Superphysics
Is it possible to see God?
6 minutes • 1084 words
Table of contents
Is it possible to see God?
Yes, by:
- living in solitude now and then,
- repeating God’s name
- singing His glories
- discriminating between the Real and the unreal
Under what conditions does one see God?
Cry to the Lord with an intensely yearning heart and you will certainly see Him. People shed a whole jug of tears for wife and children. They swim in tears for money. But who weeps for God? Cry to Him with a real cry.
The Master sang:
Cry to your Mother Syama , with a real cry, O mind! And how can She hold Herself from you? How can Syama stay away? How can your Mother Kali hold Herself away? O mind, if you are in earnest, bring Her an offering Of bel-leaves and hibiscus flowers; Lay at Her feet your offering And with it mingle the fragrant sandal-paste of Love.
Continuing, he said:
Longing is like the rosy dawn. After the dawn out comes the sun. Longing is followed by the vision of God.
God reveals Himself to a devotee who feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these 3 attractions:
- The attraction of worldly possessions for the worldly man
- The child’s attraction for its mother
- The husband’s attraction for the chaste wife.
If one feels drawn to Him by the combined force of these 3 attractions, then through it one can attain Him.
The important thing is to love God even as the mother loves her child, the chaste wife her husband, and the worldly man his wealth.
Add together these three forces of love, these three powers of attraction, and give it all to God. Then you will certainly see Him.
It is necessary to pray to Him with a longing heart. The kitten knows only how to call its mother, crying, ‘Mew, mew!’ It remains satisfied wherever its mother puts it.
The mother cat puts the kitten sometimes in the kitchen, sometimes on the floor, and sometimes on the bed. When it suffers it cries only, ‘Mew, mew!’ That’s all it knows. But as soon as the mother hears this cry, wherever she may be; she comes to the kitten.
Third visit: Narendra
It was Sunday afternoon when M. came on his third visit to the Master.
He had been impressed by his first two visits.
Sri Ramakrishna was sitting on the small couch. The room was filled with devotees.
He addressed his words particularly to a 19-year old man, Narendranath. He was a college student who frequented the Sadharan Brahmo Samaj.
His eyes were bright, his words were full of spirit, and he had the look of a lover of God.
M. guessed that the conversation was about worldly men, who look down on those who aspire to spiritual things.
(to Narendra): How do you feel about it?
Worldly people say all kinds of things about the spiritually minded. But look here! When an elephant moves along the street, any number of curs and other small animals may bark and cry after it; but the elephant doesn’t even look back at them. If people speak ill of you, what will you think of them?"
I shall think that dogs are barking at me.
(Smiling): “Oh, no! You mustn’t go that far, my child! (Laughter).
God dwells in all beings. But you may be intimate only with good people; you must keep away from the evil-minded. God is even in the tiger; but you cannot embrace the tiger on that account. (Laughter).
You may say, ‘Why run away from a tiger, which is also a manifestation of God?’ The answer to that is: ‘Those who tell you to run away are also manifestations of God - and why shouldn’t you listen to them?’
Parable of the “Elephant God”
A holy man lived in a forest. He had many disciples.
One day he taught them to see God in all beings and to bow low before them all.
A disciple went to the forest to gather wood. Suddenly he heard an outcry: ‘Get out of the way! A mad elephant is coming!’
All ran except him. He reasoned that the elephant was also God in another form. Why should he run away from it?
He stood still, bowed before the animal, and began to sing its praises.
The mahut of the elephant was shouting:
Run away! Run away!
But the disciple didn’t move. The animal seized him with its trunk, cast him to one side, and went on its way. Hurt and bruised, the disciple lay unconscious on the ground.
Hearing what had happened, his teacher and his brother disciples came to him and carried him to the hermitage. With the help of some medicine he soon regained consciousness.
Someone asked him:
‘You knew the elephant was coming - why didn’t you leave the place?
But, our teacher has told us that God Himself has taken all these forms, of animals as well as men. Therefore, thinking it was only the elephant God that was coming, I didn’t run away.
At this the teacher said:
Yes, my child. The elephant God was coming. But the mahut forbade you to stay there. Since all are manifestations of God, why didn’t you trust the mahut’s words? You should have heeded the words of the mahut God.
(Laughter)
Water as God
The scriptures say that water* is a form of God. But some water is fit to be used for worship, some water for washing the face, and some only for washing plates or dirty linen.
Superphysics Note
This last sort cannot be used for drinking or for a holy purpose.
In like manner, God undoubtedly dwells in the hearts of all - holy and unholy, righteous and unrighteous. But a man should not have dealings with the unholy, the wicked, the impure. He must not be intimate with them.
With some of them he may exchange words, but with others he shouldn’t go even that far. He should keep aloof from such people."
How to deal with the wicked
Sir, if a wicked man is about to do harm, or actually does so, should we keep quiet then?
A man living in society should make a show of tamas to protect himself from evil-minded people. But he should not harm anybody in anticipation of harm likely to be done him.
