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Diksha (Deeksha) - Section A – Article #14 - The Ultimate Reality - The word God has become a common part of our lexicon in everyday conversation. With difference to our so-called intellectual states and scientific temper, we do not even address this basic issue of ignorance in our lives an issue, which has a bearing over our entire lives. We do not possess any knowledge as regards the “ existence” or “non-existence” of God. We possess merely “concepts” and “ideas”. There are so many theories and concepts floating around, including Atheism, which we find it convenient to take security behind the cover of a label. None of these are based on any real understanding of the fact. Very often our decisions are reactionary. Sometimes we decide to rebel when we are born in very pious and orthodox families. At other times the exposure convinces us to lead a similar life. Respect or disrespect for our elders makes us follow or reject a tradition. The matter actually boils down to where we find ourselves to be most secure. When our securities are threatened, our perspectives also undergo a change. Some of us find our securities in accepting while others find it in rebelling. In either situation it is an external stimulus which determines our response and no concrete realization from within. Thus there is no real difference between the “believers” and the “non-believers” in God for both of us in effect really do not KNOW whether there is a God or not. It is not a concrete reality for us. We believe that the Bhagavad Gita was handed over to Arjuna by the Divine Incarnation named Krishna, or that God handed the Ten Commandments to Moses in the Mount Sinai. Very few of us across the ages know whether this is a reality, a myth or a legend. Some of us choose to believe it while others do not. There are still others who appreciate the wonderful philosophies extrapolated in it and remain content in the intellectual acquisition of that knowledge. Then we also have people who talk about seeing God in everybody and in everything. While we do say this, how many of us actually experience it. It is basically a concept we can identify with and intellectually play upon. It makes no significant difference in our lives. At the same time, there are Saints, Mystics and other people, both past and present, who portray a very different personality, a personality which seems to be representing a strange sense of joy, of wisdom and of clarity of issues in life. There are a lot of human beings we meet in the course of our lives also who represent a strange fullness in everything they do. They are fascinating to observe and watch, and we realize that we are missing something, a fact that is highly frustrating. Another distressing reality of our lives is the division between what we would like to be, and what we naturally are. We wish that we should not get angry with others, but the reality is that we do get angry and can do nothing about it. We would like to believe that we are honest and truthful, the reality is something else. We would like to believe that matters of the spirit rule us while in reality we are led by matters of the flesh. If we were really to see the realities of our life, the picture is not a very fascinating and inspiring one. It is downright depressing to observe unacceptable facts about oneself. The solution then is to wear a mask and pretend to be someone else. It is in the same fashion that we pretend to relate or not relate to God. Except for an abiding fear in time-tested rituals and dogma, for, social factors seem to be demanding adherence, we really are pretending to relate to the objects of our worship. When we consider the lives of mystics and certain others mentioned earlier, we see the key difference. They seem to have enjoyed a deep personal communion with the source of inner worship, be it any particular form or in a formless state. It is this communion which is the result of a mystical experience that has enabled them to come to terms with their reality. We started off this article with a question on whether the term God itself meant anything at all to us or was it merely a belief system sanctified by years of usage. Don’t you think that this is a question relevant to each one of us, whatever be the denomination we follow, or even if we do not follow any denomination; for us to come to a state where we KNOW – it is no longer required that we just believe. If we belong to any religious denomination, isn’t it a responsibility we owe ourselves to go down to the depth of the issues and come to conclusions regarding the reality of our own lives and live the truths of religions we proclaim to pursue, in the light of that understanding. Yes, this question of whether or not there is a God and if there is one such entity, what our relationship with it is, is definitely a question that bears relevance in our life. The attitude towards this question should be in the nature of a quest, a discovery; a very personal and sacred discovery where your truth is your Truth, not one borrowed from anybody else. Some of us would like to have facilitators, a guide, who, equipped with the strength of their own discovery, plays a supportive role in our quest. But, these Masters and Gurus equip us with the proverbial fishing rod; we have to do the fishing ourselves. A young man was extensively in the habit of daydreaming. One day, he dreamt that he had walked into a new supermarket in town and to his surprise found God standing behind one of the counters. Curious, he went up to the counter and asked, “What do you sell here?” God replied, “Everything that your heart desires”. He could not believe what he had just heard. He decided to ask for the best things a human being could ever aspire for. “I want peace of mind and love and happiness and freedom from insecurities and fear”, and so that he didn’t appear selfish, he added as an after-thought, “Not just for me, but also for every being on the planet”. God gave him a very compassionate smile and said, “You have got me all wrong, my dear young man. We do not sell any fruits here; only the seeds”. The quest demands commitments and an urge to know the truth and get to the bottom of it – not a superficial indulgence in it for curiosity. It does not demand an acceptance or rejection of God. It however demands utmost honesty from oneself and an acceptance of oneself as one is, not as what one would like to be. The world is like a mirror; it reflects your state. And as the viewing section gets cleaned, what remains is creative art at its most original best, not one wrong stroke anywhere, a fascinating perfection emerging from all the chaos we have got accustomed to. A world where your creativity would begin to find fresh expression, in tune and in harmony with the forces of Creation. Extract from the Book “ THE DHARMA OF KALKI” Acharya Sri Akshyamati
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