Faith in God: But To What Extent?
A few days ago, I asked my parents a simple question. Before I tell you the question, you should know that I have my belief in a higher power to just an extent of giving myself strength and motivation. Not to the point that I expect that higher power to sort my way out every time, or justify everything bad that happens in life. I believe in Gurunanak – I believe in sitting in a darbar without having to be pushed around, I believe in looking up to the sun and giving my greetings in the morning and I believe in feeding those that cannot afford to feed themselves. I don’t go to temples, and I definitely do not believe in fasting or special pujas – because they add my irritable hunger and pollution – in the exact order!
So comes the question. How can you justify that good is good, when babies till date are sometimes born with cancer?
Now the answers to this can be many. Because everyone believes in a different way. In a special way, a way that makes them feel good, safe and calm. My father, as I know, is a secret believer in the all-powerful, never-question anything God. So he stayed quiet until my mom began explaining it.
She said, it all boils down to Karma; it is the saddest thing to watch a child suffer, but it is Karma and sometimes there is nothing we can do about it. Like Justin Timberlake’s song, ‘What goes around, comes around’, there may be something that this soul did in a past life, that it is being punished for in this life, at birth. It is absolutely unfair; to the child, to the parents, and above all, to the mother that held this child for 9 months and nourished it. But there isn’t anything we can do, except pray that they suffer less, or recover sooner.
Well, I’ll be damned. This sounded like a logical justification. To be honest, I was looking for an argument in this case, because it tends to turn into one and it’s quite a fun discussion to impress our views on one another. But here, I had nothing to say in return.
So, this brings me to, how deep can one’s devotion go, and is it really justifiable? Our worlds have been fighting about blind faith for centuries now. What is blind faith? In lay man’s words, blind faith is when you believe that God is the answer to everything and everything God does is right. Now here is how I respond to it: No. God is not always right. Yes, he does everything (to an extent), but it does not always have to be right. (Cue to my question above. It really does make you think.)
For example, in the Ramayana, we truly believe Ram is the perfect man, and Raavan is horrible. But, my question to you is, just to consider this:
- When Sita returned to Ram, he made her walk over coal, through fire to prove her purity. Should he not do the same? After all, neither knew what the other was up to.
- When Sita was in Lanka, Raavan did not touch her once, and respected the boundary created by one leaf in between them. It was his home. Despite having all the authority in his own home, he respected her space and will.
Now, another example is from the Mahabarata. Here goes:
- If you are old enough to get married, are you not old enough to understand that some things are not to be shared with your siblings? Are you not old enough to not blindly listen to everything your mother says, without questioning a statement once or twice?
- The caste system was brought about by this God’s tale, and is till now the number 1 cause for various kinds of suffering in India.
It is alright if you do not agree with my thoughts or my views. I do tend to get a little too logical in these situations. But my only thought is, how does either one of the above stories justify that Gods are always right. There is a host of wrong that goes in the above 4 examples; the patriarchy, the blind faith of a boy in his mother, the treatment of women in each tale and so on and so forth. But, while we also talk about learning from them, there is much to look forward to, too. About duties, when Krishna talks to Arjuna on a battlefield. About boundaries, when Raavan respects Sita’s leaf distance. About devotion, when an army of monkeys build a road for Ram to walk on, and about melancholy, when Arjuna realises he has fought and killed his own brother, the lovely, devoted, unquestioning Karna.
It is much like a two-sided coin. With good and bad. Like the Yin & Yang of our lives. There is never only good, and never only bad. There has to be a balance. And for this balance, we tend to turn to a higher power. For direction, for advice, and sometimes, simply just for peace while we decide.
When one says they believe in God, I like to understand it in the way that they believe that God can be a helper, a guide and the one thing that lets man realise that he is not all-supreme. Imagine if humans began to feel all-powerful; Endgame would be our future too, not just for the Avengers.
Life will always be a gamble for you, me and everyone. It will be unpredictable. It has its ups and downs. It is a rollercoaster ride. And for the most part, it is destiny guiding us to our goals. God is a higher power, he is there to look out for us, to teach us, to pick us up and sometimes to even throw us to the curb for a harder lesson. Faith is a whole other ballgame. It matters not whether you believe in God or not, it matters ‘how’ you believe in God. Believe that he is there, that he will look after you, but not that he will make life perfect for you. That task is yours.
2020 has been a year of revelations. Of learning. Of realising. Of changing. Let your life take shape naturally. Believe in yourself more than you believe in a higher power. That is where true strength takes form. You are what makes your life. You are what changes your destiny. Blind faith can sometimes let the fun of life pass you by. Do not wait for that to happen. And more importantly, do not let yourself realise when it is too late. Life is your rainbow. Design it yourself!
Written By Anisha Masand
Week 47, November ’20
