Where Is God?

Ramana Maharshi

oi-Priya Devi

By Priya Devi

Tuesday, October 19, 2010, 14:58

Finding God is the mission of all those who tread the path of spirituality. One's spiritual practices and activities are directed towards finding God.

Where is God?

Once a devotee, Mrs.D.Jinarajadasa raised a question to Ramana Maharshi regarding the presence of God. She claimed that the presence of a universe simply implies the presence of its creator, God.

So where is God?

Ramana Maharshi answered that if she thought herself to be a human (body), then she is bound to see a universe and a maker of it owing to her tendency towards objectification.

But if she realised herself to be the pure self ( existence or consciousness) there is nothing else but it.

Ramana points out that when one's vision is established in the self, he realises that the world, God and the individual all rise and set into the self at the time of waking and deep sleep.

An elevating and awakening truth from Ramana Maharshi regarding the authentication of the self (mere existence, consciousness) is worth discussing.

He says, “If God is outside the self, He will be self-less, that is outside existence, that is non existent!"(Courtesy: Guru Ramana, S.S.Cohen)

Words of wisdom casually cast by an ardent follower of Ramana Maharshi 's teachings is worth mentioning.

He says, “Finding God outside man or other beings is not possible! Bhagavan (Ramana) found God in all beings as He realised the Self in Himself to be God, losing the sense of separate existence"

Together with separate existence, all differences disappear and all that remains is pure existence (consciousness) which actually is what we call God.

A refined love of the highest degree for all alike is possible only with the loss of separate existence, which is the end of finding God. (A short story on Kabir finding God)
So where is God?

God is in all and all is in the self.