Belief

Several movies have put forward the idea that if you can really believe that you can do something, then you can do it. The idea certainly appeals to our minds... such power... if only we could believe!

But untrue as the proposition may be, there is great power in belief. Indeed, a mathematician might say that although the existence of belief may not be sufficient to achieve an arbitrary goal, it is nonetheless necessary. That almost sounds pedantic :)

Time and again I have pondered over the nature of god, or a supreme power, and I have arrived at the same conclusion that such a power is unlikely to be interested in human affairs, and give instructions such as those given by most religions. God lives in our beliefs. We think of god subject to the limitations of our wits. God is as powerful as our beliefs. And the power of belief, although it may not enable us to violate nature's laws, is still enormous. It is the power of belief that enabled dictators to justify the killing of tens of millions of people, and it is the power of belief that helps billions of human beings to lead a reasonably honest life in a world where there is little other than human law to punish villains.