Kalyana Sraddha
By Karmayogi
Sraddha is faith. The purest of
faith is the child's faith in the mother. The child is innocent. Its
psychic being is on the surface. In our minds, many temperaments and opinions
find play. They warp our faith. We can never have a child's simple faith
unless the psychic emerges in the mind. In the third standard there was a chess
tournament. There was a boy who was a wizard. He was considered the best player
in the school. This year a girl was playing against him in the finals. Her
father had taught her chess and she used some CD for practicing the game. She
learned a lot. But the boy was so good that no one was a match for him. At the
tournament, the girl hesitated a while, was lost in thought and then started to
play. She won the tournament!
When she reached home, she told her father about winning the match. He asked
her to explain how she had done it. He was happy that her practice on the
computer had born fruit. He was all admiration for the chess CD. He never
expected the child to win. She also said she never expected to win. He asked
her what she had actually done to win the game. She had no specific answer.
‘‘Have you used the knowledge from the CD?'' he asked. She
said she had not. ‘‘Have you used what I taught you?''
he asked. She again said no. ‘‘In fact, what did you
do?'' he asked. ‘‘I prayed to Mother'' was
her answer. In any situation, Mother gives us the required skill or capacity
against any expert. We do not believe in the Mother in that sense.
When faith fails, we are dejected. If it continues to fail, sometimes our faith
cracks. When faith fails to produce results, those who have faith in the faith
know ‘‘It is not the end. There is no result I look for because
another greater result awaits.'' The faith that Faith can never
fail is kalyana sraddha, a working faith. Faith is no faculty of a part whose
efficiency varies. It is the faculty of the SOUL which is a whole. The question
of the soul failing does not arise. If results do not come, it means they could
not arise out of the method we have employed. Great results do not arise
through known methods. As a rule, striking results elude the methods we employ.
Such results often avoid any method.