Periyar E. V. Ramasamy: Quotes about religion

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy was Tamil politician and social reformer. Explore interesting quotes on religion.

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy: 94 quotes23 likes

“It is absurd to quote religion or God or religious doctrines to render the people as lowest castes.”

Veeramani, Collected Works of Periyar, p. 511.
Untouchability

“If god is the root cause for our degradation destroy that god. If it is religion destroy it. If it is Manu Darma, Gita, or any other Mythology (Purana), burn them to ashes. If it is temple, tank, or festival, boycott them. Finally if it is our politics, come forward to declare it openly.”

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Veeramani, January 1981 (2005) Collected Works of Periyar E.V.R., Third Edition, Chennai. The Periyar Self-Respect Propaganda Institution, p. 489.
Society

“I want to say a word to the Brahmins, “In the name of God, religion, sastras you have duped us. We were the ruling people. Stop this life of cheating us from this year. Give room for rationalism and humanism.”

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Veeramani, Collected Works of Periyar, pp. 518 & 519.
Rationalism

“I want the Brahmins to realize that the Dravidian people today are very much hating those who cunningly cheated them with absurdities. They are now aware of the particular community making a living by spreading the foolishness. People have begun to hate god, religion, caste, mythologies (puranas) and so on.”

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Veeramani, Collected Works of Periyar, p. 517.
Brahminism

“It is an irony that the religious discourses which were intended to Kindle piety and religiosity in all listeners produced the opposite effect on Ramasami. As he grew up, he became convinced that some people used religion only as a mask to deceive innocent people. That was why he took it as one of the duties in his life to warn people against superstitious and priests.”

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Mr M.D. Gopalakrishnan, in” Rationalist /Social Reformer/”.
About Periyar

“It gave me extraordinary pleasure to fling at the pundits their own contradictions and Thus perplex Them. It also gave me the reputation, among our neighbours of being a clever speaker. I believe that it was this experience which deprived me of faith in castes and communities, in religion, in "puranas", in "sastras" and in god.”

Periyar E. V. Ramasamy

Brahminism <br class="br">Source: Quoted in Rationalist /Social Reformer http://www.uni-giessen.de/~gk1415/periyar.htm