In good faith..

105,106,107,108......huh..with great relief on their faces I saw people getting into the darshan line to see the Lord after 108 circumambulations around the lord's main complex at Balaji Temple Chilukur. I too had the privelege of circumambulating the temple for 108 times before having the darshan of the Lord.

Faith does has its own benefits which probably is not offered by science, logic, or sometimes conventional wisdom.

How could one explain the lethargy that you experience early in the morning when you are asked by the doctor to walk for atleast a couple of miles for you to stay healthy..How could one explain the resistance to temptation towards tasty pizzas, biryanis, various exotic liquers though the doctor advices you to refrain from it.

Nothing could probably stop an individual to practise a junk lifestyle unless one has strong self determination or belief in practising a religious faith. And the probability is that majority of the folks would refrain becoming junkies in love or fear towards the faith one practices.

Not so long ago I read that people in a remote village in Maharastra are staunch devotees of Lord Vitthal irrespective of the caste they belong to. Each person in that village practises strict vegetarianism, refrain from consuming alcohol and practise rituals which benefit them in being healthy. No doctor had adviced them, nor they have access to the top health journals in which they can see the hazards of consuming unhealthy foods or practise a rogue lifestyle..what I could understand that it was their faith in god which has led them to path of good health and life.

Coming back..circumambulating for 108 times around the temple may not give the nirvana that one would want to seek ,but it definitely contributes to improving the health of a person who does it (provided one does it regularly)

Probably our forefathers had this belief that it would be difficult to convince their next generations to practise a chaste lifestyle of simple living which might have led to the way of creating a belief in the existence of a supernatural power that monitors every living and non living being on this earth and we in return are supposed to bow to the power and practise certain rituals to keep the power happy. These rituals have been deviced in such a way that the one who practises it conciously or unconciously follows a healthy pattern of life.

If it helps to have a great life with health and happiness believing god and following rituals..one should practise in good faith...