While the Western religions stress the importance of finding God, the Gita and Vedic philosophy teaches that the Supreme Being we label “God” reveals himself/herself to us and this happens only when we have done the appropriate spiritual work. Here are four Vedic insights about the Supreme Being.
1. God cannot be perceived or conceived. God is formless, nameless, and beyond words. The Svetasvatara Upanishad (4.20) explains that God’s form “is imperceptible to mundane senses. No one can see Him with material eyes. Only those who realize, through deep pure-hearted meditation” can encounter the Divine.
2. God must be experienced. The Divine cannot be discovered via books, academic study, lectures, sermons, bible study, or mere attendance at a church, synagogue, temple, mosque. Another Upanishad, the Katha Upanishad (1.2.23) states: "The Supreme Soul can neither be attained by studying the Veda, nor by sharp intelligence, nor by hearing many discourses on the scriptures.” The text continues on to say that God reveals himself to “the soul who embraces him within the heart.”
3. God is self-revealing. Connecting with the the cosmic intelligence called “God” requires a profound inner exploration in order to reach the highest summit of awareness. This inner journey requires regular, disciplined meditation, silence, mantra, chanting, service to the world along with other spiritual practices. We are to act in such a way that God responds and reveals himself to us. Vedic Scholar Dr. David Frawley says this “requires a strong inner discipline, tremendous powers of concentration, and yet a pliable receptivity of mind and hearts.” Unceasing effort and uninterrupted practice are pre-requisites.
4. God can be symbolized personally and worshiped as a Supreme “Being”. The Gita 12:2 reads: “He whose mind is fixed on My personal form, always engaged in worshiping Me with great and transcendental faith, is considered by Me to be the most perfect." This is the Gita’s “permission” to envision God more personally rather than as an abstraction. Rather than seeking, meditating, and merging with abstractions such as Cosmic Intelligence or Universal Wisdom or The Great Mystery the Gita offers approval for us to focus on a personal form of God: Christ, Lakshmi, Allah, Ganesha, Shiva, a saint, sage or an inspiring holy woman or man.
5. God must eventually be viewed beyond the personal. A personalized concept of God is a starting point from which we must evolve. And, this is taking place according to Dr. Frawley who notes: “We are gradually moving beyond the concept of a mere anthropomorphic personal god made in the image of our human fears and desires and beginning to recognize a cosmic awareness beyond all partiality and personality.”
For further thought:
Humanity needs to win over the madness that the Supreme Being
loves only those human beings who believe in a certain book and
condemns all others to eternal hellfire. - Maria Wirth
1. God cannot be perceived or conceived. God is formless, nameless, and beyond words. The Svetasvatara Upanishad (4.20) explains that God’s form “is imperceptible to mundane senses. No one can see Him with material eyes. Only those who realize, through deep pure-hearted meditation” can encounter the Divine.
2. God must be experienced. The Divine cannot be discovered via books, academic study, lectures, sermons, bible study, or mere attendance at a church, synagogue, temple, mosque. Another Upanishad, the Katha Upanishad (1.2.23) states: "The Supreme Soul can neither be attained by studying the Veda, nor by sharp intelligence, nor by hearing many discourses on the scriptures.” The text continues on to say that God reveals himself to “the soul who embraces him within the heart.”
3. God is self-revealing. Connecting with the the cosmic intelligence called “God” requires a profound inner exploration in order to reach the highest summit of awareness. This inner journey requires regular, disciplined meditation, silence, mantra, chanting, service to the world along with other spiritual practices. We are to act in such a way that God responds and reveals himself to us. Vedic Scholar Dr. David Frawley says this “requires a strong inner discipline, tremendous powers of concentration, and yet a pliable receptivity of mind and hearts.” Unceasing effort and uninterrupted practice are pre-requisites.
4. God can be symbolized personally and worshiped as a Supreme “Being”. The Gita 12:2 reads: “He whose mind is fixed on My personal form, always engaged in worshiping Me with great and transcendental faith, is considered by Me to be the most perfect." This is the Gita’s “permission” to envision God more personally rather than as an abstraction. Rather than seeking, meditating, and merging with abstractions such as Cosmic Intelligence or Universal Wisdom or The Great Mystery the Gita offers approval for us to focus on a personal form of God: Christ, Lakshmi, Allah, Ganesha, Shiva, a saint, sage or an inspiring holy woman or man.
5. God must eventually be viewed beyond the personal. A personalized concept of God is a starting point from which we must evolve. And, this is taking place according to Dr. Frawley who notes: “We are gradually moving beyond the concept of a mere anthropomorphic personal god made in the image of our human fears and desires and beginning to recognize a cosmic awareness beyond all partiality and personality.”
For further thought:
Humanity needs to win over the madness that the Supreme Being
loves only those human beings who believe in a certain book and
condemns all others to eternal hellfire. - Maria Wirth
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