Often people are trapped into a web of fear. A fear arising out of ignorance, stemming from our hearts due to myriad apprehensions. The only way to break free from this web and unlock the closet of miseries is to have Faith. What is faith? Faith means unfinching trust in something sublime. It means having a deep conviction, a strong sense of confidence on God's foolproof plan for each one of us.
We can learn from our Scriptures, from the exemplary lives of the enlightened souls, that the Pandavas had to undergo so much suffering, even though they were in direct association and closest to God or Lord Krishna! But inspite of that, they never gave up. Do you know why? Because they had strong conviction and faith on the Lord. They knew that they are being put to hard tests but eventually, when the Lord thinks it is the right time, He is going to protect them from the worst. So they never complained about the pain or the suffering but they were wise as they took the difficult times as a blessing in disguise. Infact, Mother Kunti prayed to the Lord to give her more and more suffering because only when we are in distress, we remember God or Krishna.
In happier times, more so when things are going our way, we never stop to thank God but when things don't go our way, we always question - Why me? So we must understand that the Lord has higher plans for us. Professionally or personally, if things are not going as desired by us, it is definitely for our greater good, in the long term, which we are not able to envision now at this stage due to our myopic vision. But Krishna knows what is best for us. He is our Creator, our Ultimate protector, our Spiritual Father. We must not let our faith in Him dwindle due to some superficial or perceived material obstacles. Infact this is the perfect opportunity to restore our devotion just like the sagacious Pandavas and strengthen our bonds of love with Krishna.
Let me share a profoundly transformational experience that God made me witness, which cemented my faith in Him. Once a small boy accompanied his father to a grocery shop. On reaching there, he asked his father for a bar of chocolate but his father refused. The child again requested his father for it but he was denied. Now the little boy got infuriated and started shouting, screaming and abusing his father. Still the father did not budge. Do you know the reason... Why the father did not give the child a bar of chocolate? Later I was astounded to know the reason - It is because the child was medically diagnosed with extremely high blood sugar levels and the slightest quantity of sweet would prove fatal for him. We all are just like the small boy. We always feel that we are the CEO - Controller, Enjoyer and Owner. When things don't materialize as per our dreams, we tend to blame God, fight with God and lose faith in Him. We forget that our material senses are impaired due to material contamination and past conditionings. We forget that God is cause of all causes. He is our best well-wisher. I strongly believe Faith to be 'Forward All Issues To Him'. Never give up, never lose hope because where there is hope, faith resides. Where faith resides God presides and where God presides miracles happen. So instead of getting perturbed, we must purify our consciousness, become fixed in our devotion, constantly remember that Krishna is our Eternal Father and have indomitable faith on His mercy and divine grace.
An important aspect to acknowledge is that God is the ultimate sanctioning authority but He will never force us to do something. He has given us something very potent called free will or the power of choice. We will reap the results of what we sow as per our actions and karmas. If we choose to act against the words of God, against the Shastric injunctions, we are going to suffer the reactions. However, if we choose to look beyond and overcome the temporary bottlenecks or material tests, we will emerge victorious in this battle with Maya or Illusion. We cannot compromise on the regulative principles as prescribed by the Lord, we cannot compromise on our prayers, our chanting. Above all, we cannot take God or Krishna for granted. We must not make a show of devotion and expect something in return from Him. Krishna knows what is in our heart. He only wants us to surrender to Him. The day we actually surrender to Krishna completely, with unflinching faith, He will know. And He will reciprocate. I have personally experienced this on numerous occasions and trust me, that moment is the best in the life of any conditioned living entity. So let us strive to develop our devotion and achieve this state of pure consciousness which is devoid of any material hankering but there is place for only one thing in our hearts - i.e. pure selfless love for the Supreme Lord. Let us endeavour to grow the wings of Faith by taking shelter of our holy scriptures, that by accepting the words of God and abiding by Them we will be elevated to the highest perfection of life. Let us make those wings stronger through our regulated devotional practices. By taking the leap of faith, let us rise above our ignorance, aspire to transcend the modes of material nature, fly higher and enter into the spiritual realm which is our gateway to perennial bliss and permanent happiness in the endearing association of our All-Loving Eternal Father.
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