Post by radha on May 1, 2012 6:19:49 GMT 5.5
OM SRI GURUPYO NAMAHA:,RESPECTFUL NAMASKARAMS TO SRI MAHA PERIVA
Faith makes it easier
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We are told to have faith in God and His Omnipotence, but what is faith? Sceptics question the very existence of God, wondering what proof we can offer. God cannot be explained in a way that appeals to the intellect, by citing proofs, for God is beyond comprehension by the intellect, said B. Sundar Kumar.
Why is it that we practise this kind of selective agnosticism? When we buy something in a shop, we go by what others tell us. We are prepared to trust the self-serving advertisements of shop owners and manufacturers, but why do we not trust the words of sages who had no selfish motive when they spoke of God? They described His qualities and the importance of faith, so that we may attain moksha. And theirs was wisdom that had come after years of penance. But we mistrust their words and wonder if what they have said can be true.
How does faith help us? Our sorrows and difficulties are due to our past actions in previous births. But to face them we need courage, and faith in God helps us bear our difficulties.
Take the example of a child that falls down and cries. Its mother tells the child that she will punish the floor that has hurt him; she even strikes the floor a couple of times with the palm of her hand. The child dries out its tears and goes away, comforted. Has the mother's act in any way diminished the child's pain? Then why does it stop crying? It knows that here is someone who will take care of it, no matter what, and that it need not worry when its mother is around.
We are very much like the child who falls down: we face difficulties, but we feel comforted when we know that God is keeping watch over us. Our problems cannot be wished away, but the burden seems lighter when we have faith in God.
So instead of doubting the words of sages and wise men, we would do well to believe them and trust in their experience they have recounted for our benefit. Praying to God and reciting His name give us peace of mind, and those who have experienced it can vouch for the efficacy of chanting God's name.
Courtesy THE Hindu Newspaper
Faith makes it easier
SHARE · COMMENT · PRINT · T+
We are told to have faith in God and His Omnipotence, but what is faith? Sceptics question the very existence of God, wondering what proof we can offer. God cannot be explained in a way that appeals to the intellect, by citing proofs, for God is beyond comprehension by the intellect, said B. Sundar Kumar.
Why is it that we practise this kind of selective agnosticism? When we buy something in a shop, we go by what others tell us. We are prepared to trust the self-serving advertisements of shop owners and manufacturers, but why do we not trust the words of sages who had no selfish motive when they spoke of God? They described His qualities and the importance of faith, so that we may attain moksha. And theirs was wisdom that had come after years of penance. But we mistrust their words and wonder if what they have said can be true.
How does faith help us? Our sorrows and difficulties are due to our past actions in previous births. But to face them we need courage, and faith in God helps us bear our difficulties.
Take the example of a child that falls down and cries. Its mother tells the child that she will punish the floor that has hurt him; she even strikes the floor a couple of times with the palm of her hand. The child dries out its tears and goes away, comforted. Has the mother's act in any way diminished the child's pain? Then why does it stop crying? It knows that here is someone who will take care of it, no matter what, and that it need not worry when its mother is around.
We are very much like the child who falls down: we face difficulties, but we feel comforted when we know that God is keeping watch over us. Our problems cannot be wished away, but the burden seems lighter when we have faith in God.
So instead of doubting the words of sages and wise men, we would do well to believe them and trust in their experience they have recounted for our benefit. Praying to God and reciting His name give us peace of mind, and those who have experienced it can vouch for the efficacy of chanting God's name.
Courtesy THE Hindu Newspaper