Advice to the Indian Aristocracy/Chapter 1
THE PRESENCE OF GOD.
(Indic characters)
Before I give you any advice, I must first say something about the Almighty Creator and Preserver of all things, and in
ERRATA.
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I shall, therefore, say only a few words, such as youths like you may understand about the Creator. Atheists say that there is no God and that every thing is formed according to natural laws. But if so, there must be a Supreme Designer and Controller of these laws, for no one can suppose that laws can originate and control themselves. There must therefore be some Supreme Being. Of created things some are inert and apparently useless, till creatures endowed with intelligence turn them to account. The difference between these inert and intelligent creatures is that the former consist of matter only, while the latter in addition to matter or material are endowed with Spirit. Hence we say the whole Creation consists of Spirit and Matter.
A house is built of stones, bricks, lime, wood and iron. It cannot build itself of those materials, but it must be built by man. In the same way, if you think of the wonderful order and system in the Universe, you will certainly come to the conclusion that there must be some Supreme Being to guide the Universe. You may trace a design in every part of the wonderful order and system of the Universe, in the growth and the decay of animals and plants, in the motions of the planets, in the arrangement of the stars, in the changes of the seasons, etc. In the present day the ingenuity of man has harnessed some of the forces of Nature, such as gas, steam, and electricity, and has compelled them to perform Herculean labours for the benefit of mankind, though these forces are apt to be destructive when unrestrained. Though man has acquired such large power, yet there are many things that man cannot do; nor can man know what may happen to-morrow. Therefore there must be some Being whose power is infinitely higher than that of man.
'He is the First Cause of the Universe.' 'He is the Creator.' 'He is eternal.' 'He is beyond all creatures.' But He is invisible to mortal eyes; yet invisibility does not prove non-existence. For instance, though none of you have had the fortune of seeing personally our late Queen Empress, Victoria the Great, yet you have not the least doubt about her existence in the past. In the same way, as you grow older and older, and as you study, learn, and observe, day by day, you cannot but believe in the existence of God. You may call Him 'Narayana,' 'Parameswara,' or 'God,' or ' Alla.' Daily if you think of Him, and pray to Him, He will certainly help you as a friend in your right and just undertakings, watch over you as a guardian, and give you at the end what we call 'Moksham,' which means freedom (of the soul from the body) or Eternal rest.