Religion in Dharma Bums Essay

Japhy, do you think God made the world to amuse himself because he was bored? Because if so he would have to be mean. (Pg. 153)

Japhy and Ray are extremely critical of religion in general, specifically Christianity. Their cynical attitude towards religion results in a biased and pessimistic portrayal of Christianity. There is a sense of communion between the Dharma Bums and a sense of pity for the rest of the world. This bias is apparent in the quote mentioned earlier as Ray describes God as mean and it gives a skewed portrayal of Christianity. Although the book seems to be about the path to enlightenment it spends a lot of time deriding people and concepts that do not follow the same path including religion. The books portrayal or depiction of these people and concepts contradicts its depiction of the path to enlightenment as one of acceptance.

Ray seems particularly prejudiced in that he turned from Catholicism to Buddhism. This places him in a frame of reference that is critical of Christianity. His disgust for the mindless conformity of the masses is translated over to religion. Ray Smith probably has a lot of disgust for anything he feels he used to be as he is making a transition in his life. Seeing as he was one of the crowd, one the mindless conformers he feels the need to deride all that represents his past. Although he seems to defend Christianity at some points he remains highly critical of it. The quote above reveals his ambiguity. While he is criticizing Christianity he makes his query open ended by asking a question. The statement that follows leaves a loose interpretation of his feelings on the subject. Rays exploration of his spirituality makes for an interesting dilemma because as he feels he becomes more and more of a Dharma Bum he remains highly critical if not directly prejudiced against other ways of being, including religion. I find hypocrisy in that his exploration leaves him bigoted instead of truly enlightened.