Should one believe in God?

I guess before believing or not believing in God, and finding reasons for either, it is necessary to say what you mean by God. And I believe therein lies the answer to the posed question as well.

What is God? Swami Vivekananda explains this beautifully in one of his lectures (The necessity of religion). The entire concept of God and its necessity can be traced back to the struggle of every society to fight nature, to go beyond what seems to be limit of one's prowess. Early man thought rain gives food and water. Since the survival off human beings was based on it, 'rain' is a kind God. But sometimes it rained too much and it destroyed food. So 'rain' is also a God who became angry. It all lead to nature worship. With progress in instruments, technology and knowledge about surroundings, man reached a stage where he can exert 'control over these so-called gods. If Sun-god decides to be too hot, man can build a shelter and protect himself. If 'rain-god' decides to be evil and destroy crops, he can route the water away and save his food. Thus, he could control these aspects, and hence they lost their 'god-hood' in the mind on the man.

Although there was a progress in the physical sciences, there still were other battles man fought. There was the fate, the future, the death. These things still haunted the man and hence subsequent versions of 'gods' became those who could either conquer these for men or help men conquer them. In a way, we find most people even today believing in these concepts of Gods. One prays for safe return of a beloved gone to war, because God can control that person's 'fate'. An ill-man's relatives pray to a God to save the dying man because they believe that God can fight death. In some way or another, always God is the person who does something which the worshipper is powerless of doing.

This is the God of the masses. The God who gives hope, strength, belief in a higher power, and becomes ultimately the Savior. Most people believe in God for exactly these reasons.


But every once in a while, there are certain men and women in every society for whom this concept of God is no good. They declare that such a definition of God as ‘savior’ is very narrow and unsatisfactory. They take one of the two paths, and both lead them to gaining higher understanding about God. Some worship God, assuming He is the highest for only the sake of worshipping. They ask for nothing, only keep giving whatever they have to offer. Some offer worship, others offer love and yet others offer all their deeds or actions to God. These people, due to lack of want, have a clear mind, and have all their faculties towards the higher truth, and hence are blessed with higher understanding of their own selves and God.

The second category of people undertake a rigorous effort in the understanding of the principles of nature, and their own Self by various men. These men become the ‘Enlightened Ones’, who understand the basic unity between the human being and the Universe. The people in first categories become the Mirbaais, Prahlads and Tukarams of the world. The second become the Buddhas, Christs and Shankaracharyas of the world.

The one thing that runs common in the teachings of all these great men and women is the fact that they proclaim the existence of a higher truth that is not seen in the human world or experienced by any of the senses. More importantly, they claim that this higher truth is what every human being possesses in himself but is unaware and can become potentially aware. Some called it by the name Krishna, some Brahman, some the ‘Father in the Heaven’ and some say it is Allah. One could say that the ‘gods’ of the masses are but lower versions of what these souls called as the ‘truth’. Some people see a small stream, some see a waterfall, others see a lake or a river and yet others, with their wide eyes see the ocean. However, the 'wise' ones among us realize that the essential element in all these different forms is the water, each of these are but a temporary form, the ultimate reality is water!

With this perspective, is there is a God for us to believe in? The answer is both yes and no. If believing in Krishna helps you, he is the God for you, if believing in Brahman or a Lord in heaven or Allah works for you, he is your concept of ‘God’. An atheist believes that law of causation explains all, then that is his God. In a way, we all begin as agnostics, and over a time form an opinion of ours about God. For some this concept comes solely from religious books, family and various places of worship, while some see beyond all these and use their own faculties to understand Him!

More than anything else, the concept of God is the most personal and hence should not be enforced upon anyone else. Like a Sufi poem goes,
“Dair Mein Tu Haram Mein Tu, Arsh Pe Tu Zameen Pe Tu
Jiss Ki Pohonch Jahan Talak Us Ke Liye Waheen Pe Tu
Tum Ek Gorakh Dhanda Ho"
(You are in every place of worhip, on the throne in heaven and on earth, however far one can reach, you are there for him, you are a mysterious puzzle.)

So yes, with his definition of God, everyone believes in a God, only the names, definitions and concepts of God differs from person to person. The need for a person is to believe in his God sincerely and not to force his or her. The requirement is tolerance, let each individual define and believe his own 'God'.

May the Krishna, the Allah, the Lord, the Yehowah all give us peace on this beautiful earth, may we all open our eyes and see their light, may we all learn to respect each other's concepts, may we all reach the peace within, and create the peace outside!