THE VALUE OF FAITH

THE VALUE OF FAITH

Faith has an enormous positive impact on our lives. What does it stand for, where does it come from, and how can we cultivate it?

Faith connects us with something “unseen”, a Higher Good, or an Ultimate Reality, making it concrete and visible.  It implies complete trust, and a strong belief in a Higher Force, in a Supreme Being, i. e. God, as well as in the scriptures of one’s religious belief. Faith springs forth from a deep inner apprehension. It is spiritual by nature and something we cannot prove, but we know in our heart that what we believe in is real and true.

St. Augustine said: “Faith is to believe what you do not see, and the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.” (Sermones 4.1.1).

The inner certainty that our faith confers makes us strong and brings added meaning to our lives, kindling our Self-confidence, which, in turn, intensifies our faith. For as we believe we act, and as we act we reap the fruits thereof: the circuit of faith becomes complete.

“All things are possible for one who believes.” said Jesus, (Mark 9:23), and because of this it is “one’s faith that saves”. (Ephesians 2:8-9). Similarly, it is said in the Ancient Vedas: “Yad Bhavam Tad Bhavati’”, i.e. As you think, so you become.

Where does faith come from?

All cultures and traditions agree that faith emanates from one’s capacity to be still as we tend our ears to grasp not only the revelations of the Masters, but the resound, the eco of the Truth revealed within our heart. For the Truth revealed is a Truth unveiled, eternal and never changing, a Truth that we have known since the beginning of time, and as we hear its voice within the depth of silence, we assert its presence, recognizing an intimate bond with one’s deeper Self.

Sathya Sai says: “First of all have Faith; faith in God and faith in Yourself. If you deny the existence of God it is like denying your own existence, because your Self is God. Faith is the very life-breath of man.” ( Srî Sathya Sai, 7-7-1996)

When we have faith we need not worry about the future. We are prepared to surrender firmly believing that “He” will “take care”; that there is a reason, a why to the ways of life, a design and plan to open up to, learn from and appreciate. This capability of letting go brings a deep sense of peace. Peace and Faith are a state of Grace, a state of Consciousness that helps us remain open, with full reliance, understanding, acceptance and equanimity, even in the darkest moments of our life. But to live our faith does not necessarily mean seeing the world and our surroundings through rose-tinted glasses; it does not mean that we focus only on that which is good and pleasing. It means raising our perspective beyond that which we see with our eyes and perceive with our senses, as we intensify our trust, and strengthen our faith.

How can we cultivate our faith?

By continuing to believe in the ideals and sacred principles in which we believe, notwithstanding outer circumstances, our faith grows and becomes unbreakable. By fostering our noble ideals and manifesting the universal Human Values of Truth, Love, Peace, Right Action and Nonviolence that uphold them, our faith becomes tangible.  By daily attuning ourselves to a Greater Reality, our mind is tranquil and our heart is light, for our faith endows us with the assurance that all is well and meant for our higher Good.

“Faith is active surrender to the Divine Will”, (Sri Aurobindo, Letters on Yoga, Basic Requisites of the Path), a giving up of one’s ideas, desires, preferences, and is rooted in our Love for the Highest Truth, for God. It is this Love that kindles our trust and hope. This is why of the three cardinal virtues of Christianity Love is the greatest: “Faith, hope and love are what remain, and the greatest of these is love” (St. Paul, 1 Corinthians 13:13).

By learning to surrender we foster a deep inner stability and this virtuous attitude allows us to face life’s vicissitudes with equipoise and dispassion, loving kindness, compassion and Joy. A similar faith and the greatness of Love on which it stands, are beautifully expressed in the uplifting words and spirit of St. John of the Cross: “Never fail, whatever may befall you, be it good or evil, to keep your heart quiet and calm in the tenderness of Love” (Juan de la Cruz, Living Flame of Love).

 

- Who knows what is good and bad?

Once upon a time

there was a farmer and his only son. The wife was no more. They also had a horse, a strong stallion. The three of them could barely make a living by working hard every day from sunrise to sunset. One dark night a thunderstorm struck the area and a loud thunderclap frightened the horse, so it jumped the fence and disappeared into the night. The next morning the son and the father found that the horse had eloped. They started to look for it. The strong stallion had served them well for many years, and there was a special bond between the three of them, the father, the son and the horse. However, the horse was nowhere to be found.

Now all the neighbours came to see the farmer saying: "Oh, you poor man! You have lost your only horse. How are you going to manage now?" But the farmer did not lament the loss. He was calm and kept his equanimity. He just looked towards the sky,  lifted his hands, the palms turned upwards, and said: "Who knows what is good, and what is bad? Only the good Lord knows."

A few months later, on a bright and sunny day, the stallion returned with 11 beautiful young mares (female horses). This is the way of the horse; they have a herd instinct and like to live in flocks, always with one stallion and a herd of mares with their foals.

Now all the neighbours came running, exclaiming· "Oh, you must be one of the chosen ones!

First you lost your only horse, and now you have twelve horses, and even some foals. Nobody else has so many horses. You are a rich man now." But the farmer was not the least bit elated. He kept his equipoise, and lifting his hands  towards the sky, the palms turned upwards he calmly said to his neighbours: "Who knows what is good, and what is bad? Only the good Lord knows."

Now the son thought that these young mares should be worth their forage, so he started to break them in, i.e., to train them systematically. This went quite well until one day one of the young mares, perhaps the wildest of the lot, threw him off. The young man fell in an awkward manner and  landed on his  hip. He was badly hurt, and the father had to take him to the hospital in the nearest city. Here the doctors explained that they would have to operate, and it would not be cheap. The farmer sold one of the mares and paid. When he picked up the son a week  later the doctors informed him: "We are sorry. We were not able to mend the damage completely. Your son will have a slight limp for the rest of his life."

So when they returned to the farm, the neighbours soon came to visit, saying: "Oh, you unfortunate one! Your only son! Now he is going to limp for the rest of his life. Such a nice, young boy!  What a calamity!" But the farmer was calm and collected as usual. He just  lifted his hands  towards the sky, palms  upwards and said: "Who knows what is good, and what is bad? Only the good Lord knows."

After a few months a war broke out,  and  the soldiers came to the villages and took all  the young boys - except the farmer's boy, the one with the slight limp. This soon caused the neighbours to come by, saying: "You are indeed one of the chosen ones. They took all our sons but not yours, just because of his slight limp. How fortunate you are!” But the farmer was balanced, in equanimity as always. So what do you thlnk he answered?

……………………….

Here the storyteller could look up, lift his hands, palms tumed upward and wait for the listeners to answer.

The above story taken from the book: Sai Spiritual Stories, by T. Meyer,  is a Tao-story  from China, although some have claimed that it comes from India or has an Israeli origin. It can in principle go on and on. It may be used to emphasize how little we know, and the benefits of living in the moment, always doing one's best and then leaving the rest (the fruits of the actions) to the Lord (surrender). Living in the moment and the concept of surrendering could be topics for discussion. Of course the story can also be dramatized, be illustrated in drawings or fol­lowed up in many otherways. It could also be used to illustrate the value Peace.

 

- The Butter in the Milk

Once upon a time there was a monk who lived in a village and taught the people there to love and respect God. One day some boys and girls went to him and said: "You're always talking about God, but where is He? We've never seen him and as far as we know he's never come to visit our village.

The monk thought for a while and decided that this was a good opportunity to explain the presence of God, so he turned to the youngsters and said: "Bring me a glass of milk." They looked at each other and thought it must be a very difficult question and the monk would need all the strength he could get, so they rushed off to get him a glass of milk. When the milk arrived the monk put the cup in the middle of the room and examined it from every angle for at least ten minutes. Finally one boy could stand it no longer. "What are you doing? If you are thirsty drink it! Why are you playing with the milk?"

The monk replied: "I'm looking for the butter! They say that there is butter in milk, but I can't see it. The boy was becoming impatient: "Of course there's butter in this milk. You can't be very bright if you think the butter's just going to jump out by itself. There's butter in every atom of the milk but it takes time and a lot of patient churning before the butter emerges."

"That's it," said the monk, "just because you can't see the butter doesn't mean that it isn't there. It is in the very nature of milk to contain butter, but there is a certain procedure that you have to go through to extract it." In the same way we can't conclude that God doesn't exist just because we can't perceive him with our five senses”.

 

“First of all, strengthen your faith. Without faith all kinds of worship and all spiritual disciplines are of no use, they are a waste of time. To begin with, cultivate love. Everything grows out of love. That love will reveal to you your true self. That love will confer bliss on you.”

– Srî Sathya Sai, 25 December 1991

Let the different faiths exist, let them flourish, and let the glory of God be sung in all the languages and in a variety of tunes. Respect the differences between the faiths and recognize them as valid as long as they do not extinguish the flame of Unity.

– Srî Sathya Sai

Guard your faith carefully: it can work miracles. It can make the blind see, and the dumb speak. Never doubt the power of faith.

(Discourses, Srî Sathya Sai, Vol. 29 1996)

The Pope Video on Unity of Faiths: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6FfTxwTX34&t=20s