Belief Faith & Knowing

Monday 26 Sep 2016

In this essay I would like to examine the ways that we use our senses to apprehend the world and then look at the ways that we make an interpretation of what we are experiencing.

Belief

The most common and probably the most important way that we interpret the world is through our constructed use of ideas to form belief. This may be in the form of belief that has been passed down from history or indeed belief in the interpretations of what may be happening now and then of course belief in expectations of what might happen in the future. In any event we are building on a vast store of what has gone before

Belief is a constructed process, where we combine ideas that are perceptions formed from events that have happened, as viewed through the five senses. These ideas may also be “mind made” through the sixth sense of the mind. They can come from events that have happened, are happening or will happen. It is a compounded process with one idea being dependent on another. A belief is something that is built up using the logic and felt experience of the best evidence available. It may be right or wrong and is often changed or modified in the light of new evidence. We do generally have the opinion that the ideas and beliefs we form are real. They are what generally drive the understanding of our awareness and they are what our reality is built on.

A particular belief will not necessarily be true for all people because it is dependent on perception and the way we have been conditioned. Conditioning is taken on in the form of beliefs that come to us either consciously, subconsciously, or even unconsciously. They can be self-made but mostly come from our families, friends, groups and nations. We might also knowingly or unknowingly take on a belief to use it covertly for an advantage. We can accept a belief directly (consciously) indirectly by dissociation (subconsciously) or unknowingly (unconsciously).

When we relate with others that hold a different belief to us, and we do not want to cause trouble with them, we can be with them by either talking on their beliefs, or accepting the difference. To accept someone else’s belief while still maintaining our belief system means we need to be confident in what it is we believe. If someone has strong beliefs but is unsure of them, they will usually set out to make others believe the way they do, because this is the only way their belief can remain intact. Their lack of confidence and the fear that this brings will make them fight to have their beliefs upheld. It is inevitable that different beliefs mixed together will eventually cause conflict, either with others or with our-selves.

Faith

Faith can be seen as a having a quality of confidence in our views and opinions. This confidence allows for things to be OK for us, even if our belief is being challenged. Faith can be blind, fear based or leavened with knowledge.

When our faith is challenged we can:

1. “Weather the storm”
2. Resist the challenge either passively or aggressively
3. Allow the challenge to modify our faith (confidence) by modifying our belief to be in line with the new circumstances which can come about from either.

• (a) Personal experience (b) New evidence (c) Threat (d) connivance

So faith can work to help us sustain our beliefs or to allow us to readjust ourselves in relation to what the world is showing us. If Faith is shaky it can slip to allow us to change our ideas and beliefs. e.g: Changing one’s religious faith. We can also go to war to protect our faith, although we have to recognise that this can often be a pretext for other agenda’s.

Because Faith can work well to protect ideas and beliefs, it is also possible to have faith work in the other direction. Faith can help reinforce an idea or belief of not having faith in fixed ideas and beliefs. It is possible to construct our lives and live in a way that allows for ideas and beliefs not to be real. One can construct ideas and beliefs to test this view. This is what the Buddha did when he constructed his religion more than 2600 years ago based on letting go, (of views opinions and beliefs.) The rationale for this way of seeing is a recognition that everything is transitory and in a state of flux and because ideas are built on this impermanence they are unsatisfactory and at the heart of any phenomena that arises there is no self. This includes our lives. Although this way of seeing things may be somewhat uncertain for us, it turns out to be the most truthful and in the end is it is the most certain. This kind of faith will move us closer to understand Knowing.

Knowing

Knowing is an experience that at its purest is bare awareness. This is an experience that apprehends knowledge of a situation before any ideas of what might be happening come to mind. One might say pure Knowing. It may be helpful to see how Faith can be involved to get to this purity.

Faith can sponsor the idea of transience and uncertainty in beliefs and ideas, such that it can gradually accept fewer and fewer belief concepts being constructed in front of an experience. This allows us to see less blurring and confusion over the present moment. Eventually we will get down to stillness where we can watch our minds work with stillness as the matrix. The mind will become very sensitive. It will start to give us a more truthful and real perspective into impermanence, uncertainty, and non-self, and will eventually allow us to know the apparent and transcendence at the same time.

When stillness is the knowing, we can start to interact with the world from stillness. This pathway does in effect by-pass the blind ego and starts to be sensitive from a more universal perspective. We can learn how to operate with compassion with the beings we are dealing with and also with ourselves.

Psychic experience may also become apparent for some when operating from this perspective. This is because the Universe itself opens to infinity through the stillness and with practice, psychic connections can start to happen.

In conclusion “Knowing”, when mastered with practice is a more sensitive and open way of dealing with and understanding the universe. It is very different from the usual way of judging through views and beliefs. Ultimately it will allow the mind to come to peace in the present moment.