Lately, I’ve been thinking about the word faith. What is faith? I found it difficult to define what faith meant to me, so of course I decided to search for the definition. Faith comes from the Latin word, fides, and Old French word, feid, which is to have confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. It can also be defined as a "belief in God or in the beliefs or teachings of religion" in the context of religion. 

It involves the willingness to believe in despite a lack of concrete proof, and a commitment to trusting that belief and acting accordingly. Trust involves a level of vulnerability because you are putting faith in something or someone with the understanding that they may fail to meet your expectations or disappoint you, but you still choose to rely on them because you have hope everything will work out for the best. Trust is not the same as faith. Faith is consistent and linked to motivation. You believe in Jesus and Krishna because they promise that if you believe, you will enter heaven. Faith is the price you must pay.

They claim that something exceptional happens during such prayer, which they refer to as oneness with God. They are certain that this is not a light trick. Are they deceiving themselves? So, exactly what is faith? It appears to enable people to accomplish extraordinary things.

Tremendous strength does not come from prayer, illusion, or faith; it comes from clarity, from a mind that can see clearly; and that clarity does not come and go.

You want to touch the truth of your faith through experience, to prove it to yourself, but this belief confines your experience. The experience does not come to prove the idea, but rather the belief produces the experience. Your faith in God will provide you with the experience of what you refer to as God. You will always experience only what you believe.

Faith has replaced doubt in the Christian world. Doubt is extremely cleaning; it cleanses the mind. You are allowed to observe clearly if you have doubts about your experiences or ideas. Doubt is a fundamental factor in the Eastern world, particularly in Buddhism and Hinduism; it is expected that you doubt, question, and refuse: be a light unto yourself, a light that cannot be given to you by anyone. Uncertainty exists solely in the setting of assurance. Doubt is not the inverse of faith; rather, it is a component of faith. Uncertainty isn't a sinful deviation from firm faith; it's built into it. Doubt is not incompatible with religion in the same way that faith and reason are not. You give someone the benefit of the doubt when you trust them. You can be positive that you love someone while still having doubts. Finally, when it comes to faith, clarity is less of an issue than how we act on our conviction. That is a simple matter, but deep faith cannot be total. There will undoubtedly be mistrust, doubt, and skepticism. You may cover it up with faith because you don't want to lose paradise or fall into hell. As a result, you avoid answering all of the natural inquiries. Too much faith or doubt can lead to dogmatism and radicalism, which will inevitably split people and society. It is important to balance certainty and open-mindedness.

Trust is not the same as faith. Trust is not the same as believing. Faith is straightforward, heartfelt, and sentimental. Believing is more logical. It has arguments to stifle doubt. Faith has no arguments; it only has desire. There are arguments for and against belief. There are arguments presented by theologians of all religions to believe in God. A believer can philosophize, rationalize, and propose whole systems of thinking based on a single belief. The entire system may seem rational, but the fundamental premise is illogical. It is easily deceptive because the entire structure is so rational that you never think that the foundation is nothing more than belief. Religion has reigned for thousands of years, therefore theologies have been supplied for individuals with rational tendencies. Faith is supplied for those who are simple and close to their hearts. But, the function of both is to remove doubt from your mind. Both, however, fail. They only succeed in suppressing doubt; they never succeed in eliminating it.

Escaping through a delusion, a symbol, or an ideal is a simple way out. Yet, seeing exactly what we are and going beyond requires a tremendous deal of energy, observation, and effort; it is far more difficult. It implies that we must become acutely aware of all of our behaviors and emotions. Are we unwilling to go through with it?