The most dangerous F-word
Imagine yourself at the extreme ends of hopelessness. You are so frustrated with the way things are going that you’ve declared yourself the patron saint of grief. So much so you’ve turned into a grief bully all of a sudden. You don’t even know what’s going on anymore and you are a bigger pain than the pain you claim to be in. The negativity in your breath matches the ambiance of your suffering. Yes, it’s THAT bad. Your despair has started leaking into others’ territory without your consultation. Imagine it worse, actually. Let your imagination run wild and stumble and fall on its face and break its nose.
Done?
Great.
Here is the point when people are expected to drop the original three magical words: “Have some faith.” Those not sticking to the book would go with the fancied “Don’t give up” or “It’ll be fine” or “It’s alright, sweetie” as nobody has the gonads to say “Well, shit happens.”
Faith, for reasons unbeknownst to the self-declared smartest creature on the planet, rule. We are supposed to have faith in ourselves, in gods, in religion, in capitalism, in society, in school, in career and mainly in stuff that doesn’t bother to return the favour. But most importantly, faith as a prerequisite refers to our bonding with our Creator. From our childhood onward, we are taught to accept the higher calling; the larger design of the universe we found ourselves stuck in today. Nothing hideous there. It’s quite innocent. Except when the world around you begins to crumble or catches fire like it did recently in northern India, you’ve got nobody to hold accountable for. After all, faith has no accountability.
Humans, by evolutionary engineering, are bound to be scared just enough to entrust themselves to whatever catches them by surprise. Fear plays an active part in this manipulation in the name of faith. This is also the point when faith isn’t about your Creator anymore. P2P business, anyone? Faith is the means as well as product. Not-so-nice events unfold sometimes. Once you’re hypnotized by your manipulator, your escape turns into a theatre of your making. Last checked, faith was not the same as blind faith. Faith is you trusting the darkness to leave by dawn. Blind faith is you enveloping a thick blanket around yourself with barely an idea whether it’s day or night. It’s often said that only poor folks exhibit this curio—nothing but a repeated lie. Wealthy fatasses queue up for the same reason that the soapless proles do.
Faith, not God, operates in mysterious ways. A child tugs at the end of his mother’s sari as the faith in her has emboldened him; he’s assured of her care and protection. Is that blind faith? From a mundane standpoint, yes. From a biological standpoint, no. Trust, developed over a period of time with little to no adulteration of motives, leads to purity in faith. The moment ulterior vibes set in, blindness seizes the day.
The same principle applies to other relationships as well. Almost all the heavy words we hear — courage, loyalty, dedication, peace, honesty, righteousness, etc. — are direct fragments of faith. Like a well-timed high-five, a person remains faithful as long as the other person remains the same. Denying which, a situation arises where one person is being taken for a ride while the other person thinks they are being smarter.
If only.
