The Untethered Soul (20 page)

Do you want to know how God looks upon this world? Do you want to know how He feels about different kinds of people? Then look at the sun. Does the sun shine more brightly on a saint than on anyone else? Is the air more available to the saint? Does the rain fall on one neighbor’s trees more than another’s?

You can turn your eyes from the sun’s light and live in darkness for a hundred years. If you then turn them toward the light, the light is still there. It is there for you just the same as for the person who has enjoyed its brilliance for a hundred years. All of nature is like this. The fruit on the tree willingly gives itself to everyone. Do any of the forces of nature differentiate? Does anything in God’s creation, other than the human mind, actually pass judgment? Nature just gives and gives to whoever will receive. Should you choose not to receive, it doesn’t punish you. You punish yourself because you choose not to receive. If you say to the light, “I will not look at you. I’m going to live in darkness,” the light just keeps shining. If you say to God, “I don’t believe in you and want nothing to do with you,” creation continues to sustain you.

Your relationship with God is the same as your relationship with the sun. If you hid from the sun for years and then chose to come out of your darkness, the sun would still be shining as if you had never left. You don’t need to apologize. You just pick your head up and look at the sun. It’s the same way when you decide to turn toward God—you just do it. If, instead, you allow guilt and shame to interfere, that’s just your ego blocking the Divine Force. You can’t offend the Divine One; its very nature is light, love, compassion, protection, and giving. You can’t make it stop loving you. It’s just like the sun. You can’t make the sun stop shining on you; you can only choose not to look at it. The moment you look, you’ll see it’s there.

As you drift back into Spirit, you will see that those are the eyes that look out upon this world. That is the heart that shines down upon everything and everyone. Through those eyes, the most wretched of creatures looks beautiful. That’s the part that no one understands. People say that God cries when He looks at this earth. The saint sees that God goes into ecstasy when He looks upon this earth, under all conditions, and at all times. Ecstasy is the only thing God knows. God’s nature is eternal, conscious bliss. No matter what you’ve done, you’re not going to be the one thing that ruins it.

The beauty is that you can experience this ecstasy. And when you begin to feel this joy, that’s when you’ll know God’s nature. Then nobody will upset or disappoint you. Nothing will create a problem. It will all appear as part of the beautiful dance of creation unfolding before you. Your natural state will get higher and higher. You’ll feel love instead of shame. Instead of being unwilling to lift your eyes to the Divine because of what you’ve said or done, you’ll see the Divine as a place of unconditional refuge.

Contemplate this, and let go of the idea of a judgmental God. You have a loving God. In truth, you have love itself for a God. And love cannot do other than love. Your God is in ecstasy and there’s nothing you can do about it. And if God is in ecstasy, I wonder what He sees when He looks at you?

Freud, Sigmund. 1927.
The Ego and the Id
. Authorized translation by Joan Riviere. London: Leonard & Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press, and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis.

Holy Bible: King James Version
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Maharshi, Ramana. 1972.
The Spiritual Teachings of Ramana Maharshi.
Copyright 1972 by Sri Ramanasramam. Biographical sketch and glossary copyright 1998 Shambhala Publications, Inc. Boston: Shambhala Publications, Inc.

Merriam-Webster. 2003.
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary
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Microsoft Encarta Dictionary
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Plato.1998 edition.
Republic.
Translated with an introduction and notes by Robin Waterfield. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc.

Yamamoto, Kosho. 1973 edition.
The Mahaparinirvana Sutra
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The Karin Buddhological Series No. 5
. Yamaguchi-ken, Japan: Karinbunko.

About the Author

Michael A. Singer received a master’s degree in economics from the University of Florida in 1971. During his doctoral work, he had a deep inner awakening and went into seclusion to focus on yoga and meditation. In 1975, he founded Temple of the Universe, a now long-established yoga and meditation center where people of any religion or set of beliefs can come together to experience inner peace. Through the years, Singer has made major contributions in the areas of business, the arts, education, health care, and environmental protection. He has previously authored two books on the integration of Eastern and Western philosophy: The Search for Truth and Three Essays on Universal Law: Karma, Will, and Love.

Additional Teachings by the Author

Go beyond the book—continue your journey with additional teachings by Michael A. Singer. Visit
www.untetheredsoul.com
where lectures on spiritual growth are available on audio CD.

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