In this episode based on the book chapter called SEEK, I am joined by Imran Taib, a philosopher and an interfaith and multiculturalism expert to explore the realm of religion and spirituality with empathy and curiosity.
"When I was thinking of who I would like to have a conversation with on this shade of love on religion, spirituality and humanity, I immediately thought of my learned friend whom I enjoy these conversations of spirituality and religion with - he's none other than Mohamed Imran Mohamed Taib.
Imran already had a sterling reputation as one of Singapore's foremost interfaith and multiculturalism experts when I first reached out to him to meet after stepping down from Parliament. I was then increasingly concerned with some of the right wing and conservative ideas that I was hearing from certain religious groups and wanted to understand more from him. You know how you conjure up these images of religious scholars with long beards and robes? Imran completely disappoints when he showed up looking no different to my kawans from the neighbourhood. In fact, when I later moderated the Civil Society conversation after the general elections in 2020, I asked all the 9 panelists of which Imran was one of them to describe themselves in a 7-word biography - his first attempt was "Enjoys robust conversations over teh tarik" - how interesting is that?
Imran is also the co-founder of Centre for Interfaith Understanding or CIFU which strives to strengthen the multi-religious fabric that weaves all of Singapore together by advocating for deeper discourse among various faiths through dialogue, training and curriculum development."
Join us as we explore the difference between spirituality, religion and culture, topped with our personal stories of our path to discover our versions of religion.
Also, come find out why the Epiphyte is paired with this shade of love in the book!
MY INVITATION TO YOU:
What does religion and spirituality mean to you? Is there a difference?
What beliefs help you move forward and what holds you back?
RESOURCES:
IRO or the Interreligious Organisation https://iro.sg/about-iro/
Youth-oriented groups such as
Being Bridges, https://beingbridges.com/
Roses of Peace https://rosesofpeace.com/
Interfaith Youth Circle https://www.interfaithyouthcircle.com/
More than Just https://www.buro247.sg/culture/buro-loves/more-than-just-race-racism-dinner-singapore.html
Minority Voices https://www.minorityvoices.net/team
Beyond the Hijab https://beyondhijab.sg/
