Does faith and religion, free or limit the mind?

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M&U

I think it depends on how you perceive religion and how you go about it. If you approach religion with an inquiring mentally, kind of like you approach philosophy then I think it would free the mind and open up options to interpretation and practicing religion. If someone sees religion as mere rules and regulations and not a way of life then they might become close minded especially if they dont look and search for meaning.

Zoser

You know 'hope', Now I say they free the mind,, simply I admit I was mistaken before, Faith frees the mind indeed, we need always a cure when we have problems, sometimes nothing can be done to solve those problems, than having faith,, and that will not solve the physical problem maybe,(and maybe yes) but it will give us some strength according to how much faith we have to keep going,, The more faith we have the more ability to accept our problems,, when we would believe , that every thing we have and every thing we lose , are From God,, and the ultimate faith will show us simply that we do not have anything to start with, everything is not ours, we are just using God's property including ourselves, so why should we block our minds if He takes back what He owns,,I know it is easy to say, and very hard to admit ,even with me (the writer of this advices) why? I am still not having a free mind, I am still just a slave for the needs, without the real believing that we all own nothing,,, I am still having less Faith than I need to accept my problems, I am still not FREE Minded
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The real freedom is to be free of our desires and needs, I can also add wishes, which are not in our hand,,, It is funny that the only wish we can all have- Free almost of charge,- and completely depends on us (to be in Heaven ) is only provided by the religion,,, if religions limit our behaviors, they are in fact trying to free us from the materialistic desires, with no neglecting of our life,, but Religions give us all an easy life, whether we have or not have, whether we are healthy or not healthy...etc,,,they gives us the acceptance,,,

Reikominder

Faith will not limit the mind, and will not free it too, but it will help the soul to keep itself clean ,

I think Religion is limiting our mind, sorry to say that , but its my opinion, because the religion prevent you from thinking about many things, its like you prevent urself from thinking, which i think is totally wrong,

What a great question ya hope, God bless you.

Kalooka

it's the mind who comes first, there are great minds and feeble minds, some people might have faith and free minds also others do limit it, but what i m trying to say is that faith and religion doesn't add to the mind that much, it's a matter of is it really there or not..

sistablu...Maat

Faith is an abstract concept and although we may all follow the five pillars of faith according to Islamic teachings there is still much that is up to your personal interpretation.
Even the words of the Holy Quran can be read by two different scholars and interpreted in two differing ways.
If you allow yourself to be lead unquestioning by this scholar or follow that Imam's teaching even though you may have some doubts about their interpretation,then you cannot honestly be said to be free in your beliefs.
For then you are allowing yourself to be limited or resticted by the constraints applied by another's interpretation.
I do believe it is possible to live according to the teachings of our faith and still maintain free and independent thought.
If anything my reversion to Islam has opened my mind and expanded my ability for accepting the reality of an abstract thought and concept..

7ala is fluffy ?

Now that's a hard one & i may not win friends with my answer, but no offence is meant, ok.
For Faith, i believe that to have the inner strength to really have strong belief in something can free the mind. It enables you to explore other concepts, but with the purity of an open mind.
For Religion, it is by definition meant to confine & control the mind. I mean no disrespect to any religion here, this is why i separated the answer into Faith OR Religion.

Eman G (awayyyyyyy)

They free the mind but limit the behaviour.

Zman_Egypt

it's very very good Question and a hard one too.
but i think it's control on it and makes it go to the right way not to follow his desires and do every thing wrong.
like if the human fellow his desires he would be walk in the streets naked and doesn't matter with anyone and he wouldn't thank GOD for everything he gave to us.

So we must think about it.And we will find that Faith and Religion help the mind not limit it to go to the good and right way. And with out it ? What do you think about the person who does what i told and more worse ? Do you like it ?
so I think it help the mind not limit it

~~~LIMITED EDITION~~~

limits it,make mind think probably

Dont u think that (am) is a lil bit silly?

i_lab_milk

limit.......no doubt about it, whatever words religious people will say about this does not change the fact that it does limit the mind(they believe in doctrines that can never be proven which makes it sound like it was created by some shmuck guessing around with stuff rather than actually studying stuff, all with the intention of controlling people[thus limiting the minds of the poor, gullible fellows])

another thing.....herd mentality("you dont think like us, you dont belong here" or better yet "i kill you").. the intention of making these people think alike(thus again, limiting their minds) and most importantly, to look alike(yes...they happen nowadays)

btw, have u ever heard of an organization with no rules or limitations???...coz thats gonna be pointless

Hard question to answer....because it really depends on what each persons individual definitions of faith and religion are.

For me it frees the mind...in my own faith and religion and sometimes in learning about others faiths and religions.

The reason they free my mind...... is that for me, faith and religion both provide outlets for discussion, and sources of inspiration....sometimes even when you feel there is no stone unturned, you can find answers in faith. Alhamdililah

Aster

Faith free the mind, as when you know that with the help of Allah miracles can happen then you won't have limits in your ambitions and dreams, religion is like a user guide from Allah for humans to learn what are the things that they shouldn't waste their time thinking about it, so if any one used his faith and followed a true religion from Allah he can reach beyond any limits.

Aussie the 2nd

It limits the mind but frees the soul !

â‚¬gÂ¥PTÂ¥â„¢

that's the best question i've seen in a while..

my answer is that faith limits the mind..which is a good thing .everything should have a limit

Ada Wong

it directs and controls our minds

Moonrise

i have faith and i follow the laws of religion.
faith is boundless .
it makes me seek God in different ways that i myself do not understand how i find them.
the laws of religion are fixed .
i cannot change them , they limit my behaviour .
but the wonder of Islam is that it encourages al igtihaad in interpreting the Quran itself .
here religion frees the mind .
i enjoy this freedom when i watch a man/woman of religion trying to interpret the Quran or give fatwa or advise someone on a specific matter .
i find that they arent similar .
some have free minds and allows us to set our minds free .
others have fixed minds and limit our minds .

[][][][]

It depends on how you view it, and what kind of person you are.

Religion and faith in Religion can be very complicating, but I think I can give you a general answer.

In Religion, they have rules. It's easy for them to think 'that's right' or 'that's wrong' because their Religion tells them its right or wrong. There are many different beliefs that have many different views on this.

So tell me, is this free or limited?

On one hand, you can just think 'that's right' or 'that's wrong' and get on with your day. Your free to be in control of your own destiny. Or are you? Your not in control of determining if something is right or wrong. Your Religion is in control of what you think is right or wrong. It will largely depend on what your Religion believes in what you should choose in life, it is not up to you. Your Religion may require you to go to Church every Sunday or maybe prevent you from singing or offer a sacrifice to the gods. Whatever it is, its your Religion thats in control.

Still, Religion can, in some cases, sets you free. You have rules, and when you follow those rules, you will be less emotionally affected than people who don't have a list of beliefs that they absolutely have to follow. Atheists and Agnostics are affected the most as they have to think things through in order to reach the best decision. They are free to choose, but a wrong decision can have a consequence on the mind as they probably might not even know their own beliefs as to what is right and wrong.

You might be Physically free, but Mentally trapped. The Visa Versa can also be true. So in conclusion, it all depends. On your Religion, Beliefs and your Personality.

Here's another question: What is Freedom?

marioma

it controls the mind it makes it knw the wrong from the right which is forsure better =)

institutionalized420

No right answer for this one.

If you need hope and belief to feel free then thats where you will turn.

Personally, it would limit my mind, why would i waste time fearing a god that may or may not exist?

warpedhybrid

religion limits the mind b.c. there are too many fanatical wackos twisting positive messages found in whatever belief they try to practice. I like lennon's lyrics to Imagine...
Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky

Imagine all the people
Living for today... I...

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too

Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...

the song is in the link below ;)

I prefer the company of those who consider themselves spiritual instead of religious. Those who bible beat and pride themselves in being devout, religious ppl. tend to be annoying. It seems as if mean ppl. congregate in religious institutions, it's sad...

Limits it. I lost my youth due to religion. But now I'm catching up for my loss by having sex all over Alexandria, from divorcees to women in bad marriages

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