Faith Without Works; Actions Speak Louder Than Words
“Be Quick to Hear, Slow to Speak & Slow to Anger – Being ever intent on three noble ideals: The Good Word, Well Spoken. The Good Thought, Well Thought. The Good Deed, Well Done.”
‘22But prove yourselves doers of the word, & not merely hearers who delude themselves. 23For if any one is a hearer of the word & not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24for once he has looked at himself & gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, & abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.’
‘14What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith, but he has no works? Can that faith save him?’ 15If a brother or sister is without clothing & in need of daily food, 16& one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed & filled,’ & yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.’
James 1:22-25; 2:14-17
‘17But whoever has the world’s goods, & beholds his brother in need & closes his heart against him, how does the love of Elôhîym abide in him? 18Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed & truth.’
1John 3:17-18
‘11For there is no partiality with Elôhîym. 12For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish withouth the Law; & all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law; 13for not he hearers of the Law are just before Elôhîym, but the doers of the Law will be justified.’
Romans 2:11-13
‘3O sinless Arjuna, there are two paths to liberation: one involves renunciation & the pursuit of knowledge, while the other involves working without material desires. 4One cannot achieve perfection by renunciation alone, for by simply stopping work one does not necessarily remain free from karmic reaction. 5Impelled by his nature a man is forced to act at every moment, even if the action is only in his mind. 6To withdraw the senses while allowing the mind to think of sense pleasures is useless, O Arjuna. It is simply a pretense of yoga. 7Far better is the man who uses his intelligence to control his senses & at the same times works without attachment.’
‘22Think of my own example, O Partha. You know my identity as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds. What duty is there for me? Nevertheless, I execute all the duties incumbent on a man in my position very carefully. 23If I did not do so, then all the worlds would fall into ruination, for all men would follow my example.’
Bhagavad-Gita 3:3-7; 22-23
‘1The Sage asked the spirit of wisdom 2thus: ‘Is wisdom good, or skill, or goodness?’ 3The spirit of wisdom answered 4thus: ‘Wisdom with which there is no goodness, is not to be considered as wisdom; 5and skill with which there is no wisdom, is not to be considered as skill.’’
Menog-i Khrad 11:1-5
‘42Daily & constantly I remember Bhagavatî, who is the Mother of all this Universe. She will look after my welfare. 43Behold! One will have certainly to bear the burden of one’s past Karma, whether it be good or it be bad; one’s own actions must bear their fruits. Then why shall he be sorry, who has come to know this? 44The less intelligent deluded persons, on getting pain from their own actions, turn out enemies on very trifling matters.’
Devi Bhagavatam 20:42-44
‘231He who has committed a sin & has repented, is freed from that sin, but he is purified only by (the resolution) ceasing (to sin & thinking) ‘I will do so no more.’ 232Having thus considered in his mind what results will arise from his deeds after death, let him always be good in thoughts, speech, & actions.’
Manusmriti 11:231-232
‘17Both consciousness & life are included in the formula of Immortality; Knowledge is incomplete without action. Chit fulfils itself by Tapas, Consciousness by energy. And as Surya represents the divine Light, so Agni to the ancient Rishis represented divine Force, Power or Will-in-Consciousness. The prayer to Agni completes the prayer to Surya. As in knowledge, so in action, unity is the true foundation.’
‘18What we are we know not; what we know, we cannot effect. For knowledge is real & action in harmony with true knowledge only when they proceed naturally out of the conscious, illuminated & self-possessing soul, in which being, knowledge & action are one movement.’
‘3Actions are not inconsistent with the soul’s freedom. Man is not bound by works, but only seems to be bound. He has to recover the consciousness of his inalienable freedom by recovering the consciousness of unity in the Lord, unity in himself, unity with all existence. This done, life and works can and should be accepted in their fullness; for the manifestation of the Lord in life and works is the law of our being and the object of our world-existence.’
Isha Upanishad – VIII [2] v.17-18 Actions & Divine Will – Will & Knowledge – IX:3 – Action & Freedom
‘Of these two mentalities, the wrongful mentality chose worst actions, & the most progressive mentality, as steadfast as a rock, chose righteousness. Therefore, those who would please the Wise God, may do so by choosing true actions.’
‘God Wise grants wholeness, immortality, abundance of righteousness, independence in dominion, & a lasting good mind to him, who is His friend in mind & action.’
‘Therefore, Wise God, I, Zarathushtra choose for myself the very mentality of Yours, which is the most progressive. May righteousness breath a strong life in body. May serenity prevail in the sun-bathed dominion. May the reward for actions be given through good mind.’
Gâthâ Song 3:5 Good & Evil – 4:21 Guidance – 8:16 Realizing-Self, Nature, God
‘Because of the eight types of bondages which a man feels on this earth, the soul is also known as ‘Jiva’. The Jiva becomes liberated only after becoming free from these eight bondages. These eight bondages are – Nature, Intelligence qualitative- ego & the Panchatanmantras i.e. Sound, Touch, Appearance, Taste, & Smell. Each soul is blinded be these eight aspects of the Nature. The actions performed as the result of these bondages is called Karma. A man reaps the fruits of his actions- whether good or evil. He either enjoys pleasures or suffers because of sorrow, due to his Karma’
Shiva Mahapurana – Worldly Bondages & Salvation
‘By the karma of past actions, the robe of this physical body is obtained.’
Siri Guru Granth Sahib 3
‘Present No excuses: we shall not believe you: Allah hath already informed us of the true state of matters concerning you: It is your actions that Allah & His Messenger will observe: In the end will ye be brought back to Him who knoweth what is hidden & what is open: Then will He show you the Truth of all that ye did.’
Quran; Sūrat At-Tauba, 9 – Section 12:94
