When we ask the question “who are you?” we get a variety of answers. “I am a Hindu,” “I am a Christian,” “I am a Muslim,” “I am an engineer,” “I am a doctor.” One factor pervades all these answers—the ‘I’. For this ‘I’, there is no name or form. It is that supreme principle that we variously refer to as Atma, Brahman, or God.
When we say “there’s no God”, it is like using the tongue to say “there is no tongue”. The very ‘I’ is saying “There is no ‘I’.” God resides in each and every one of us. That which pulsates in every living being, in every thing that moves and in everything that does not move, is consciousness. God is like space. Space is everywhere.
This universe is sustained in space. Before we build a house, space was there. Once the house is complete, the space remains; the house is situated in the space that was previously there. Even when the house is demolished and all the debris is carried away, space remains. Similarly, it is that supreme principle that ever remains—in the past, in the present and in the future—without change, that is God.
Many people ask, “if God is all-pervasive, why can’t we see it?” Are we able to see electricity? No, but when we touch a live wire, we will receive a shock. The God principle is also an experience. It is through experience that we should know God. Sometimes if we are standing behind a tree, the sun may be blocked from our view. We may say, “The sun is covered by the tree”, but that isn’t really the truth, is it? In reality, the tree is just blocking our line of vision. Similarly, it is our ignorance that is preventing us from clearly perceiving God. God resides within us as the life-force and consciousness. He himself, whose very nature is bliss, is our Atma. Even though God is all-pervasive, our identification with the feelings of ‘I’ and ‘mine’ experienced by our mind is obstructing the perception of that reality.
My children must learn to liberate their minds from their ever-shifting thoughts and emotions and their dependence on external objects. Identification with the feeling ‘I’ and ‘mine’ is what keeps us shackled.
We will never gain a sense of completeness from the external world. Regardless, in today’s world we continue to search for happiness and completeness in this manner. Many women come and tell me, “Amma, I’ve turned 40 and still have yet to get married. I’ve yet to find the right husband.” Similarly, many men also tell me, “Despite getting on in life, I’ve yet to find the type of woman I’m looking for. I’m still searching.” In this way, they become disappointed; their life is full of sorrow.
Hearing such complaints, I am reminded of a person who travelled all over the world in search of a bride. In Spain he came across of a beautiful and intelligent girl, but she was not interested in worldly affairs. Then, in Korea, he found another girl—one in whom beauty, intelligence and an understanding of the world were all included. But he was hesitant to commit himself to her. In another country he finally found a girl who had all the qualities he desired.
“Were you able to marry this girl?” I asked him. “No,” the man replied with a tinge of sorrow in his voice. “What happened?” I asked. The reply he gave should stand as a lesson for every one of us. He said, “You see… she was looking for the man of her dreams.”
When we search for perfection outside, we are always going to be disappointed. What are we human beings searching for? Isn’t it peace and happiness? For a little bit of peace, man is willing to run helter-skelter. But in doing so, we are allowing our inner world to be transformed into a hell. If lasting peace and happiness could really be attained through external objects and a life of luxury, wouldn’t we have attained it by now? It isn’t enough if we have air-conditioned cars and apartments; my children should learn to air-condition their minds.
Peace, contentment and happiness depend upon our mind, not on external objects and situations. It is gaining control over the mind that is the foundation of happiness. You must always remember that heaven and hell are creations of the mind.
The writer is a world renowned spiritual leader