Childhood Indoctrination

Childhood indoctrination, for those who are unaware of this term, refers to the inculcation of specific ideas, faith, beliefs or values in the minds of children without providing a concrete set of reason for doing so. Basically forcing them to think in a particular manner without letting them develop the tools of critical evaluation thus blinding them from the truths of the world.

If you are born into a religious family or simply, a religion, there are high chances that you are most likely a victim of childhood indoctrination as well! A cultural Hindu born in a Hindu family will be taught, in great details, about the stories of Vishnu, Ram, Hanuman, etc. but rarely about the miracles of Jesus or Allah. Similarly, a person born and brought up in an Abrahamic household, say Islam for instance, will less likely be aware of the stories of Vishnu, Ram, etc but will definitely be aware of the creation of earth by the hands of Allah. The question is, who is telling the truth here? Or rather, who is lying the most? Most religious people that I have met so far have claimed that their religion is the one "true" religion be it Hinduism, Islam or Christianity. A person I knew closely went so far so to debunk other religious texts in great detail that he opened up every scientific article he could lay his hands upon just to disprove the texts, exactly how you would imagine a "rational" human to go about except that he forgot to do the same to his own religion. The point isn't to speculate over the credibility of their claims but to wonder what could have been done to these people that they, on one hand, are so critical of some religious texts while on the other hand being super defensive about their own texts. The answer, I believe, is the indoctrination of religion at an age so small where people like the ones mentioned couldn't develop the mind to apply the same set of skills they used to debunk other religions onto their own. The seeds of religion are sown very early into the minds of these people and they only continue to grow as they thrive in the "right" environment.

"An idea is like a virus, resilient, highly contagious. The smallest seed of an idea can grow. It can grow to define or destroy you"

We are living in an era where misinformation travels faster than the speed of truth does. It has now become our responsibility to be critical of everything that we see and hear. An idea, is indeed, really strong and contagious. A right one can foster generations to come and a wrong one can decimate them.

Bob Biswas, 15-06-2024