Spiritual faith is a conscious decision. Spiritual faith happens when we place our trust in God. Giving our trust to God releases the element of faith inside of us. A person may be high in their Spiritual Quotient (SQ) but may have no religious faith or belief in form of God. Similarly, a person may be religious but low in their SQ. Those seeking meaning form their life and the purpose of life are on their path to attaining that spiritual realization.

IQ, or intelligence quotient, which is tested using the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales. The scale is an individually administered measure of general intelligence for persons ages 2 years to 23 years 11 months. The scale yields a standard score with a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 16. It refers to our rational, logical, rule-bound problem-solving intelligence. It is supposed to be what makes us bright or dim. It is also a style of thinking. All of us use some IQ, or we wouldn’t be functional.

EQ – Emotional Quotient became famous in 1995 by Daniel Goleman. He articulated the kind of intelligence that our heart, or emotions, have. EQ is manifested in trust, empathy, emotional self-responsiveness and self-control, and the ability to respond appropriately to the emotions of others. It’s a sense of where people are coming from; for example, if someone looks dull and drawn, he must be facing some personal issue in family before coming into the office that morning, it’s not the best time to raise a query before him. 

SQ, or spiritual quotient, underlines IQ and EQ. Spiritual intelligence is an ability to access higher meanings, values, abiding purposes, and unconscious aspects of the self and to be surround by these meanings, values, and purposes in living richer and more creative lives. Signs of high SQ include an ability to think out of the box, humility, and an access to energies that come from something beyond the ego, beyond concerns of I, me, myself.

All of us at some points do get in touch with that higher self. Researchers say that 70 percent of adults throughout the world, regardless of culture, education, or background, have had what they call “peak experiences.” Peak experiences are those moments when you suddenly feel that everything is beautiful, that there’s a super link of yourself with the surrounding,  that love fills the world. You really feel them with your whole being, and then they flash by and are gone. Often people are shaken by having these experiences and don’t talk about them. These are called spiritual peak experiences; they are often described as superior moments of pure joy and elation. These are moments that stand out from everyday events. The memory of such events is lasting, and people often link them to a spirituality.  

I narrate here one story from Mahabharat which shows how IQ, EQ and SQ are connected and how powerful spiritual faith is in every living being’s lives. Here the story talks about Krishna’s IQ and EQ led by compassions and a tiny bird’s spiritual faith in Lord Krishna.

The battlefield of Kurukshetra was being prepared to facilitate the movement of mammoth armies with large cavalries. Areas were marked for rival camps. Huge bundles of wood were organized to cook food for a sea of an army. Trees were being felled by elephants to clear the ground. On one such tree lived a sparrow, a mother of four young ones. As the tree was knocked down, her nest landed on the ground along with her offspring who were too young to fly. Miraculously they all fell on ground unscathed.

The vulnerable and frightened mother sparrow saw Krishna scanning the field with Arjuna. They were there to physically examine the battlefield and devise strategies. She flapped her tiny wings with all her might to reach Krishna’s chariot. She pleaded before Krishna “Please save my children, else they will be crushed tomorrow”.  “The wheel of Time moves indiscriminately,” Krishna spoke like an ordinary man implying that there wasn’t anything he could do about it. The sparrow told Krishna she is surrendering to him and its HIS responsibility to save her tiny children and herself. Krishna told her to stock her nest for three weeks. Unaware of the conversation, Arjuna was trying to shoo away the sparrow when Krishna smiled at the bird.

Two days later, just before the conchs were blown to announce the commencement of the battle, Krishna asked Arjuna for his bow and an arrow. Arjuna was shocked because Krishna had vowed that he would not lift any weapon in the war. Besides, Arjuna believed that he was the best archer out there, why is Krishna wanting the bow and arrow? Quietly taking the bow from Arjuna, Krishna took aim at an elephant. But, instead of bringing the animal down, the arrow hit the bell around its neck and sparks flew from it. Arjuna couldn’t contain his chuckle seeing that Krishna had missed an easy mark. Arjun asked Krishna why he shot at the elephant, Krishna answered that this elephant had knocked down the tree sheltering that sparrow’s nest. Arjun didn’t understand which sparrow, and though Krishna shot at the elephant, it was not harmed, Only the bell from elephant’s neck fell.

The war began and numerous lives were lost over the next eighteen days. The battlefield had turned red with blood, body parts scattered everywhere. The Pandavas won in the end. Once again, Krishna took Arjuna with him to traverse through the flushed field. Many corpses still lay there awaiting their funeral. The battleground was littered with severed limbs and heads, lifeless steeds and elephants. Krishna stopped at a certain spot and looked down thoughtfully at an elephant bell. He asked Arjun to lift the bell and put it aside.

The instruction, though simple, made little sense to Arjuna. After all, in the vast field where plenty of other things needed clearing, why would Krishna ask him to move a trivial piece of metal out of the way? He looked at him questioningly. Krishna reiterated. “It’s the same bell that had come off the neck of the elephant I had shot at.” Arjuna bent down to move the heavy bell without another question on his facial expression. As soon as he lifted it though, his world changed forever. One, two, three, four and five. Four young birds flew out one after another followed by the mother sparrow. The mother bird whirled in circles around Krishna, few times, in great joy and gratitude. The one bell Krishna had clung eighteen days ago protected the entire family. This is spirituality, this is faith!!!       

Miracles Happen Every Day!!

On March 25, 2010, Kate Ogg gave birth to twins Jamie and Emily just 27 weeks into her pregnancy. Although Emily survived the birthing process, Jamie was born in distress and was not breathing. Doctors spent 20 minutes trying to resuscitate Jamie, but were unable to do so. They told Kate and her husband David that Jamie had died. Nurses placed Jamie’s unmoving body onto his mother’s chest so she could say her goodbyes. As Kate and David thought they were extending a farewell to their deceased child, a remarkable thing occurred; after about five minutes or so, Jamie began moving. Nonetheless, the doctor present informed his parents such movements were simply reflex actions and were not indicative of life.

Kate and David asked to spend an extra minute or two with the child they believed was on his way out of the world. Those few minutes turned into two hours, and something even more remarkable than Jamie’s previous movements took place – the supposedly dead child opened his eyes. At this point, the couple started to question if Jaime was dead after all but were still told by the hospital that what they were seeing were simply reflex actions. Eventually, they had to resort to a little white lie to get the doctor to come back. They told him they had come to terms with the baby’s death.

Once inside the room, the doctor was in disbelief when he arrived back at the bedside. “He got a stethoscope, listened to Jamie’s chest and just kept shaking his head. He said, ‘I don’t believe it, I don’t believe it.'” Jamie was indeed alive. Doctors believe the warmth of Kate’s body and the stimulation that the baby may have received from hearing her heartbeat made all the difference between life and death. Jamie and his sister Emily are now happy, healthy five years olds. The little boy has not encountered one medical problem in the five years since his birth.

Can this miracle be explained? It is a complex inquiry whether to believe or not in miracles. It is difficult to explain rationality of miracles. Most of us – the sophisticated and educated people seek reality, scientific reasons for our queries. The assumptions and ideas that form the canvas or background to the way in which we interpret and understand the world, is very diverse. The word ‘miracle’ is derived from the Latin miraculous meaning ‘object of wonder,’ implies a contrast with a background, an event that is remarkable and different from what is experienced normally. It is not easy to define a miracle.

Almost every religion has their own accounts of miracles: divine events that seem to surpass the natural laws. But as science has marched forward, many seeming miracles wind up having scientific explanations and still many others are shown to be elaborate deceptions. In spite of the logical and scientific war, belief in miracles continues. And despite scientific progress, there are still many miraculous phenomena that haven’t been explained.

The Amarnath Shiva Temple in Jammu and Kashmir is a wonder; as per the legends, Shiva explained the secret of life and eternity to Goddess Parvati. There is a Shiva Linga in the temple which is made up of ice. The worshippers believe that the lingam grows and shrinks according to the phases of the moon though there is no scientific evidence for the phenomena.

Scientific inventions and researches are ongoing process. But some natural events continue to mystify us; this includes black holes, supernovas, the Marfa lights, the Bermuda Triangle and the Taos Hum. How would one explain this – in June 2013 the cloudburst at North India created a havoc;  at Kedarnath temple the Nandi statue and the other idols in the temple were intact even after the heavy rainfalls. In fact, those pilgrims who were in the temple during the tragedy also survived. This phenomenon is difficult to explain; the destruction all around the temple had been terrible as the real death toll in the floods and cloudburst was huge. But inside the temple things remained intact. Can this be explained on the basis of science?

Despite the scientists’ best efforts, there are many myths and legends surrounding unexplained natural events. At Tirupurakundram in Tamilnadu, two eagles come to the temple exactly at 12 noon to partake in the prasad offering of the god in the temple. Garuda is believed to be the vahana (vehicle) of Vishnu whose idol is installed in the temple. Similarly, at Jwalamukhi temple in Himachal Pradesh, natural gas burns without the boiling crude oil catching fire.

The Lonar crater in Maharashtra is said to be the world’s third largest crater. Lonar Crater Lake came into being 50,000 years back as a result of a meteorite hitting the earth, causing the depression. The roundish water body fringed by clusters of green and brown ground in the middle of nowhere makes for quite a sight. There are many who have come to this site and scratched their heads over how this is possible. In Chennai, at the heritage rich destination of Mahabalipuram, is the famous balancing rock. A rather massive stone, it stands on very tiny and slippery area of a hill but has never lost balance. There are also times when animals take shade underneath it from the glaring harsh afternoon sunlight. Locally known as Krishna’s Butter Ball, the stone is twenty feet high and 5 meter wide and weighs over 250 tons. It is a case of curiosity how the rock manages to stay put and not roll down.

The largest salt desert in the world (around 7,505.22 square kilometres), the Great Rann of Kutch is an engaging sight. This seasonal salt marsh sprawls in the Thar Desert in Kutch, Gujarat and the Sindh province of Pakistan. This is where you can lap up unrestrained views of the horizon yonder. The place especially comes alive during full moon nights that cast a sparkling spell on the desert.

If you believe in miracles, you will have many pleasant miracles in your life. I strongly believe that miraculous way.  In tough situations some unknown people come to assist us, help us out from a sticky situation. I think God sends them to help us out. He chooses those angels and sends them into our lives to answer our prayers.

Is it difficult to surrender to the Almighty?  Surrender is a battle term. It implies giving up all rights to the conqueror. When an opposing army surrenders, they lay down their arms, and the winners take control from then on. Surrendering to God works the same way. God has a plan for our lives, and surrendering to Him means we set aside our own plans and eagerly seek His. His plans are always in our best interest. No matter how hopeless a situation seems, it could be a prolonged period of unemployment, an illness, a stale marriage or a misunderstanding. God has the power to change it when you pray devotedly.

The recognition of what is generally denoted by the term ‘miracle’ presumes therefore a robust appreciation of the regular course and powers of nature. The nature is full of miracles. As the examples given in above, suggest some spiritual background. Miracles can be explained as a supernatural cause with intellect, will and the power to intercede in nature. We may identify with it as a personal God.