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Why do I Believe in God?
“Why do you believe in God?” When someone asks me this question, I wonder can we put it in words if someone asks, “Why do we love our mother?” Is it possible to completely express in words.
Boss, I say to them I have got some questions which science and modern technology cannot give me a satisfactory answer. I sometimes ponder over this question, “I was born in 1983, where was that ‘I’ before 1983?”, “Which is the beginning a fruit or a seed?”, “When I die where am I going?” - - - I know myself, I wasn’t the first person to ask this question, Ancient Rishis, Yogis, the great sages have pondered to know the truth for years together practicing severe austerities. One of my friend said, “It’s because of a big bang some million years back and the whole universe came just like that”. My friend I told him, “if it was due to some chemical reactions or some explosion then why is it that it doesn’t happen now. Why is it that all of a sudden we see some life coming out due to some reaction right in our house?” Thank god it doesn’t happen like that, if some creature appears just like that before us, half of the human population in this world, would have been reduced due to heart attacks. Secondly, I see an order in this world. Mother Nature is so exquisitely designed that every natural process we see is so well organized and follows certain order. In fact, the entire subject of Physics is based on identifying these laws of nature and formulating principles, and it goes endlessly. When a baby is born, the essential food for its survival ‘milk’ is ready with the mother. The human mind is so beautifully crafted so as to have experiential learning, to capture thousands of pictures per second and store it in the inexhaustible Memory, retrieve them whenever required within a fraction of a second. Indeed it’s a proven fact that Human Mind is the fastest computer, the fastest super computer available seems to be insignificant before The Mind . . . . . . . .
Thirdly, when we attend any bhajans, or repeat the divine name of the Almighty, do some prayer or puja with devotion, read about his glory in scriptures what an amount of Joy we receive, what a peace - - - it’s an inexpressible bliss. The ‘Vishnu Sahasranaama’ speaks a bit about his inconceivable glory,
“One who is all - the cause of creation, protection and destruction of all things. The Remover of all sins. One who confers auspiciousness to those who have a vision of Him, and to those who meditate upon Him. One who is eagerly sought after by all beings. The source or cause of all beings. The very source of the pancha bhutas (Five elements: Space, Air, Fire, Water and Earth). The inexhaustible treasure. One who manifests Himself at will to those who sincerely seek Him at any place and at any time and in any form. One who regenerates all by dispelling all their evils. The Supporter. One whose birth is of a sublime nature. The One who is the very womb of all the Five Elements. One who is all powerful. One who has the supreme power of control over all beings. One who has the ability to do anything without the help of any other beings or things. One who cannot be defined, explained, measured, etc. through logical means (who can only be experienced). One who, in the form of the Sun and the Moon, makes this world happy through His rays. One from whose navel the lotus (the cause of the Universe) emanates. The Lord of the immortal gods. One who is the agent of all actions with regard to the Universe. The Creator of the Universe. The Great Thinker. One who created all the different forms and names in this Universe. One who is exceedingly huge in size. One who has always existed, Older than the oldest. One who is unaffected by Time, Unchanging, Permanent. - - -- - - - - “.
After reading the meaning of ‘Vishnu Sahasranaama’, I felt ashamed of myself. “How often I used to say, I have done this, I have done that?” What am I before the Omniscient, Omnipresent and omnipotent Lord?
When science fails to answer our questions; it’s religion which comes to our rescue. Swami Vivekananda used to ask this question to religious preachers, “Sir, have you seen God?” Of course they use to repeat his glories but No one used to give him a positive answer. At last he went to Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, who calmly replied to this question, "Yes, I see Him as clearly as one sees an apple over the palm; nay, even more intently. And not only this, you can also see Him."
"God can be realized through all paths. All religions are true. The important thing is to reach the roof. You can reach it by stone stairs or by wooden stairs or by bamboo steps or by a rope. You can also climb up by a bamboo pole.” "You may say that there are many errors and superstitions in another religion. I should reply: Suppose there are. Every religion has errors. Everyone thinks that his watch alone gives the correct time. It is enough to have yearning for God. It is enough to love Him and feel attracted to Him: Don"t you know that God is the Inner Guide? He sees the longing of our heart and the yearning of our soul. Suppose a man has several sons. The older boys address him distinctly as "Baba"or "Papa", but the babies can at best call him "Ba" or "Pa". Now, will the father be angry with those who address him in this indistinct way? The fatherknows that they too are calling him, only they cannot pronounce his name well. All children are the same to the father. Likewise, the devotees call on God alone, though by different names. They call on one Person only. God is one, but His names are many."
"Men often think they have understood God fully. Once an ant went to a hill of sugar. One grain filled its stomach. Taking another grain in its mouth it started homeward. On its way it thought, "Next time I shall carry home the whole hill." That is the way shallow minds think. They don"t know that God is beyond one"s words and thought. However great a man may be, how much can he know of God? Sukadeva and sages like him may have been big ants; but even they could carry at the utmost eight or ten grains of sugar!"
"As for what has been said in the Vedas and the Puranas, do you know what it is like? Suppose a man has seen the ocean, and somebody asks him, "Well, what is the ocean like?" The first man opens his mouth as wide as he can and says: "What a sight! What tremendous waves and sounds!" The description of God in the sacred books is like that. It is said in the Vedas that God is of the nature of Bliss - It is Satchidananda.” – Sri Ramakrishna "God is one; as many faiths, so many paths." - Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
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