Knowing God
December 2016
By Shivi Verma
It is in simplicity and plainness that we come to know the real nature of God, says Shivi Verma
The idea of God used to fill me with awe in my childhood. He was some magical, mystical, powerful creature who ran the show and who was beyond human comprehension. Simply by observing the amazing diversity spread before me, I used to get wide-eyed at the mind-boggling intelligence and creative power of the Almighty. In science, studying biology used to fill me with wonder. As I saw microscopic xylem and phloem bundles of plant stems under a microscope, my small brain almost burst thinking how minutely the Creator has created the system of life-support in any organism. A look at aquatic life used to astonish me with the variety of life forms existing in a homogeneous environment, all perfectly compatible. Even the way humans operated and created things used to give me an insight into the vast force of intelligence guiding them and making them create awesome buildings, machines, civilisations, irrigation networks, administrative mechanisms and economic systems. It wasn’t possible without a humongous intelligence working secretly behind the scenes.
And the more awed I was by Him, the more desirable and irresistible He felt. His scent, His touch, His footprints, His whispers seemed everywhere, but He Himself was elusive. And when I read about the self- realised like the Buddha, Mahavira, Osho, Krishnamurthy, Ramana Maharshi, I was even more awed. They seemed to have conquered some insurmountable peak of realisation which took them far, far away from ordinary mortals and hoisted them on a sublime pedestal of grandeur, knowledge, wisdom, power, and bliss. What they spoke also appeared like mysterious mumbo-jumbo. What did Osho mean when he said, “You are the one blocking the path, remove yourself and you will find your destination.” How does one remove oneself from the picture? By suicide? If he meant ego then what was the means to get rid of it? All my efforts to unravel the mystery of creation were apparently leading me to a high goal, the seat of mystical powers and knowledge.
And then came a day when I gave up, because I could no longer go on. My mind collapsed, tired of the quest. I was too exhausted. And as it crumbled I saw that all mind-related concepts, pre-acquired knowledge, and ideas had begun to flow out from me.
I was becoming plainer and simpler. I smiled more. I accepted more. I loved more
And I interpreted less, judged less, bothered less, and thought less. I became so close to Mother Earth and all the sentient beings. There was simply no need to know any answers. Because everything I needed to know was available naturally. There was no high goal to reach, or mysteries to unlock. I was becoming my simplest, most natural, and deeply grounded self, who felt very ordinary from within. And soon I realised this is what God wanted from all of us. To become, pure, clean, simple, selfless and uncomplicated beings. Upon such people He bestowed His bounties, whispered His secrets, gave rare insights and creates magical possibilities in life. Now to me, the Almighty no longer sits on a high, unreachable throne. He walks with me and He talks with me, and sits close by in silence. He holds my hand at every step, and says that He’s always there. And what makes him happy is my plainness, my innocence and my readiness to trust Him and my heart. I am reminded of the chorus of a song by Anne Murrey,
And He walks with me
And He talks with me
And He tells me I am His own
And the joy we share as we tarry there
None other has ever known.
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About the author : Deputy Editor with Life Positive, Shivi Verma is a devotee who found all her answers in loving God passionately.