Everything is Absolutely Relative
THE ABSOLUTE
There is only one God
All that is, is God. God in Its highest is absolute—unchanging,
omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent (present everywhere, everywhen),
without beginning or end.
Because I transcend
the perishable and am beyond the imperishable, I am known
in sacred writings and in the world as the Supreme Absolute
(Great Spirit).
— Bhagavad
Gita, Ch 15, vs 18
Because all that is is God, we are God, merged in the blissful
sea of the Absolute.
We originate ourselves into separate nonphysical entities, and
can know each other, so there must be . . .
THE RELATIVE
There are many gods
All that is, is Us and our relationship. “All that exists
is a large specific number of nonphysical individuals, each of
whom originates itself into a separate nonphysical state with
regard to each nonphysical individual.” (Charles
Berner, The Lila Paradigm).
Our relationship is a relative situation that coexists with
the ever-sustaining Absolute. Although we are merged with the
blissful Absolute, upon knowing one another, Creation becomes.*
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and individual
self-sense, are the eight parts of my relative nature. Such is
My inferior nature. But know this as different from My highest (absolute)
existence by which this world is sustained.
— Bhagavad Gita, Ch 7, vs 4 - 5
THE DIVINE YOU
Who and What You Really Are
You exist and have the ability to be self-aware. You are an
individual (that which cannot be divided). As a divine individual,
you are the one that you are. This is “who” you are. “What” you
are is absolute—you are divine and have all the attributes
of That.
You have the ability to act. The action available to you is
to choose to know another—a different one than you in “who” it
is, but the same as you in “what” it is.
In knowing another, you have the ability to be conscious of
the other’s characteristics as being like your own: existence,
individuality and the ability to act—to choose.
GODDESS
So now there is you with a view point (purusha, masculine) and
there is other-than-you (prakriti, feminine), which you view,
or know.
(In a patriarchy, many things are assigned a gender, even at
the hardware store. It is no different in spiritual or religious
teachings, all of which, in our day and age, are patriarchally
oriented. I urge women to attend to translating the translations.)
From a point of view, God is always other-than-self, prakriti,**
Goddess. Prakriti (the other) is God to purusha (you
with a view point).
Goddess Shakti
Shakti is prakriti in Her power mode. In Eastern cosmology,
power and energy are always feminine. Shakti is the all-powerful,
all-pervading energy of the universe that makes things happen.
Shakti in a body is called prana. Prana acts as the life force,
or life energy. In this role, the Goddess is what keeps you alive,
and if you let Her, She will keep you well, and can even cheat
death. She is, after all, God.
“The prehistoric cult of the mother
goddess can be found in all religions, some latent, ready
to spring forth. Some of the peoples who came to be integrated
into the Hindu fold had always worshiped the divine Mother.
Among the Shaktas, who are the worshipers of the goddess,
the source of existence, considered female, is the main representation
of divinity. God is woman."
— From The Myths and Gods of India, by Alain
Danielou.
“For those who seek pleasure
or those who seek liberation, the worship of the all-powerful
Goddess is essential. She is the knowledge-of-the-Immensity;
she is the mother of the universe, pervading the whole world."
— From Karapatri’s Sri
Bhagavati Tattva
THE HUMAN YOU
You are a God (Absolute) in a Body Made of God, Being Human (Relative)
Being human evolved as a result of your choice to know another.
You are currently at a point in which you are lugging around
in the confines of a body, having a mind (which is different
than, but not separate from, a brain), energy, feelings, personality,
activities, attitudes, beliefs, opinions, etc. What evolved was
all of this. YOU do not evolve; the real you is absolute and
ever the same: harmless, unconditional love, abundant with unlimited
potential and ever new joy.
SURRENDER
Now do you see why I say to you that in Surrender Meditation,
you must surrender to that-which-is-divine-that-is-other-than-you?
What I am saying in fact, is that you surrender to Goddess. God
(you) and Goddess (other than you) are naturally drawn to the
highest union, yoga. If you can let this take place, you will
get to go home to that blissful sea. It may come in small doses
at first, but it grows.
As humans, everything we perceive, we perceive through one or
more of our five senses, and Goddess becomes Mother Nature, or
maya (illusion). Illusion simply means that, although the
stuff of life is something, it isn't what it seems. It
is really the play of the gods° — that's us!
(are we having fun yet?).
In seriously (but without losing our sense of humor) taking
up Surrender Meditation, there comes a time when the senses spontaneously
withdraw and it is possible to experience
Truth directly‡. When this has happened to you, you will be enchanted,
hooked, and it can happen fairly early on.
The Radical Meditation that I have been talking about is for
this purpose: the union of You and Goddess, You and God. It brings
with it, absolute freedom, fulfillment, and the end of sorrows.
This is our original, natural state to which we are drawn
to return. This is the bliss, the joy, that is always present
within us—“the kingdom of God is within.” The only
difference will be that we will be fully conscious of it; hence,
never-ending happiness, joy, bliss.
Jaya Bhagavan (Victory to Goddess!),
Durga Ma
"The Real You"
Video (This will open a web page. Click on the title to view
the video.)
* “Creation
becomes” - the
eight parts of relative nature emerge: earth, water, fire,
air, ether, mind, intelligence and individual self-sense.
** Prakriti translates as “nature,” which
is defined as anything other than you that you can be conscious
of.
° Lila, Sanskrit - the
play of the gods.
‡ “...to experience
Truth directly.” - without any via, without using any
means to perceive, to know. “Now we see through a glass
darkly; but then face to face.”
Radical Meditation Issues
Part
1 - Radical Meditation
Part
2 - Personal Experience
Part
3 - Meditation as a Subversive Activity
Part
4 - Shaktipat Initiation and Kundalini
Part
5 - After Initiation - Mysticism
Part
6 - Needful Things - Dharma
Part
7 - Needful Things - Shaktipat Prep
Part
8 - Shifting Perception
Part
9 - How to Make a Global Shift
Epilogue
- The Absolute and the Relative
Radical Meditation © 2011,
Durga Ma
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