"I am ever present to those who have realized me
in every creature. Seeing all life as my
manifestation,
they are never separated from me. They worship
me
in the hearts of all, and all their actions
proceed from me.
Wherever they live, they abide in me."
The Bhagavad Gita, 6:30-31
With that somewhat invisible foundation in place, let's consider
that it's really basing our judgments on the surfaces of what we see that
creates a great many of our world's problems. They insist that by being the
"visible" parts of life, they are also the most important parts—the
parts we're actually interacting with all the time. But that's not really true,
is it? Aren't we seeing, and more importantly feeling, the invisible parts
of life, perhaps more deeply, all the time?
You can neither tell a book by it's cover, nor the content of a
person's heart from the clothes they wear. It's impossible for our limited
vision to see into the whirring masses of sub-atomic particles all dancing
inside of our supposedly solid world. There is an inwardly exponential
relationship of the outsides of everything to their insides, where the real
story is told in the many pages beneath the cover.
When we're confronted by surfaces—appearances, behaviors,
"final outcomes"—it does us no good to compare our insides to those
outward presentations, but to start by considering what we don't know
about the insides of each. That's where we can find our real understanding.
We've all experienced the illusion of something looking really good on the
outside, only to find out that it's actually full of pain. (I've picked a lot
of chocolates like that...)
So, it's our ability to witness this occupation by spirit, and the outward expression of it (as mysterious as it is miraculous,) that's the most important, truly interactive, and compellingly honest perception we can have—whether we can actually see past the physical surface of something (or someone) or not. When we don't get too wrapped-up with surface appearances, we can see that remarkable relationship pretty plainly...but we have to relax, stop labeling, and allow ourselves to. So try this sometimes—pay as little attention to the surface of things as possible. Practice looking into it (intuit); and just try to witness the spirit arising from within things and people, as often as you can. Like everything that's worth getting good at, it takes practice.
"To God belongs the East and the West;
and wherever you turn,
there is the face of God."
The Qu'ran, Surah 2
These quotes from ancient wisdom sources really say the same
thing, don't they? We display a kind of silly ignorance when we rely on visible
affirmations—on outside appearances—when we know that every surface changes,
and that it's the mystery within that remains Eternal. Everything we
witness with our minds, and our eyes, and our hearts, is actually
just more proof of our shared elemental composition—the substance of our
Source, and our ineffable connection to each other and every living thing.
It's all the real "face of God."
So, it's just a matter of our perception, and allowing ourselves
to look beneath the surface of things by looking with a vision that's free of
judgment and comparison—that's the only way to be more fully, more
realistically, engaged by our compassion, identifying with the insides, instead
of the outsides. Heres a quote, from a wonderful egghead, that tells us the
same thing:
"A human being is part of the whole,
called by us "Universe," a part limited in time and space. He
experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated
from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This
delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and
to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free
ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace
all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."
Albert Einstein
And this last natural note – did you know that
bald eagles have naturally "polarized" vision? They can see right
past the surface reflections, past the glare, into the river, at all the fish
swimming by. Life looks like a parade of candy bars to them. They sit, fully
and appropriately engaged, and, once they've learned the proper technique, they
swoop down and snatch up the bounty of life, whenever they want.
"The disciples asked him:
'When will the Kingdom come?'
Yeshua answered:
It will not come by watching for it...
The Kingdom...is spread out over the whole
earth,
and people do not have eyes to see it."
The Gospel of Thomas, Logion 113
The book: How to Survive Life (and Death), A Guide To Happiness In This World and Beyond, based on lessons (learned the hard way) by a three time near death survivor is now available everywhere – but ask for it it at your local bookstore! How to Get to Heaven (Without Really Dying) is due out early 2018, from Llewellyn Worldwide.
