THE UNDERSTANDING OF GOD is a vital theme in spiritual, mystical and religious movement. Every religion of the world presents conceptual definitions of God, and those who do not have a deep insight into philosophy can become confused. Thus a clearer understanding of the nature of God is extremely important for all spiritual seekers.

Concepts of God

Some people become quite upset when they hear that God is being talked about and praised, because they consider the environment of religious teaching as a basis for psychological disorders. Often people become "allergic" to the term "God" because God reminds them of so many fears and threats of hell. Therefore, according to them, to recognize God is to recognize sin in life; and to recognize sin is to recognize bitterness; and to face bitterness is hell.

Some who follow the Biblical tradition, interpret the Old Testament as portraying God as a 'Jealous" God. They consider God as a mighty being who is always watching over human beings. He has as if "bugged " every place. Whenever anyone utters a word against him, or commits any sin, or does not worship him correctly, he immediately comes to know of this. Exploding with wrath, he throws down his mace right upon the people, crushing them completely. Because of one person's error, he can destroy a whole society. That type of concept is a very wild and uncultured concept of God, and is not the true sentiment of the Old Testament.

When you believe in that concept of Cod you are never at peace, because you do not know what God is thinking. You do not know in what way you might have offended Him. You are constantly afraid.

Today you didn't do your prayers and you didn't meditate, and when it was the time for repeating Malas (rosaries), you were eating pudding! So there is a sense of fear that God will punish you. He may become angry and curse you. And since He can do all these things, your mind does not love Him so much.

Due to these fears, your thoughts do not like to, flow to God. But when you are thinking of human beings who have done so many good things, your heart overflows. You think of all the kindness a person has shown you. But when you present before yourself the idea of God, your mind wanders, becomes bewildered, and enters into distraction.

On the other hand, there is another concept that portrays God as most compassionate. He is dripping with love and honey. He is so kind that you cannot blame him for any trouble or evil that you see in the world. The trouble and evil come from Satan, the demoniac spirit, the devil. If it were not for Satan, things would be so wonderful.

Other concepts of Divinity attempt to give God a location somewhere. This is true of most scriptures of the world. For example, one religion depicts God as living somewhere far away, in the seventh heaven. Wonderful descriptions are given about how he sits on his throne, and how the pillars of his throne are supported by angels.

That effort to give God a location outside of the world must be understood correctly. His location somewhere in the universe is strictly symbolic. If you take it literally, then you are trapped by the ridiculous understanding that God is always somewhere far away from you. Therefore, only when some report about you reaches his ears do your Karmas become effective. But if no one is there to "poison " the Divine ears, you are all right!

Further there is a concept among the atheists that God is dead-that He created the world, and after that, when He saw all the evil that went on, his heart failed! The world rolled on, but He died.

This may seem silly, but then, some people ask, "If God is here, how can you explain all the misery in creation? If God created the world, and if God is all- compassionate and all-powerful, then how can you explain why there is so much suffering and so much differentiation between man and man?"

In this world, one person is very healthy. During his first twenty years, he doesn't have even a headache; not until he is fifty years old does he have a fever. Then there is another family with a child of three years who, though having committed no sin, is paralytic, blind and mute. 'Well," you may say, "if God is really compassionate, He shouldn't have created this type of world of pain and misery. And if teachers say that it is because of the Karmas of the people, couldn't an omnipotent God remove the blocks of Karmas, and make people better? What does He lose thereby?"

Is God a whimsical God who, according to some whim, makes some souls suffer in confusion, while he gives others the most wonderful things, and even shows the radiance of intuitional realization?

These questions lead to others about the relation- ship between self-effort and Divine Grace. To what extent you should direct your effort? To what extent you should expect Divine Grace? Shouldn't God, by His grace, work out something impossible? It doesn't matter that for so many years you didn't do any meditation, any Yoga, and went on according to your own sweet will. But now that you know that God is real, couldn't He perform a miracle and just change all the Karmas with a wave of His hand?

People who have a certain devotional sentiment do not bother so much with these questions. They conclude that, after all, some things must remain mysterious and unknown and so they continue to build up their devotion. But in an integral movement of Yoga, answers to these questions must be sought.

Why do we need concepts?

Because we are caught in the world of illusion, we begin to define God in relation to the world we believe to be real. And therefore, God is defined as the Creator, Sustainer, and Destroyer, and he is described in various ways.

All descriptions about God are concepts, and all concepts are subject to change, depending upon the integration of personality. Concepts are steps allowing the mind to concentrate and rise beyond. Concepts are like the rungs of a ladder. They are not useless. Without concepts you could not exist.

However, when a person becomes too attached to his concepts, then there is an error. The Bible says, "God created man (and woman) in the image of Himself..." (Gen. 1:27) But actually, man begins to create God in his image-to picture God. But you must realize that in whatever way you try to picture God, you are projecting your concept of yourself upon Him.

And so, if you limit God strictly to your concepts, you become an idolator, from an advanced point of view. If you consider God to be exactly the way your mind has pictured God you remain spiritually thwarted. In the process of spiritual evolution, you must realize that you are bound to go beyond your concepts.

God is described in Yogic scriptures as Sat Chit Ananda - Existence, Knowledge and Bliss. He is described as Brahman the Absolute. "Satyam Jnanam Anantam Brahman” - He is Truth, Wisdom and Infinity. All these abstract definitions of God are adopted by an advanced mind. However, even abstract definitions of God must be understood as limited, because God cannot be defined. When intuitional knowledge arises, even these concepts are transcended. The concept of Infinity becomes merely a wave in the actual awareness of the Divine Self.

To grow beyond concepts, and to resolve the questions about God that plague one's mind, it would help to explore the understanding of God that is presented in Vedanta.

God in the Light of Vedanta

If you were to analyze all your experiences, you would realize that everything in this world is enveloped by a mysterious mass of ignorance. Nothing is completely known by an individual through his intellect. Every object is enveloped to a certain degree by the sense of "I do not know."

This mass of ignorance is known as Maya (Cosmic Illusion) or Avidya (ignorance). Both terms are used as synonyms. However from a more strict point of view, Prakriti is the power of Brahman, which is the balanced state of the three modes -Sattwa (harmony) Rajas (activity) and Tamas (inertia).

When involved in creation, Prakriti expresses itself in three ways: Sattwa predominating Prakriti is known as Maya (cosmic illusion) , Rajas predominating  Prakriti is Avidya (ignorance), and Tamas preedominating Prakriti is called Tamasi Prakriti.

Brahman expressing through Maya assumes the role of Ishwara or the Creator to whom the world is a magic show, and therefore He is not deluded by it.  Brahman expressing through Avidya assumes the role ofcountless souls (/ivas) which pass through a process in of evolution, and are unaware of their essential identity as the Divine Self.

The same Brahman expressing through Tamasi  Prakriti appears as the subtlest elements (Sukshma Bhuta) which go to form the mind, intellect, ego, senses, vital forces, organs of action, and the body, in every individual. They also give rise to gross elements un (Sthula Bhuta) which go to form the physical world containing numerous objects.

Reflections in Illusion

Brahman - the Absolute, the non-dual Self - reflecting in Maya ( cosmic illusion) is called Ishwara or God the Creator. Ishwara is ever aware of His identity as Brahman. He creates the world, like a magician would create a magic show.

Jiva or individual soul is Brahman reflected in avidya. Though essentially Brahman, it is not aware of its identity as Brahman. The Jiva is led through the world process-experiencing countless cycles of birth and death, until it attains enlightenment, and realizes, 'I am Brahman." This is the goal before every individual soul - the attainment of liberation (Moksha).

To understand this better, consider the following example presented in Panchadashi (a classical work of Vedanta philosophy written by Sri Vidyaranya):

Suppose the sky were to reflect in the collective mass of clouds-the source of all water. That reflection would be Ishwara. It would be one single reflection. But when the sky reflects in countless pools, rivers, lakes and seas, it gives rise to countless reflections. These reflections become conditioned by countless bodies of water.

Such is the predicament of Jivas, which are reflections of Brahman in countless waters of ignorance. Mind and intellect form the streams of ignorance in an individual. Thus, Jivas are reflections in different mental processes. These Jivas are deluded by their mind; they are not aware of their intrinsic freedom.

Omnipotence and Omniscience

From the mass of Maya, the mass of ignorance, the mass of causal bodies, the world of names and forms evolves. An individual soul or Jiva is caught in this world, and he whirls from one illusion to another.

Jiva-or Consciousness reflected in intellect is under the control of Avidya - the deluding force of Maya. Only when the individual soul develops intuition is Avidya penetrated and overcome, and the individual sees the whole world as Divine sport or as mere appearance. But until then, an individual with all his bright intellect remains limited in knowledge -  because he is deluded by Avidya.  

On the other hand, Ishwara or God the Ruler is the controller of Maya. Both Ishwara and Jiva are in the realm of relativity, but God controls Maya and is unaffected by it, while Jiva is controlled by Maya (in its aspect of Avidya) .

It is possible for theJiva to commune with Ishwara or God as his indwelling Reality. When the Jiva becomes one with Ishwara, it also acquires the power to control Maya and to rise beyond it.

Many people who feel that God is omniscient also erroneously conclude that the world is an inflexible system, and everything that has to happen has been already determined. According to this reasoning, a human being has absolutely no choices. He simply becomes a puppet in Divine hands.

In Vedanta that problem does not arise-because the world is not a reality. God is the ruler of Maya, which is nothing more than a mass of illusion. God rules it, and God is beyond it. And out of that illusion, this apparent world of names and forms evolves.

So all the different forms of knowledge that one acquires from the world are nothing but ignorance in its many differentiated forms. God on the other hand is the controller of Maya--the Knower of all the differentiated illusions. From human point of view he is the Omniscient. But when one realizes the intuitive fact that " Brahman alone is, " then, there is nothing for Him to know; He is Himself the mass of Consciousness (Knowledge Absolute).

The idea of God being omniscient and omnipotent arises on the basis of your concept that the world is a reality. And therefore God knows everything that is to happen, He permeates everywhere, and He is all powerful. But when you realize that the world itself is not a reality, but rather, a magical show proceeding from Divine Maya, then even this concept of omniscience and omnipotence become insignificant. Seen from an advanced point of view, they do not form praises of God. They simply limit God.

However, this does not oppose devotional sentiment, through which you constantly recognize God' s omnipotence and omniscience. Believing in those concepts constitutes a practical movement to lift the intellect towards the Divine realm.

On the path of devotion, a person describes God in relation to the world, while all the time considering Him absolutely beyond Maya. Devotional language is the language of elevated feeling-the language of sublime sentiments. And therefore, so many things that seem contradictory and confusing to one's intellect are harmonized and accepted by the feeling aspect of his personality.

But the advanced and subtle Vedantic study must be also maintained by a devotee, and reason must be recognized. A devotee must understand that we see all these attributes in God because our minds are set upon the world. Because we consider the world as a reality, we therefore consider God as the omnipotent and omniscient Creator and sustainer of the world.

But, when you realize that the world itself is an illusion, how can there be a Creator? Brahman, the Absolute Self, cannot be viewed as the creator, much in the same way as the Sun cannot be viewed as the creator of mirage.

From Jiva  to Brahman

In order to recognize the Absolute, Jiva must first recognize what is immediately indwelling the jiva-- and that is Ishwara, God-the ruler of the causal body, Who is indistinct, but at the same time who pervades the jiva. Without Ishwara the Jiva cannot exist; without God the individual soul has no basis.

And as you trace your personality and try to find your source, you are led to discover that within your physical body there is the vital (Pranic) sheath. Within the Pranic sheath there is the mental sheath. Within this there is the intellect sheath. Within intellect, there lies the sheath known as causal sheath-the realm of the vast unconscious.

The jiva has its center in that causal sheath. But, beyond the causal sheath lies Ishwara. Ishwara or God, the Soul of the soul, the indwelling-reality of the causal body, is "aware" of the totality of all causal bodies- and therefore God is described as omniscient. Jiva, however, is aware only of its causal body, but could also become omniscient if it were to turn to God and attain intuitional realization.

You are God!

The relationship between jiva, Ishwara, and Brahman is very important to understand. Once you fully grasp that relationship, you will no longer consider God as a distant reality existing in a far away heaven. God is your own deeper nature, your innermost essence, the indweller of your soul, the substratum of all names and forms, the non-dual Reality.

Since God is the intrinsic Reality of life, one cannot live without God. He is ever-present. God is the thinker. He is the illuminer of the mind. He is the sustainer of all activities. Therefore, with this understanding, you begin to realize that you cannot turn your mind away from God. The question of whether you should remember Him or not does not arise. You have no choice. It is by Him that you think. It is by Him that you exist. And everything proceeds from Him.

With this understanding, also, you cease to blame God for things that happen or do not happen in life. God does not control you as a mechanic controls a machine, or as a puppeteer controls a puppet. Rather, you control yourself. A deeper You controls the superficial you - until the deepest You is realized!

Since you are yourself the Reality, everything you encounter in your life has been worked out by yourself. You have invited it. Therefore, there is no need to blame a Reality other than yourself for any circumstance or development.

With the understanding that God is your intrinsic reality, the confusion about why God should have created a world in which there is so much misery becomes minimized. You gradually begin to get an insight into the fact that what you see as misery is not seen by everyone in the same way.

Everyone is living according to an internal Karmic urge and evolving conditions in their lives which to those who are very advanced seem insignificant. But to those who are living that life, it is reality-at times miserable, at times joyous. However, when you understand that you are at the mercy of yourself throughout your life, then all sense of contradiction-"Why should God be so cruel?"-fades away. In reality, it is you who are cruel to yourself.

In changing and improving the circumstances of your life, intelligent self-effort is indeed of greatest importance. Your self-effort is an expression of grace-the grace of your own inner being. " Uddharet Atmanaatmaanam " Lord Krishna says. "Lift yourself by yourself." Divinity is your internal reality. Into that Divinity you must grow and blend.

Self or God - Realization 

An aspirant in Yoga philosophy must deeply understand and approach God through integration of personality. An integrating movement of personality reveals to you the Divine essence within your existence, and that is how God is gradually realized.

Only when the soul discovers itself as Brahman, the Divine Self, will all questions about God be answered and all conceptual contradictions be resolved. Whether God has form or has no form, whether He does this or that, whether He should be given one name or another, all these are of no importance to one who knows and has become the Self.

Serve God in all these names and forms. Love God as the indwelling Reality behind all names and forms. Realize God as the innermost Self of your being. Be ever-rooted in God, and enjoy the boundless bliss of Liberation! May God bless you!