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Laughter and Religion
Adapted from The Spiritual Practices of Rumi, by Will Johnson (Inner Traditions, 2007).
Many religions and spiritual paths are built primarily on bricks of tears. Others demand almost superhuman courage to climb their tall trees and pick their fruit. Still others seem just to want to scare us silly so we’ll start behaving according to their dictates, our own impulses and truths be damned. And why doesn’t laughter seem to fit in anywhere? This thought-provoking piece will really get you thinking, if not actually laughing out loud.
Why is there no place for Laughter at the banquet table of organized religion? Could it be that, if invited, Laughter would behave so badly that it might upset first the cart bearing the golden apples (being served as the first course of temptation and enslavement), and then the whole table as well? Is the high priest’s chair the one place on the face of the Earth that’s off-limits to a whoopee-cushion? What’s become of the smiling Buddhas with the roly-poly bellies and the laughing Taoists who, just before they died, concealed fireworks under their robes so that the mourners gathered at the funeral fires would be giggled, tickled, rollicked, and rolled out of their grief?
Compassion is one of the most powerful and beautiful forces of human nature, but tie a smile as a wick around a glass jar of compassion, fill it with the fuel of laughter, and you have a Molotov cocktail capable of sending the blue meanies that strangle our souls racing for the exits.
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18 comments
add your comment »Yeah. To each his on but it is so odd to me to find structured religion driven by that which is proclaimed as tool of the demons, being fear.
that has confused me for...ever.
Maybe it is not supposed to make sense.
I don't know.
Everything goes better with a positive good spirit, of laughter. Hoever that works into the mix, I don't know.
peace.
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I think, it is not so much the religions that appear to be sombre, but the people themselves, who depict 'saving ones soul' as a serious matter.
As for laughing - do it every moment of every day you can. It is true that when you laugh, things do take on a positive aspect, no matter how dark the day seems - the light may only be little, but it grows.
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Religion is based mainly upon fear..... fear of the mysterious, fear of defeat, fear of death.
Fear is the parent of cruelty, and therefore it is no wonder that cruelty and religion have gone hand in hand.
My own view on religion is that of Lucretius; I regard it as a disease born of fear and as a source of untold misery to the human race.
Hard to find a laugh or two in that environment.
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The Joy of the Lord is my strength.Laughter, like anything else should be done with temperance. It is a beautiful gift. A merry heart does good like a medicine while a broken spirit dries up the bones, I found that concept in the Bible, and I believe it. Too, there is a time and a place for all things under the sun.
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I don't think that's always true. At the United Methodist Church I used to go to, both Reverend Ward, & Reverend McCummin's before him were funny. Not in every sermon, but in alot of them. So yes, I agree that laughter should be included in not just religion, but in all areas of ones life.
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In the present it is vital for talks to be
going on if a solution has to be arrived for a problem.Even if there is a war of words and
peace is disturbed talks should be going on among peoples/govt and give peace a chance.
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In my life I have been blessed to meet many wise Elders, the one thing they all had in common was humour. This taught me more than anything else. In my own indigenous family background, relatives that didn't have much on the material level were rich in humour and were always a joy to be around. I would rather die laughing than any other way.
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I've known the ability to laugh is helpful to those coping with the major illness and the tress of the life's problem. Here are some tips to help you put more laughter in your life:
Figure out what makes you laugh and do it (or read it or watch it) more often.
Surround yourself with funny people -- be with them every chance you get.
Develop your own sense of humor. Maybe even take a class to learn how to be a better comic -- or at least a better joke-teller at that next party. Be funny every chance you get -- as long as it's not at someone else's expense!
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Laughter is both scientifically and spiritually proven to be beneficial. Some studies (of both kinds) dictate that even if you force yourself to laugh, it will be good for you. Besides, why not spread the happiness around?
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Cindy L. Slye
Laughter was a good part of my childhood. My father always had me learn that life is short. My mother kept me in line. But if some people were not so being serious they would actually enjoy themselves. Also God does not frown upon laughter.
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