Understanding God – Part 1
The subject of ‘God’ is as mysterious as Life and Death. The more we dwell into it the more we get lost into the wilderness, only to resume our search for the ‘Truth’. While the serious minded take the spiritual path, the not so serious, but with a religious bend of mind, show some interest in the subject.There may also be a category in between these two, who are curious about the whats, whys and hows of ‘God’. However, I do not think there will be anyone who, not even for a moment, does not ponder about the subject ‘God’ unless he/she is completely insane.
When I say ‘God’ is as mysterious as Life and Death, ‘death’ may appear to be more mysterious than ‘life’, as we all know what life is like but have no idea about death. Life is mysterious by its mere presence(and absence). I always wonder how and why there is life. It is amazing how life pervades through the whole lot of organisms, yet we spend little time and energy in knowing the truth about life. As for death, we all wonder what happens to us after death.There are many mystic books available in the market dealing with this topic but one is not sure to what extent these are true. However, in true sense, we are seeking to know about life – both before and after death.
This article, though, is not about Life and Death. This article is about understanding God through logical analysis from layman’s point of view. While only an enlightened person can write with conviction on a subject like this, I confess I am neither a spiritual person nor I have any experience in these matters. I therefore cannot vouch for the correctness of what have been stated by me in the following pages. This can be construed as a layman’s hypothetical theory of God. I however hope that this article will provide some food for thought.
Happy Reading!!
We often come across people saying, “‘God’ created this universe, ‘God’ created us, He rules us, only if we worship Him He will be good to us”. If a critical analysis is done, one will realise that the above assertions give rise to many questions. If ‘‘God’’ created this universe, is ‘‘God’’ not a part of the Universe; if so, where was He stationed before he created the universe, and is there any space other than the Universe, and how did He come into existence? If He created us why then did He create good and bad? If He created us, is it not His responsibility to take care of us and, in that case, why then should we worship Him for protection.
It seems we need to ‘understand’ what has come to be known as ‘God’.
The concise Oxford English dictionary defines ‘God’ as superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature, human features etc. In religions ‘God’ is considered to be the creator, ruler of Universe and the Supreme Being. Let us accept the term ‘God’ in its present usage sense i.e. Supreme Being with supernatural powers, for our discussion in this article.
The idea of ‘God’ probably stems out of basic human instinct and the perceived awareness of ‘Self’, complemented by the nature around us. Awed by the nature, man must thought that some supernatural external forces are controlling him and the nature around him. These supernatural external forces came to be known as ‘God’. For primitive man the idea of ‘God’ was also primitive one. He worshipped the powerful and mighty. He worshipped nature, animals and also the dead. As human beings got more refined and civilised, the idea of ‘God’ also got more refined. Man perceived ‘God’ to be a person like himself but with supernatural powers, for He was thought to be controlling the universe. ‘God’ was thus personified and bestowed with powers. With the forming of a social structure, man started thinking on the lines of right and wrong. In the process, he also started wondering at the mystery of life and death. He was mystified by the way he dreamt while sleeping and, consequently, he evolved on the theory of Mind. Man’s quest to know more about life and death, and the idea of Mind probably took him on a journey towards ‘knowing’ himself. The search was not external but internal, within him, and this resulted in man encountering a force within him.
Let us see if we can make some sense about ‘God’ out of the following passages.
‘God’ is a state, psychic in nature, to be achieved. This universe, along with its contents, is activated and governed by a natural force which also has the potential to provide for ‘Life force’. Now, one also wonders how this universe was created. Modern science gives the theory of Big Bang, which traces the origin of Universe to an explosion of dense matter. The metaphysics gives the explanation of cosmic cycle which consists of three principles namely manifestation, abeyance and re-emergence. [“It is said that there is no absolute beginning, and nothing entirely new is produced. What existed once in a gross form, goes back to its fine causal condition, and again comes into the former gross condition. There is no creation out of nothing. There is an intervening period of inactivity between two gross manifestations. The universe in the process of time dissolves into the elements and finally into the subtle and unmanifested seminal condition”(from ‘Jnana Yoga’ by Swami Vivekananda)].
A layman would not understand both the above theories as a simple question will keep coming up as to ‘where’ all these (meaning big bang or cosmic cycle) take place and how was this ‘where’ created. However, these are only academic as the matter of fact is that ‘creation’ has taken place and we are part of it. I, therefore, feel that it is better to accept the universe and its manifestations as it is for the present and go further with our analysis.
The ‘Life Force’, as said earlier, is omni-present. All living beings carry this force within. There are many forms of living beings around us namely insects, reptiles, birds, animals (including aquatic vertebrates) and human beings. Of these, human beings are of the highest intellectual order. It is now well known to us that while some living beings other than humans actually witness lives of other forms in the lower and higher order, human beings actually see lives only in the lower order. We don’t see any form of life superior to us. Does this mean there is nothing superior to human beings? Absence of proof of existence of something does not necessarily mean it is nonexistent. If we can read the minds of animals, we may be able to know whether the animals are thinking of becoming like human beings. Human beings, with their intellectual ability and curiosity about life, must have sensed a superior life form in their quest and in the process must have perceived the ‘Life Force’ through intellect, intuitive and extrasensory faculties. Now the question hangs whether one may attain supernatural powers by realising this force within.
MIND is an intangible power originating in brain, through which we are conscious of self. This is the power which gives us the identity of ‘I’. Mind is the seat of awareness, thought, intelligence and emotion, and this is the power through which human beings rationalise things. Emotions and memories make one’s life. These are like bricks of a house. It is the mind where these are embedded. Mind is the place where both cause and effect take place. It is both the Master and slave of our emotions. We sometimes feel that we are controlled by different minds. This is more evident when we face a dilemma and there are more than one possible solution to it. How many times have we come across people saying, “I am in two minds”! We find it hard to accept that these are all various dimensions of our mind emanating from a single source of thought/intelligence. Medical science says that we are using only a small proportion of our brain’s available potential. It is beyond our imagination as to what would be the result if we become capable of using the brain to its fullest potential. The amazing capability in us is Mind analysing Mind. In other words, one can analyse his/her own mind with the help of his/her own mind. It also has the ability to be aware of things within and outside the body.
However, despite all these powerful features, Mind is not considered to be the ‘Life Force’ referred to above. It has been rationalised (probably by our sages, scholars and philosophers) that there has to be another force within us, which makes the difference of ‘life’ and ‘lifeless’ or alive and dead. The reason behind this rationalisation may possibly be that despite being damageable and prone to becoming non-functional, mind cannot make the difference of ‘life’ and ‘lifeless’. In other words, absence of Mind or non-functioning of Mind will not render one dead. For example, when a person goes into coma, which is a state of deep unconsciousness, his/her mind and body becomes inactive. However, this condition of the Mind does not make the person dead though he/she may be considered brain dead. This leads to a seemingly logical reasoning that there is another force within us, which keeps us alive even when we are brain dead. The secret of our living is breathing and we live as long as we breathe. A coma patient, though brain dead, lives as long as he/she breathes and this breathing activity possibly takes place because of the presence of another force or say ‘Life Force’ in the body.
I think it is only through Mind – by virtue of Mind becoming one with the ‘Life Force’ within – one can realise the Force within. The gap between the Mind and the ‘Life Force’ has to be bridged and this can be done only through Mind. In such a process, it may be possible that a person becomes powerful and can perform miracles. The personalities or the sages we worship in the form of idols are may be the ones who have realised this force within themselves and have thus attained ‘Godly’ status or attained enlightenment. The Life Force explained above is, probably, what we know as Soul, and the process by which Mind becomes aware of Soul is termed as Meditation.
