At this point, in the interest of simplicity, I will now attempt to situate the sort of love of the Divine that is apt to bear fruit fairly expediently as compared with other types of loving behaviors, in the context of our own stages of development and also, in the context of our own personal love relationships.

When we are very young, our first and deepest care goes towards our primary caregivers: we become aware that they take great care to sustain us and nourish us. As we evolve in our thinking, we come to extend this love to others as well. If we evolve quite deeply, eventually we will come to see all of creation itself as our family, and further from this for the especially devout: all of creation seen and also not yet manifest, as deeply enmeshed with our own being itself. If we are blessed enough to become a Master in this lifetime, we will consciously live an ever-deeper experience of unity, each moment. 

Reflect a moment on your greatest beloved of past. What was it about him or her that set him or her apart from others for you in your mind? Was it that your beloved purchased many items of great cost for you and yet did not heed anything that you said; that he or she did not deeply consider your feelings but gave you a plethora of items to hold, instead? I would think not. Ceteris paribus, i.e. all other things being equal, i.e. in this particular case: when we are free from severe internal disharmony and self-deprecating tendencies, we find it is that our greatest loves nourish our insides, and truly give of themselves when they give.

When you want to know God, begin with an all embracing love. Think on God. What is it that is "God"? One of the first two qualities we might consider is that God is omnipresent and omnipotent. Omnipresent means that which is present everywhere; that which is everywhere present. We should not be fickle in our minds then: that which is everywhere present must accordingly be present with us, though we may not have encountered our beloved God as deeply as we would have liked, as yet. When we consider omnipotence, we come to understand that God is quite capable of being present everywhere, just as God likes. Omnipotence means that which is all-powerful. Simply by considering these two qualities we can deduce: God is present everywhere, capable of all and all-powerful. God is that which is manifest everywhere just as God likes, as that which is God has this capacity, attribute, or quality; it is inherent to God that God is this. From this, we cannot say of God, that God is present here and not there.

A very great open secret is that it truly does not matter to which faith system you belong, or where you are at present in your understanding. Interestingly, neither is this a secret that has been kept from you. Rather, it is a natural progression of loving, a stage that we pass through in our understanding that artificially limits us to see God as here and not there. If you see and embrace your dearest God — in the form of Jesus Christ, Krishna, Durga — everywhere, you are on a fruitful path, and further you are apt to be a true friend to all. The key is not who you see, but rather it is in your method of seeing. Whatever form or formless shape God takes for you, if you are embracing this form as present without limit everywhere, I would assert that you are developing a great wisdom within. Notably, doing so would mean that you see God as present in the leaf and in the flower, also; that you are not appreciating God on select days of the week; that you do not think God is present in your house only but has left your neighbor's. That which is God is present everywhere, and has the capacity to be just that. In this way we broaden our capacity to love, and broaden our mind. Then if we are to consider omniscience, of course God can do all of this: God is that which is all knowledge. That which is God is present in the highest of the highest and the lowest of the lowest, and is, in its deepest essence, all knowledge, all power, and everywhere present.

If this is the case then, God must also be present in me. But, I do not think that I have all knowledge. How can we come to know that place within us that has all-knowledge such that we may fully see our beloved God more closely? Seek the answers within yourself. Journey within via deep introspection, journey within by embracing all of life in great joy and developing intuition, or journey within by meditation.

Be in Direct Communion with the Beloved

Think of the friend that you have not seen for some time, though you hold him or her deeply in your heart. Following this, think of your most dear beloved. How often does he or she enter your mind? When you see him or her, do your heart and minds meet, or do you meet him or her to offer a gift and then depart? The Divine should represent an even greater Beloved to you; through this love, all of creation benefits. Through this bhakti, this ever-present internal appreciation and acceptance, this mental acknowledgement and loving surrender, wisdom may be born within you. Open your heart and mind to fully embrace all of creation within the depths of yourself. Deepen your appreciation. Meet the Beloved in meditation.

Bhakti, Self-Realization and Transcendence of the Little Self or Limited Ego

I am going to shift focus ever so slightly now to introduce the concept of Shakti, and the Devi Mahatmyam. It can be argued that the path of bhakti to God or Self-Realization — or indeed any particular path to Self-realization — involves a battle akin to the one Shakti, i.e. Cosmic Energy i.e the Creative Principle undertakes, in the myth of the Devi Mahatmyam. Shakti — the active manifest force or power through which absolute Being becomes &mdash in reality is ever-unified with Being itself. Being and Becoming (alt. Shiva and Shakti, alt. Vishnu and Lakshmi), are inseparable aspects of the same ever-unified Divinity.  Interestingly, Shakti in particular, again that is: God's power (often symbolized through the female form and referred to as the Divine Mother in Sanatana Dharma), has been compared to Shekinah or Shekihnah of the Jewish tradition, and the Holy Spirit. 

In the Devi Mahatmyam, we can regard Devi herself as a direct representation of the infinite spirit within us, in relation to our own finite ego. Devi battles with attachment, subjective ego awareness, and more. Read in this light, this is an internal process as we learn to discern between that which is transient and that which is truly real, or eternal. What are the protectors of our attachment to the finite ego? Of our attachment to materialism? To doubt and fear and delusion? To duality? What causes us to fail to transcend the limited information of the senses? The path to Self or God-Realization can be quite challenging then, albeit infinitely rewarding in the end. We might continue to read deeper into the text, still...

If we are fortunate in our choice of particular text, through the Devi Mahatmyam we may learn that the whole universe is an incomparable manifestation, wherein nothing is without consciousness. Yet, through meditation we come to the same knowledge. Through the process of meditation we can come to experience the reality behind matter, the actions of energy therein, and know that all is, in fact, Cosmic Consciousness. We can come to experience all as an infinite entity wherein nothing is without consciousness, and see how death really does not exist for us in the authentic, luminous nakedness that is our Truth. All is ever-busy Life, possessed of vast wisdom in itself. Brilliant intelligence beyond all explanation underlies all of creation, preservation, and re-combination. Upon coming to this place of awareness, the great poets proclaim that the source of all is within. They know. Most clearly, they know. Seeing Truth, they coax us to follow a fruitful path towards realizing the nature of things for ourselves. I would suggest that they do this because they know that once we also know it, we will be forever free, great masters of our lives, a very great benefit to others in the world... and capable of things we would have never thought possible, otherwise. Renounce that which does not fit you; refrain from identifying and attaching yourselves to things unbecoming of you. Notably, this does mean forsake your relationships and live in solitude. Give up attachment and aversion. Give up fear. Take up love and meditation in an authentically loving manner, and help yourself locate your true relationship with the Infinite Source of All.

Reading about these legends and myths is all the more interesting when interpreted variously, i.e.: (i) in relation to the challenges occurring within oneself while on a path to Self-Realization, (ii) in relation to challenges inherent to a non-spiritual lifestyle, and, (iii) in relation to Divine personalities. I would further argue that it is wisest to interpret these ancient gems in relation to the processes occurring within oneself. Withdraw your senses a moment or two in meditation then, and deepen awareness of that ever-present guide within you. Sharpen or perfect your bodily temple such that it is in accurate reception of this inner, timeless voice. Be with the ever-existent spirit of love and stretch inward, to grow outward. 

The image above symbolizes Cosmic Energy as Lakshmi, Durga, Saraswati (where each differentiation serves to highlight
particular attributes of the creative principle, force, or power of God).

Additional Thoughts on Matter

Again: if the Universe is a Divine manifestation, what is the reality of the existence of the stuff that we call "matter," within the Universe?

It has been said by many a great soul that we are not material creatures, that we are spiritual beings caught up in a material experience: a material delusion. I believe they are correct, and that material reality as we currently experience it, is simply not Reality. What we know of matter, without the aid of science or, better yet, without the aid of deep meditation, is incomplete. Matter is more than what most would imagine it is. It seems to me that matter is real only inasmuch as it is a malleable, fluid, or shapeable kind of mental projection coming from (and sustained by) the Self. 

If we are not meditating devoutly, how can we know that what we often see as real and tangible is naught but a projection of the Self, God-Stuff or God-Thought, appearing as a real manifestation? We have in our history numerous examples of Great Souls who transformed matter. We have miracles. Where there was once something that existed as such-and-such, through the efforts of Enlightened Ones, these things became different things. Enlightened Ones were able to consciously work, live, and play in unshaken Reality. Fortunately, today we also have evidence of spiritual healing methods and (perhaps) a few examples from psycho kinesis or telekinesis, that can help us begin to further explore ideas that matter can be affected in a variety of ways. 

Material Consciousness vs. Reality

My thoughts on matter in regards to Self-Realization are that the existence and reality of matter and even the sustenance of matter-consciousness itself, is nonetheless based on the Self (God, Divine Consciousness). Yet as such, matter does not exist in itself per se; it needs support. Further, matter as we commonly understand it is not Reality, but illusion appearing as Real.

Interestingly, when on a spiritual path, we can eventually come to a point where we experience matter differently. Lights can flicker or burn out as we enter a room. Matter can move. To call on great examples from history, many great Saints experienced matter differently simply through prayer and perhaps even without intention. For example, some Saints ran on water while simply praising God, others floated into trees while simply lovingly thinking on God. Bhakti, sublime love, devotion, simply oozed from the depths of their beings.

As we grow into awareness of who we (really) are, our reality shifts. We experience matter differently. We experience being in the world differently. We begin to relate to others differently. We might choose different forms of recreation. Amid all of these changes, our egos might fuss and fight...

You are Intimately One with the Divine

We are not isolated beings separated from each other, living in a finite world with endless pain and suffering. That is, we are not the finite ego; we are not the common ego experience. Inasmuch as we consider material or finite existence to be real, then pain, suffering, separation anxiety, and delusion are also real for us. Material reality can also be fun, however, inasmuch as we do not seek to identify with it on any deep level. Materialism is simply not the most fitting framework for us, given our true natures. Seek instead the Infinite Light, within.

It seems to be that we seek freedom, bliss, peace, ecstasy, intimate connection, and expansion, and that we are not able to find it in materialism; it seems that something in materialism falls short. If matter as we know it is indeed illusion (and again I think it is), it would make sense that matter does not satisfy us. Further, it seems also that whatever informs us that materialism falls short, comes from within. We can identify this through our perpetual chasing behavior: first this satisfies, then this ...but what is it that truly quenches our thirst? Such is our own personal experience when we sit with ourselves and introspect. Whatever the materials are that others suggest we seek to create fulfillment within, do not satisfy us for long; they seem to be merely passing distractions. Yet in the revelation of Spiritual Oneness, true freedom, connection, bliss, and peace is unveiled. Historically, we can see that saints and sages across the ages bear great hardship, and often choose to possess very little, yet they walk the the world often in great joy. They perform miracles around, within, and through themselves, wherever authentic need arises, it seems.

As we experience our Self as always, entirely, and deeply connected to all of Life in the most loving, peaceable, freedom-supporting way, problems of life appear as merely transient. We realize that, whatever appears to occur, we gain nothing and lose nothing; always we are connected to Everything in a very meaningful and intimate way. Reality we see, is painless, deathless, loving, peaceable, and delusion-free. The Cosmos was, is, and always will be offering its Divine love to all of us. We just need to begin an investigation into who we are, truly, in relation to it. We are, all of us, very deeply blessed. Always.

 
Eppi Sukhu, MHSc.

Recommended Reading:

Sukhu, Eppi. The Great Cause: A Perspective.

Sukhu, Eppi. Union — Love's Leela.

Swami Omkarananda. God-Experience Here and Now.

Swami Omkaranada. The Creative Principle.