Building Relationship with the Divine

There is a big problem with God. When we mention God immediately the association is to God prescribed by our religion. I have a problem with people being asked and told what their religion is.

People become something only when they demonstrate, inculcate or believe in something. For example a Doctor is a doctor because he is qualified, trained and is practising medicine. One spends time or effort in watching or playing football because he realises an interest within him for football. He has chosen, mostly unconciosuly, football to other games. One may believe he is rightist politically because he thinks he understands the ideology of the right and believes in them. One is an Indian because he starts associating himself with the cultures and norms of an Indian. In fact people tend to start understanding why they are told they are Indian. Initially it is only a geographical or demographic meaning.

None of these are true in the case of when one calls himself a Christian, Hindu or a Muslim. One is stamped in one of these categories. This also to an extent is fine like in the case of a citizenship. However, the problem is that they are forced into the rituals of these categories, they are told to discriminate themselves and others in terms of the categorisation.

This is unfair. No one should be christened into a particular category. It should be ones own choice. A choice which one makes at whatever time one chooses in ones life.

Now coming to "It". I read somewhere that we need to do away with the term God. Whenever we say God it is immediately connoted to my God, your God. Whereas God is one. Also by giving it some form of human form to the God we start relating to qualities of a human being into the God.

What matters is not a God but It. It is the Divine. The Divine which is common to all. Irrespective of the religion. It is common to all forms of energy - organic, inorganic. It is applicable to all form of energy expression - space, love, hatred etc. Somewhere along by God we are unable to relate Him to everything and anything. Thus starts the discrimination for the application of the God. If there is one It which is universal to anyone and everyone, anything and everything, it can be so much better. After all It is Divine, universal and eternal.

What is the meaning of befriending It? We need to build a love for It in people from the early stages. Like we guide a child to start loving its family members starting with the mother and father. we need to include It as a friend of the child at the early stages. Today we introduce a child to God as someone who will punish or give. But in the process we have distanced him so far away from the child. We need to bring It closer to the child. when the child realises a friend in It and builds this friendship over the years as it grows and develops it will be a much more healthier human being.

Why?
What would be one great desire of a human being. It is that they wish they had someone who will solve all the problems for them. Fulfill all the wishes of theirs. Which will guide them through their life. Which remove all the miseries for them. Such a thing they are not able to find in any of the human beings they relate to - mother, father, husband, wife, children, teacher, friend - any one. Finally they come to Him and think he will solve all of them for him. Then they get into ritualistic contracts and transactions. Then when they do not get what they have desired they doubt him or change the ritual (instead of one Guru go to another Guru, add a new temple to go to from now on, introduce a new prayer...). Such contracts do not work and thus he is disillusioned.

Now if they were told that there is It relating to whom all problems will get solved, how nice and blissful will it be. There cannot be a better friend than the It which is supreme, universal, eternal, all knowing, all guiding. But the realisation of the presence of It needs practice like anything else - like learning to play football, football being a game of interest to me; becoming a Doctor, getting educated, trained and practising medicine; becoming a good son, learning the whats and what-nots from parents; becoming a good lover, expressing ones feelings truly and sincerely. The connection to It is there in everything and anything. We need to guide the connection into the human being right from the birth of the child so that it builds a healthy relationship with It from the very beginning. Not in the form of God who is to be feared or kept in the skies but It is to be like a teddy bear to the child close to it which it relates to, cuddles, and finds succor in.

It is a big relief. It just needs us to go beyond or maybe shun the Gods in the way they have been described to us and are made to relate to. An education where the characteristics of It are explained. At some time we are allowed to experiment the relationship with It. Like any friendship it will get strengthened by going through the motions of the relationships dictated by the emotions, thoughts, feelings expressed, accepted or unaccepted. When one is allowed to experiment with It he or she will discover the true friendship with It. He or she will find oneself in a much better mental, emotional state because that is what a good friendship does. One becomes a better person and develops to become a better human being. After all he or she has a superb friend who rids of all the problems, shows possibilities, strengthens possibilities, gives hope, and makes life blissful.

We need to get beyond God. We need to relate to It. It which is universal and eternal. It should be exposed to a child as someone one can befriend. We should allow the friendship to develop through the tests and tribulations of any relationship. We will realise we have a true friend who is there to make everyone of us better.