In the name of religion

I once met a man in the US. He was an American by birth but had changed his religion to Sikhism and was taking some sessions for getting initiated into it.

It bewildered me. Why would someone want to change one's religion which s/he is born with? Whats this strong connect/disconnect to religion that so many people seem to exhibit? "I am an atheist"..I have heard that statement many times and I feel that if people can be fanatic about their religions, then even atheism is a sort of fanaticism

If you want to defy existence of God, and display it by doing things like not entering temple and standing outside when made to accompany, then you are actually in some way emphasizing the existence of God. You are no better than a fanatic in my eyes.

And I find it funny why someone would want to change the religion they are born with? Is it like a hobby or some school which you change?
What is it that you are seeking in different religions?
Isn't every religion about self discovery in the end? How would learning how to put on a turban and everything else that goes with it, help you in knowing yourself? What was missing in what you believed earlier?

What is this hoopla over religion?

I follow my religion cos I was born with it, that's what I grew up with.
I like my religion for many things..like the smell of incense which fills my house, like the beautiful colors of my deities, like so many stories around each of them.

But most importantly cos my religion wasn't thrust on my face by my folks.
I was never forced into anything, and never stopped from anything, for the sake of religion.

Even though there are restrictions on women in my religion to practice a few things, like you are not supposed to enter temple in one of those days etc. But my parents never bothered to tell me that(by parents I mean my mom, my father is happy being an atheist thought he would not practice it as a law anyway). I learnt it from other girl friends of mine, or other relatives.

And the best thing(for me) which I love about praying is total submission to someone(I call it God). A thing seen rarely in me as a person. I like the way I bow my head in total faith and regard. I sometimes beg, sometimes just blank out. A feeling of total belonging and unquestioned trust. Which I cant seem to have for anyone else in life. Not to forget the perennial hope which comes with my belief

I had gone to a masjid near Charminar in Hyderabad. There is some mystery about a masjid which enchants me and made me want to enter it. But I was stopped and told that women are not supposed to enter. The front bearers of that place looked at me with some ridicule and disdain. I was enraged and wanted to utter something, but checked myself. It wasnt my place.

I once went to a church in US, it was thanks giving or some such important day for the church. I had a catholic friend with me. At the end of the ceremony, all made a line and went up till the priest who was giving some white colored thing to eat. He was feeding each of them with his hand. My friend said I should not do that since only Catholics, who are baptized, should take that. I was irritated, and determined to take that thing. But the moment I reached the priest, I felt some fear. As if I am peeking inside some sacred secrets which I am not supposed to. A feeling of unknown guilt came over me and I backed out.

I hate it when I have to check myself, without knowing why I am doing it. I want to go with the flow of things, and for me anything is not consummated if not done in its entirety. So for me getting that white thing from the priest would have consummated the whole festive mood, but I had to miss it

On these two occasions I realized what probably makes an atheist. Maybe its the restrictions and bars by each religion which makes one loathe it. Which makes one stop believing in a God, who conforms to such baseless things.
Hence they make atheism their religion.

I can never become an atheist though, maybe I have selfish reasons for that.