first of all realize that your nature is religious (habitual/ritualistic) in so many ways
so it is unwise to bad mouth "religion"
you are not going to escape misery or samsara without the aid of it
good habits are essential in order to negate bad habits
now that is out of the way...
yes very misunderstood
as is all else often
depending on where you are at, words and sentences will have different meanings at different times
sometimes they will have no significant meaning for you
there was a post a while back titled hsin hsin
i can recall reading the document and concur with much of it
there is only one way
god, non-self
the other direction leads to miseries of various degrees
you can look at the myth of the garden of eden as it applies to you every day/hour/second, that is the most practical way of looking at ignorance innocence guilt dread
the issue is not so much about falling of the track but rather how fast you get back on it
the entire eden scene is the creation of god, attempting to tell us how things are in myth form,
but we have an obsession with not thinking 'something' is significant if 'it' was not historical or "factual"
actually the fact lies within the myth
adam and all creation is animated through the breath of god
later in the collection of books there is a reference to life not only being dependent upon bread, but also from every 'word' that proceeds from the mouth of god
it's a shame when the concept of jesus is turned into an idol/saviour/god and then worshiped at the expense of one's responsibilities/accountability
sure, such a figure, as jesus the christ, is worthy of respect, but more than that, it sets an example of what humans are possible of.
if one can not see how cultivation of morality and mindfulness is beneficial then there is, quite necessarily, going to be a proportional amount of misunderstanding and suffering
hatred and disrespect towards other sentient beings (and, even just that attitude itself) leads to suffering on several levels/perspectives,
because if god is all,
then you are obviously harming yourself, instantly, and for who knows how long.
if there is an option, then best to choose the option that involves the least amount of harm/or bad kamma.
habits can be good, but left unchecked, they can also be very dangerous.
there is also a danger of getting wrapped up in scriptures (sentences)
sentences can cast spells and when you are spellbound, you, accordingly, have to serve that sentence
be careful creating belief, as opposed to living gnosis
i can read one sentence or a paragraph, or a few pages of some book, and that would be enough inspiration to keep me going for the rest of my life without ever reading another word.
all that words should do is bring to light what you already know to be 'true' or pointing to the way back home.
of course - eventually non-self
which is usually, quite naturally, not a popular topic.
really, you could sum it all up by saying, do unto others (not just humans) as you would have them do unto you.
