Continuing with my journey of faith, the third and concluding part of Coming Full Circle is now live on Matriwords.
(In case you have missed the earlier parts, you can read Part 1 and Part 2 by clicking the links.)
******
I remember another conversation I had with my father during this phase.
‘Why does God let good people suffer so much? Is it true that those who reject Him are punished?’
‘What has God got to do with your own deeds?’ father asked me. ‘He gave you the power to think and act, didn’t He? You are only reaping what you sowed, your karma of not just this one, but also many other previous lives. And no, He does not punish anyone. It is your own fear and negative thoughts about your transgressions that invite retribution on yourself.’
That sobered me up further, making me realise that each one of us is responsible for our actions and it is in our hands to shape our lives both in this and the next birth. God merely helped us along, never punished.
Homepage image courtesy: www.findapsychologist.org
The Cybernag 
I just finished reading all 3 parts of your journey “Coming full circle”. And I must say it is deeply enlightening.
Being from Pondicherry myself and having heard some of Aurobindo’s wisdom (from my father), I could connect even better with this post. As I was reading through this, I found myself nodding at several places.
I believe most of us go through a turbulent journey of faith where our beliefs and perspectives change more than once. I have had a similar phase where I went from believing to questioning and then doubting. I am still at a different place and definitely don’t have the maturity or wisdom that you have about faith. But I also do not question other’s faiths if they don’t match mine. May be age and experiences will take me down another phase of my tryst with faith.
Your journey in itself was a fascinating read. But I loved the way you brought it all together at the end to a fitting conclusion! You have shed light on a plethora of things about religion, faith, biases and myths. You have dissected the various aspects of religion and how it is perceived and practiced in the society and in our own houses and even in our minds. And all along you have imparted some very important and unbiased wisdom and opinion that will help people gain a better understanding of faith and their own tryst with it. I haven’t come full circle yet, though my journey somewhat mirrors yours. As I said before, age and time will help me get there. But your wisdom has certainly showed me light and help put things in perspective.
LikeLike
Thank you so much for the exhaustive comment both here and on Beloo’s blog, Raj. Yes, we each have to go through the journey, mostly by ourselves, because we are individuals first and part of the society later. So we need to necessarily form our own judgments and come to our own conclusions. My only plea in the entire post was for everyone to experience something before rejecting it. It is important to find out everything about something as important as one’s faith before rejecting it summarily or seeking some other faith. Such seeking will only bring more restlessness.
And no, everyone will not necessarily come full circle. Some might find their path midway, some might continue on the path to seeking further on, discovering more wisdom on the way. And Raj, such thoughts have to be shared in the most unbiased manner because the world comprises of every kind of person and no way is the right way. One has to find one’s own way and advance on that path. You have already started on the path, by being understanding of those with faith even though you are not sure about yours. That is the first step in spirituality. Just keep an open mind and you will progress steadily on the path of spiritualism.
LikeLike