Faith in Practice

Faith and Knowledge are not in Conflict

Faith and knowledge are not in conflict. True logic accepts the self-evident nature of consciousness and seeks out higher reality. The finest logic must take the knowledge of the soul, atma-jnāna, into consideration. Logic that comes from the soul’s own experience is pure. Philosophy that flows from a scientific experience of soul and consciousness leads to true knowledge.

Knowledge divorced from spiritual understanding is hollow. Philosophy and science that exclude the reality of consciousness are incomplete. Another way of understanding the pure logic that flows from spiritual understanding is faith. This natural knowledge of reality or “faith” is not an artificial belief based on a lack of evidence. It is, rather natural knowledge, and being self-evident needs no further supporting evidence. The soul is spiritual and therefore naturally full of spiritual knowledge. This natural knowledge or “faith” is ever-present in the soul and is not a consequence of empiric sensual perception. The soul had self-knowledge even before it entertained a perception of the material world.

Self-knowledge or atma-jnāna is based on the following pure logic: I am. I continue to be. My existence has duration over time. I am eternal. I am not alone. There are many finite, eternal, spiritual beings populating the universe. But the universe has a heirarchical structure. I am not the greatest being. A higher, infinite being exists that is greater than myself and is the origin of all things, spiritual and material. Beyond space and time, Reality consists of being, knowledge, and bliss (Sat, Chit, Ananda) The infinite absolute is the origin of all being, all knowledge and all happiness. At core, I am a pleasure-seeking entity. I want happiness. I strive for happiness in everything I do. True happiness is spiritual. I am not the source. Real happiness comes from a connection with higher consciousness. It is my natural position to be in harmony with that higher consciousness. All beings are dependent on that higher consciousness, the infinite reservoir of happiness. It is natural to take shelter of that supreme consciousness. The highest conception of divinity is Reality the Beautiful. It is then the constitutional position of every living entity to seek out a position harmonious with that higher reality. Given this spiritual knowledge, my present condition is out of harmony. It is in my own self-interest to align myself with the infinite through a serving relationship and seek harmony with that beautiful reality. This material world is not my eternal home. Even elevating myself in the material world, I do not become elevated eternally. Therefore it is not in my eternal self-interest to seek an elevated position of material happiness in the temporary world, but to become rightly situated in harmony with my eternal self-interest in the service of divinity.

At the level of spiritual realization faith and knowledge find no conflict. The self-evident reality of consciousness confirms the knowledge of atma-jnāna. This is the logic of spiritual knowledge, without which we become confused by so many mundane systems of philosophy and science. Logic mixed with a materialistic understanding of reality yields not baubles of wisdom but a babble of nonsense. Atma-jnāna or self-knowledge proposes axiomatic truths about the nature of reality. Progress in mathematics or astronomy depends on accepting the fundamentals, the axioms. The above axioms are the root from which the tree of spiritual knowledge grows. There are many deviations from these axiomatic truths, which we may discuss later. But while philosophical discussion must always end in doubt and further questions, atma-jnāna or self-knowledge is the pure logic which drives faith.

In this way, faith and knowledge work in tandem to discover a higher principle, that of divinity. But what is divinity? There are those who follow the school of monism and believe that we are all “one” with God. The sun’s rays, however, never become the sun. The rays of sunlight after all are finite. The sun, by comparison is practically an infinite source of power. How then, could the finite particles of spiritual sunlight become one with their source? The source of spiritual energy is distinct from the particles of spiritual energy just as the sun itself is distinct from its rays. God is the energetic source of all reality, spiritual and material. The individual souls are his finite reflections.

This is described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as follows:

vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṃ yaj jñānam advayam

brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān idi śabdyate

“While, in principle, Divinity is one, learned seers of the truth understand His different aspects of divinity as three-fold: He may be seen as undifferentiated spiritual being, (Brahman) the immanent Oversoul (Paramātma), or as the Personal Godhead Himself, Bhagavan Śrī Kṛṣṇa, reality the beautiful.”

The Christian Trinity might help us to understand here how one reality might display different aspects. Here, the Bhagavat makes an ontological distinction between the individual jiva souls whose totality forms the undifferentiated ocean of spiritual being; the inward dwelling Super-subjective consciousness known as Paramātma, and the ultimate Divine Being who is By Himself and For Himself. This is a consideration of how the one whole divides Himself into his energies. The sun is capable of emitting a number of different kinds of energy, but always remains the radiant source of energy. The sun is one with his light waves, but distinct. It was Śrī Caitanya who expressed the quintessence of Bhagavat philosophy in his acintya-bhedābheda-tattva doctrine later expanded by the Sanksrit commentaries of Jiva Goswami in his Tattva-sandarbha.

Grasping this concept is all-important for one to advance on the spiritual path of yoga-marga. When one begins to see the relationship between the individual jiva soul and the absolute supreme Bhagavan, one advances from the path of jnāna-marga or knowledge to the path of bhakti, divine love. Initially one may begin to understand the nature of consciousness (Brahman), but as one makes advancement one sees there must be a higher consciousness (Paramātma). In the end, good fortune will increase one’s faith and when such good fortune takes place one may begin on the path of bhakti without any taint of knowledge.

Since faith is, after all, self-evident, Faith in principle is not difficult to understand. But there is a gap between theory and practice. How does one make the leap from understanding and theoretical knowlege to practical devotional service and dedication? How can we practice faith in such a way that we evolve, spiritually? We may progress slowly and gradually, once we have this key understanding. And by walking on the path of devotion, or bhakti one cultivates love of God to the point where Bhagavan himself is revealed.

Guidance is essential for anyone who would attempt to become absorbed in spiritual life. Spiritual guidance must come from an advanced spiritual master or guru.

Nowadays, the word guru has fallen out of vogue. It conjures images of absolute submission, sex-crazed fanatics in a mad hippie drug cult. But keep in mind that the words we use are often manipulated. The Western view of “guru” has always been tempered with a certain Protestant contempt for priests and holy men. But in essence guru is a spiritual mentor. Those who refuse to accept the axiomatic truths of atma-jnāna will have difficulty accepting guidance from a spiritual mentor. The very idea that a spiritual mentor is necessary will be anathema to such self-made men who are too proud to accept any help along the path. Since the path of yoga and the Upanishads feels “foreign” to such men of pride, they reject the very concept of guru as something sinister and dangerous.

But for all its pretension of egalitarianism and democracy the west supports a number of authoritarian figures who demand absolute obedience. The real guru, however he may have been caricatured in the West, does not demand absolute obedience. A true spiritual preceptor is disinterested and compassionate. Because he can see the truth, he guides his students toward the light. Neither is he authoritarian: he knows that the saints who have lived before him have also given their guidance in the form of writings, teachings, and scripture.

In this way, the truly enlightened spiritual master relies not only on his own deep vision, but also on the truths found in the ancient wisdom traditions of India especially in books like the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Bhagavad-Gita, and especially in the Bhagavat Purana. While the worlds of sense, mind and intelligence have been thoroughly discussed there along with the laws governing ethics and human behavior, the worlds of spiritual reality, of sat, cit, and ananda have also been discussed in great detail. The guru or spiritual mentor is adept at seeing the inner meaning of the revealed teachings and explaining that meaning to his students.