Many times we come across this question on How to develop a steady faith on someone? How to focus on the teachings of a Sadguru? How to increase devotion towards your Guru and Paramatma? How to believe in what you see? How to find the hidden divine purpose in events, both joyous and unfortunate in our lives?
A simple answer to all these questions is a steadfast devotion. And the only way to develop this and is proven in my life is a through a three step method.
Controlling the Mind:
Step one is the most difficult of all. It is to shut down your mind, in other words, to control your mind and put the question generating machine to a dormant state. Mind is like a volcano which generates innumerable questions. We fail to find answers to many questions that arise which in turn creates confusion leading to frustration and disbelief. In its most active form, the volcanic mind would gush out hot lava of inquiries about everything we see and want to believe. Mind as its functionality was design to be inquisitive and hence question. But when not in control, this volcanic eruptions of questions hinders the growth of belief. Once we can control this mind and make it dormant, we can focus on the next step.
Devotion in Heart:
The next step is something which would not need an effort and practice like the first step. It is of devotion. Devotion comes out of knowing, believing and slowly increasing the faith in what you know. Growth of faith in our Guru is a continual process and it develops in every heart throughout our life in various ways. Once in a while there will be someone who will show you the path. We get ample opportunities in getting introduced to your Guru. You will experience this many times in your life. With appropriate understanding you will be able to chose your perfect master and you will realize the perfect moment. There will be a divine intervention. Now that you have controlled your mind, your devotion in your master will grow without a single question. If you have questions midway in this phase of developing faith, either you have not chosen the perfect master or else you have not fully controlled your mind. Let this faith grow into devotion which will fill your heart and touch your soul. We should then learn and practice what our Guru teaches. We have to take His guidance in exploring the spiritual world, holding His hand. Every single day from here on, the journey will be pleasant and spirit will rise. We will be at peace with ourselves and ready for the next step.
Conscious Exploration:
This is the stage of exploration. I believe when we are soaked in the pure devotion of our Guru and have taken on the path shown by Him, our mind is ready to explore every dimension of Dharma, the universal law. Exploration leads to questions, but having come this far, our questions are now directed towards learning rather than creating conflicts in the mind. These conscious questions are generated in the confluence of the controlled mind and the devotional heart. The exploring phase of questions now become the tools to study religions, spiritual books, the masters, the yogis, the practices, the beliefs across the world. By exploring the lives of other spiritual practitioners, we can not only get some of their joy but also will help us gain skills helpful in our own search. Every question in this stage will help us purify our thoughts and elevate our consciousness towards Him. We would be able to see that all the religions and all the practices eventually merge and the conflicts will diminish slowly and slowly. The questions that once created confrontation in the first step will now be able to generate smile in your face. At this stage, the questions come with answers. Every moment from here on will boost you with knowledge and that in turn will increase your devotion, until you find Him.
