I recently held a class on bereavement for nurses and those in the caring profession who care for terminally ill people. It was really all about faith and death. I was there to give the Bahai perspective – a personal approach. I showed the film of Nickie which was filmed last summer as she was dying.

There are certain things we cant change or elude – one is death, we are all going to die, its been happening for years so we may as well get used to it.

A friend sent me a poem the other day called Emerging Essence Its all about us being in a half-light clinging on with faith and trust. Anyway it got me thinking about the talk thing I did. I certainly conveyed the fact that when we believe with a certainty then there is nothing to fear. Its like when you know what is going to happen then the unknown doesn't exist so we cant fear it if its not there. Now that's well and good if you know but if you don't then what sort of help can you offer especially if you are nursing a terminally ill person and they are in fear of their impending death? I think when people are in a state of fear or uncertainty they look for comfort in others. That is where it is vital to have an understanding of how things work so you can show that conviction and sincerity in your actions. It is strange how that works – so as you have faith, so shall your powers be. Its like if we have faith in the doctor to help us then invariably what they do, works. But if we doubt the expertise of the doctor then chances are the medicine will have little effect. That's how witch doctors managed to get such a strong power over the tribe. I remember reading about an experiment which was done on a prisoner who was condemned to death, he was put on a table and a needle was inserted into his arm, a doctor announced as each 500ml of blood was taken out and what the patient should be feeling. It went on until the patient had died because he believed what the doctor was announcing when in actual fact not one drop of blood was taken from him. Amazing that isn't it!

So we put our trust in people when we feel they can be trusted. So how do we figure they can be trusted? Well I suppose we use our powers of reason. That's a bit like the independent investigation of truth which we are encouraged to do when checking out anything.

So we should apply this to everything we do right? One of the first quotes I ever learnt was 'Be ye guided by wisdom in all your doings, and cleave ye tenaciously unto it' I must have been about 9 or 10 at the time. I had done something which was not very well thought out and this quote obviously hit a chord with me at the time.

So if the ultimate apex of our strivings should be God then it kinda figures we should put a bit of effort into figuring it out. And what tools do we use to figure it out? Well lets start with our reason capacities. Look at the facts. Read what the founders of all religions have to say. See if it makes sense to us. What some do here is get scared as there is a power in the words you read and when you open yourself to taking them to heart it can be a bit scary at first. But eventually if you persevere you trust and they become part of you. There is that word again – trust. Then you start reading and questioning to understand not to find fault or difference. Then the real journey of discovery begins. You will get such a wonderful knowledge of who you are, what your reality is, how the soul and progression all fits into things. What your life should be about. Why we need to develop attitudes and behaviors which are beneficial to mankind. How to bring up our kids to be open and sincere to themselves. How all this is such a liberating thing and not a straightjacket in life – as many see religion as being. Now then once you gain a bit of an understanding of what life is all about what happens is that you can relax. Yep that's it just relax and take each day as it comes. You can confidently follow your passions and hearfelt desires knowing that its fine to do so and that its your God given right to do so. When adversities come in your life they wont affect you so severely as to shake your very core but your understanding of how it all works will make these challenges appear as learning opportunities and you can truly rejoice in them at a heartfelt level.

You will live your life in awe and wonder like a little child who experiences something for the first time.

You end up taking extreme pleasure in how others think and do things. You see others as special noble spiritual beings who were created for a purpose and that gives you an inquisitiveness and natural curiosity which fills you with excitement and awe. People smile at you and warm to your presence. Its all very very pleasant.