The spiritual life
exists beyond the names and forms of objective and material
existence and their limitations. Dharma is not a mere name but the
indicator of this Eternal Truth behind the name and form. In
Sanatana Dharma or the Universal Truth it is not name and form,
which being limited cannot be universal, that is emphasized, but the
underlying reality which transcends all appearances. The name or
form of one's spiritual practice is not what matters, but our real
character, who we really are, and what we are actually doing in
life, our daily activity.
It doesn't matter if we
are called pious according to one religious authority or
excommunicated by another. The real issue is whether we are
introducing a greater consciousness into the world through how we
live. Whatever name or form one
may look up to in religion is not of ultimate significance but how
the name and form is used to approach the Inner Reality. If
concentrating on God in the form of a monkey aids in preparing the
mind for meditation, such a monkey is a great dharma, a great truth.
On the other hand, if the idea of God encourages only dogmatism and
sectarianism, such a God is an obstacle to our spiritual life that
must be cast aside.
In this regard it is
more important to recognize God in the world, in Nature, in human
beings, and in oneself, than to worship God beyond the world, apart
from other people, apart from Nature and ourselves. If we can't
recognize the immanent Divine, the Divine within us and within the
world, we are not even entitled to talk about the Transcendent. If
we can't perceive the Dharma we cannot find That which is beyond all
laws and limitations.
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