Faith

Faith in God, in a higher power, has always been one of the few constants of my life. Somehow, for all the radical literature and philosophies I read, for all the realities and injustices I have witnessed in my life and career, I think I have been lucky that none could shake my absolute belief in God. I somehow never doubted the existence and power of God, though many of my friends do. All the things I couldn't understand about life and why it was going in a certain direction, made me subscribe to the ancient view of the Greeks that there is a divine design, but mostly we cannot understand it and perhaps do so after it has manifested itself in our lives. All that I read and saw, just added to my belief and provided more explanations and proof of the divine will. Infact, as Hazrat Ali said,one recognizes God through the failure of ones plans . Most of us , in this day and age, think that we can do whatever we plan. Indeed, this confidence is necessary for achievement. But many of us think that we can do anything to get whatever we want, however base. But we find so many times that life has a way of going terribly wrong and throws all our careful plans in a tizzy. That, to me , is the hand of God which ensures balance and justice in this world. Through trial and error, we find that the best course of action is to try for what you want, but not to stoop to levels below your dignity for it, nor be unjust, that is the only way to sustain your good luck. If one believes in God, there is nothing in the world which is worth having, if one compromises on ones dignity and beliefs. In the long run, all the wickedness, all the effort in the pursuit of things comes to nothing. Part of faith is also standing up for what you believe in. If you don't, you are diminished as a human being. Compromises lead to more compromises and even more weakness. To me, honesty is being true to your values and also holding on to them. If one doesn't hold fast, there is no end to weakness and exploitation . I do not agree with the eastern doctrine of completely submitting to the will of other human beings, be it a pir, mawlana, or superior. god made us all equal, and complete submission is only for him.no human being is master of our fate. god is. We all have our own, private and unique relationship with him.In public life and even otherwise, especially being a woman, one becomes the target of all sorts of malicious propaganda, and people superimpose their own fantasies and theories on me, especially when one does not try to project some carefully crafted image of oneself. It is painful, but always inspires me to keep even stronger hold on my values. I am alive, at peace and successful, not through people but through the help of God himself. So I owe explanations only to Him.Thankfully, he is not as judgmental or unforgiving as humans, that is why so many of us are still surviving. If God has created people differently, we must also try to accept people as they are, not judge them. We cannot permit injustice between people, or allow people to harm others, but that is as far as we can go. It is not for us to judge others or their actions,God is there. It is for us to expect and hope for justice and truth to prevail. We are only unknowing instruments of Gods will. We all have failings. Believing in Gods mercy and our ability to overcome our failings is to me, faith.