Confidence
By
Bing Escudero
Confidence is the true
meaning of faith. To have
confidence is to have faith.
Likewise, to have faith is to
have confidence. Thus a
false confidence is
synonymous with blind faith.
For ignorance is the
underlying cause of false
confidence. When there is
blind or wrong knowledge,
the faith will be false, no
matter how much the
sincerity.
When there is wisdom,
then there is enlightened faith
as true confidence or
shraddha as in the Sanskrit
teachings. The development
of real confidence is in the
awakening of wisdom. It is
the light of wisdom that
brings forth enlightened faith
Confidence begins with
yourself. This confidence is
faith in yourself. The
extent of your selfknowledge
is the measure by
which you will have faith or
confidence in yourself as well
as in others.
You might say that you
know yourself too well. The
weaknesses and wrong
doings, the faults, failures
and frustrations, the
loneliness and limitations, the
big ego and false pride, the
guilt and blames, the pains
and sufferings, and so on.
If these are what you
know most of yourself, you
know far too little of the
larger, greater and higher
spiritual nature that awaits
your own discovery.
Now go easy. This up
beat is no ego trip. This
super spiritual nature is
egoless. Selfless and
uncomplicated. It can be
access only by the living of
the ideals such as peace,
compassion, love, humane
ness, duty, harmlessness,
humility, purity, simplicity,
service, and other althruistic
endeavors. The living of the
spiritual ideals is the
awakening of wisdom.
The state of egolessness
or selflessness does not mean
that there is no self. Let us
clarify this. Look into your
consciousness. There you
will see two kinds of selves.
The self that is an egotistic
selfish self, and the other is
an egoless unselfish self.
The selfish self is the self
which feels separate from
every other self. Know that
this is your false self. It is
the great illusion.
The great reality is the
unselfish self that does not
feel separate from every other
self. The unselfish self is in
sympathy and in oneness
with all. Know that this is
your true self. This is the
great realization.
In this state of oneness,
the hurts and happiness of
others are also yours. You
cannot hurt another without
feeling the same hurt in
yourself. If not at the
moment, this same feeling
will catch up with you. Do
not be surprise. More often
than not, the catching up is
much sooner than later.
In this same oneness, the
kindness and happiness you
give to others become your
own fortune and joy.
When you come to really
know your true self, the
unselfish self which is the
spiritual or divine self, true
confidence emerges. Why?
The true self is the source of
wisdom. When action is
based on wisdom, the
confidence or faith in what
you do will be there.
You might further ask.
How does one know whether
one's action is based on
wisdom? When what you do
is in accord with the spiritual
ideals, you can be rest
assured that there is wisdom
in your actions. As you learn
to act in virtue, encompassing
more of the ideals, so does
your confidence or faith
increase.
As Saint Paul said in his
Epistle (Philippians 2:2-11),
do not do anything that
involves strife or vainglory.
Likewise in the Gospel (John
12:23-28), the corn of wheat
falls into the ground and dies,
abiding alone. Then can it
give fruit. Here the wheat
plant dies to give forth grain,
and when the grain is planted,
its existence as a seed passes
away in order to grow into
another fruition. And the
periodicity or cycle of death
and birth goes on.
Thus do we die to our old
selves. The egoistic selfish
self dies in order to give birth
to the spiritual selfless self.
And our humanity is
transformed, renewed and
restored into its original
divinity. ©1992