In my several years of long journey to discover my relationship with God I have been going through an interesting phase of redefining what God stands for me. Of late I am going through a unique realization of a strong presence of God in my consciousness. I would not confuse you with further beating around the bush on God, and His presence in my life. Let me directly jump on to the core of this essay – What God is for me.
An ideal, A perfection, A righteous self, An invincible warrior for loftiest cause, A being with absolutely unconditional compassion and love for all, An all understanding and ever forgiving, An all powerful, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, A beacon of “Dharma”, A Light House, An immortal – never ending highest potential fulfilled – These are a few labels I would like to associate with my God. That God is beautifully instantiated in the forms of myths and folklores, in which my limited human mind can comprehend – in the form of Krishna, Shiva, Zeus, Venus, etc. The best aspect of Gods is that they share the form similar to mine – They are either men or women. That makes me appreciate them even more! How can someone be as lofty and honorable as Shiva – a man who could drink poison for the wellbeing of others!! How inspirational is being a charioteer and at the same time be a philosopher of the scale as Krishna!! How divine is the conception of the perfect beauty of Venus. How inspiring it is to conceive of a woman as powerful, confident, self-sufficient, independent, beautiful and knowledgeable as Durga!
There are thousands of mythologies in all major civilizations which sing about the greatness of each of these Gods! All these myths are codified stories of something much more profound and philosophically relevant for humanity, beyond what they appear – a fairy tale.
For example in Mahabharata, the entire episode of the battle at Kurukshetra is a symbolism. Pandavas (one’s higher self) are in battle with Kauravas (one’s lower self), to rule Hastinapur (The land of higher consciousness). Arjuna symbolizes a common man being tormented in his inner battle between his lower self and the higher, being guided by Krishna – The Ideal! Krishna is the pathfinder, the beacon, the mentor – the charioteer – giving direction to the evolution of the common man – The Arjuna.
The philosophy of Krishna in the Bhagavat Gita, fills me with so much respect for a person like Krishna. It is irrelevant for me whether He is just a work of art, or a historical figure. No matter who he was, he symbolizes the perfect. That is more important. A glance at the Lord shows me a way – a way he stands for – a way which I can also take – at any and every moment of my life.
Same is the case when I glance on Shiva. A person who is totally untouched by worldly pursuits! A person who stands for end of anything that is not relevant any more. A person who is all powerful, and who is altruist to the core! A person who stands beyond his personal whims and likes! A person who would end any creation if that is not what is needed! A person who can sustain all the hardships of staying in the wilderness of snowcapped mountains, and animals, dedicating his being for the wellbeing of the entire creation.
Same is the case with all the deities in most of the major civilizations. Rama, Zeus, Aphrodite, Apollo, Athena, Durga, Kali, Brahma, Vishnu, etc all stand for a bigger than life ideal. Contemplation of each of these Gods, and the myths surrounding them, fills a human with so much inspiration! They act as archetypes which aid man to hold on something strong and stable, in otherwise transient and illusory world.
At the same time, one very important thing to keep in mind is that God is not human. He stands for something which is abstract – something which is not touched by the baseness of being human. God in these myths are abstract beings who personify superlative forms of humanly virtures totally un-adulterated. Gods work as a psychological ideal for every human to aspire as a role model. That is something which is very interesting. Gods paint a bigger than life – an inspiring possibility which is achievable – or atleast, worthy pursuing, even if not achieved. This spark and provoking, keeps the train of optimal evolution of human species ongoing!
I am enjoying my bliss at this newfound discovering for myself. For me God is real. God is the goodness instantiated in flesh and blood, in the form of all the great characters of several myths from different parts of the ancient world. God is a way of inspiration – a direction – inviting me to try out His lofty ways. God is beyond my reach – He is ideal. But it is fun living a life being a warrior, combating ones lower self, and trying to reach that lofty ideal – The God.
God is a my access to that part of me, which is beyond my body, my identity and my physical presence as a man with his own idiosyncrasies; A higher self - A mystic self, beyond the limiting existence of being a mortal. My poems, my essays, my feelings are manifestations of that higher self of mine, which is a link of my mortal existence with the very real existence of the Ideal – The God. And anytime, if my thoughts, words, actions, mind and heart, starts to drift to the way of the lower self, it is the contemplation of the ideal in God, which keeps me on path – the path to a more beautiful possibility, a more inspirational option.
Life for me has become a sacred journey, reaching out to that God, in my own way – either by writing a good poem, or working hard at my work, or being kind, or being the best father, husband, friend, mentor or just a citizen. It is about dedicating all my thoughts, action, dreams and inspirations to “Krishna” or the “Shiva” or “Zeus” – to the ideals – all unique in their own respect! I understand that each God stands for an ideal in a unique dimension. Each inspire me in His own way!
I enjoy being simple, a naïve Indian, believing in existence of thousands of deities. I am proud, happy and grateful for getting this being in heritage! It makes things simple, beautiful and so much fun! The life becomes a work of art – of love, of devotion, of stories, of songs, of imaginations in all its forms!
Such blissful is this sacred journey, which I know I have just begun. The future inspires me with all its hidden adventures!
An ideal, A perfection, A righteous self, An invincible warrior for loftiest cause, A being with absolutely unconditional compassion and love for all, An all understanding and ever forgiving, An all powerful, Omnipresent, Omnipotent, A beacon of “Dharma”, A Light House, An immortal – never ending highest potential fulfilled – These are a few labels I would like to associate with my God. That God is beautifully instantiated in the forms of myths and folklores, in which my limited human mind can comprehend – in the form of Krishna, Shiva, Zeus, Venus, etc. The best aspect of Gods is that they share the form similar to mine – They are either men or women. That makes me appreciate them even more! How can someone be as lofty and honorable as Shiva – a man who could drink poison for the wellbeing of others!! How inspirational is being a charioteer and at the same time be a philosopher of the scale as Krishna!! How divine is the conception of the perfect beauty of Venus. How inspiring it is to conceive of a woman as powerful, confident, self-sufficient, independent, beautiful and knowledgeable as Durga!
There are thousands of mythologies in all major civilizations which sing about the greatness of each of these Gods! All these myths are codified stories of something much more profound and philosophically relevant for humanity, beyond what they appear – a fairy tale.
For example in Mahabharata, the entire episode of the battle at Kurukshetra is a symbolism. Pandavas (one’s higher self) are in battle with Kauravas (one’s lower self), to rule Hastinapur (The land of higher consciousness). Arjuna symbolizes a common man being tormented in his inner battle between his lower self and the higher, being guided by Krishna – The Ideal! Krishna is the pathfinder, the beacon, the mentor – the charioteer – giving direction to the evolution of the common man – The Arjuna.
The philosophy of Krishna in the Bhagavat Gita, fills me with so much respect for a person like Krishna. It is irrelevant for me whether He is just a work of art, or a historical figure. No matter who he was, he symbolizes the perfect. That is more important. A glance at the Lord shows me a way – a way he stands for – a way which I can also take – at any and every moment of my life.
Same is the case when I glance on Shiva. A person who is totally untouched by worldly pursuits! A person who stands for end of anything that is not relevant any more. A person who is all powerful, and who is altruist to the core! A person who stands beyond his personal whims and likes! A person who would end any creation if that is not what is needed! A person who can sustain all the hardships of staying in the wilderness of snowcapped mountains, and animals, dedicating his being for the wellbeing of the entire creation.
Same is the case with all the deities in most of the major civilizations. Rama, Zeus, Aphrodite, Apollo, Athena, Durga, Kali, Brahma, Vishnu, etc all stand for a bigger than life ideal. Contemplation of each of these Gods, and the myths surrounding them, fills a human with so much inspiration! They act as archetypes which aid man to hold on something strong and stable, in otherwise transient and illusory world.
At the same time, one very important thing to keep in mind is that God is not human. He stands for something which is abstract – something which is not touched by the baseness of being human. God in these myths are abstract beings who personify superlative forms of humanly virtures totally un-adulterated. Gods work as a psychological ideal for every human to aspire as a role model. That is something which is very interesting. Gods paint a bigger than life – an inspiring possibility which is achievable – or atleast, worthy pursuing, even if not achieved. This spark and provoking, keeps the train of optimal evolution of human species ongoing!
I am enjoying my bliss at this newfound discovering for myself. For me God is real. God is the goodness instantiated in flesh and blood, in the form of all the great characters of several myths from different parts of the ancient world. God is a way of inspiration – a direction – inviting me to try out His lofty ways. God is beyond my reach – He is ideal. But it is fun living a life being a warrior, combating ones lower self, and trying to reach that lofty ideal – The God.
God is a my access to that part of me, which is beyond my body, my identity and my physical presence as a man with his own idiosyncrasies; A higher self - A mystic self, beyond the limiting existence of being a mortal. My poems, my essays, my feelings are manifestations of that higher self of mine, which is a link of my mortal existence with the very real existence of the Ideal – The God. And anytime, if my thoughts, words, actions, mind and heart, starts to drift to the way of the lower self, it is the contemplation of the ideal in God, which keeps me on path – the path to a more beautiful possibility, a more inspirational option.
Life for me has become a sacred journey, reaching out to that God, in my own way – either by writing a good poem, or working hard at my work, or being kind, or being the best father, husband, friend, mentor or just a citizen. It is about dedicating all my thoughts, action, dreams and inspirations to “Krishna” or the “Shiva” or “Zeus” – to the ideals – all unique in their own respect! I understand that each God stands for an ideal in a unique dimension. Each inspire me in His own way!
I enjoy being simple, a naïve Indian, believing in existence of thousands of deities. I am proud, happy and grateful for getting this being in heritage! It makes things simple, beautiful and so much fun! The life becomes a work of art – of love, of devotion, of stories, of songs, of imaginations in all its forms!
Such blissful is this sacred journey, which I know I have just begun. The future inspires me with all its hidden adventures!
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Reading this post was indeed a sacred journey!
ReplyDeleteEspecially loved that idea about Mahabharata as the war between the higher self and the lower self.
Wonderfully written :)
Meditate on this statment: "Everything is EGO and where there is no EGO, there is GOD."
ReplyDelete