Most Essential Thing
The basis of our day-to-day life comes down to the decisions we take, the things and people we put our Faith in.
ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-
saṅgo ’tha bhajana-kriyā
tato ’nartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt
tato niṣṭhā rucis tataḥ
athāsaktis tato bhāvas
tataḥ premābhyudañcati [CC Madhya 23.14-15]
The whole process begins with sraddha, which goes onto associating with devotees and it goes till prema, Love of Godhead.
My spiritual mentor said, “ If no śraddhā, śrama eva hi kevalam ” which means, If we don’t have faith in whatever we are doing then it is simply a waste of time and effort.
Faith in material life is what people would reflect as “chance” or “luck”. However in spirituality, faith plays the most crucial point in all practices.
yasya deve parā bhaktir
yathā deve tathā gurau
tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ
prakāśante mahātmanaḥ [Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.23]
“Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of the Vedic knowledge automatically revealed.”
Simply by strong faith, one can know all that is to be known.
Even Krishna himself declares in the Bhagvad Gita:
aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣā
dharmasyāsya paran-tapa
aprāpya māṁ nivartante
mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani [BG 9.3]
“Those who are not faithful in this devotional service cannot attain Me, O conqueror of enemies. Therefore they return to the path of birth and death in this material world.”
śraddhā’-śabde — viśvāsa kahe sudṛḍha niścaya
kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya [CC Madhya 22.62]
“ Śraddhā is confident, firm faith that by rendering transcendental loving service to Kṛṣṇa one automatically performs all subsidiary activities. Such faith is favorable to the discharge of devotional service.”
Thakur Bhaktivinoda, a vaishnav poet, writes:
(1)
nadīyā-godrume nityānanda mahājana
patiyāche nām-haṭṭa jīvera kāraṇa
“In the land of Nadiya, on the island of Godruma, the magnanimous Lord Nityananda has opened up the marketplace of the Holy Name, meant for the deliverance of all fallen souls.”
(2)
(śraddhāvān jan he, śraddhāvān jan he)
prabhura ājñāy, bhāi, māgi ei bhikṣā
bolo ‘kṛṣṇa,’ bhajo kṛṣṇa, koro kṛṣṇa-śikṣā
“O people of faith! O people of faith! By the order of Lord Gauranga, O brothers, I beg these three requests of you: Chant “Krsna!”, worship Krsna, and teach others about Krsna.”
In another song, he writes:
(1)
boro sukher khabor gāi
surabhi-kuñjete nāmer hāṭ khule’che / khoda nitāi
“I am singing news of great happy tidings. Lord Nityananda Himself has opened a market-place of the Holy Name in Surabhi-Kunja.”
(2)
boro mojār kathā tāy
śraddhā-mūlye śuddha-nāma sei hāṭete bikāy
“The news of its great results is that He is selling the pure Holy Name in that market-place for the price of only one’s faith.”
So, Faith is really the most essential thing we need in order to progress in life.
I would like to conclude with another song by Srila Bhaktivinoda thakur:
tumi kṛpā kori’, śraddhā-bindu diyā,
deho’ kṛṣṇa-nāma-dhane
“Please bless me by giving me just one drop of faith with which to obtain the great treasure of the holy name of Krsna.”
Here, the thakur in all humility is begging a pure devotee to just give one drop of their faith, which would be like a flood in comparison.
Anyone who reads the prayers of Thakur Bhaktivinoda, would be blessed to have a drop of his faith and thus, their lives will become successful.
