Faith and Logic

People look for inspiration in many corners and many forms. Everyone has their own method to getting it, be it the right way or not. I find a lot of inspiration in the beauty of character, emotions and faith in our hindu scriptures. But, some argue that reading such religious scriptures should be reserved for old age. I feel that people relate these religious books to offering prayer to the god. However, that perception may just point to the lost meaning of the originality of these books in their minds.

In fact, a book like Ramcharitmanas should be studied to understand and adopt the great character (charit) of the idealism shown by lord Ram. The real meaning of its dohas and chaupais can only be understood when analyzed in depth, and not just in literal sense. It cannot just be recited in hurry to complete with belief that you'll please the god through such actions. The words are decorated by Tulsidas ji using Alankar (or adjectives) that beautify the meaning and show the real depth of emotions. Unless you've really immersed yourself in the meaning of these emotions by putting yourself in the situation, you can hardly realize the beauty of their depth, guiding thoughts and real life lessons. Giving others your love is one of such lessons; Having faith is another.

Faith, in my opinion, is the least realized strength of much of the population. Faith cannot be explained by logic. It forms through strong belief and gets better through life experiences, devotion and discipline. But, it can be severely challenged by the human psyche that induces logic. One that is hard to understand cannot be fathomed by our own logic which rationalizes day-to-day events for us. In the circumstances of intense negativity, one becomes prone to losing faith over logic. This further induces decision-making based on facts that would make sense to the normal human psyche. On the other hand, faith is the strong belief that brings sanity and optimism. Human mind and body are programmed to rebound from adversities through the eternal evolution process. But, logic prevents us to think highly of our own capabilities in adverse situations. We may think that - situation is so overpowering; there is no god, etc. But, that brings us to the stage of doubt that neither gets you the logical result nor the inner contentment obtained by faith in the ultimate success. This is where religious scriptures play a beautiful role. They demonstrate through examples and guide us towards the best possible virtues.

It is easy to lose courage, get anxious or sometimes even cry on adverse results. But, think this when you are in such situations that, god is putting you through it to save YOU from something even worse in the future. You are learning it now and will be able to better handle it in the future. This type of thinking will bring you the positive attitude in starting to accept many adverse events as learning experiences rather than failures. Life is never lived in parts; It's a continuous experience over lifetimes. ANY event in our lives should be thought of as our destiny because this strengthens your faith and keeps away negative attitude. As long as we do our karm (duties) right, we should not worry about negative events, as they may come from outside of your control.

In fact, when you read any book (religious or not), read it with the same faith and devotion with which it was written. And, read it patiently, in depth, to understand and enjoy the actual moment that went into its lines and use your imagination to possibly apply those good virtues in your life. And, then you'll find that these are not merely post-retirement reading material, but a collection of rare gems that you uncovered through your own curious soul and true introspection in the depths of your psyche.