We all know that man came first, and God followed. He is an artificial invention, concept, and belief. There is no unanimity or accord on the nature and existence of God, and each religion has its own set of ideas. And yet, His effect on humanity is tremendous, and most of us blindly believe in the religion provided by others. For this reason, God has become the fundamental basis for enhancing one’s idea of the ultimate supreme being.

Our perception of God changes as we evolve from the physical and psychological into the formless spiritual phase. Higher knowledge, spiritual awakening, and meditation make us realise the ambiguities behind our unquestioning beliefs. These include fables, dogmas, and various rituals, which make us spend time and money in the name of God. God will remain a fundamental concept of faith and belief if we think and determine from the thinking mind. This faith is passed down from one generation to another, and the existence of God becomes unquestionable. However, on the path towards spirituality, the Creator and the creation are the same, and you experience God rather than follow Him.

Spiritually, Godis not a being, but that Being-ness, the presence of absolute universal aware energy, highlighted in non-dual traditions in Advaita Vedanta—formless, infinite, eternal, and aware. It is not someone you worship, but something you experience and realise that God is nowhere outside but in your true self. In this manner, God is not worshipped externally but experienced and realised internally through spiritual awareness.

It is irrelevant to know who God is, but to know ‘what’ is God. He is a quality to experience, reflecting in our divine deeds out of divinity for the sake of divineness. Spiritual awareness, fearlessness, and selfless love are the qualities that enable us to experience God.

We create God out of our imagination, fear, and want. The actual church or temple is within; all you need to do is awaken your soul and impartially witness your ever-desirous and selfish mind.

God and religion have become synonymous because each religion has its own set of beliefs that consider both to be personal, expressing superhuman powers. Since we do not know who we are, we presume and visualise an imaginary outer creator who will shower us, granting all our wishes to become true. However, if we delve deeper into the core of any religion and its concept of God, we discover that the founders of these religions achieved enlightenment through personal experiences. They learned the same unity in the continuity of all humanity. They recognised the nature of reality to be the same, based on their own wholehearted experiences.

However, the interpretations differed when they expressed their encounters through word communication. It led to separate beliefs, which their followers condensed into a faith, ultimately giving rise to organised religion. While the founders had personal realisations, their followers were limited to their blind intellectual following. Hence, instead of religion, religiousness in religiosity towards all existence is far more significant than any proper noun. God is more of a verb to experience than a noun.

There have been many wars, and we are still fighting over religious differences in the name of God, with religious beliefs justifying violence and persecution. When we view human personalities as gods, it is for their higher consciousness rather than their physical self. Let’s consider, as told by spiritualism, that the Creator and the creation are one. The Supreme is that impersonal spirit or waves of aware, conscious energy. Though it is challenging to comprehend, this abstract formation is considered by many to be divine, signifying the highest attribute in the vibrations of supreme power.

We notice an inevitable disillusionment among today’s youth regarding religion and towards God. It is because there are too many unquestioning beliefs with unanswered questions. They wish to know why this almighty being sitting above, our Creator, cannot do anything about today’s misery and suffering. If he is Superman, he has disappointed us, doing a miserable job that has resulted in all the destruction, distress, and discomfort we see around us.

Contrary to the misconception that Hinduism worships multiple gods, it venerates one Supreme Reality under various names and forms. It becomes more accessible for the masses to relate to a symbol or figure rather than worship a metaphysical reality. They may worship a tree, mountain, river, or any other object that appeals to them since all forms of matter and consciousness are an extension of the same Absolute Reality. No physical or abstract existence is left out because all attributes are part of the supreme spirit.

Therefore, when we enter the realm of metaphysical reality, we encounter an abstract rather than a material presence. You become more aware, conscious spiritual energy independent of matter. Here, we explain the Universe not in the solidity of its forms but as a connection of those forms to its ultimate, infinite, formless reality of nothing in unity and continuity from which everything emerges to disappear back into its nothingness. We may physically be a continuation of the animal realm. Still, we are a potential part of that spiritual kingdom, which is beyond everything, ultimately merging into the nothingness of the dark energy that encompasses the Universe.

This phenomenon occurs when there is clarity about the nature of the Ultimate. Despite so much diversity, we are all connected by the same ultimate reality. You must remember that the ultimate can only be one and not two, though we may express the same through multiple names and transient forms. Therefore, you can relate to the ultimate in any way you wish since all minds are unique; it entirely depends upon your belief, faith, and experience.

In Hinduism, the comprehensive idea of God, referring to the infinite, ultimate energy of the Universe, is the Absolute or Supreme Reality, which they refer to as “Shiva” (meaning auspicious and as nothing in Sanskrit, signifying the Creator and the destroyer). Metaphysically, it is more of a principle in the form we refer to as waves of spirit, considered the highest attribute as aware energy of the Universe, through which you acquire the ability to become conscious of all you perceive of the Universe.

Therefore, the concept of God, which is more of a realised state of complete awareness in pure consciousness, is more evident in human personality than in an abstract supernatural state. We, in turn, are also a potentially minuscule part of the most articulate manifestation of this Supreme reality in the form of God on this earth – ‘Thou art That.’

The principle of the Universe is fluid, where all forms originate and return to the same. All these explanations are conveyed through language and words; hence, they differ in their interpretations. Religious experiences are among the most valuable sources for gaining insight into the nature of our reality. I repeat, if we look at and follow religion from its periphery, it will form a jargon of caste, culture, creeds, and dogmas, mainly meant to create fear for us to follow its tenets. However, if you delve deeper into the core of any religion, the message remains the same: the realisation of oneness as a purely experiential phenomenon. It is how the founders of all faiths wished it to be. Therefore, the essence of God’s message is not found by unquestioningly following any designated religion; it becomes evident when we practice and experience its virtues in a balanced approach to religiousness.

NAMASTE