Vijay Vohra
Faith means Vishwas. This is a very common word used in our daily life. From the time of waking till we go to sleep, we are doing every work with faith and confidence. Faith also means our trust or the belief upon someone. All people have some faith because nothing is accomplished without faith. We must have faith in ourselves or in others to complete any task. We must have faith in laws of nature. We must have faith that we will live to see the result of right effort. Some faith comes naturally to us. When mother tells her child that he is your father, brother or grandparent, he immediately believes because he has full faith in his mother. If we must submit to an operation we believe that the surgeon will save us, despite the sharp knife and other instruments in the surgeon’s hand.
Our beloved Swami Sri Satya Sai Baba says, “Faith is the basis of every act. You do not run away from the barber because he is armed with a sharp razor. You place faith in him and allow him to cut your hair. You give costly clothes to the washer man since you have faith that he will return them washed and ironed. So too believe in the inner motivator, the atman within, the voice of the God”.
It is the inner divinity that enables us to recognize Divinity in the world. That internal source is a spring of courage and confidence. Faith in yourself and faith in God are identical. Some people say that they have no faith in God because His existence has not been proved scientifically or because they have no experience of His plan. It is true that sometimes we cannot understand God’s plan for us and as a result, our faith in Him may waver. But if we are to succeed in our sadhna, we must have unwavering faith in God and accept whatever happens with equanimity, believing that His plan is perfect. We must regard failure as challenge. If we act this way, worry and anxiety will depart and Lord’s grace will be ours.
Beloved swami says. “Faith is like a live volcano, and doubts are seeds. No seed will sprout on a live volcano. If your doubts are multiplying, it means your faith is weak and unstable and akin to an extinct volcano. Where there are doubts, there can be no faith. Your doubts arise or disappear because of your past Karma (actions). No doubts will arise if your faith is strong. To realize divinity you must first get rid of all your doubts. From time to time God subjects you to various tests. These are not intended to be punishments as you may imagine but actually to strengthen your faith. Always remember that the Divine acts as a witness. The Divine shows you the path to self realization.”
Now to succeed we must also have faith in ourselves and in whatever we are doing, provided these actions are dictated by Dharma. In all efforts if you trust in “Higher Power” which is ready to come to your help, work is made easy. This comes out of Bhakti (devotion) or reliance on the Lord, the source of all power. Stick to your faith, do not change your loyalty as soon as something happens or someone whispers. Do not get shaken in mind and do not allow faith to decline whoever is your chosen deity-Vishnu, or Ram, or Shiva or Krishna, or Venkateshwara or Sai Baba, hold fast to Him. Have faith in any one name and form.
Swami says “First you have faith then the Lord, who is core of your being, will manifest Himself. He is within your grasp provided you extend your hand. You worship Him with full faith and you will experience His grace”.
We must have faith in God if we are to make spiritual progress. Faith is first step that makes each following step possible. We have confidence in complete strangers but to place faith in God makes us more critical. We have a tendency to believe what is pleasant and easy. It is more difficult to believe when faith demands action or obligation. Faith in God presents an array of challenges to the new comer. It frequently requires major changes in the new believer’s life style. However, without faith in the messages of the saints, and sages effective progress is impossible.
Our beloved Swami says, “Spiritual progress is not merely intellectual experience, it is right living, good conduct and moral behavior. These attitudes are the automatic consequences of belief in compassionate God who is watching and witnessing every act. So faith in an omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient God is the first prerequisite to good life”.
At the beginning we need to guard faith as a small flame must be guarded form the wind. Until faith is strong, it is best for us to remain silent. By challenging others we may lose the little faith we have. When faith is unshakable we can aid others. Firm faith is like a raging fire which can consume even the green wood of other’s doubts.
Self confidence is synonymous with faith in God. All persons who have faith in their own self must be called believers of God. It would be impossible indeed to achieve anything is this world without faith in Almighty. The benefit we derive from our faith is proportionate to its intensity. Faith is not the belief that God will do what you want. It is the belief that God will do what is right for us.
Unshakable faith does not grow over night. We get faith by knowing God and we know God by reading His Leelas, Mahimas and teaching and believing or accepting what he says. A mark of true faith is that when we begin to act on what we believe. If our knowledge just remains as ideas in our head and does not translate into action, then so called faith is not genuine
Swami says, “Faith can come only slowly by association with the godly, by reading the lives and experiences of godly persons and by gaining experience oneself. Faith in God is best reinforcement for spiritual victory. When you start loving the contemplation of the splendor of the Lord, nothing can attract you, all else will seem inferior, the company of godly and humble will be relished”.
To develop faith on the spiritual path no one should be asked to relinquish his judgement or to accept ideas blindly. We should test all spiritual teachings with our experiences. Some people say that they have full faith that whatever is destined will happen, then why should they try to do something. But beloved Swami says “It is wrong to desist from appropriate action placing reliance on destiny. If you do even destiny will slip out of your hands”. So to achieve something we must do efforts sincerely using the intelligence and conscious with which He has endowed us.
The faith with which we pursue the goal helps to implement the result. The Lord rewards faith with grace. He is so compassionate that he will not disappoint the earnest seeker. The certainty of our expectation is like the force of a great wave, it sweeps away all obstacles in its path.
I pray to Swami to make me an instrument in His noble mission to instill some of faith in all my brothers and sisters. Because it is only through faith we can become good human beings. Let us all take pledge to make our lives purposeful. Let this be the gift from us to Bhagwan Sri Satya Sai Baba whose 88th birthday was celebrated all over the globe on 23rd November.
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