Stories on Faith (2)

[Guest guest]

continuing the topic on faith...<br>When we say

that we have faith in God, do we really have faith.

Let's see how much faith we actually have at the end of

the story.<br><br>There was a village, and the people

there mainly depended on their agricultural produce for

their living. The land was fertile and there was good

rain, and hence they lived happily. <br>Unfortunately,

a time came when there was no rain. A year or so

went with absolutely no rain. Since the villagers

depended on their agricultural produce, this drought

affected them deeply. They didn't even have much food to

eat. Hence the villagers decided to pray to the Lord

on an appointed day for giving rain.<br><br>As

decided, on the appointed day, all the ppl gathered to

perform the rain-puja. One man came a few minutes late.

And when he entered the hall, all the villagers

stared at him in a bewildered manner. The reason : he

came to the hall with an umbrella, on a cloudless,

hot, sunny day. The villagers, laughed, teased the

man, and commenced the rain-puja.<br><br>The puja went

on peacefully. At the end of the puja, the villagers

couldn't hold on their curiosity, and asked the man as to

why he was carrying the umbrella. To this he replied,

" We have come here for the rain puja. God only

knows to give. It'll rain after the puja is over, so I

brought this umbrella with me, so that I can prevent

myself from getting drenched on the way

home."<br><br>The villagers laughed ,not realising this man's

sincere faith, and b'cos they remembered how bright ,

sunny and cloudless it was outside, just b4 they

entered the hall.<br><br>Just then, dark clouds stormed

the sky. There were heavy bolts of thunder and

lightening. There was a sudden downpour, a kind they've never

seen before. It was then that the villagers understood

the intense faith of this man. They all agreed that

it was only b'cos of the intense faith and devotion

of this man, that they were all blessed with this

downpour. <br> <br>Now back to the question :Do we really

have as much faith as this man? <br>If we were on a

tree and if there was a tiger below and if God said,

"Jump, I'll save you.", would we really jump? ( In spite

of knowing that God is truthful, and unlike man will

stick to what he said )<br><br>If one has been trying

to break asunder a rock with a hammer(or whatever

tool is used), and if he hasn't succeeded, his

sincerity should be doubted, not the strength of the

hammer. Similarly , when our prayers remain unanswered,

our faith and devotion should be doubted and *NOT*

the Lord.<br><br>I conclude with a quote by Swami

Shivananda:<br>"Faith in God elevates the soul, purifies the heart and

emotions, and leads to the vision of God. Faith is the soul

of every religion. It creates new hopes and awakens

in one the presence of God. Faith is the eye that

sees the Lord, and the hand that clings to Him. Faith

is power. Faith is strength. Faith is abundant

energy. He who has faith is strong. He who doubts is

weak. Strong faith precedes great actions.<br><br>Faith

illumines the spiritual path, builds a bridge across the

gulf of death, and takes one to the other shore of

fearlessness and deathlessness."<br><br>Hari Aum !!!