FAITH AND RESIGNATION

Today there is an explosion of scientific advancement in technology and innovation! People have no faith in religion and go even to the extent of denying God! Man thinks that he has conquered everything on earth but the pity is he has failed to control himself! The basic propensities like anger, pride, desire, greed and others have enslaved him! He has become too materialistic to think of salvation! What is it that comes in the way of his liberation? It is his ego that pulls him down. Man thinks that he is the doer and responsible for all actions! But he is just an instrument in the hands of God! “ Nimitta matram bhava Savya Sachin" as the Lord says in the Bhagavad-Gita. Absolute faith and resignation to His will shall surely save man from all his trials and tribulations! Miracles do happen when you resign yourself to His will! In the lives of  the Azhwars and Nayanmars of the south, there is not a single life without a miracle or two.Their lives were, to say the truth, total surrender to the will of God! Their devotion was extraordinary,  pure, unalloyed  love for God! Due to scientific temper and lack of sustainable proof, many do not believe in miracles and make fun of those yogis and Siddha Purusha who perform miracles. Science and rationalism ends where religion and faith begins.

There was a brahmin priest on the other side of the river. A milkmaid used to supply milk regularly. She had to cross the river by boat everyday and due to irregularity of boat service she could not supply milk punctually. When rebuked for her irregularity she poured out her distress in crossing the river! She starts early in the morning but has to wait for the boat for a very long time! The boatman and other passengers take a long time to gather! She had no other alternative but to wait for them to cross the river!The priest was touched at the word of his milk maid! Should he not do something to alleviate her distress in reaching him punctually? He wasn't an ordinary priest. He was spiritual and meditated on God always. He told her that many mortals are crossing the sea of life by chanting the name of the Lord! It will not be difficult for her to cross the river by repeating the name of the Lord! The milk maid was very happy that there is a simple way of crossing the river known to the priest.

From the next day  onwards the milkmaid was very punctual in supplying her milk! The priest noticed it soon and wondered how the milk maid, habitually late in supplying milk, is very regular and punctua.l one day he asked the milk maid the secret behind her punctuality! She was surprised because it was the priest who  told her how to cross the river. He had asked her to chant the name of the Lord and cross the river without waiting for the boatman and the passengers. From that day onwards she repeated the sacred name of the Lord and very smoothly reached the other side of the river! So it was easy for her to arrive in time and supply milk to the priest! The brahmin couldn't believe in her words! Is she lying? How is it possible to cross the swollen river by repeating the name of the Lord? He wanted to test her personally!

“ Can you show me how you cross the river?”, said the priest. Nonchalantly the woman took the priest with her and right royally began walking across the river! She was literally walking over the water and thought that the priest too would be following her. But to her utter dismay she found the priest in sheer trouble. The priest was unable to wade through water and at every step he was raising his dress not to touch water! But he was all the while chanting the name of the Lord. The milk maid questioned the priest as to why he was uttering the name of the Lord and at the same time trying to keep his cloth untouched by water! The priest had no answer to her question! He knew the distinct difference between him and the milk maid!

Is this not a miracle that the milk maid was able to walk on water and cross the river? She was given the mantra by the priest himself. She had implicit faith in him and his words! Completely resigning herself to the will of God, she followed the instruction to chant the name of God while crossing the river. It is her faith in the words of her Guru, the priest, that enabled her to cross the river by chanting the name of the Lord! The priest ,However, did not have the same faith in the name of God as the milk maid had. Hence he could not walk over water and cross the river as the milk maid did. We find in society many Gurus who prescribe remedies to their disciples. With faith and implicit obedience the disciple's follow the instructions and get the desired results!  It may appear incredible for others but it is a reality for the bhakta or devotee! Total resignation and unshakable absolute faith in God are at the root of all miraculous deeds!!