#76 Unconditional Emotion- Meditation
The true nature of God is without cause and without support. Any person’s knowledge or perception is not this. 0 Dear One, in this way one becomes Shiva.Verse 99, Vigyan Bhairava Tantra
God – Unconditional
God is unconditional. That is the meaning of this verse. This is an important point to understand. It is a truth that can transform our lives. God’s existence is forever. God’s existence does not depend on any cause or support. God has no beginning, no end. More importantly, God’s nature is without cause or support. This means that God’s nature remains the same. It does not depend on any cause or condition.
Religions teach us of a God that is sometimes angry and sometimes loving. If we are nice, we are let into heaven. If we are not, we face the wrath of God, and go to hell forever. This verse says that all this is untrue. God’s nature, God’s love is unconditional. God’s love is not dependent on any cause or condition. God loves us all the same whether we behave or misbehave. We sometimes believe that through our actions we can make God unhappy or angry. Nothing makes God unhappy or angry. God’s nature is not dependent on any cause or condition. God’s happiness or love needs no condition to exist. God’s love is unconditional and freely given, and that is God’s greatest gift to us. In turn, the greatest gift we can give to the world is our love, given freely and unconditionally. Any persons knowledge or perception is not this.
Human Being – Conditional
Human beings tend to be conditional. If our children are nice, we love them. If they misbehave, we withdraw our love from them. We get angry, and sometimes spank them. God would never do that. To be like God, we would need to continuously love our children, irrespective of how they behave. There would be no exceptions. Our children would be taught discipline through love, not through fear of punishment. Humans are above all very conditional about life. We love life, when it brings good things to us. We hate life, when it brings disagreeable things to us. 0 Dear One, in this way, one becomes Shiva. In this way, means one has to be unconditionally like God. To practice this verse means that our nature has to be like God’s – unconditional, not dependent on external causes or circumstances.
Lotus Flower
Yoga gives the beautiful example of a lotus flower to explain this concept. The lotus flower lives in water. It is found in water. Yet, if you touch a lotus flower, you will find that it is dry. Even though the lotus flower lives in water, it is unaffected by it. We are to apply the same principle to our lives. Even though we live in this world, we are not to be affected by it. When we apply this to our lives, we decide to be happy, or joyful, or love, irrespective of our external circumstances. Whatever the circumstances of our life, we always choose to be happy.
Directing the Attention to Yourself
To practice this, awareness is required. When we are not aware, we will give the same conditioned response to every situation in life. When we are aware, we can choose our response to every situation in life. There is a very similar message also given in the Conversations with God series of books by Neale Donald Walsch. Conversations with God say that what we are being is totally within our control. It does not have to be a reaction to the external world. Our state of being depends on our decision to be something. We can decide to be happy, or peaceful, or loving, and we will be that, no matter what happens in our lives. To practice this, you should direct your attention back towards yourself, to what you are being. Whatever you are being (sad, depressed, etc.}, change it. Be happy, or joyful, or loving. Maintain your awareness on what you are being throughout the day. Even when you are talking to someone, remain aware of what you are being. If you find yourself thinking, or getting upset, or sad, stop and change what you are being. Again become happy, or joyful or loving. This is the way to practice this verse. In this way, one will remain happy or joyful throughout the day, in response to each and every circumstance in life. In this way, we are being like God throughout the day. When you are like God, you become God – you realize your true nature.