13 How Can We See God?§
Mystics and ordinary people have had visions of God, seeing Siva in their meditations, in their dreams, within the sanctum of a temple. It is the third eye, our mind’s eye, that sees the non-physical reality.§
SHUTTERSTOCK§
Saivism teaches us that God Siva is knowable and we can experience Him right here and now. It is not just a matter of faith. Satguru Yogaswami declared, “See God in everything. You are in God. God is within you. God is in everyone. See Him there.” It takes much meditation to find God Siva in all things, through all things. Gurudeva taught, “He is there as the Soul of each soul. You can open your inner eye and see Him in others, see Him in the world as the world.” Perhaps the easiest place to start seeing God is in great religious teachers. We feel a spiritual aura about them that is uplifting. We see a light in their eyes that we do not see in others. The mere sound of their words encourages us to live a more spiritual life. Another way to see God is to look deeply into the eyes of another person. Look beyond the personality, go deeper than his or her intellect and see the pure life energy, which is God. This practice does not stop with people but can also include seeing the life energy in trees, birds and animals. Doing this, you discover that God is our life. God is the life in all beings. Becoming aware of this life energy in all that lives is becoming aware of God’s presence. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad explains: “He who knows God as the Life of life, the Eye of the eye, the Ear of the ear, the Mind of the mind, he indeed comprehends fully the Cause of all causes.” A third place to look for God is in the Hindu temple. In powerful temples you can sense the Deity’s presence in the enshrined murti, and even catch a glimpse of His divine form during the puja. This is done with your third eye, your inner eye of divine sight. Many people, not just saints and sages, have seen God in such mystical visions.§
GURUDEVA: Smile when you feel unhappy with someone and say to yourself, “How nice to see you, Siva, in this form.” Animals, beggars, princes, politicians, friends and enemies, holy men, saints and sages are all Siva to the soul that loves God. He smiles and thinks to himself, “How nice to see you, Siva, in this, another of your many forms.”§