than the grass under your feet, which is after all, only an idea constructed by your brain from a hodgepodge of texture and pressure on the skin, and a vague blob of colour in your periphery, all of which could have been drawn from your memories, or induced by electrodes and seem just as vivid and real.

I see the gods as archetypal figures. Personifications of aspects of our lives that give us a model for our behaviour, and a source of motivation. Or of forces acting in our lives that are too large or complex for an individual to understand or emotionally deal with.

Having belief in something greater than yourself can have wonderful benefits in your life. It can bring great peace and reassurance and even confidence. It can be empowering. And just as the object of your beliefs empowers you, so do you empower it in turn and allow it to act through you upon the world. Belief alters our inter-subjective reality.

[vadapavani-13]

1. what's your first language? are you more comfortable in it than english?

- gujarati, and tbh i speak in a mix of both anyways because sometimes i can't remember the gujarati words for it lol so ig no im not more comfortable in it than english and im sad about that :(

2. which state are you from and do you like it?

- well my grandma is from gujarat, my dad was born in maharashtra and my mom is born and brought up in tamil nadu but all of their mothertongues are gujarati so idk what to consider lol. i don't particularly hate or like maharashtra and gujarat, but i do love tamil nadu [partially because my mama's (mom's brother's) house is there lol].

3. favourite indian city?

- MUMBAI MERI JAAN

4. an indian language you don't speak but would like to learn?

- tamil

5. favourite indian classical dance form qnd why?

- kathakali because the costumes are SO COOL, and also because it includes ancient indian martial arts techniques which i think is impressive.

6. favourite holiday destination in india?

- jim corbett national park

7. favourite festival and why?

- holi!! it's just such a colourful festival and you can never be too old or young for it.

8. favourite tradition (or superstition) and why?

- eating on banana leaves with your own fingers. idk why exactly but it's just so fun.

9. something that makes you glad you're desi

- THE CLOTHES OMG

10. if you weren't born in desi countries, where would you have been born?

- i mean i actually was born in the united states so idk how to answer this question?? but i guess if i had the choice maybe the netherlands because it's so queer friendly.

11. have you ever thought of leaving you country?

- yes, for better education opportunities because as hard as it is to admit, the universities in india currently aren't the best in the world and i feel like i'm very career driven so i want to get the best opportunities i possibly can.

12. favourite indian singer and song?

- favourite singer (and composer) is ar rahman and there's 2-3 songs i really like, chaap tilak by namita choudhary, shubhaarambh by amit trivedi and a lot of other people, and kabhi kabhi aditi from jaane tu ya jaane na.

13. favourite film?

- i know it was a completely flop film but shandaar is so fucking hilarious😭😭 it's by karan johar and is also a spoof of a lot of recurring elementa in karan johar's movies and it's so completely stupid that you just have to laugh lmao.

14. a core desi memory

- so this was when i was like 8 or 9 and my mom had allowed me to go play holi at a friend's house alone and it was the first time i'd ever played with pakka colour and when i came home my mom was horrified but my dad was just laughing. (listen i know pakka colour is bad for your skin blah blah blah but if you haven't played with pakka colour even once have you even lived??)

15. favourite person from your extended family?

- definitely my cousin on my grandma's side. he's my grandma's brother's son's son. we don't text much but when we do meet we just vibe so hard.

tagging @nayak-nahi-nalayak-hain-hum @people-wxtching @mxtthew-fxirchild-apologist and whichever other desi wants to do this!!

Creating Desi asks because I have nothing to do

1. What's your first language? Are you more comfortable in it than english ?

2. Which state are you from and do you like it ?

3. Favourite Indian city ?

4. A Indian language you don't speak but would like to learn?

5. Favourite Indian classical dance? and why?

6. Favourite holiday destination in India?

7. Favourite festival and why?

8. Favourite traditions (or superstition) and why?

9. Something that makes you glad you are Desi?

10. If you weren't born in desi countries which country would have been born in?

11. Have you ever thought of leaving this country?

12. Favourite Indian singer and song?

13. Favourite film from any language?

14. A core desi memory?

15. Favourite person from your extended family?