Do you believe in God, a higher power, force, matter, the Universe? How do you refer to it, or do you deny the existence of a higher power and call it nothing at all?
I grew up Catholic, and I used to refer to it as God. I used to think it was somehow a man in the sky, someone with qualities similar to humans but far superior. Someone who witnessed everything and was capable of both boundless love and strict punishment if you didn't behave according to his rules.
The Yogis believe that God, or the Absolute as they prefer to call it, transcends such primitive feelings, representations, and characteristics popularized by the churches of the world.
There's an entire branch of Yogi philosophy that delves into the nature of reality, known as Gnani Yoga. One of its maxims is:
"All existence, conscious or unconscious, is an emanation of one Being."
The word "emanation" is defined as a thing that "originates from a source" or "the action of flowing from a source." Therefore, all existence flows from this Being. To better illustrate this, the Yogis' favorite analogy is that of the Sun.
They explain, "The Sun is the Sun itself—the center—the source of the vibrations that proceed from it. Under certain conditions, these vibrations manifest in the form of light and heat. Strictly speaking, nothing outside of the Sun is the Sun, and yet each bit of vibration is an emanation from the Sun—a part of the Sun, as it were. Each ray of light or heat that we perceive through our senses is really 'Sun' in a way, but it is not the source. The ray is the Sun in this sense, yet the Sun is not the ray."
We humans are emanations of this Being, but we are certainly not this Being itself. "Man, and all of existence, is of God, but is not God Himself." They know that the love of this Absolute Being extends to all relative beings, regardless of whether they love it, worship it, or believe in it.
Have you noticed this email's logo? It's the sun. And it represents this Being.
A Being far beyond our comprehension. A Being who doesn't demand services, worship, ostentatious ceremonies, prayers, or even reverence. Its rays of love, wisdom, and power reach everyone and everything, the seen and the unseen, demanding nothing in return. A Being from which we all flow, like the rays flowing from the sun. And just like the sun, it shines on the good and the bad, the rich and the poor, the just and the unjust, and even on those who deny its existence.
Listen to this email on your favorite podcast platform
