Tagged: word of god
On God: PG-13
Sometimes Avyakt7 recalls his baby steps in Spirituality, and today he would like to share those realizations in that consciousness.
To know God was everything for Avyakt7. After all, Avyakt7 was told that God was the “greatest of the greatest.”
Avyakt7 was taught different things about God according to different beliefs. If I didn’t behave according to God’s law, I could be punished.
That personality of God was a mystery, but enough to develop some “respect,” some fear towards Him. Many would like to call that “love.”
This God watching/knowing my every step in my life… and at the end, He will show me the “movie” of my life with all the “wrong” things I performed and the reason why I will be in hell for eternity or perhaps the reason why I will not be in Paradise according to a belief.
I guess a congrats! for a “well done job” among all the “mistakes” in the movie of my life, could be easily forgotten among the “celestial higher ups” when punishment is the name of the business.
“To punish is my business.” 🙂 Whip it, Whip it good! 🙂
Of course, the “relationship” with God was a part of that growing up process.
God as the Father could express as a typical father explaining to his kid in the art on how to behave to be out of trouble, but evidently the child needs to grow up, and then the relationship could change into that of a “husband and wife.” Of course, being God, the “God,” he could have many wives and those wives are happy to share their beloved one among many brides… That is the extent of that “one to one” relationship.
Avyakt7 values a good friendship, right now. The child keeps growing…
When Avyakt7 found God, Avyakt7 thought that he had “arrived” to his destination. “I know God” after all.
For some reason, Avyakt7 thought that spirituality was like some human business or affair. “I know the President” so “I get special treatment.” Now, I got some clout!! “I am with God.” 🙂
Repeating the “word of God,” or teaching the “word of God” to others, was a way to only convince myself of my beliefs about God. Many are very happy repeating the “words of God,” the “truth,” to others according to their religious beliefs but for Avyakt7 that wasn’t enough.
That happiness of knowing God, wasn’t lasting; but thanks to that experience, Avyakt7 was able to be in front of another important being, a VIP among all, but equally unknown being: Myself.
After all, “myself” is the source of everything that exists in Avyakt7’s world.
God was a way to discover the self. From that realization, Avyakt7 started to grow in his spiritual life, for to know the self means to transform the self.
Without the experience of “knowing the self,” Avyakt7 could have been lost in some worship practice, after all Avyakt7 has to “butter up” the big boss so I could get Paradise and all the goodies in this life and the afterlife!… 🙂
That is the idea that many have about God and the extent of their understanding. Is that wrong?
No! It is perfect according to what some have to experience. That is why, this is not a “G-rated” writing, but a PG-13 … 🙂
Avyakt7 was looking for something his whole life. From the goodies of the modern world, Avyakt7 was introduced to the peace of God, but from that introduction, Avyakt7 was finally introduced to himself by a very good friend of mine… 🙂 and that is where that happiness resides.
Don’t worry be happy… 🙂 Clear your mind.
To know yourself means to strip yourself from all the burdens, that heavy clothing of beliefs so you see yourself, your mind; naked and from that point, you will be able to choose the more appropriate clothes according to the current weather and circumstances. Things change according to time.
When your mind is completely naked from thoughts and beliefs, that is empty; then your happiness will be expressed in your smile. Is there something “better” than that?
That is what the “truth,” the “word of God,” “to know God” is meant to accomplish, but unfortunately it has been forgotten and all that remains are simple devotional practices.
To transform yourself by cleaning your mind and clearing your heart is the gift of God’s teachings in every religion. That is the task of a few.
To memorize those teachings and to worship the teacher is the task of many.
To each its own.
Serving God
In the child stage of Spirituality, the aim of living, the purpose of living becomes to “serve God.”
All religions have such an aim whether; they call the “ultimate” with the label of “God” or something else. Atheism is another religion in itself.
To believe is the same as not to believe. We are still caught up in more beliefs.
The idea of “serving God,” brings the best out of the child. The child is doing something not because of his own will, but because “God has said so.”
The child moves and acts because his knowledge of God through his beliefs acknowledges that this is the “right thing to do.”
The issue becomes interesting when many religions have different views, different beliefs of the same God; thus their idea of “serving God,” maybe different; however, the common factor between all religions “serving God” is to “spread the word of God” to all. 🙂
In other words, “my belief is the truth. Accept it if you want salvation.”
Thus, conflict arises between believers. They may talk about respecting each other’s beliefs but the fact is that even though someone may play “respectful,” in the back of their minds there is the believe of having the “truth,” of being “right.” 🙂 This is the game of believing…
Is it wrong then, to spread what I believe to be the word of God? No, it is not “wrong.” That is a sure way to strengthen your own beliefs, but keep in mind that you are not “serving God,” by doing so.
How is it?
God does not need for anyone to serve Him. God has been “un-served” from many centuries now… 🙂 What truly needs to be served is humanity. The common good.
Would you serve humanity by changing their beliefs through your own take of the “words of God”? Is that what truly means to “serve”? 🙂 Or is it just a way to “serve” our own ego of having found what we believe to be the “truth”?
Food for thought.
Serving humanity is not related with changing anyone’s beliefs.
A belief is a means of separation between human beings. We cannot serve anyone when we only have beliefs to give.
We need to give more than that to serve.
Avyakt7 was invited one time to a group interested in “showing God” to others. Avyakt7 did not join that group for Avyakt7 understands now that those Godly qualities in me when developed, when used for the common good, will show others those Godly qualities without changing their beliefs. All it matters if for “others” to see those qualities. A talk about who is God or other things “about him” is of no consequence if I care for someone else’s beliefs, if there is care for someone else’s beliefs…
It is in this self transformation how serving becomes offering the most precious thing any human being can give to another, that is your own time.
Organized religions are not needed for this, although serving humanity could happen through them as well. To serve is a game of variety according to needs. Everyone is needed.
If you are a father or a mother in a household, that change can start in your own relationship with others in your family. There is no need to convince anyone.
Just change yourself. That is convincing enough for those who know you already. Spread virtues to everyone. That is serve them.
That is to serve God beyond a childish understanding.
Humanity is “you” and at the same time, you are part of it. God is part of it as well. The only divisions are made inside our own heads through those worshiped beliefs.
That is why, the first step in self transformation is to serve your own mind by “cleaning it.” A religion may offer that “service,” at some time thus; nothing is “bad,” when we appreciate each moment of our journey.
Everything in Spirituality always points back to “I” to see then totality. Cleaning the window of the mind, will allow us to see with clarity what truly is outside… but we may just find a mirror there…:-)
God is the truth
God is the truth, is a statement that we hear all the time from different sources.
Let us inquire into this.
We know as “truth” as “that which is in accordance with a fact or reality.”
Throughout these writings we have been able to observe that only perceptions are all we could ever obtain, because there are different roles performed by different actors in this Drama of life, which have different stages of consciousness.
Human beings do not perceive things in the same way.
As we progress in our knowledge of the world and the universe, what we call as “fact” is merely a perception. That is why to “know that we don’t know” is to be “real.” 🙂
When we approach God, we have religions and philosophies dealing with him in several ways as something “outside” us. That becomes a source of debate about “who has the truth. Who has God.”
It is important to note that we could only get perceptions of that experience which we may call God. Some may say, that God is this or that. Perceptions.
Every religion has its own procedures to deal with the perception by extending the experience of one individual as the “way” of knowing God. That becomes a belief. Something to have faith on.
That is why, some will extend the meaning of “knowing God” as knowing “the word of God,” that is someone knows God when that one hears “his words” and follows those words literally.
Those words accordingly are written in some sort of scripture, some sort of book or booklet, where we could “get the truth.”
Nevertheless, as shared many times in this blog; there is no way that words could reflect truth, specially spiritual truth.
Why?
Because any ordinary language can only express duality, and the depth of spirituality resides in understanding that duality exists, but also to go beyond it.
That “going beyond,” is not in the realm of words.
That is why to connect with feelings of the heart has been used by religions to connect with the “truth,” with God. Nevertheless, the outcome of that connection has to be shown in our own actions; otherwise those feelings become mere sentimental, emotional outlets, a source for devotional upliftment for the heart, but without the force to express itself in our own activity.
It has been said that: “The highest truth cannot be put into words. Therefore, the greatest teacher has nothing to say. He simply gives himself in service, and never worries.” (Hua Hu Ching )
Activity over words and language. Don’t talk, for, it could be misunderstood. Just do the walk and let everyone see.
For example, some scriptures could express that marriage is “bad.” Others that celibacy is “good,” etc.
Please note that this “all or nothing” approach is not reflecting truth but is reflecting a teaching according to time and to certain individuals according to traditions and levels of understanding.
If marriage was “bad,” then societies wouldn’t be able to survive. For a society depends on a couple as the building block to survive.
Likewise, celibacy is not for everyone. As we know, “actors” need to come on to this “stage” of the Drama of life and that happens through reproduction.
Similarly if we go to an extreme, like in killing, we could observe that life may offer “tests” when
killing may be necessary as a last resort as in self-defense or even when euthanasia is considered.
We also know that there is “no killing” in the unlimited, for, we are eternal beings, but there is “cause and effect,” thus, what we do will come back to us.
A commandment such as “you shall not murder” could be extended to murder of animals for some, while for others that is not the “true” meaning of that commandment.
Note that religious teachings have been given according to the consciousness of those being taught.
Note that “black or white” statements are meant to reform personalities, their ways of living. They are meant for a particular type of people at a particular time. That is why, the “word of God,” cannot be put into words as the “ultimate truth,” but rather as a reference for behavioral change.
Therefore, the only thing that I could truly attempt to know in its fullest extent is the self, for no one can know more about myself than myself.
Below some quotes to spark the need for self-knowledge:
* Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart.
Proverbs 21:2
(Actions are in itself neutral. Our hearts, our intentions, our consciousness make those activities “good or bad.”)
* When asked what was the most difficult thing, Thales replied, “To know thyself.”
When asked what was easiest, he replied, “To give advice.”
* Katha Upanishad: The Self lies beyond the senses and can only be understood by him who knows It is.
* Ramayana: Enquiry into the truth of the Self is knowledge.
* Koran: And Do thou, Oh Muhammad, remember thy Lord within thyself.
* Tao Te Ching: Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering
others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.
A spiritual seeker, perhaps will start looking for the truth. He will start looking for anything outside him including the idea that he has about God. However, that search sooner or later will go back to the inner self, that is the only truth we could ever get close to in a world ruled by perceptions where our perception about ourselves is our own reality.
Spirituality then is meant to change that perception to the highest one of ourselves.
That truth cannot be put into words.
Exploring the Depth of Living 