Seek Him within

Two basic questions that have put humanity in turmoil since times immemorial: What is God? Where is God? Saints, seers...

Two basic questions that have put humanity in turmoil since times immemorial: What is God? Where is God? Saints, seers and religious heads have given varying interpretations about the existence of God, creating confusion among lay people. These questions have baffled scientists, sages, teachers, students, doctors, biologists. Some have accepted unquestioningly that there is a supreme power, others have offered scientific explanations to knock down the theory that God was the original creator of life and the world.

The common person, however, has not been able to deny the marvel of God running his or her life. One is reminded of the poem, 8216;The Blind Men and the Elephant8217;, by John Godfrey Saxe. Six blind men were curious to know what an elephant was. Each felt the different parts of the animal and came to his own conclusions: it was a wall, a spear, a snake, a tree, a fan, a rope. Saxe8217;s final stanza: 8220;So oft in theologic wars,/ the disputants, I ween,/ Rail in utter ignorance/ Of what each other mean,/ And prate about an elephant/ Not one of them has seen.8221;

The guardians of religion seem no different 8212; prattling about their individual conceptions of God, they represent the six blind men in the dark. They may be correct from their perspective 8212; but only from their perspective. So, who is God, where is He? To find the answer for myself, I lean on our mythology that says God is there within each one of us, in whichever form we may worship Him. It is our shortsightedness that prevents us from discovering Him. One does not have to wander hither and thither, for God lives within us.

According to our mythology our aataman, or inner consciousness, is part of the Supreme Being. We are blinded by the ego within us. All accumulation of worldly possessions is for the satiation of the ego that eventually leads to emotional tsunamis instead of the desired tranquillity and happiness. We are not able to perceive the truth or the God within us. The same aataman pervades humanity. Each one of us is part of the Divine Power. Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram 8212; truth, love, beauty 8212; are the manifestations of God. One can only reach God by loving oneself and all living beings.