Faith: Belief With Wings

Faith and belief are frequently used as synonyms, and indeed their definitions have overlapping elements. Both words are properly used to denote one’s convictions that hold something (or someone) to be either true or false.

Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines belief as “conviction of the truth of some statement or the reality of some being or phenomenon especially when based on examination of evidence”.  Alternatively, its definition of faith includes “firm belief in something for which there is no proof”. This fine distinction, the presence or absence of evidence, is where the two words diverge.

The emergence of science in the past millennium has led to great advances in our understanding of the physical world around us. The attending scientific methods focus on observing, hypothesizing, predicting and experimenting in order to gain, correct, or integrate previous knowledge. This is a logical process and appropriate for those things that can be observed and measured (i.e. the physical world).  Scientific methodology can be compared to Gautama Buddha’s Kalama Sutta which, parsed and paraphrased, can be summed up as “don‘t believe me because I say so, apply it and see for yourself”.

The Wisdom of the Kalama Sutta

Buddha’s last sermon was in the place called Kalama. In this sutta, Gautama Buddha passes through the village of Kesaputta and is greeted by the people who live there: the Kalamas. The Kalamas greet the Buddha and ask for advice. According to the Kalamas, many wandering holy men and ascetics pass through the village, expounding their teachings and criticizing others’. The Kalamas ask the Buddha whose teachings they should follow. In response, he delivered a sutta that serves as an entry-point to Buddhist tenets for those unconvinced by revelatory experiences.

The Buddha advised:

• “Do not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing,
• nor upon tradition,
• nor upon rumor ,
• nor upon what is in a scripture,
• nor upon surmise,
• nor upon an axiom,
• nor upon specious reasoning,
• nor upon a bias towards a notion that has been pondered over,
• nor upon another’s seeming ability,
• nor upon the consideration, “The monk is our teacher.”

From whatever school of thought you begin, testing and the application of reason can help strengthen one’s beliefs, because they are being reinforced with the evidence of observation. But what does this speak of faith, where one can believe something for which there is no evidence? That is where science and reason face a choice. Like an eaglet in a nest before its first flight, reason can choose to believe that flight (i.e. some unknown or transcendental plane) is possible, or not.  Through observation the eaglet can watch other eagles taking flight. From there it could form conclusions about its own capabilities to do so.  However, until it actually braves out of the nest it would have no personal proof that what holds true for others holds true for itself. That it would consider making the attempt to fly is based on belief. Actually stepping out of the nest is based on faith.

Taking that step is not without perils.

By definition transcendental or spiritual experience lay beyond our material abilities to objectively measure and evaluate.

Belief systems are formed by people. And these systems, like people, can be formed for good or bad, beneficent or selfish, malignant or gracious, or any number of myriad purposes.

Without means of evidence to determine the validity of one belief system over another one is left vulnerable to conflict or manipulation.  And belief systems, however noble or earnest in origin, can be hijacked by nefarious persons, be they terrorists, military/political/religious leaders, or simply the ignorant.

One needs to guard against poison roots, sweetened with honeys. Avoid the company of fools who would mock what they cannot, or worse, will not try to understand. There is none so blind as he who WILL not see.

Earnest, personal discovery is healthy. Asking, seeking, knocking and observing are all part of the process, whether you want to call it scientific method or a spiritual journey. Beliefs can take you so far, and faith perhaps even further.

Note: the picture is at the place where Buddha delivered the Kalama Sutta. Kesariya is a small city in Bihar, India. It is famous for being the site of (possibly) the biggest stupa of India, built by King Ashoka.