SELF-KNOWLEDGE
AND ENLIGHTENMENT
Jai: How was our
whole universe formed, Grandma? Does
it have a creator?
Grandma:
There is a creator behind any creation,
Jai. Nothing can be created without
somebody or some power behind it. Some
power is needed, not only to create
it, but also to support and run it.
We call that power God, the Absolute,
the Supreme in English, and Krishna,
Ishvara, Bhagavan, Shiva in Sanskrit.
Other religions call that power Allah,
Father, Jehova, Devi and many other
names. In a real sense, God is not the
creator of the universe, but He Himself
becomes everything in the universe.
He manifests as Brahma, whom we call
the creator. Actually, Brahma and all
other deities (gods and goddesses) are
just names of different powers of the
one and only One God. People think Hindus
worship many gods and goddesses, but
that is due to lack of true knowledge.
The entire universe is a manifestation
of God. This is the highest philosophy
that you may not understand completely
now.
Jai: How does one
God become so many things in the universe?
Grandma:
According to the Samkhya theory of creation,
God’s energy (Atma or Spirit)
itself becomes Nature or matter, made
up of the five basic elements. The entire
creation is born and sustained by different
combinations of these two energies:
Spirit and Matter. (Gita 7.06) He is
in the form of light in the Sun and
the Moon; He is in the form of mind
and strength in human beings. He digests
our food and supports our life. We are
all connected by the same Spirit as
jewels in a necklace are connected by
the same thread. (Gita 7.07)
Jai: If God is everywhere
and in everything, why doesn’t
everyone understand and love and worship
Him?
Grandma: That
is a good question, Jai. Generally,
people have a false idea of God because
everyone is not given the power to understand
Him. Just as some people can’t
understand calculus or even elementary
mathematics, so people who have no good
Karma, can’t know, understand,
love, or worship God.
Jai: Then who are
the ones who understand God?
Grandma: There
are four types of people who worship
or seek to understand God: (1) those
who are sick or in some kind of trouble
or seek help in doing well in their
studies or work, (2) those who are trying
to get the knowledge of God, (3) those
who want money, and (4) the wise ones
who know God. (Gita 7.16) Lord Krishna
considers all four types of people as
devotees. The wise one is the best because
a wise person worships God without wanting
anything from Him. Even such wise ones
completely know God only after many
births. (Gita 7.19)
Jai: If I worship
Krishna, can I get good grades in an
examination or get rid of sickness?
Grandma:
Yes, He fulfills
the desires of all who believe in Him
and who always worship and pray with
firm faith. God is both our
Father and Mother. You should ask God
what you want in a prayer. He fulfills
the desires of His sincere devotees.
(Gita 7.21)
Jai: Then why doesn’t
everybody worship Krishna? Why do we
worship Lord Ganesha, Shri Hanumana,
Mother Sarasvati and many other deities?
Grandma:
Lord Krishna
is the name of the Supreme God. Some
sects of Hinduism call the Supreme God
as Lord Shiva. People of other
religions call Him Buddha, Jesus, Allah,
Father, etc. Other deities (gods) are
a part of His power. Just as all rain
water goes to the ocean, so worship
of any deity goes to Krishna, the Absolute.
But a beginner should chose just one
of the many deities and establish a
personal relationship by doing Pooja,
or at least Namaskara, everyday to the
chosen deity. The personal deity then
becomes your personal guide and protector.
The personal deity is called IshtaDeva
or IshtaDevi, your personal god.
Jai: You said that
the entire universe is only another
form of God. Is God formless or can
God take forms?
Grandma: This
big question not only confuses children,
but also puzzles adults. Answers to
this question created various sects
or groups in Hinduism. One sect, called
Arya Samaj, believes that God cannot
have forms and is formless. Another
group believes God has a form. A third
group believes God is formless and takes
forms. Still others believe God is both
with form and without form.
I believe everything has a form. Nothing
in the world is formless. God has a
form, which is invisible to our physical
eyes. He cannot be understood by the
human mind or described by words. Supreme
Being has a transcendental (or out of
this world) form and a Supreme Personality.
He has no origin but is the origin of
everything. He has no beginning or end.
The invisible God is the cause of the
visible world. Invisible does not mean
formless. Everything we see is another
form of God.
Here is a story about
practical application of seeing the
Supreme in all beings as mentioned in
Gita 7.19.
7. See God in
All Beings
In a forest lived a holy man
who had many disciples. He taught them
to see God in all beings and to bow
down before them. One day a disciple
went into the forest to get wood for
fire. Suddenly he heard a shout.
“Get out of the way! A mad elephant
is coming!”
Everyone but the disciple of the holy
man ran away. He saw the elephant as
God in another form, so why should he
run away from it? He stood still, bowed
before the elephant, and began meditating
on God in the form of the elephant.
The mahout (trainer) of the elephant
shouted: “Run away! Run away!”
But the disciple didn’t move.
The animal grabbed him with its trunk,
threw him to one side, and went on its
way. The disciple lay unconscious on
the ground. Hearing what had happened;
his god-brothers came to him and carried
him to the hermitage. With the help
of some herbal medicine, he regained
consciousness.
Then someone asked, “When you
knew the mad elephant was coming, why
didn’t you leave the place?”
He answered: “Our guru has taught
us that God is in all beings, animals
as well as human. Therefore, I thought
it was only the elephant-god that was
coming, so I didn’t run away.”
At this the guru said: “Yes,
my child, it is true that the elephant-god
was coming; but the mahout-god asked
you to get out of way. Why didn’t
you trust the mahout’s words?
Also, the elephant-god does not have
the Self-knowledge that all are God!”
God dwells in all beings. God
is even in the tiger; but you cannot
hug the tiger on that account! Be close
only with good people, and keep away
from the evil-minded. Keep away from
the unholy, the evil, and the impure.
8. The Unseen
One day a 6-year-old girl was sitting
in a classroom. The teacher was going
to explain evolution to the children.
The teacher asked a little boy: “Manav,
do you see the tree outside?”
Manav: “Yes.”
Teacher: “Manav,
do you see the grass outside?”
Manav: “Yes.”
Teacher: “Go
outside and look up and see if you can
see the sky.”
Manav: “Okay.
(He returned a few minutes later.) Yes,
I saw the sky.”
Teacher: “Did
you see God anywhere?”
Manav: “No.”
Teacher: “That’s
my point. We can’t see God because
he isn’t there. He just doesn’t
exist.”
A little girl spoke up and wanted to
ask the boy some questions. The teacher
agreed, and the little girl asked the
boy:
“Manav, Do you see the
tree outside?”
Manav: “Yes.”
Little Girl: “Manav,
do you see the grass outside?”
Manav: “Yessssss!”
Little Girl: “Did
you see the sky?”
Manav: “Yessssss!”
Little Girl: “Manav,
do you see the teacher?”
Manav: “Yes”
Little Girl: “Do
you see her mind or her brain?”
Manav: “No”
Little Girl: “Then
according to what we were taught today
in school, she must not have one!”
God cannot be seen
with our physical eyes. He can be seen
by the eyes of knowledge, faith, and
devotion only. (Gita 7.24-25) For we
walk by faith, not by sight. He answers
our prayer!
Chapter 7 summary:
There is only one God, who is called
by many names. Devas, Devis, or deities
in our religion are nothing but the
names of different powers of One Absolute
God. Deities are different names and
forms of God’s powers to help
us worship and pray. Four types of people
worship God. The entire creation is
made up of five basic elements and the
Spirit. God is both formless and with
form. God can take any form. One cannot
know the true nature of God unless one
has spiritual knowledge.
